Catalog: device templates

A device template describes a chassis model once: its height, its NICs and port groups, its power inlets. Devices in the <Topology> reference it with template="id" and inherit that structure. In the app, templates are what the Materials editor edits and what the catalog bar places.

<Server>, <Switch>, <PDU>

<Switch id="sn5600" model="SN5600" manufacturer="NVIDIA" rackUnits="2">
  <PortGroup label="ports" portCount="64" speed="800G" connector="OSFP"
             portPrefix="swp" portStart="1"
             layout={{ x: 12, y: 0, cols: 16, groupSize: 4, rows: 4 }} />
  <PortGroup label="mgmt" portCount="1" speed="1G" connector="RJ45"
             layout={{ x: 398, y: 20, cols: 1 }} />
  <Inlet label="PSU1" count="2" connector="C14" watts="1600" />
</Switch>

Attribute	Required	Default	Valid values / description
id	yes		Template id. Unique across every catalog entry (devices, NICs, cables, transceivers share one namespace)
model	no	""	Free text
manufacturer	no	""	Free text
rackUnits	no	1	Whole number: height in rack units (U)
cardWidth	no		Always the standard 424 card units (440 mm). Other values are rescaled to 424 on load
cardHeight	no		Card height in pixels in Port Mapping

All three tags take the same attributes. A <PDU> also takes the electrical spec.

What each tag accepts as children:

Tag	Children
<Server>	<Nic>, <Inlet>
<Switch>	<PortGroup> or <Nic> (same thing), <Inlet>
<PDU>	<Phase> (outlet banks), <Nic> (the network monitor port)

Compute and Storage

A server is a server whatever it is for. Older files used <Compute> and <Storage>; both are still read, as <Server>, and written back as <Server>. A <Storage> without rackUnits was 2U and is still read as 2U. Say what a server is for with labels.

Errors

• Two catalog entries with the same id.
• breakout on a <Server> template's NIC — only switch ports can break out.
• <Phase> or <Outlet> inside a <Server> or <Switch>.
• <Bond> or <Breakout> inside a catalog entry — they belong on installed devices.

<Nic> / <PortGroup> in a template

A group of identical ports. Inside <Switch>, <PortGroup> and <Nic> are interchangeable.

<Nic label="eth0" portCount="2" speed="100G" connector="QSFP28"
     layout={{ x: 20, y: 10, cols: 2 }} side="back" />

Attribute	Required	Default	Valid values / description
label	no	""	NIC label, unique within the device
portCount	no	1	Whole number: ports to generate
portPrefix	no	p	Text the port names start with. Not empty, no spaces, no :
portStart	no	0	Whole number ≥ 0: the number of the first port
speed	no	10G	Speed
connector	no	RJ45	Connector
layout	no		Layout object: {{ x, y, cols, groupSize?, rows?, w?, h? }}
breakout	no		2 or 4 — <Switch> only
side	no	back	front or back: which chassis face it is on
facing	no		alternate, up or down — see How rows face
adjacentRows	no	1	Whole number ≥ 1, used with facing="alternate"
align	no	left	left, center or right — see Port alignment
template	no		Id of a standalone NIC this NIC is inserted from

Port names

A templated device gets one port per portCount, named portPrefix + a number counting up from portStart. Left out, they are p0, p1, … Use the names the switch OS uses, so cables read like the hardware labels:

<Switch id="fs-n8550" model="N8550-32C" manufacturer="FS">
  <PortGroup label="ports" portCount="32" speed="100G" connector="QSFP28"
             portPrefix="xe-1/1/" portStart="1" />
</Switch>
...
<Cable from="compute-1/cx5/p1" to="FS-100G/ports/xe-1/1/15" />

Changing portPrefix or portStart on a template that devices already use renames their ports in place; each port keeps its cables.

A NIC inserted from a standalone NIC

With template="ID", the NIC's port count, speed, connector, breakout and port layout come from the <Nic id="ID"> catalog entry and win over anything written here. Only label, the position (layout x/y), side, portPrefix and portStart are the NIC's own. The spec is still written out so the file reads on its own.

<Nic id="cx7-2p" model="ConnectX-7 2P" manufacturer="NVIDIA" portCount="2" speed="200G"
     connector="QSFP56" layout={{ x: 0, y: 0, cols: 2, w: 380, h: 57 }} />
<Server id="srv" model="R760" manufacturer="Dell" rackUnits="2">
  <Nic label="nic0" template="cx7-2p" portCount="2" speed="200G" connector="QSFP56"
       layout={{ x: 20, y: 10, cols: 2, w: 380, h: 57 }} />
</Server>

A template that names no <Nic> entry in the catalog is an error.

<Inlet> in a template

Where the chassis takes power — a power supply. Valid in <Server> and <Switch> templates (a PDU is fed by its own input cord instead).

<Inlet label="PSU1" model="PWS-2K05A-1R" count="2" connector="C14" watts="2000" side="back" />
<Inlet label="PSU2" captive="true" cordLength="1.8 m" connector="C20" watts="2000" />

Attribute	Required	Default	Valid values / description
label	yes		Group label, e.g. PSU1. Shares the device's port-group namespace (cannot reuse a NIC label)
model	no		Free text: the power supply's part number
count	no	1	Whole number: inlets generated, named p0…pN-1
connector	no	C14	A power connector
captive	no	false	true when the cord is wired into the chassis
cordLength	no		Free text. Only with captive="true"
watts	no		Number: nameplate draw of the group in watts
side	no	back	front or back
layout, facing, adjacentRows, align	no		As on a NIC

With captive="false" the connector is the receptacle a detachable cord plugs into (a C14 inlet fed from a C13 outlet). With captive="true" the cord is part of the device and the connector names the plug on its free end.

Errors: speed on an inlet; children inside a catalog inlet (use count); serialnumber in the catalog (a serial number belongs to one installed power supply).

PDU

A rack power distribution unit. Its banks are <Phase> elements, its ports are outlets.

<!-- 5.5 kW single-phase metered rPDU: two banks of C13s on 20 A breakers,
     two C19s, and the network monitor port. -->
<PDU id="pdumh30hv" model="PDUMH30HV" manufacturer="Tripp Lite" rackUnits="2"
     phase="single" voltage="208/230V" amperage="30" deratedAmperage="24"
     capacityKw="5.5" inputConnector="L6-30P" cordLength="12 ft. (3.66 m)"
     metering="local">
  <Phase label="bank1" outletCount="8" receptacle="C13" breaker="20"
         layout={{ x: 24, y: 16, cols: 8, groupSize: 4 }} />
  <Phase label="bank2" outletCount="8" receptacle="C13" breaker="20"
         layout={{ x: 24, y: 60, cols: 8, groupSize: 4 }} />
  <Phase label="high" outletCount="2" receptacle="C19" layout={{ x: 300, y: 16, cols: 2 }} />
  <Nic label="mgmt" portCount="1" speed="1G" connector="RJ45" layout={{ x: 390, y: 60, cols: 1 }} />
</PDU>

PDU electrical spec

Valid on a <PDU> in both the catalog and the topology. All optional; an attribute left off stays unset.

Attribute	Valid values / description
phase	single or three
voltage	Free text, so ranges survive — e.g. 208/230V
amperage	Number: input current rating in amps — e.g. 30
deratedAmperage	Number: continuous-load rating in amps — e.g. 24. Cannot exceed amperage
capacityKw	Number: total capacity in kW — e.g. 5.5
inputConnector	A power connector — e.g. L6-30P
cordLength	Free text — e.g. 12 ft. (3.66 m)
metering	none, local (panel meter) or network (embedded monitor)
outletSwitching	true or false: outlets can be switched remotely

metering="network" describes the capability. The jack itself is still declared as a <Nic> with an RJ45 port, so it can be cabled.

<Phase> — one bank of outlets

Attribute	Required	Default	Valid values / description
label	yes (optional in the catalog)		Bank label, unique within the PDU
outletCount	no	1	Whole number: outlets to generate (catalog only)
receptacle	no	C13	A power connector
breaker	no		Number: branch breaker rating in amps — e.g. 20
layout, side, facing, adjacentRows, align	no		As on a NIC

A <Phase> has no speed and no breakout: an outlet carries current, not traffic.