Scalability of Spine-and-Leaf Architecture for Network Expansion

Spine-and-Leaf Architecture for Scalable Network Expansion

Question

In which way does a spine-and-leaf architecture allow for scalability in a network when additional access ports are required?

Answers

Explanations

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A. B. C. D.

C.

Spine-leaf architecture is typically deployed as two layers: spines (such as an aggregation layer), and leaves (such as an access layer)

Spine-leaf topologies provide high-bandwidth, low-latency, nonblocking server-to-server connectivity.

Leaf (aggregation) switches are what provide devices access to the fabric (the network of spine and leaf switches) and are typically deployed at the top of the rack.

Generally, devices connect to the leaf switches.

Devices can include servers, Layer 4-7 services (firewalls and load balancers), and WAN or Internet routers.

Leaf switches do not connect to other leaf switches.

In spine-and-leaf architecture, every leaf should connect to every spine in a full mesh.

Spine (aggregation) switches are used to connect to all leaf switches and are typically deployed at the end or middle of the row.

Spine switches do not connect to other spine switches.

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/switches/nexus-9000-series-switches/guide-c07-733228.html

A spine-and-leaf architecture is a network topology design that is commonly used in data centers. In this design, spine switches act as the core of the network, and leaf switches are connected to the spine switches. The leaf switches are used to connect end devices, such as servers and storage devices. The spine-and-leaf architecture provides a highly scalable and flexible network design that can easily accommodate additional access ports.

Option A is correct. When additional access ports are required, a spine-and-leaf architecture allows for scalability by adding a spine switch and a leaf switch with redundant connections between them. The spine switches provide high-speed interconnectivity between the leaf switches, and the redundant connections ensure that there is no single point of failure in the network. This design allows for additional access ports to be added without impacting the existing network infrastructure. As the number of access ports increases, additional spine switches and leaf switches can be added in a similar manner to provide the required level of scalability.

Option B is not correct. While it is true that spine switches typically have higher-speed uplinks than leaf switches, adding a spine switch with at least 40 GB uplinks does not necessarily provide scalability when additional access ports are required. The spine-and-leaf architecture is designed to provide scalability by adding more switches rather than increasing the speed of the uplinks.

Option C is partially correct. A leaf switch can be added with connections to every spine switch to provide redundancy and load balancing. However, this design does not necessarily provide scalability when additional access ports are required. In order to provide scalability, additional spine switches and leaf switches must be added to the network.

Option D is not correct. Adding a leaf switch with a single connection to a core spine switch does not provide scalability when additional access ports are required. This design would create a bottleneck at the core spine switch and limit the number of access ports that can be added to the network. The spine-and-leaf architecture is designed to provide high-speed interconnectivity between the leaf switches, which allows for additional access ports to be added without impacting the performance of the network.