---
title: "swXtchBridge System Requirements"
slug: "swxtchbridge-system-requirements"
updated: 2025-12-19T20:08:39Z
published: 2025-12-19T20:08:39Z
canonical: "docs.swxtch.io/swxtchbridge-system-requirements"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.swxtch.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# swXtchBridge System Requirements

> [!NOTE]
> **WHAT TO EXPECT**
> 
> **In this article**, users will learn about the prerequisites before deploying a swXtchBridge. It is recommended to review this page before installing the swXtchBridge.

## Network and cloudSwXtch Connectivity

- Before deploying a swXtchBridge, **a user must already have a cloudSwXtch instance running on the cloud**.
- A user should have network connectivity from on-premises to the Virtual Network hosting the cloudSwXtch instance (for example, a ping command from the cloudSwXtch instance to the on-premises network should complete successfully).

> [!NOTE]
> Testing On-Premises and Cloud Link
> 
> Use one of the following testing tools to measure the connectivity from on-prem and into the cloud, and to profile the link. This will ensure the link between on-premises and the cloud used by both the SwXtchBridge and the cloudSwXtch is optimal.
> 
> - **swx-perf**: (available in the [swx-tools](/v2/docs/swx-tools))
> - **iPerf v2**: [https://iperf.fr/iperf-doc.php](https://iperf.fr/iperf-doc.php)
> - **Sockperf**: [https://docs.nvidia.com/networking/display/vmav9851/appendix+sockperf+%E2%80%93+udp/tcp+latency+and+throughput+benchmarking+tool](https://docs.nvidia.com/networking/display/vmav9851/appendix+sockperf+%E2%80%93+udp/tcp+latency+and+throughput+benchmarking+tool)

## NIC Requirements

The number of NICs is determined by the topology. Please consult the [swXtchBridge Topologies](/v2/docs/swxtch-bridge-topologies) page for more information.

If the swXtchBridge will use the High-Performance mode, the non-primary NIC must be a **Mellanox** or **Intel** card that supports DPDK.

- **Mellanox**: ConnectX-5 cards are preferred for the non-primary NIC. For a list of recommendations, please visit the following link: [https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/servers-unified-computing/third-party-adapters-listing.html?flt2_general-table0=Nvidia%2FMellanox](https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/servers-unified-computing/third-party-adapters-listing.html?flt2_general-table0=Nvidia%2FMellanox)
- **Intel**: For a list of recommendations (drivers and NIC names), please visit the following link: [https://core.dpdk.org/supported/nics/intel/](https://core.dpdk.org/supported/nics/intel/)

> [!WARNING]
> **PLEASE NOTE**
> 
> On Azure, the DATA NIC must be hardware accelerated.

## Operating System

A VM or BareMetal bridge host machine running one of the following operating systems:

- Ubuntu 24.04
- RHEL 9

The **kernel** must be **5.11 or greater**.

## CPU

CPU must be at least **a Xeon-class processor** with a **minimum of 8 cores**, supporting AVX.

## Memory

A minimum of **16GB of RAM** is required.

## Storage space

An **SSD of 40GB (20GB min)** is recommended.

## Firewall Exceptions

The swXtchBridge installer script will automatically open the following ports:

```shell
firewall-cmd --add-port=80/tcp --permanent
firewall-cmd --add-port=9999/udp --permanent
firewall-cmd --add-protocol=igmp --permanent
```

### Required dependencies

For RHEL 9 and Ubuntu 24.04, users will need the following dependencies on their SwXtchBridge machine:

- **pciutils**
- **docker**

For RHEL 9, **kernel-extra-modules** are needed if running a high-performance driver.

> [!TIP]
> PLEASE NOTE
> 
> If the installation is done using the `--auto_deps` , the script will automatically install any required dependencies.