Cisco 2000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 2000) vs. Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)

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

Well suited for10G aggregation at network edge. Small managed networks such as school districts or distributed enterprise campus. Not well suited to RPHY aggregation at network core — queuing in NCS540 results in jitter and poor RPHY performance. Allow port license purchases in smaller units. Better support for SLA performance monitoring capabilities would allow use as a box for 10G aggregation for Carrier Ethernet NNI handoff.

Incentivized

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

Incentivized

• Switching.
• Routing.
• Access.

Incentivized

• Harder to find and acquire than other routers

Incentivized

• MPLS feature set on NCS520
• Full support for RFC2544, Y.1564 across the product line
• Greater clarity of the impact of smaller buffers on NCS540 when compared to other Qumran chipsets — some use cases like RPHY aggregation at network core are not a good fit.

Incentivized

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

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

Cisco NCS is smaller and for us newer. Better cost with similar capabilities.

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

• Relatively low cost access layer device.
• Very cost effective means of getting 10G interfaces.
• Some features available on other devices out of the box are more complex or absent on the NCS without licensing or assistance.

Incentivized