> Source: [sk181465](https://support.checkpoint.com/results/sk/sk181465)

# sk181465 - Guidelines for NIC Slot Population in Check Point Firewall 29000 Appliances

| Property | Value |
|----------|-------|
| Solution ID | sk181465 |
| Date Created | 2023-09-11 |
| Last Modified | 2025-05-21 |
| Technical Level | General |
| Products | Hardware |
| Versions | Not Version-Specific |
| OS | Gaia |
| Platform | 29000 |

## Solution

**Table of Contents:**

* Introduction
* Appliance Models
* Line Cards (NICs)
* NIC Slot Population Guidelines
* NIC Slot Population Example
* Default NIC Slot Population in 29000 Bundles

### Introduction {#1}

The following guidelines direct the user on the preferred placement of Line Cards (NICs) within the slots of the Quantum 29000 appliances.

This slot population distributes the ports and traffic in a balanced manner.

### Appliance Models {#2}

|------------|-----------------|-------|------------------------|
| Appliance  | Regulated Model | Model | Base Hardware SKU      |
| 29100 Base | RR1-CP-10       | RH-10 | BASEHW-CPAP-29100      |
| 29100 Plus | RR1-CP-10       | RH-10 | BASEHW-CPAP-29100-PLUS |
| 29200 Base | RR1-CP-20       | RH-20 | BASEHW-CPAP-29200      |
| 29200 Plus | RR1-CP-20       | RH-20 | BASEHW-CPAP-29200-PLUS |

### Line Cards (NICs) {#3}

|----------------------------------------|------------------|
| Description                            | SKU              |
| 8-Port 1/10G NIC                       | CPAC-8-1/10F-D   |
| 4-Port 10/25G NIC                      | CPAC-4-10/25F-D  |
| 2-Port 40/100G NIC (single-width card) | CPAC-2-40/100F-D |
| 4-Port 10/25G with acceleration        | CPAC-4-10/25F-DA |

### NIC Slot Population Guidelines {#4}

1. Install the 8-Port 1/10G line cards in the descending order - Slot 7, then Slot 6, Slot 5, and so on.

2. If there are empty slots left, then continue to install the 4-Port 10/25 line cards in the descending order - starting in the next slot after the last 8-port NIC.

3. If there are empty slots left, then continue to install the 2-Port 40/100G or 4-port 10/25G with acceleration line cards in the ascending order - Slot 1, then Slot 2, Slot 3, and so on.

![](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/sc/SolutionsStatics/NEW_SK_NOID1694428911151/29K_NIC_Slot_Numbers202309111355341.png)

### NIC Slot Population Example {#5}

The diagram below illustrates how to apply the slot population guidelines for the following line card configuration:

* 2 x 8-Port 1/10G line cards - must be installed in Slot 7 and Slot 6

* 2 x 4-port 10/25G line cards - must be installed in Slot 5 and Slot 4

* 3 x 2-port 40/100G line cards - must be installed in Slot 1, Slot 2, and Slot 3

![](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/sc/SolutionsStatics/NEW_SK_NOID1694428911151/29K_NIC_Population_Example202309111355552.png)

### Default NIC Population in 29000 Appliance Bundles {#6}

For reference, the below table shows the NIC population of the default NICs in the 29000 Appliance Base and Plus SKU bundles.

|------------|------------------|--------|--------|--------|-----------------|----------------|----------------|
| Appliance  | Slot 1           | Slot 2 | Slot 3 | Slot 4 | Slot 5          | Slot 6         | Slot 7         |
| 29100 Base | None             | None   | None   | None   | None            | None           | CPAC-8-1/10F-D |
| 29100 Plus | None             | None   | None   | None   | CPAC-4-10/25F-D | CPAC-8-1/10F-D | CPAC-8-1/10F-D |
| 29200 Base | None             | None   | None   | None   | None            | None           | CPAC-8-1/10F-D |
| 29200 Plus | CPAC-2-40/100F-D | None   | None   | None   | CPAC-4-10/25F-D | CPAC-8-1/10F-D | CPAC-8-1/10F-D |

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