Arista 7000 series vs. Cisco Catalyst IE3100 Rugged Series Switches

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 Catalyst IE3100 Rugged Series Switches are well suited for harsh environments where the environment is really cold or really hot. These switches have been running for years with no issues even with degrees above 100 degrees and temperatures below 0 degrees. Outside environments are also well suited for the Cisco Catalyst IE3100 Rugged Series Switches.

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

• Copper Ethernet device aggregation
• Footprint is small
• Upgrade firmware is easier than IE-2000

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

• Could be cheaper in POE version

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The new IE-3100/Stratix 5200 WEBUI platform and the new IOX-XE firmware platform is a great improvement on the switch performance in the field.

Incentivized

Fits our needs

Incentivized

Albert Mitchell's team is great!!

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

These switches are suitable for small but weather intensive situations. Compared to the Cisco 9000 series these do perfect if you do not need a big amount of ports. We used the 9000 series in certain substations, but they are overkill. I have also seen a better performance compared to the 9000 series with the weather.

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

• They last years
• End of life is really short lived
• Really reliable

Incentivized