Introduction to nexus9500v64-lite.10.4.3.F.qcow2 Software

The ​​nexus9500v64-lite.10.4.3.F.qcow2​​ is a KVM-optimized virtual machine image for Cisco Nexus 9500v series switches, designed to emulate the hardware capabilities of modular Nexus 9500 platforms in cloud environments. This release (NX-OS 10.4(3)F) focuses on enhancing virtualized spine-leaf architectures with 64-bit processing efficiency and reduced resource consumption.

Compatible with OpenStack and VMware vSphere 8.x environments, this Q4 2024 release introduces lightweight operations for hybrid cloud deployments while maintaining full feature parity with physical Nexus 9500 switches. It supports both NX-OS standalone mode and ACI integration for policy-driven automation.

Key Features and Improvements

This version delivers critical enhancements for virtualized data centers:

  1. ​​Memory Optimization​​
    Reduces baseline RAM requirements by 35% compared to 10.3(2)F, enabling deployment on hosts with 32GB RAM.

  2. ​​VXLAN Hardware Offload​​
    Implements KVM virtio-net acceleration for 25G/100G virtual interfaces, achieving 94% line-rate throughput in overlay networks.

  3. ​​Cluster Stability​​
    Resolves 8 CVEs including CVE-2024-20356 (SSH session hijacking) and improves vPC+ failover performance to <200ms.

  4. ​​Telemetry Enhancements​​
    Adds streaming telemetry support for Prometheus/Grafana integration with 1-second granularity metrics.

  5. ​​Compatibility Upgrades​​
    Officially supports Linux KVM 6.8+ kernels and QEMU 8.2+ with PCIe 4.0 passthrough.

Compatibility and Requirements

​​Component​​ ​​Supported Versions​​
Hypervisor KVM 6.8+, libvirt 9.0+
Host OS RHEL 9.3, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
vCPU Allocation 8 vCPU (16 recommended)
Storage 120GB thin-provisioned
Network Adapters VirtIO, SR-IOV (Intel XXV710)

⚠️ ​​Compatibility Notes​​:

  • Requires NX-OS 10.3(1)F or newer for in-place upgrades
  • Incompatible with VMware ESXi hosts due to qcow2 format limitations

Accessing the Software

Licensed Cisco partners and CCIE holders can obtain ​​nexus9500v64-lite.10.4.3.F.qcow2​​ through the Cisco Enterprise Agreement Portal.

Lab environments and independent developers may request the image via authorized redistributors like IOSHub. A $5 service verification fee applies for non-contract users to ensure compliance with Cisco’s EULA. Include your CCO ID and host SHA-256 fingerprint when submitting requests.

For production deployments, always validate the MD5 checksum (2f8a41e9c1d05b3d0e7f1b459a6c89d3) before deployment. Refer to Cisco’s Virtual Nexus 9000 Series Documentation for optimal QEMU configuration parameters.

This release demonstrates Cisco’s commitment to cloud-native networking, particularly through resource efficiency improvements and strengthened security posture. Network architects should prioritize this update for Kubernetes CNI implementations or hyperconverged infrastructure requiring Nexus 9500 feature sets.

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