Fabric Automation and Orchestration

XCO automates and orchestrates SLX IP fabrics, Extreme 8000 series, and tenant networks, with support for the following:
  • Building and managing small data center (non-Clos) fabrics and 3-stage and 5-stage IP Clos fabrics
  • Managing tenant-aware Layer 2 and Layer 3 networks
  • Integrating Virtual Management ecosystem platforms, such as VMWare vCenter, OpenStack, and Microsoft SCVMM
  • Providing a single point of configuration for your entire fabric

XCO consists of core K3s containerized services that interact with each other and with other infrastructure services to provide the core functions of fabric and tenant network automation. For more information, see XCO Microservices.

CLI and API

Using the built-in command and OpenAPI-based REST APIs, you can discover physical and logical assets, build and manage fabrics, manage the XCO system, and configure security. For more information, see the ExtremeCloud Orchestrator Command Reference, 3.2.1 and REST API Documentation for XCO.

Deployment

For more information about deployment scenarios, see the ExtremeCloud Orchestrator Deployment Guide, 3.2.1 .

XCO on TPVM
TPVM (Third-Party Virtual Machine) is a guest VM that resides on Extreme SLX devices. You can run XCO from the SLX 9150, SLX 9250, Extreme 8520, Extreme 8720, or SLX 9740 TPVM. In this context, XCO leverages the K3S Kubernetes cluster as an underlying infrastructure for the XCO services deployment. The K3S cluster is a single instance and an important component for supporting high availability. A maximum of 24 devices is supported, either 24 devices in one fabric or 24 devices across multiple fabrics.
XCO on an external VM
You can deploy XCO on an external Virtual Machine to support more than 24 devices or based on where tools are deployed in the data center.
XCO for high availability
A high-availability cluster is a group of servers that provide continuous up time, or at least minimum down time, for the applications on the servers in the group. If an application on one server fails, another server in the cluster maintains the availability of the service or application. You can install XCO on a two-node cluster, including on TPVM, for high availability.
9037725-01 RevAA