HPE Aruba CX: Complete Switch Portfolio Guide

The HPE Aruba CX portfolio is HPE Aruba's enterprise switch family powered by AOS-CX, a modern OS with a native REST API, Network Analytics Engine (NAE), and VSX for high availability. It competes directly with Cisco Catalyst 9000. The complete portfolio spans the 6000 through 10000 series. 2026 guide.

CX portfolio

CX 6000 (entry-level SMB)

• CX 6000: 12/24/48 GbE ports — €290-890 excluding VAT
• Not stackable; no PoE on certain models

CX 6100 (SMB+)

• CX 6100: 24/48 GbE ports + 4 SFP+ — €790-1 890 excluding VAT
• No VSF stacking and no PoE

CX 6200 / 6200M (SMB/mid-market)

• View the dedicated data sheet
• 6200F (fiber) and 6200M (mGig)
• PoE Class 6 and SFP+ uplinks

CX 6300 / 6300M (stackable campus)

• 10-chassis VSF stacking
• SFP28 25G uplinks
• View the dedicated data sheet

CX 6400 (modular chassis)

• 5-slot chassis
• 10/25/40/100G line card modules
• Supervisor for VSX high availability
• Budget: €15 000-80 000 excluding VAT, depending on configuration

CX 8100 / 8325 (aggregation/core)

• CX 8100: 10G/25G aggregation — €12 000-28 000 excluding VAT
• CX 8325: 32×100G, spine-ready — €28 900 excluding VAT
• VSX for core high availability

CX 8360 / 8400 (data center)

• CX 8360: 48×25G + 6×100G leaf — €22 900 excluding VAT
• CX 8400: large modular DC chassis
• Native EVPN-VXLAN

CX 9300 / 10000 (hyperscale/AI)

• CX 9300: 400G spine — €55 000 excluding VAT
• CX 10000: Pensando DPU (Distributed Services Switch) with stateful micro-segmentation
• Target environments: hyperscale DC and AI/ML fabrics

AOS-CX benefits

• Native time-series database
• Python NAE scripts for custom analytics
• REST API with 100% JSON coverage
• Official Ansible modules
• Atomic, commit-based rollback

VSX vs. stacking

VSX (Virtual Switching eXtension): 2 CX chassis operate as 1 logical switch for core/aggregation deployments. It is simpler than traditional MC-LAG, provides failover in <200ms, and eliminates the need for STP.

Aruba Central licenses

• Foundation: €25-50 excluding VAT/switch/year — basic management
• Advanced: €80-150 excluding VAT/switch/year — AI Insights and automated troubleshooting
• Premium: €150-250 excluding VAT/switch/year — advanced analytics

Order from OPTINOC

Complete Aruba CX portfolio, brand-new and sourced directly from HPE, with pre-activated Aruba Central licenses. Turnkey VSX and EVPN-VXLAN configuration. SMB/mid-market/DC quotes provided within 48 hours.