[j-nsp] MX304 Port Layout

[Tarko Tikan]

hey,

> While I'm not sure operators want that, they will take a look if the 
> lower price does not impact performance.

Previously mentioned centralized boxes are actually becoming more and 
more common now (in addition to non-redundant pizzabox formfactor that 
has been available for ages) that single NPU can do 2+ Tbps. For BCM J2 
see ACX7509, Nokia IXR-R6d or certain Cisco NCS models. All pretty good 
fits for SP aggregation networks.

Single NPU doesn't mean non-redundant - those devices run two (or 4 in 
ACX case) BCM NPUs and switch "linecards" over to backup NPU when 
required. All without true fabric and distributed NPUs to keep the cost 
down.

IMHO these are very compelling options for SP market, you get selection 
of linecards for different applications/architectures yet the overall 
size of the device (and power consumption) is small. I've been trying to 
explain to one of the major vendors that they should build similar 
device with their own silicon so you get similar benefits while keeping 
the rich featureset that comes with vendor silicon compared to BCM.

-- 
tarko