Integrator's field note: what this module does and doesn't do
The 6AG1543-1AX00-2XE0: This is a compact S7-1500 communication module, single-width format (35 x 142 x 129 mm, IP20), drawing 5.3 W from the backplane. It gives the CPU a second Ethernet interface with DCP, NTP, TCP/IP, SNMP v1, and a stateful inspection firewall. Static IP routing is supported, but dynamic routing protocols (OSPF, RIP, BGP) are not — so this module is for deterministic plant networks, not WAN edge routing. The interface runs at 10 to 1000 Mbit/s; IP routing throughput is limited to 1 Mbps, which aligns with infrequent configuration traffic rather than bulk data transfer. Configuration requires STEP 7 Professional V14 (TIA Portal) or later. Some features (like maximum connections per CPU) depend on the CPU type — verify the specific S7-1500 CPU's capability table before freezing the BOM.