Arista 7000 series vs. Cisco 2000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 2000)

Core and data center applications are the strengths of Arista products. The distribution layer is also a good fit. For the access layer, it would be more of a niche product.

Incentivized

The Cisco 2000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 2000) is well suited in an enclosed environment where there is no air con in place, and it may get quite hot. It provides copper and fiber connections to the next site so if you have a fiber in place, it suits as well. As it's not designed for speed, so if you are after high speed links, such as 10G and above, it is not the choice.

Incentivized

• The 7304's along side our core network design has provided 100% uptime during the 5 years of deployment.
• The multi-chassis LAG has provided near 100% connectivity to the distribution and access switches.
• Very low maintenance attention is needed.

Incentivized

• Resistant to many elements that its exposed to
• Work well in higher temperatures
• Compact enough to be installed in an inground box

Incentivized

• The 7304's lack a graceful non-intrusive upgrade method even though they are dual supervisor.
• I would like to see more integration with Aruba's ClearPass and Airwave products.

Incentivized

• Harder to find and acquire than other routers

Incentivized

Have not had to use support yet but would follow our current Cisco process.

Incentivized

I have used the Catalyst 6500 series in the past. From my point of view, the Arista surpasses the Catalyst on just about every front. Originally we were planning on implementing the Nexus 7000/7700 series switches for our core. Though a little more feature rich, it did not provide features we needed that the Arista did. The Nexus also was a confusing and complex platform to work with. Also, the Nexus was a significantly more expensive solution. Although very happy with the Arista switches we may evaluate the Aruba HPE 8400 chassis-based switches along with Arista switches in the future.

Incentivized

While the Cisco Catalyst 8000 Edge Platforms provide better throughput and thin chassis (1 RU) compared to the Cisco 2000 Series Connected Grid Routers, the Cisco 2000 Series Connected Grid Routers survive in a hot, non-ventilated/aircon enclosed environment and, at the same time, provide connectivity from the sites back to the data center.

Incentivized

• The Arista 7000 series met or exceed our data center switching and routing needs.
• It provided a more cost effective alternative to other products we were considering.
• Implementation was quick and easy due to the simple standards-based configuration.

Incentivized

• Saved money on replacing standard routers that die in those environments
• Saved time with the easy linking and connection options
• Given us peace of mind that the device will continue to run without intervention

Incentivized