The NCS-55A1-36H-S is a 1RU fixed chassis router featuring 36x 100G QSFP28 ports, capable of operating in 100G, 40G, 25G, and 10G breakout modes. It is widely used in spine-leaf architectures, metro aggregation, and ISP backbone networks.
It is powered by Cisco IOS XR and designed for carrier-grade reliability, deep buffering, and advanced telemetry.
🔑 Key Features
- 36x 100G QSFP28 ports (also supports 40G / 25G / 10G breakout)
- Up to 3.6 Tbps total switching/routing capacity
- Built on Cisco IOS XR (carrier-grade OS)
- Full line-rate MACsec encryption support
- Advanced routing features: Segment Routing, MPLS, EVPN, BGP
- High scalability for IP core and edge deployments
- Redundant power supplies and fan trays
- Ultra-low latency architecture (microsecond-level forwarding)
⚙️ Performance & Architecture
This platform uses high-end Jericho-class ASIC architecture, optimized for:
- Large routing tables (internet-scale)
- Deep packet buffering (service provider traffic)
- High throughput under congestion
- Programmable telemetry and automation support
It can deliver around 3.3+ billion packets per second (Mpps) depending on configuration.
🏢 Typical Use Cases
- ISP core routing
- Internet peering edge
- Data center spine layer
- Carrier aggregation networks
- High-scale MPLS / Segment Routing networks
