No. 20 of 24 ·Software-Defined Networking Software

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller

Web · Self-hosted · API

Freedom report

One barScore 5.0

Free tierNo free tier on record
Open codeNo open-source code on record
Runs widely1 of 6 device platforms
DocumentedPlans, terms and facts published

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller is ranked #20 of 24 in software-defined networking software on Freedom251. It runs on API, Self-hosted, Web. There is no free plan.

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller plans and pricing

All plans

Cisco DCN Essentials subscription Not published 3-year, 5-year, or 7-year subscription terms Fabric inventory and provisioning · fabric and switch upgrades · basic alerts and correlation · platform integrations cisco.com · 1 Oct 2026

Cisco DCN Premier subscription Not published 3-year, 5-year, or 7-year subscription terms Advantage features · premier anomaly correlation · pre-change analysis · network telemetry and analytics · enhanced integrations · assurance and compliance cisco.com · 1 Oct 2026

Cisco DCN Advantage subscription Not published 3-year, 5-year, or 7-year subscription terms Essentials features · advanced alerts and correlation · capacity and conformance · energy management · DNS integration · streaming export cisco.com · 1 Oct 2026

Compared on software-defined networking software

Free plan: No
Deployment model: on-premises
Control-plane model: centralized
Policy segmentation: Yes
Northbound API: Yes
Supported protocols: OSPF, IS-IS, BGP, VXLAN, EVPN, SNMP, SCP, REST

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The record

Purpose: Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller provides complete lifecycle management and automation for Cisco MDS and Cisco Nexus deployments across SAN, LAN, and IP fabric for media networking.
Core operations: NDFC provides management, control, automation, monitoring, visualization, and troubleshooting across Cisco MDS and Cisco Nexus solutions.
Automation and compliance: Cisco describes automation, graphical visibility, templated deployment with configuration-compliance alerts and automatic remediation, and day-two operations as NDFC benefits.
Operating modes: The AppCenter listing provides Fabric Discovery for LAN deployments, Fabric Controller for LAN deployments, and SAN Controller modes.
Web interface: NDFC uses an HTML-based web user interface as its main interface and includes an integrated device manager for individual switches or directors.
Supported environments: NDFC can manage Cisco MDS and Nexus switches, visualize Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnects, discover VMware vCenter servers, and discover Dell EMC, IBM, HDS, NetApp, and Pure Storage arrays through SMI-S.
Telemetry inputs: NDFC collects data through SNMP, NX-API, streaming telemetry, and the industry-standard SMI-S provider interface.
APIs and automation: All northbound NDFC APIs are REST APIs, include built-in Swagger-style documentation, and support integration with third-party or custom orchestration tools such as Ansible.
Access control: NDFC provides role-based access control for fabric objects, including granular roles that can differ across fabrics for the same user.
Deployment platform: NDFC Release 12 runs on Nexus Dashboard and supports virtual or physical Nexus Dashboard deployments for LAN, IPFM, and SAN.
Infrastructure limits: For virtual Nexus Dashboard deployments, the datasheet lists 16 vCPUs, 64 GB RAM, and 500 GB SSD for LAN and IPFM modes; SAN requires a small or large node depending on SAN Insights.
Licensing requirement: Each Cisco Nexus device managed by NDFC requires an NDFC right-to-manage license, and Release 12.0 onward is Smart Licensing-only.
Support: Cisco Solution Support with Software Support Service is included in Cisco Data Center Networking subscriptions and legacy NDFC Smart Licenses, providing Cisco TAC support, knowledge-base access, and software downloads.
Security advisory: Cisco reported a critical NDFC arbitrary command-execution vulnerability in the REST API and web UI with a base CVSS score of 9.9.

Where it ranks on Freedom251

Best Software-Defined Networking Software in 2026#20 of 24

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Sources

cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/cloud-syste· checked 1 Oct 2026
dcappcenter.cisco.com/nexus-dashboard-fabric-controller-2-2-1· checked 1 Oct 2026
cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/cloud-syste· checked 1 Oct 2026
cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/cloud-syste· checked 1 Oct 2026
sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAd· checked 1 Oct 2026
cisco.com/site/us/en/products/networking/software· checked 1 Oct 2026