The VEM corresponds to a line card in a conventional physical switch, while the VSM corresponds to a supervisor engine.
Nexus 1000V and physical switches
The physical switch chassis
In a hardware switch, the physical wiring that connects the Supervisor Engine (SE) and the individual line cards is known as the backplane. This is incorporated into the switch chassis. There are numerous types of modular switches, which will have different configurations depending on their functions. However, all switches will have an SE and typically some Ethernet line cards.
Line cards
Other line cards include advanced integrated services...
