Cisco 6509 as PPPoE BRAS

ciscocisco-6500layer2pppoe

I have read that SIP-400 and SPA are compatible with 6509 series switch. These SIP and SPA are used to terminate PPP sessions on 7600 routers. If I installed this SIP and SPA (SPA-5X1GE-V2 for example) on my 6509 chassis, could I configure the switch to terminate PPPoE sessions as a BRAS? In that case, which IOS would support this feature?

The switch has SUP720-PFC3BXL supervisors.

Best Answer

I have read that SIP-400 and SPA are compatible with 6509 series switch. These SIP and SPA are used to terminate PPP sessions on 7600 routers. If i installed this SIP and SPA (SPA-5X1GE-V2 for example) on my 6509 chassis, could i configure the switch to terminate PPPoE sessions? In that case, which IOS would support this feature?

The switch has SUP720-PFC3BXL supervisors.

I have some good news, and bad news:

Good news, the Cisco 7600 supports PPPoE on 7600-SIP-400, see the SIP-400 PPPoE configuration guide. However, starting in IOS 15.2(4)S, the 7600 does not support PPPoE.1

Bad news, PPPoE on SIP-400 requires 12.2SR, and the Sup720-3CXL is not supported in 12.2SR.2; however, Sup720-3B / 3BXL are supported in 12.2SR (see the List of 12.2SR supported hardware for more details).

PPPoE on SIP-400 Requirements:

Restrictions:

  • Customers are discouraged from loading 12.2SR on a Catalyst 6500 branded chassis for PPPoE functionality. Please contact your Cisco account manager if you want to do this.
  • Sup720-3C is not supported, only Sup720-3B, Sup720-3BXL and RSP720 are supported
  • Up to 8000 PPPoE sessions per SIP-400, maximum 32000 PPPoE sessions per chassis (across multple linecards)
  • PBR is not supported on Virtual Template interfaces

1 After Feb 2012, Cisco encourages customers to use the ASR9K for PPPoE termination.
2 The 6500 and 7600 used to share a lot of hardware and software (sometimes on different SW releases), but that sharing has decreased after the release of 12.2(33)SR / 12.2(33)SX.

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