Systems, methods, and devices for replaceable elements within network switches

An assembly for a network switch, comprising:

• a rack;
• and
• a spine section including one or more spine switches, at least one of the one or more spine switches including:
• a support board that is attachable to the rack and that supports at least one first switch;
• and
• a first set of connectors at a first edge of the support board that detachably connect to one or more first leaf switches to communicatively couple and decouple the at least one first switch from the one or more first leaf switches, wherein, when the one or more spine switches are positioned in the rack and are connected to the one or more first leaf switches, a longitudinal axis of each spine switch extends in a first direction and a longitudinal axis of each first leaf switch extends in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.

A leaf switch for a network switch, the leaf switch comprising:

• a support board including a planar surface on which at least one switch is mounted;
• a first interface on the planar surface of the support board and at a first edge of the support board, wherein the first interface connects to devices external to the network switch;
• and
• a second interface on the planar surface of the support board and at a second edge of the support board, wherein the second interface includes a plurality of connectors on the planar surface of the support board, each connector enabling a detachable connection to a single spine switch of a plurality of spine switches of the network switch, and wherein the second edge of the support board is opposite the first edge of the support board.