Are you tired of slow internet speeds and unreliable network connections? Look no further than Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series switches. These high-performance networking solutions offer unparalleled speed, security, and reliability for your business or home office. In this blog post, we’ll explore the world of networking switches, why Cisco is a top player in the market and the benefits that come with using their Catalyst 8300 Series switches. Get ready to take your network to the next level!

What are networking switches?

Networking switches are essential components that connect devices within a network. They allow for the efficient transfer of data between multiple devices, improving communication and productivity.

At their core, networking switches work by receiving incoming data packets from one device and then forwarding them to the intended recipient device based on its physical address. This process is known as packet switching and allows for fast and efficient transmission of data across a network.

Switches come in various sizes, with different numbers of ports to suit different needs. Small office or home networks may only require a switch with four or eight ports, while larger enterprise-level networks may need dozens or even hundreds of ports.

Networking switches are crucial components in building a reliable and high-speed network infrastructure. By allowing devices to communicate seamlessly with each other, they improve workflow efficiency and ultimately contribute to overall business success.

Why are Cisco switches so popular?

Cisco switches are some of the most popular networking devices in the market. They have been a favourite among businesses of all sizes for several reasons. One of the main reasons why Cisco switches are so popular is their reliability and quality.

With over 35 years in the industry, Cisco has established itself as a trusted brand with reliable products that can handle even the most complex networks. The company invests heavily in research and development, ensuring that its switches meet industry standards and provide cutting-edge technology to users.

Another reason why Cisco switches are so popular is their flexibility. These switches cater to different needs from small businesses to large enterprises by providing various features for each category.

Furthermore, these devices offer advanced security features such as access control lists (ACL), secure shell (SSH) protocols, VLAN segmentation, etc., which enhance network protection against unauthorized access or cyber-attacks.

Cisco’s excellent support services play an important role in its popularity among customers. Their technical support team provides prompt assistance when needed through phone calls or online chats with qualified engineers who have adequate knowledge about networking issues.

All these factors make Cisco’s switching solutions stand out from competitors’ offerings and explain why they remain widely adopted today.

Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series: an overview

The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms are best-of-breed, 5G-ready, cloud-edge platforms designed for accelerated services, multi-layer security, cloud-native agility, and edge intelligence to accelerate your journey to the cloud.

Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms (Catalyst 8300) with Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN Software deliver Cisco’s secure, cloud-scale SD-WAN solution for the branch. The Catalyst 8300 Series is purpose-built for high-performance and integrated SD-WAN Services along with the flexibility to deliver security and networking services together from the cloud or on-premises. It provides higher WAN port density and a redundant power supply capability. The Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms have a wide variety of interface options to choose from—ranging from lower and higher module density with backward compatibility to a variety of existing WAN, LAN, voice, and compute modules. Powered by Cisco IOS XE, fully programmable software architecture, and API support, these platforms can facilitate automation at scale to achieve zero-touch IT capability while migrating workloads to the cloud. Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms also come with Trustworthy Solutions 2.0 infrastructure that secures the platforms against threats and vulnerabilities with integrity verification and remediation of threats.

The Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms are well suited for medium-sized and large enterprise branch offices for high WAN IPSec performance with integrated SD-WAN services.

Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series: features and benefits

Accelerated services with Cisco Software-Defined WAN

Cisco SD-WAN is a set of intelligent software services that allow you to connect users, devices, and branch office locations reliably and securely across a diverse set of WAN transport links. Cisco Catalyst 8000 Series Edge Platforms can dynamically route traffic across the “best” link based on up-to-the-minute application and network conditions for great application experiences. You get tight control over application performance, bandwidth usage, data privacy, and availability of your WAN links—control you need as your branches conduct greater volumes of mission-critical business with both on-premises and cloud controllers.

Application performance optimization

Ensure that SD-WAN networks meet Service-Level Agreements (SLAs) and maintain strong performance, even if network problems occur. With branch multi-cloud access, you can accelerate your SaaS applications with a simple template push from the SD-WAN controller. Features like Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) optimization, forward error correction, and packet duplication help application performance for a better user experience.

Application visibility

Applications and users are more distributed than ever, and the internet has effectively become the new enterprise WAN. As organizations continue to embrace the internet, cloud, and SaaS, network and IT teams are challenged to deliver consistent and reliable connectivity and application performance over networks and services they don’t own or directly control.

The Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms are integrated with Cisco ThousandEyes internet and cloud intelligence. IT managers now have expanded visibility, including hop-by-hop analytics, into network underlay, proactive monitoring of SD-WAN overlay, and performance measurement of SaaS applications. This granular visibility ultimately lowers the Mean Time to Identification of Issues (MTTI) and accelerates resolution time.

Multi-layer security

You can now move your traditional and complex WAN networks to a more agile software-defined WAN with integrated security. The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge platforms connect branch offices to the Internet and cloud, with industry-leading protection against major web attacks. Secure Direct Internet Access (DIA) to the branches helps optimize branch workloads for improved performance, specifically for cloud-hosted applications. At the same time, DIA ensures your branch is protected from external threats.

Unified communications

The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Edge platforms offer rich voice services in both SD-WAN and traditional IOS-XE software feature stacks. Cisco is the only SDWAN vendor to natively integrate analogue/digital IP directly into a single CPE reducing Capex and Opex costs. In SD-WAN mode, the Catalyst 8300 Series also prevent internal and external outages using SRST enabling the Branch router to assume the role of call control PBX for Telephony survivability. They also continue to support the long list of traditional IOS-XE voice use cases like Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) Session Border Controller (SBC), Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express (CUCME), Survivable Remote Site Telephony (SRST), ISDN and Voice over IP.

Cloud-native agility with a programmable software architecture

Cisco continues to offer a feature-rich traditional IOS-XE routing stack on the Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms. IP Routing, IPSec, Quality of Service (QoS), firewall, Network Address Translation (NAT), Network-Based Application Recognition (NBAR), Flexible NetFlow (FNF), and many other features are part of Cisco IOS-XE, a fully programmable software architecture with API support and a wide variety of protocols and configurations. With an integrated software image and a single binary file, you can now choose between Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN and IOS XE. And easily move from one to the other when you choose to do so.

LTE and 5G Wireless WAN

The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms are built 5G networks. With the higher throughputs provided by CAT18 LTE and 5G, wireless WAN connections become feasible as primary transports for different use cases. These platforms support both integrated pluggable modules as well as external cellular gateways with LTE or 5G capability for improved throughputs that address all of those use cases. Based on a specific branch’s direct line of sight and cellular coverage, this solution provides the flexibility of either using an integrated PIM module or an external gateway. The integrated module can work in tandem with a cellular gateway for Active-Active redundancy.

Interface flexibility

High-density Switching

We are introducing a Unified Access Data Plane (UADP)-based 22-port and 50-port Layer 2 switch module for the Catalyst 8300 Series. The edge platform can be a branch-in-a-box solution with this integrated switch module with 1G, Cisco Multigigabit Technology (mGig), and 10G ports for downstream switches and devices. The 22-port Layer-2 module is a single-wide module that can be used on both the 1RU and 2RU platforms. The 50-port Layer-2 module is a double-wide module that can be used on the 2RU platforms.

Cisco UCS-E compute

The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series Edge Platforms will support the Cisco UCS-E M3 modules for branch compute needs. We support both Cisco and third-party Virtual Network Functions (VNFs) on the Cisco Enterprise NFV Infrastructure Software (NFVIS) hypervisor running on the UCS-E compute blade server. Cisco UCS-E M3 modules have 6-, 8-, and 12-core options to choose from based on the number of VNFs that need to be run at the branch.

Conclusion

The Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series is a powerful and versatile networking switch that offers businesses of all sizes the ability to streamline their network infrastructure. With its advanced security features, high-speed connectivity options, and strong performance capabilities, this switch series is an ideal choice for any organization looking to improve its network operations.

The popularity of Cisco switches can be attributed to their reliability, scalability, and flexibility. Their products are designed with cutting-edge technology that meets the evolving needs of today’s digital world. Additionally, Cisco’s commitment to providing excellent customer support ensures that users have access to expert assistance whenever they need it.

If you’re in the market for a reliable and high-performing networking switch for your business or organization, consider investing in the Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series. With its impressive features and capabilities, it’s sure to enhance your network operations while delivering optimal results.

Are you looking to upgrade your networking infrastructure? Look no further than the Cisco ISR 4000 Series. This powerful collection of routers and switches offers enhanced security, high performance, and advanced analytics capabilities. In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at what makes the Cisco ISR 4000 series such a game-changer for businesses of all sizes. Whether you’re an IT professional or just starting to explore networking options, read on to learn more about these cutting-edge devices.

What is a networking switch?

A networking switch is a device that connects devices such as computers, servers, and printers in a local area network (LAN). It enables these devices to communicate with each other by forwarding data packets between them.

In simpler terms, the switch acts as a traffic controller for your network. When one device wants to send data to another device on the same network, it sends the data packet to the switch. The switch then determines where the destination device is located and forwards the packet only to that specific device.

Switches come in different sizes and configurations depending on your needs. For example, an unmanaged switch requires no configuration while a managed switch allows you to configure settings such as Quality of Service (QoS) or Virtual LANs (VLANs).

In summary, if you need multiple devices within a LAN environment to communicate with each other efficiently and securely without interfering with other traffic flows, then investing in a networking switch may be necessary for your business or home office setup.

Do you need a networking switch?

A networking switch can be a valuable tool for businesses and individuals looking to connect multiple devices to the internet or a local network. However, whether or not you need a networking switch depends on your specific needs.

If you only have one or two devices that need to be connected, such as a computer and printer, then a simple router may suffice. A router acts as the central hub for your internet connection and can handle basic traffic routing between devices.

However, if you have more than two devices that need to be connected, such as multiple computers, printers, and other peripherals like cameras or smart home systems, then a networking switch may be necessary.

In addition to allowing more devices to connect at once, switches also provide faster data transfer speeds between those devices compared to routers alone.

Ultimately, it’s important to assess your own needs before deciding whether or not you require a networking switch. If in doubt, it’s always best to consult with an IT professional who can help determine the best solution for your specific situation.

Cisco ISR 4000 Series: An Overview

The Cisco 4000 Family Integrated Services Router (ISR) revolutionizes WAN communications in the enterprise branch. With new levels of built-in intelligent network capabilities and convergence, it specifically addresses the growing need for application-aware networking in distributed enterprise sites. These locations tend to have lean IT resources. But they often also have a growing need for direct communication with both private data centres and public clouds across diverse links, including Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) VPNs and the Internet.

The Cisco 4000 Family contains the following platforms: the 4461, 4451, 4431, 4351, 4331, 4321 and 4221 ISRs.

Cisco ISR 4000 Series: An Overview

Cisco 4000 Family ISRs provide you with Cisco Software Defined WAN (SDWAN) software features and converged branch infrastructure. Along with superior throughput, these capabilities form the building blocks of next-generation branch-office WAN solutions.

Cisco Software Defined WAN

Cisco SDWAN is a set of intelligent software services that allow you to reliably and securely connect users, devices, and branch office locations across a diverse set of WAN transport links. SDWAN-enabled routers like the ISR 4000 dynamically route traffic across the “best” link based on up-to-the-minute application and network conditions for great application experiences. You get tight control over application performance, bandwidth usage, data privacy, and availability of your WAN links – control that you need as your branches conduct greater volumes of mission-critical business.

Cisco converged branch infrastructure

The Cisco 4000 Series ISRs consolidate many must-have IT functions, including network, compute, and storage resources. The high-performance, integrated routers run multiple concurrent services, including encryption, traffic management, and WAN optimization, without slowing your data throughput. And you can activate new services on demand through a simple licensing change.

Cisco intent-based networking and digital network architecture (Cisco DNA)

The last few years have seen a rapid transformation and adoption of digital technologies. This puts pressure on the Network teams supporting this changing infrastructure – especially when provisioning, managing, monitoring and troubleshooting these diverse devices. Additionally, innovations such as Software Defined WAN (SDWAN), Network Function Virtualization (NFV), Open APIs and Cloud Management show great promise in transforming Organizations’ IT networks. This transformation raises further questions and challenges for the IT teams.

The Cisco Digital Network Architecture (Cisco DNA) is an open, extensible, software-driven architecture that provides for faster innovation, helping to generate deeper insights and deliver exceptional experiences across many different applications. Cisco DNA relies on intent-based networking, a revolutionary approach in networking that helps organizations automate, simplify, and secure the network.

The intent-based Cisco DNA network is:

●     Informed by Context: Interprets every byte of data that flows across it, resulting in better security, more customized experiences, and faster operations.

●     Powered by Intent: Translates your intent into the right network configuration, making it possible to manage and provision multiple devices and things in minutes.

●     Driven by Intuition: Continually learns from the massive amounts of data flowing through it and turns that data into actionable insight. Helps you solve issues before they become problems and learn from every incident.

Cisco DNA Center provides a centralized management dashboard across your entire network — the branch, campus, data centre, and cloud. Rather than relying on box-by-box management, you can design, provision, and set policy end-to-end from the single Cisco DNA Center interface. This allows you to respond to organizational needs faster and simplify day-to-day operations. Cisco DNA Analytics and Assurance and Cisco Network Data Platform (NDP) help you get the most from your network by continuously collecting and putting insights into action. Cisco DNA is open, extensible, and programmable at every layer. It integrates Cisco and third-party technology, open APIs, and a developer platform, to support a rich ecosystem of network-enabled applications.

Conclusion

To sum up, Cisco ISR 4000 Series is an excellent networking switch that will provide you with efficient and reliable connectivity. With its advanced features such as intuitive management, security, and application optimization capabilities, it can help your business achieve better productivity and performance.

If you want to improve your network’s speed, security, reliability and flexibility while optimizing the usage of bandwidth across multiple locations or remote sites at a lower cost of ownership than traditional WAN technologies like Frame Relay or ATM networks; then investing in this switch is definitely worth it.

Cisco ISR 4000 series offers a complete solution for businesses looking to upgrade their existing infrastructure by providing them with high-speed internet access through Ethernet ports or fibre-optic connections along with other key benefits such as scalability options based on future growth needs without compromising on performance. So if you are looking for a powerful networking solution that can handle all your connectivity requirements efficiently, consider getting Cisco ISR 4000 Series today!

Are you looking for a high-performance switch that can support your growing network infrastructure? Look no further than the Cisco Nexus 3000 Series. This cutting-edge series offers advanced security features, unparalleled flexibility and scalability, and exceptional performance for businesses of all sizes. Whether you’re upgrading your existing network or building a new one from scratch, the Cisco Catalyst 3000 Series is sure to exceed your expectations. In this blog post, we’ll dive into what makes this series so special and why it’s worth considering as the backbone of your network infrastructure.

What to look for when buying a networking switch?

If you’re in the market for a Cisco Catalyst switch, there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. Here are some of the most important factors to consider:

1. Port count and speed: Depending on your needs, you’ll want to make sure the switch has enough ports and that they’re effecient enough to support your network traffic.

2. Management and security features: Cisco Catalyst switches come with a variety of management and security features that can help ensure your network’s safety and efficiency. Be sure to evaluate which features are most important to you and make sure the switch you select offers them.

3. Budget: Of course, the cost is always a factor when making any purchase. Be sure to set a budget for yourself and stick to it when choosing a Cisco Catalyst switch.

Do you need a networking switch?

If you have a small business with a limited number of devices that need to connect to a network, you may not need a networking switch. A router may be all you need to create a LAN (Local Area Network). However, if you have more than a few devices that need to connect, or if you require high-speed connectivity for some devices, then you will likely need a switch. Switches allow you to expand your network by providing additional Ethernet ports. They also provide better performance than routers because they can process data faster and they operate at full-duplex mode, meaning they can send and receive data simultaneously.

Cisco Nexus 3000 Switch: An Overview

The Cisco Nexus 3000 series is a high-speed, high-density, 1, 10, 25, 40, or 100 Gigabit Ethernet switch designed for data center aggregation. The large buffers and routing table sizes of the Cisco Nexus C36180YC-R also make this switch an alternative for a wide range of applications, such as IP storage, Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), big data, and edge routing. The switch comes in a compact 1-Rack-Unit (1RU) form factor and provides extensive Layer 2 and Layer 3 functions. It is part of the R-Series family and runs the industry-leading NX-OS operating system software.

The comprehensive programmability features enable organizations to run today’s applications while also preparing them for demanding and changing application needs. The Cisco Nexus C36180YC-R supports both forward and reverse (port-side exhaust and port-side intake) airflow schemes with AC and DC power inputs.

The Cisco Nexus C36180YC-R is a Small Form-Factor Pluggable (SFP) and Quad SFP (QSFP) switch with 48 SFP and 6 QSFP28 ports. Each SFP port can operate at 1, 10, or 25 Gigabit Ethernet and each QSFP28 can operate at 100 or 40 Gigabit Ethernet or in a breakout cable configuration[1]. 6 QSFP28 ports can supports the IEEE 802.1ae MAC Security (MACSec) standard.

Cisco Nexus 3000 Switch: Highlights

The Cisco Nexus 3000 series provides the following:

●     Wire-rate Layer 2 and 3 switching on all ports, with up to 3.6 Terabits per second (Tbps) and up to 1.67 billion packets per second (bpps)

●     Programmability, with support for Cisco^® NX-API, Linux containers, Extensible Markup Language (XML), and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), the OpenStack plug-in, Python, and Puppet and Chef configuration and automation tools

●     High performance and scalability with a 6-core CPU, 32 GB of DRAM, and 8 GB of dynamic buffer allocation, making the switch excellent for massively scalable data centers and big data applications

●     Flexibility:

◦    Both fiber and copper cabling solutions are available for 1-, 10-, 25-, 40-, 50-, and 100-Gbps connectivity, including Active Optical Cable (AOC) and Direct-Attached Cable (DAC)

◦    The QSFP28 ports can be configured to work as 4 x 25-Gbps or 4 x 10-Gbps ports

●     High availability:

◦    Virtual PortChannel (vPC) technology provides Layer 2 multipathing by eliminating the Spanning Tree Protocol. It also enables fully used bisectional bandwidth and simplified Layer 2 logical topologies without the need to change the existing management and deployment models

◦    Advanced maintenance capabilities include hot and cold patching and Graceful Insertion and Removal (GIR) mode

◦    The switch uses hot-swappable Power-Supply Units (PSUs) and fans

●     NX-OS operating system with comprehensive, proven innovations:

◦    Power-On Auto Provisioning (POAP) enables touchless bootup and configuration of the switch, drastically reducing provisioning time

◦    Cisco Embedded Event Manager (EEM) and Python scripting enable automation and remote operations in the data center

◦    Ethanalyzer is a built-in packet analyzer for monitoring and troubleshooting control-plane traffic and is based on the popular Wireshark open-source network protocol analyzer

◦    Complete Layer 3 unicast and multicast routing protocol suites are supported, including Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), Routing Information Protocol Version 2 (RIPv2), Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse Mode (PIM-SM), Source-Specific Multicast (SSM), and Multicast Source Discovery Protocol (MSDP)

Feature	Benefit
Software compatibility: NX-OS interoperates with Cisco products running any variant of Cisco IOS Software and also with any networking OS that conforms to the networking standards listed as supported in this data sheet.	●  Transparent operation with existing network infrastructure ●  Open standards ●  No compatibility concerns
Modular software design: NX-OS is designed to support distributed multithreaded processing. Its modular processes are instantiated on demand, each in a separate protected memory space. Thus, processes are started and system resources allocated only when a feature is enabled. A real-time preemptive scheduler that helps ensure timely processing of critical functions governs the modular processes.	●  Robust software ●  Fault tolerance ●  Increased scalability ●  Increased network availability
Troubleshooting and diagnostics: NX-OS is built with innovative serviceability functions to enable network operators to take early action based on network trends and events, enhancing network planning and improving Network-Operations-Center (NOC) and vendor response times.	●  Quick problem isolation and resolution ●  Continuous system monitoring and proactive notifications ●  Improved productivity of operations teams
Ease of management: NX-OS provides a programmatic XML interface based on the NETCONF industry standard. The NX-OS XML interface provides a consistent API for devices. NX-OS also supports Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) Versions 1, 2, and 3 MIBs. In addition, NX-API and Linux Bash are now supported.	●  Rapid development and creation of tools for enhanced management ●  Comprehensive SNMP MIB support for efficient remote monitoring
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): With RBAC, NX-OS enables administrators to limit access to switch operations by assigning roles to users. Administrators can customize access and restrict it to the users who require it.	●  Tight access control mechanism based on user roles ●  Improved network device security ●  Reduction in network problems arising from human errors

Businesses that are expanding need a robust network infrastructure to keep up. To support their demand for bandwidth and connectivity, the Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series is an excellent choice. In this article, we’ll explore how the Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series stands apart from other networking solutions, and how it can ensure that businesses remain competitive in the digital age.

Why should you use a networking switch?

Using a Cisco Catalyst Series networking switch can provide a dedicated switching path between devices on the network, which can improve network performance.

This can help reduce congestion and improve overall throughput. Additionally, using a switch As a result, congestion can be reduced and overall throughput can be improved. Additionally, using a switch can enhance network security by isolating traffic between different segments. Furthermore, switches provide enhanced manageability through features such as port mirroring and VLANs.

When buying networking switches, what should you look for?

When purchasing networking switches, some key factors to consider are port density, scalability, security, energy efficiency, and manageability.

More ports means that you can connect more devices to the switch, which is important for growing networks. Scalability means that the switch can handle increased traffic as your network grows.

Security features like access control lists (ACLs) and data encryption can help protect your network from attacks. Energy efficiency is important for both cost savings and environmental sustainability. Features such as remote management and monitoring can simplify switch administration.

Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series: An Overview

Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series switches are Cisco’s lead modular enterprise access switching platform and as part of the Catalyst 9000 family, are built to transform your network to handle a hybrid world where the workplace is anywhere, endpoints could be anything, and applications are hosted all over the place.

The Catalyst 9400 Series, including the new Catalyst 9400 SUP-2/2XL supervisor and line cards, continues to shape the future with continued innovation that helps you reimagine connections, reinforce security and redefine the experience for your hybrid workforce big and small.

Advanced persistent security threats, exponential growth of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, mobility everywhere and cloud adoption require a network fabric that integrates advanced hardware and software innovations to automate, secure, and simplify customer networks. The goal of this network fabric is to enable customer revenue growth by accelerating business service rollout.

The Cisco Digital Network Architecture (Cisco DNA) with Software-Defined Access (SD-Access) is the network fabric that powers business. Cisco DNA is an open and extensible, software-driven architecture that accelerates and simplifies your enterprise network operations.

The programmable architecture frees your IT staff from time consuming, repetitive network configuration tasks so they can focus instead on innovation that positively transforms your business. SD-Access enables policy-based automation from edge to cloud with foundational capabilities. These include:

●      Simplified device deployment

●      Unified management of wired and wireless networks

●      Network virtualization and segmentation

●      Group-based policies

●      Context-based analytics

The Cisco Catalyst^® 9400 Series switches are Cisco’s leading modular enterprise switching access, distribution and core platform built for security, IoT and cloud. These switches form the foundational building block for SD- Access ― Cisco’s lead enterprise architecture.

The platform provides unparalleled investment protection with a chassis architecture that supports up to 9 Tbps of system bandwidth and unmatched power delivery with high density IEEE 802.3bt PoE (60W and 90W). Redundancy is now table stakes across the portfolio. The Catalyst 9400 delivers state-of-the-art High Availability (HA) with capabilities like Cisco StackWise Virtual technology with In-Service-Software-Upgrade (ISSU), SSO/NSF, uplink resiliency, N+1/N+N redundancy for power supplies.

The platform is enterprise optimized with an innovative dual-serviceable fan tray design, side to side airflow and is closet-friendly with ~16” depth. A single system can scale up to 384 access ports with your choice of 10G, 5G and 2.5G multigigabit copper, 1G copper, Cisco UPOE+, Cisco UPOE and PoE+ options and up to 384 ports of 10G Fiber and 1G Fiber options.

The availability of 1/10 G fiber ports facilitate aggregation of existing small form factor fixed access switches. The addition of the new SUP-2/2XL supervisors allows unique investment protection through 100G uplink connectivity option which is becoming a popular alternative to 40G in the core. The platform also supports advanced routing and infrastructure services, SD-Access capabilities, and network system virtualization. These features enable optional placement of the platform in the core and aggregation layers of small to medium-sized campus environments.

Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series: Product Highlights

●      The Cisco Unified Access Data Plane (UADP) 3.0sec ASIC on C9400X-SUP-2XL, C9400X-SUP-2 and Cisco Unified Access Data Plane (UADP) 2.0 ASIC on C9400-SUP-1/1XL/1XL-Y is ready for next- generation technologies with its programmable pipeline, microengine capabilities, and template-based configurable allocation of Layer 2, Layer 3, forwarding, Access Control List (ACL), and Quality of Service (QoS) entries

●      Intel 2.4-GHz x86 with up to 960 GB of SATA SSD local storage for container-based application hosting

●      Up to 4 non-blocking 100/40 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks and up to 4 non-blocking 25/10 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks on Supervisor-2/2XL

●      Up to 2 non-blocking 25 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks on Supervisor-1XL-Y

●      Up to 2 non-blocking 40 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks (Quad Small Form-Factor Pluggable [QSFP]) and up to 8 non-blocking 10 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks (SFP+) on Supervisor-1/1XL/1XL-Y

●      384 ports of non-blocking 10/100/1000M RJ-45 ports

●      392 ports of non-blocking 1 Gigabit Ethernet Fiber (SFP) ports (Sup1/1XL/XL-Y). 384 ports of non- blocking 1Gigabit Ethernet Fiber (SFP) ports (SUP2/2XL)

●      392 ports of non-blocking 10 Gigabit Ethernet SFP+ ports (8 uplinks plus 384 10G line card ports) (Sup1/1XL/XL-Y); 388 ports of non-blocking 10 Gigabit Ethernet SFP+ ports (4 uplinks plus 384 10G line cards ports) (SUP2/2XL)

●      384 ports of non-blocking 10G/5G mGig RJ-45 ports

●      Cisco UPOE+ (90 W) capabilities on 384 ports

●      Cisco UPOE (60W)/PoE+ (30W) capabilities on 384 ports simultaneously

●      Line rate hardware-based Flexible NetFlow (FNF) delivering flow collection up to 384,000 flows

●      IPv6 support in hardware, providing wire rate forwarding for IPv6 networks

●      Dual-stack support for IPv4 and IPv6 and dynamic hardware forwarding table allocations for ease of IPv4-to-IPv6 migration

●      Scalable routing (IPv4, IPv6, and multicast) tables and Layer 2 tables

●      Open Cisco IOS XE: This modern operating system for the enterprise provides support for model-driven programmability, on-box Python scripting, streaming telemetry, container-based application hosting and patching for critical bug fixes. The OS also has built-in defenses to protect against runtime attacks

●      End-to-end visualization of the path from campus/branch to clouds/DC with Cisco ThousandEyes Network and Application Synthetics (included with Cisco DNA Advantage licenses)

Conclusion

The Cisco Catalyst 9400 Series is a powerhouse in the world of network switching, offering industry-leading performance and scalability. It’s designed for today’s high-demand environments, with powerful features like Cisco DNA software, line rate routing capabilities, and advanced security options to ensure your data stays safe. If you need more processing power for your business or organization, then consider upgrading to the Catalyst 9400 Series. With its cutting-edge technology and impressive scalability options, it can help you stay ahead of the curve.

Are you looking for a high-performance switch that can support your growing network infrastructure? Look no further than the Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series. This cutting-edge series offers advanced security features, unparalleled flexibility and scalability, and exceptional performance for businesses of all sizes. Whether you’re upgrading your existing network or building a new one from scratch, the Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series is sure to exceed your expectations. In this blog post, we’ll dive into what makes this series so special and why it’s worth considering as the backbone of your network infrastructure.

What to look for when buying a networking switch?

If you’re in the market for a Cisco Catalyst switch, there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. Here are some of the most important factors to consider:

1. Port count and speed: Depending on your needs, you’ll want to make sure the switch has enough ports and that they’re fast enough to support your network traffic.

2. Management and security features: Cisco Catalyst switches come with a variety of management and security features that can help ensure your network’s safety and efficiency. Be sure to evaluate which features are most important to you and make sure the switch you select offers them.

3. Budget: Of course, the cost is always a factor when making any purchase. Be sure to set a budget for yourself and stick to it when choosing a Cisco Catalyst switch.

Do you need a networking switch?

If you have a small business with a limited number of devices that need to connect to a network, you may not need a networking switch. A router may be all you need to create a LAN (Local Area Network). However, if you have more than a few devices that need to connect, or if you require high-speed connectivity for some devices, then you will likely need a switch. Switches allow you to expand your network by providing additional Ethernet ports. They also provide better performance than routers because they can process data faster and they operate at full-duplex mode, meaning they can send and receive data simultaneously.

Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series: Overview

Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series switches are Cisco’s lead stackable enterprise access switching platform and as part of the Catalyst 9000 family, is built to transform your network to handle a hybrid world where the workplace is anywhere, endpoints could be anything, and applications are hosted all over the place.

The Catalyst 9300 Series, including the new Catalyst 9300X models, continues to shape the future with continued innovation that helps you reimagine connections, reinforce security, and redefine the experience for your hybrid workforce big and small.

The many industries first include:

●      Up to 1TB of stacking bandwidth: With StackWise-1T, Catalyst 9300 switches are the industry’s highest-density stacking bandwidth solution with the most flexible uplink architecture

●      Flexible and dense uplink offerings with 100G, 40G, 25G, Multigigabit, 10G, and 1G modular uplinks

●      Mixed Stacking with Backward Compatibility – Stack your Catalyst 9300X fiber switches with Catalyst 9300 and Catalyst 9300X Multigigabit switches, bringing stackable high-speed fiber to the access

●      Highest Multigigabit Ports: With standalone and StackWise-1T, Catalyst 9300X models enable 48 main ports in standalone and 448 mGig ports with an 8-member stack

●      Highest 90W UPOE+ Density: Enable your OT/IT needs with up to 36 ports of 90W UPOE+ for standalone or 288 ports of 90W UPOE+ with an 8-member stack.

●      StackPower with Backward Compatibility: Enable power resiliency with higher power budgets in mixed Catalyst 9300 and Catalyst 9300X stack.

●      100G IPsec in hardware: With the new 2.0Sec UADP ASIC, the Catalyst 9300X comes with 100G line rate IPsec to enable various options for new edge connectivity

●      Secure Tunnel connectivity: With the new edge, the C9300X enables secure connections to Secure Internet Gateway, Cloud Service Providers, and Site-to-Site connectivity using an IPsec tunnel with AES-256 Encryption and speeds up to 100G.

●      Enhanced Application Hosting: With 2x capacity and additional RAM, QAT, and 2 x 10G AppGig Ports, multiple Cisco Signed performance savvy applications can be hosted on Catalyst 9300X

●      ThousandEyes Enabled: End-to-end visualization of the path from campus/branch to clouds/DC with Cisco ThousandEyes Network and Application Synthetics (included with Cisco DNA Advantage licenses)

●      Investment Protection: Catalyst 9300X redundant fans and power supplies, data stack, and StackPower cables are backward compatible with the Catalyst 9300.

Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series: Features and Benefits

●      Highest wireless scale for Wi-Fi 6 and 802.11ac Wave 2 access points supported on a single switch with select models

●      Catalyst 9300 and Catalyst 9300L/LM models are based on the Cisco UADP 2.0 Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) with programmable pipeline and micro-engine capabilities, along with the template-based, configurable allocation of Layer 2 and Layer 3 forwarding, Access Control Lists (ACLs), and Quality of Service (QoS) entries

●      Catalyst 9300X models are based on UADP 2.0sec ASIC which adds line rate support for Crypto, including 100G hardware-based IPsec

●      x86 CPU complex with 8-GB memory, 16 GB of flash, and external USB 3.0 SSD pluggable storage slot (delivering up to 240GB of storage with an option SSD drive) to host containers. C9300X models support 16GB of memory

●      USB 2.0 slot to load system images and set configurations

●      Up to 1 TBps of local stackable switching bandwidth with Catalyst 9300X models

●      Deeper buffer and higher scale model options for rich multi-media content delivery applications

●      Flexible and dense uplink offerings with 100G, 40G, 25G, Multigigabit, 10G, and 1G as fixed or modular uplinks

●      Easy transition from 40G to 100G and 10G to 25G with dual-rate optics

●      Flexible downlink options with 25G, 10G, and 1G Copper and Fiber as well as the densest Multigigabit links

●      With a mix of Copper (1G up to 10G) and Fiber (1G up to 25G) supported in a single stack, multiple flexible deployment scenarios are enabled, including 2-Tier, 3-Tier, and Hybrid architectures

●      Leading PoE capabilities with up to 384 ports of PoE per stack, PoE+, and 288 ports high-density IEEE 802.3bt – 90W UPOE+, and 60W Cisco UPOE

●      Intelligent Power Management with Cisco StackPower technology, providing power stacking among members for power redundancy. StackPower pools the power supplies across the stack to be used for redundancy and supplemental power purposes

●      Line-rate, hardware-based Flexible NetFlow (FNF), delivering flow collection of up to 128,000 flows with select models

●      IPv6 support in hardware, providing wire-rate forwarding for IPv6 networks

●      Dual-stack support for IPv4/IPv6 and dynamic hardware forwarding table allocations, for ease of IPv4-to-IPv6 migration

●      Support for both static and dynamic NAT and Port Address Translation (PAT)

●      IEEE 802.1ba AV Bridging (AVB) built in to provide a better audio and video experience through improved time synchronization and QoS

●      Precision Time Protocol (PTP; IEEE 1588v2) provides accurate clock synchronization with sub-microsecond accuracy making it suitable for the distribution and synchronization of time and frequency over a network

●      Cisco IOS XE, a modern operating system for the enterprise with support for model-driven programmability including NETCONF, RESTCONF, YANG, on-box Python scripting, streaming telemetry, container-based application hosting, and patching for critical bug fixes. The OS also has built-in defenses to protect against runtime attacks

●      End-to-end visualization of the path from campus/branch to clouds/DC with Cisco ThousandEyes Network and Application Synthetics (included with Cisco DNA Advantage license)

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series offers reliable networking performance that can easily be scaled to meet the needs of your business. Its advanced features make it easy to manage, while its support for a variety of protocols ensures better network compatibility across different devices and systems. The Catalyst 9300 series is an excellent choice for businesses looking for a powerful yet affordable solution to their networking needs.

A data center switch is a device that connects computing devices in a data center so that they can communicate with each other. Switches are used to create redundancy and improve network performance.

A data center switch typically has multiple ports, which can be used to connect to various types of devices. The most common type of data center switch is the Ethernet switch, which is used to connect computers and other devices that use Ethernet cables.

How to Choose the Right Data Center Switch?

A data center switch is a multi-port network switch that is specifically designed for use in a data center. They are typically used to connect servers and storage devices to each other, as well as to connect the data center to the outside world.

There are many different types of data center switches available on the market today, so it can be difficult to choose the right one for your needs. Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing a data center switch:

1. Make sure that the switch supports the required number of ports.

2. Choose a switch with redundant power supplies for added reliability.

3. Select a switch that offers features such as port monitoring and VLAN support.

4. Consider the overall cost of ownership when making your decision.

Cisco Nexus 93108TC-FX3P: An overview

The Cisco Nexus 93108TC-FX3P Switch is a multigigabit-capable fixed switch, which was built with Cisco Cloud Scale technology. It’s part of the Cisco Nexus 9300 platform. Cisco Multigigabit Ethernet technology supports bandwidth speeds from 100Mbps to 10 Gbps over traditional Category 5e/6 cabling.

Current cabling infrastructure can’t meet the bandwidth needs driven by 802,11ac Wave 2 and Wi-Fi 6. To solve this, engineers created a new method of transmitting data packets using optics, which eliminates the need for replacing the current infrastructure. The switch is built on a modern-system architecture designed to provide high performance, support cost-effective deployments, and meet the evolving needs of growing mid-size to large enterprise customers.

Cisco provides two modes of operation for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches. Organizations can deploy Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (Cisco ACI) or Cisco NX-OS mode. Cisco ACI is a holistic, intent-driven architecture with centralized automation and policy-based application profiles.

The system is designed to manage dynamic workloads, so it can serve and balance traffic as needed. Additionally, it offers a network fabric that combines time-tested protocols and new innovations to create extremely flexible, scalable, and resilient architecture with low latency and high bandwidth links.

This fabric delivers a network that can support the most demanding and flexible data center environments. Designed for the programmable network, the Cisco NX-OS operating system automates configuration and management for customers who want to take advantage of the DevOps operation model and toolsets.

Take advantage of the Cisco Nexus 93108TC-FX3P’s optimized efficiency, simplified operation, and installation combined with its wide array of device versatility to protect your investments as your business becomes more data-centric and interconnected.The expansive feature set includes 40MB of intelligent buffering, support for voice VLANs, and a full-featured Layer 2 and Layer 3 Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC).

The Features of the Cisco Nexus 9372PX

The Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 series switches provide the following features and benefits:

Architectural flexibility

• Industry-leading software-defined networking (SDN) solution Cisco ACI support
• Support for standards-based VXLAN EVPN fabrics, inclusive of hierarchical multisite support 
• Three-tier BGP architectures enabling horizontal, nonblocking IPv6 network fabrics at web-scale
• Segment routing allows the network to forward Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) packets and engineer traffic without Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP) Traffic Engineering (TE). It provides a control-plane alternative for increased network scalability and virtualization.
• Comprehensive protocol support for Layer 3 (v4/v6) unicast and multicast routing protocol suites, including BGP, Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), Routing Information Protocol Version 2 (RIPv2), Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse Mode (PIM-SM), Source-Specific Multicast (SSM), and Multicast Source Discovery Protocol (MSDP).

Extensive programmability

• Day-0 automation through Power On Auto Provisioning, drastically reducing provisioning time
• Industry-leading integrations for leading DevOps configuration management applications, including Ansible, Chef, Puppet, SALT, Extensive Native YANG, and industry-standard OpenConfig model support through RESTCONF/NETCONF
• Pervasive APIs for all switch CLI functions (JSON-based RPC over HTTP/HTTPS)

High scalability, flexibility, and security

• Flexible forwarding tables support up to two million shared entries on FX3 models. Flexible use of TCAM space allows for the custom definition of Access Control List (ACL) templates.
• MAC Security (MACsec) and CloudSec (VTEP-to-VTEP encryption) support on all ports of Cisco Nexus 9300-FX3 models with speeds greater than or equal to 1 Gbps, which allows traffic encryption at the physical layer and provides secure server, border-leaf, and leaf-to-spine connectivity

Intelligent buffer management

The platform offers Cisco’s innovative intelligent buffer management, which offers the capability to distinguish mice and elephant flows and apply different queue management schemes to them based on their network forwarding requirements in the event of link congestion.

Intelligent buffer management functions are:

• Approximate Fair Dropping (AFD) with Elephant Trap (ETRAP). AFD uses ETRAP to distinguish long-lived elephant flows from short-lived mice flows. AFD exempts mice flows from the dropping algorithm so that mice flows will get their fair share of bandwidth without being starved by bandwidth-hungry elephant flows. Also, AFD tracks elephant flows and subjects them to the AFD algorithm in the egress queue to grant them their fair share of bandwidth.
• ETRAP measures the byte counts of incoming flows and compares this against the user-defined ETRAP threshold. After a flow crosses the threshold, it becomes an elephant flow.
• Dynamic Packet Prioritization (DPP), provides the capability of separating mice flows and elephant flows into two different queues so that buffer space can be allocated to them independently. Mice flow that is sensitive to congestion and latency can take priority in the queue and avoid reordering, allowing elephant flows to take full link bandwidth.

RDMA over Converged Ethernet – RoCE support

The platform offers lossless transport for RDMA over Converged Ethernet with support of DCB protocols:

• Priority-based Flow Control (PFC) — to prevent drops in the network and pause frame propagation per priority class
• Enhanced Transmission Selection (ETS) — to reserve bandwidth per priority class in a network contention situation
• Data Center Bridging Exchange Protocol (DCBX) — to discover and exchange priority and bandwidth information with endpoints
• The platform also supports Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN), which provides end-to-end notification per IP flow by marking packets that experienced congestion, without dropping traffic. The platform is capable of tracking ECN statistics of the number of marked packets that have experienced congestion.

Hardware and software high availability

• Virtual Port-Channel (vPC) technology provides Layer 2 multipathing through the elimination of the Spanning Tree Protocol. It also enables fully utilized bisectional bandwidth and simplified Layer 2 logical topologies without the need to change the existing management and deployment model.
• The 64-way Equal-Cost MultiPath (ECMP) routing enables the use of Layer 3 fat-tree designs. This feature helps organizations prevent network bottlenecks, increase resiliency, and add capacity with little network disruption.
• Advanced reboot capabilities include hot and cold patching
• The switch uses hot-swappable Power-Supply Units (PSUs) and fans with N+1 redundancy.

Purpose-built Cisco NX-OS software operating system with comprehensive, proven innovations

A single binary image that supports every switch in the Cisco Nexus 9000 series, simplifying image management. The operating system is modular, with a dedicated process for each routing protocol: a design that isolates faults while increasing availability. In the event of a process failure, the process can be restarted without loss of state. The operating system supports hot and cold patching and online diagnostics.

Cisco Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) is the network management platform for all NX-OS-enabled deployments, spanning new fabric architectures, IP Fabric for Media, and storage networking deployments for the Cisco Nexus-powered data center. Accelerate provisioning from days to minutes, and simplify deployments from day 0 through day N. Reduce troubleshooting cycles with graphical operational visibility for topology, network fabric, and infrastructure. Eliminate configuration errors and automate ongoing change in a closed loop, with a templated deployment model and configuration compliance alerting with automatic remediation. Real-time health summary for fabric, devices, and topology. Correlated visibility for fabric (underlay, overlay, virtual, and physical endpoints), including computing visualization with VMware.

Network traffic monitoring with Cisco Nexus Data Broker builds simple, scalable, and cost-effective network test access points (TAPs) and Cisco Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN) aggregation for network traffic monitoring and analysis.

Conclusion

The Cisco Nexus 9372PX is the perfect data center switch for those who need high performance and scalability. It offers a comprehensive feature set, including support for virtualization, making it an ideal choice for businesses of all sizes. Thanks to its easy-to-use interface, the 9372PX is also perfect for those who are new to data center networking. If you’re looking for a top-of-the-line data center switch, the Cisco Nexus 9372PX is the perfect option.