Build a VXLAN EVPN Leaf-Spine Fabric Lab on EVE-NG with Nexus 9000v — Complete NX-OS Walkthrough

VXLAN EVPN is the dominant data center fabric technology in 2026, and you can build a fully functional leaf-spine fabric using free Nexus 9000v images on EVE-NG — no physical Nexus switches required. This guide walks through the complete stack: OSPF underlay → BGP EVPN overlay → L2VNI bridging → L3VNI inter-subnet routing, with every NX-OS command and verification step. With Cisco ACI converging toward NDFC-managed NX-OS fabrics, CLI-based VXLAN EVPN skills are more relevant than ever — whether you're building production fabrics or prepping for certification labs. Hardware Requirements Each Nexus 9000v needs 8 GB RAM and 2 vCPUs . A 2-spine, 4-leaf topology with host nodes needs ~48-64 GB on the EVE-NG host. Component Minimum Recommended RAM 48 GB 64 GB CPU 8 cores (VT-x/AMD-V) 12+ cores Storage 100 GB SSD 200 GB NVMe EVE-NG Community (free) Pro (optional) The same qcow2 images also work in GNS3 and Cisco CML . Importing Nexus 9000v Images Download the Nexus 9000v qcow2 from Cisco's so