I would appreciate improvements in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series as data center equipment. I would like to see features that control traffic and maintain service continuity during the transfer of signals from physical connections to servers. I also want to see improvements in how they control traffic and how they use protocols with performance management, particularly regarding Spanning Tree protocol.
I have not configured the DNA, but I have configured Cisco Intersight, and from Intersight, I have managed monitoring of the servers and switches. I have not given a 10 because there is some dependency on the uplink. If I have a Juniper and want to uplink with Cisco, there could be some configuration challenges. That is the reason I have not given a 10, but a nine rating is perfect for Cisco switches. I am talking about the complexities of third-party integration and multi-OEM integrations. Due to their LACP protocol and those different bits of configurations in the Cisco LACP protocol, sometimes there are LACP errors leading to link failures. I have resolved those issues as well.
If we speak about the negative side, the prices are something that could be improved. It is expensive compared with other competitors, about 40% higher than any other vendor. This is the main point. I'm comparing Cisco with Arista, Juniper, and HP, which are the main competitors in this area. During my experience, I have never been in the middle of discussions about features that Cisco doesn't support. The only discussion is about why Cisco is more expensive than the other vendors. Cisco could create a licensing schema with a smaller approach. The minimum license that you purchase opens a huge number of features, which will increase the price of your product, but at the same time, the customer might not need all these features. If they can create licensing with fewer features, it would be easier to work with these products. Even though it is expensive, I am not sure about the return on investment. It is expensive, and you will need to pay for subscription fees that also are not cheap. The licensing and subscriptions that you need to pay every year to keep your solution up and running are expensive. This is one of the disadvantages compared with other vendors, which have a huge difference.
The potential for improvement lies in the licensing aspect, which is somewhat confusing. The perpetual and subscription licensing is a concern. Many customers are complaining about the transition towards subscription licenses for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, including DCN Premier, DCN Advantage, and DCN Essentials, which add certain functionalities irrespective of the image. The cost is very expensive.
Regarding Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, I think there are hypothetical improvements in the future. However, from the Nexus point, I cannot think of anything at this point in time. In general, regarding automation in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, I think it could be better. They have a lot of automation through Python or Ansible, and Ansible support is there. Automation is already very solid with Nexus.
Automation And Programmability Content Creator at Ine
Real User
Top 10
May 4, 2026
At this point, not much could be improved about Cisco Nexus 9000 Series. Automation GUI based is not the core of the 9000, so this is a different device or a different solution. I do not find anything that could be improved. I think maybe if this would be a larger environment, you might see some bottlenecks, but at this moment when I'm using the 9Ks, there is nothing that I find blocking or that I feel could be improved.
For Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches, I think we need to work on the HSRP. Whenever it flaps or something happens, it creates an issue. That is the only thing. The HSRP flapping is the issue. Whenever the connection is flapped, the HSRP gives a problem.
After the initial integration, the focus has been on support rather than further development. Cost-wise, Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very expensive. The pricing could absolutely be improved. So far, there is nothing to improve other than the pricing.
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series offers ease of use, high performance, and flexibility with support for VPCs, VXLAN, SDN, and Layer 3 capabilities, optimizing policy management and network segmentation.This series is recognized for its stability and high-density interfaces. Integrating seamlessly with Cisco DNA and ACI, it enhances data center operations through efficient port channeling and trunking for VLAN management. The ability to support multiple connection speeds allows expanded network...
I would appreciate improvements in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series as data center equipment. I would like to see features that control traffic and maintain service continuity during the transfer of signals from physical connections to servers. I also want to see improvements in how they control traffic and how they use protocols with performance management, particularly regarding Spanning Tree protocol.
I have not configured the DNA, but I have configured Cisco Intersight, and from Intersight, I have managed monitoring of the servers and switches. I have not given a 10 because there is some dependency on the uplink. If I have a Juniper and want to uplink with Cisco, there could be some configuration challenges. That is the reason I have not given a 10, but a nine rating is perfect for Cisco switches. I am talking about the complexities of third-party integration and multi-OEM integrations. Due to their LACP protocol and those different bits of configurations in the Cisco LACP protocol, sometimes there are LACP errors leading to link failures. I have resolved those issues as well.
If we speak about the negative side, the prices are something that could be improved. It is expensive compared with other competitors, about 40% higher than any other vendor. This is the main point. I'm comparing Cisco with Arista, Juniper, and HP, which are the main competitors in this area. During my experience, I have never been in the middle of discussions about features that Cisco doesn't support. The only discussion is about why Cisco is more expensive than the other vendors. Cisco could create a licensing schema with a smaller approach. The minimum license that you purchase opens a huge number of features, which will increase the price of your product, but at the same time, the customer might not need all these features. If they can create licensing with fewer features, it would be easier to work with these products. Even though it is expensive, I am not sure about the return on investment. It is expensive, and you will need to pay for subscription fees that also are not cheap. The licensing and subscriptions that you need to pay every year to keep your solution up and running are expensive. This is one of the disadvantages compared with other vendors, which have a huge difference.
The potential for improvement lies in the licensing aspect, which is somewhat confusing. The perpetual and subscription licensing is a concern. Many customers are complaining about the transition towards subscription licenses for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, including DCN Premier, DCN Advantage, and DCN Essentials, which add certain functionalities irrespective of the image. The cost is very expensive.
Regarding Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, I think there are hypothetical improvements in the future. However, from the Nexus point, I cannot think of anything at this point in time. In general, regarding automation in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, I think it could be better. They have a lot of automation through Python or Ansible, and Ansible support is there. Automation is already very solid with Nexus.
At this point, not much could be improved about Cisco Nexus 9000 Series. Automation GUI based is not the core of the 9000, so this is a different device or a different solution. I do not find anything that could be improved. I think maybe if this would be a larger environment, you might see some bottlenecks, but at this moment when I'm using the 9Ks, there is nothing that I find blocking or that I feel could be improved.
For Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches, I think we need to work on the HSRP. Whenever it flaps or something happens, it creates an issue. That is the only thing. The HSRP flapping is the issue. Whenever the connection is flapped, the HSRP gives a problem.
After the initial integration, the focus has been on support rather than further development. Cost-wise, Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very expensive. The pricing could absolutely be improved. So far, there is nothing to improve other than the pricing.
We find that Cisco has been left behind by the other vendors. The other vendors have adopted new technology, and we find Cisco lagging behind.