Stage XXIX: 40GbE

After completing my workstation upgrade Stage XXVIII: Workstation 5K it was time to invest in my datacenter again.

New Internet Router:

I used my Ubiquiti USG-Pro-4 Internet Router over one year and I was happy with it, until I activated Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) and Intrusion Prevention System (IPS). The USG-Pro-4 was only able to handle 250Mbit due to hardware limitations. My current Internet connection is 450Mbit and internal LAN 10GbE. I have plans to upgrade my internet connection to gigabit or more…. I need a new internet router!

I really like the Ubiquiti stuff, so I decided to get the new 10GbE router: USG-XG-8

This thing is a beauty and a beast. It is powerful enough for all my HomeLab requirements at this time. Here are the specs:

16 Core CPU and 16GB DDR4 RAM!!!!!

This is the perfect router for my homelab. I patched it to my 10GbE Ubiquiti US16-XG switch and to my cable modem using 1GbE copper transceiver.

I configured every single DPI/IPS option and tested my connection speed: Full speed 448Mbit Downstream, 20 Mbit Upstream

This is the actual Ubiquiti network equipment of my whole house, including garage and garden… 🙂

40GbE Backbone:

After finishing upgrading my internet router it was time to upgrade my backbone network. I was able to get a 32 port 40GbE Dell S6000 switch from eBay.

This monster will become my new backbone switch…..

32 x 40GbE ports that can be split up with special breakout cables to support 4 x 10GbE. That is the perfect solution for all my servers. The newer ones will be connected using 40GbE Fibre Cables and the older systems will be connected using QSFP to 4 x SFP+ cables.

I already have some Mellanox 40GbE cards inside my main vSAN cluster installed and I have ordered the 40GbE LOM card for my Cohesity HPE server.

I have connected the new Dell S6000 switch with a breakout cable (QSFP-4xSFP+) to my Ubiquiti US-16-XG 10GbE switch in LACP mode. My two Lenovo M4 vSAN All Flash NVMe systems are connected via 2 x 40GbE and 4 x 10GbE to my network. My backup Cohesity server is connected with 2 x 40GbE. All other servers and systems are connected via 10GbE and breakout cables to the new S6000 backbone. I have already ordered 4 additional Mellanox Dual Port 40GbE cards to support my newest project, which is actually in stealth mode….

Here is the actual network state of my entire HomeLab:

Stay tuned for the next episode, which will be a real big thing!!!

#HomeLabKing