MX240 Midplane Description

The midplane is located toward the rear of the chassis and forms the rear of the card cage (see Figure 1). The line cards and SCBs install into the midplane from the front of the chassis, and the power supplies install into the midplane from the rear of the chassis. The cooling system components also connect to the midplane.

The midplane performs the following major functions:

• Data path—Data packets are transferred across the midplane between the line cards through the fabric ASICs on the SCBs.
• Power distribution—The router power supplies connect to the midplane, which distributes power to all the router components.
• Signal path—The midplane provides the signal path to the line cards, SCBs, Routing Engines, and other system components for monitoring and control of the system.

Figure 1: Midplane