Arista DCS-7280SR3MK-48YC8A-S-FLX-F | 7280R3 48-Port 25G Switch, 8x 100G QSFP28, MACsec

Q: What is MACsec and why is it important?
A: MACsec (Media Access Control Security) provides Layer 2 encryption to secure data between network devices. The 7280SR3MK delivers wire-speed MACsec encryption on all ports, protecting sensitive data in cloud, financial, government, and enterprise environments without performance degradation.

Q: What is the difference between the SR3MK and standard SR3 models?
A: The 'MK' designation indicates MACsec encryption support combined with large routing table capacity ('K' variant with FlexRoute for 256K+ routes). The 'A' suffix adds an eight-core x86 CPU for enhanced control plane processing. This model also includes 64 GB DRAM and 120 GB SSD for demanding automation and telemetry workloads.

Q: Can this switch be used as a spine or leaf switch?
A: Yes, the DCS-7280SR3MK-48YC8A is highly versatile and can function as either a leaf or spine switch in modern data center fabrics. The 48x 25G ports are ideal for leaf deployments connecting to servers, while the 8x 100G uplinks provide spine connectivity. It also supports internet peering and edge routing use cases.

Q: What routing protocols and features are supported?
A: The switch supports comprehensive Layer 3 routing including BGP, OSPF, ISIS, VXLAN, EVPN, MPLS (LDP, RSVP-TE, Segment Routing), PIM multicast, and VRF. With the FLX license, it delivers up to 256K routes with support for advanced MPLS-LSR, VXLAN routing, and traffic engineering capabilities.

Q: Is this switch compatible with multi-vendor environments?
A: Yes, the Arista 7280R3 Series runs standards-based protocols and supports industry-standard optics. Arista EOS provides open APIs, Linux shell access, and integration with third-party automation frameworks, making it highly compatible with multi-vendor data center and service provider networks.