Opengear CM8196-10G – Console Manager

Overview:

The Opengear CM8196-10G is a high-density console manager from the CM8100 series, designed to provide secure out-of-band (OOB) management and network automation for large-scale data centers, enterprise networks, and colocation facilities . It is engineered for IT teams managing dense infrastructure requiring resilient remote access to routers, switches, firewalls, PDUs, and serial consoles .

Network engineers use this 96-port console server to maintain a dedicated management plane for critical infrastructure, ensuring reachability even when the primary network is unavailable. The unit is powered by a Marvell 88F6820 1.6 GHz dual-core ARM processor with 2 GB of DDR4 RAM and 32 GB of eMMC flash storage . It features 96 RS-232 RJ45 serial ports, two 10GbE SFP+ uplinks, and dual 1GbE RJ45 ports for high-speed management network connectivity. The platform supports Python scripting and Docker containerization for automation, with TPM 2.0 providing hardware-based security, secure boot, and an embedded firewall .

Deployment is in a 2U rack-mountable form factor with redundant dual AC power supplies and passive cooling . This model is optimized for high-density environments requiring 96 serial ports and 10G uplinks. It is not suitable for smaller deployments where lower port density models (16, 32, or 48-port variants) would be more cost-effective, or for environments requiring DC power input (models with “-DDC” suffix).

Key Features:

• 96 software-selectable RJ45 RS-232 serial console ports

• Dual 10GbE SFP+ and dual 1GbE network uplinks

• TPM 2.0 hardware security with secure boot

• Docker and Python support for edge automation

• Redundant dual AC power supplies with failover