Cisco Aci to Nxos Conversion

Cisco NX-OS and ACI Mode Conversion

The Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches support two software modes: ACI (Application Centric Infrastructure) mode and NX-OS mode. You can convert a switch from NX-OS mode to ACI mode or from ACI mode to NX-OS mode. This document describes the mode conversion process and provides information about which features are supported in each mode.

Mode Conversion Overview

Mode conversion is a one-way process. You can’t revert a switch to its previous mode after you convert it. Before you convert a switch, review the mode-specific information in the “Mode Support Matrix” section.

You can convert a switch from NX-OS mode to ACI mode or from ACI mode to NX-OS mode by using the mode command in the switch CLI. For information about the mode command, see the Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Software Upgrade and Downgrade Guide, Release 9.x.

When you convert a switch from NX-OS mode to ACI mode, the switch configuration is retained, and the switch reboots. After the switch reboots, ACI mode features are enabled, and the switch is ready to be added to an ACI fabric.

When you convert a switch from ACI mode to NX-OS mode, the switch configuration is retained, and the switch reboots. After the switch reboots, NX-OS mode features are enabled, and the switch is ready to be added to a NX-OS-based network.

Mode Support Matrix

The following table lists the features that are supported in NX-OS mode and ACI mode.

Feature Supported in NX-OS Mode Supported in ACI Mode

Layer 2 Switching Yes Yes

Layer 3 Routing Yes Yes

Overlay Routing Yes Yes

Ethernet Virtual Connections (EVC) Yes No

Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Ethernet (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Fiber Channel (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Multiservice (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender Transceiver (FET) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender Virtual Blade (VEB) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender Virtual Chassis (VEC) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Wireless (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Storage (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for High-Performance Computing (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for I/O Module (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Data Center Bridging (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Fibre Channel Over Ethernet (FCoE) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Converged Network Adapter (CNA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Storage Networking Module (SNM) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for 10 Gigabit Ethernet Module (10GE) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for 40 Gigabit Ethernet Module (40GE) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for 100 Gigabit Ethernet Module (100GE) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Blade Server (VBS) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Desktop Server (VDS) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Network Adapter (VNA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Storage Adapter (VSA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Tape Adapter (VTA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Tape Library (VTL) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Disk Adapter (VDA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Disk Array (VDA) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Array Controller (VAC) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Router (VR) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Firewall (VF) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Intrusion Prevention System (VIPS) (FEX) Yes No

Cisco Fabric Extender for Virtual Security Gateway (VSG) (