Arista High Performance Leaf Switches - Refurbished, Used, and New

The six families at a glance

Why these are leaf switches

In a leaf-spine design, servers, storage and firewalls connect to the leaf, and the leaf uplinks to the spine. EOS adds MLAG and ECMP for building that fabric. The 7060X, 7250QX and 7260X also work as small spines, and Arista positions the 7250X as a combined leaf and spine. For deep-buffer routing, spine and core roles, see the aggregation spine and modular chassis collections. For the 7050 line of 10G and 25G leaf switches, see standard data leaf switches.

The families in brief

7060X: the widest family here, all 1RU. Choose 32 ports of 100G (7060CX and 7060CX2), 48 ports of 25G with six 100G uplinks (7060SX2-48YC6), or 32 ports of 400G (7060DX4 and 7060PX4). The DX4 takes QSFP-DD optics and the PX4 takes OSFP.

7160: programmable 1RU leaf switches in three versions: 32 ports of 100G, 48 ports of 25G with 100G uplinks, or 48 ports of 10GBASE-T copper with 100G uplinks. Arista has ended sale of the family, so most buyers are replacing or expanding a 7160 network.

7170: programmable switches built on an Intel Tofino P4 chip, so the forwarding pipeline can be reprogrammed for custom packet handling. The 7170-32C and 7170-32CD are 1RU with 32 ports of 100G, and the 32CD adds a second pipeline. The 7170-64C is 2RU with 64 ports of 100G.

7250QX: a 2RU switch with 64 QSFP+ ports that runs 64x 40G or up to 256x 10G with breakout cables. It has no 100G ports.

7260X: 2RU switches with 64 ports. The 7260CX-64 and 7260CX3-64 are 100G, and the 7260QX-64 is 40G. The CX3 is Arista's newer 100G version.

7280E: 1RU switches with 48 SFP+ ports at 1G and 10G and a choice of uplinks: four 40G ports on the 7280SE-64, two 100G ports on the 7280SE-68, or two MXP ports on the 7280SE-72.

Which family do I need?

• You need 25G server ports: Choose the 7060SX2-48YC6 or the 7160-48YC6.
• You need 10GBASE-T copper server ports: The 7160-48TC6 is the only one in this group.
• You need 100G ports: Choose the 7060CX or CX2 (32 ports), the 7170 (32 or 64 ports), or the 7260X (64 ports).
• You need 400G: Choose the 7060DX4-32 or 7060PX4-32, and confirm whether your optics are QSFP-DD or OSFP.
• You need 40G ports: Choose the 7250QX-64 or the 7260QX-64.
• You have 10G racks and need faster uplinks: Choose a 7280E, with 40G on the 7280SE-64 or 100G on the 7280SE-68.
• You want a programmable data plane: Choose the 7160 or the 7170.
• You are replacing a unit in a running network: Stay with the same family, port type and airflow.
• You need a specific airflow: Every family comes in front-to-back and back-to-front, shown as -F or -R in the part number. Fans and power supplies must match the airflow of the switch.

Arista lifecycle

Arista has ended sale of several of these families, so many buyers here are replacing or expanding a network they already run. Arista lists March 28, 2021 as end of sale and March 28, 2024 as end of life for the 7160, September 28, 2024 and September 28, 2027 for the 7170, and October 1, 2026 and October 1, 2031 for the 7060CX and 7060CX2. Arista announced end of sale for the 7250QX in 2018, and lists April 2, 2021 as end of sale and April 2, 2026 as end of life for the 7260CX-64.

What is included

Check each listing for what ships with the switch: power supplies and fans are included only when the listing says so. Power supplies, fan modules, rack kits and optics are also sold on their own.

FAQ

Which optics and cables do these switches take?
It depends on the port. 100G ports take QSFP28 and 40G ports take QSFP+. 25G ports take SFP28 and 10G ports take SFP+. 400G ports take QSFP-DD or OSFP, and the 7060DX4 and 7060PX4 use different ones. The 7280SE-72 uplinks are MXP ports rather than QSFP, so ask us which cables fit.

Can I mix families or models in one network?
Yes. They all run Arista EOS and connect over standard Ethernet. For two switches that work as a pair, such as an MLAG pair, we suggest the same model and airflow, and both must run compatible software. Ask us to check before you order.

Where is the 7280R?
The 7280R is a deep-buffer routing switch, and it is in the aggregation spine switches collection with the 7280R family. The 7280E here is the older 10G leaf with 40G or 100G uplinks.

NetworkTigers has supplied tested network equipment since 1996, and every unit carries a 365-day warranty. Ask us for a quote.