Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switches vs Cisco Catalyst Digital Building Series Switches

Likelihood to Recommend

They are best suited for edge switching applications. We do have a couple in the data center doing legacy copper VM hosts that perform ok. But edge switching is most definitely the best suited, at least in our specific situation. I know that some of the higher end catalyst switches have the ability to do layer 3 functionality, but that's not something that we've personally delved into with the catalyst line.

Read full review

Matthew Cable

Network Engineer II

Hall County SchoolsEducation Management, 1001-5000 employees

View all 11 answers on this topic

They are great for any data center or wiring closet but not so week suited for dusty environments as the cooling ports are large enough to let lots of dust inside.

Read full review

Mike O'Rourke

Director of Information Technology

Lighthouse Resources IncMining & Metals, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Pros

Simple administration, low occurrence rates, and a wide range of deployment options make it ideal for use in virtually any networking environment.
Great features and good performance combine to form a small and quiet factor.
Servers, printers, and PCs can connect via the Cisco Switch's auto smart ports, allowing zero-touch provisioning of edge devices.

Read full review

Nilufa Hossain

IT Specialist

Lamda I-TECHInformation Technology & Services, 11-50 employees

View all 11 answers on this topic

They are reliable.
They have monitoring features built in.
They stack.

Read full review

Mike O'Rourke

Director of Information Technology

Lighthouse Resources IncMining & Metals, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Cons

Cisco's switch code backup tool isn't the greatest and easiest to use.
[It's] a lot more money than competitor's products.
[Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switch] is a very diverse product line for even one model. [It] can be daunting to find the switch you need without Cisco's help.

Read full review

Verified User

Administrator in Information Technology

Oil & Energy Company, 201-500 employees

View all 11 answers on this topic

The ports are somewhat set back in the chassis making it hard to access the disconnect on the cables.

Read full review

Mike O'Rourke

Director of Information Technology

Lighthouse Resources IncMining & Metals, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Pricing Details

General

Free Trial

—

Free/Freemium Version

—

Premium Consulting/Integration Services

—

Entry-level set up fee?

No

Starting Price

—

General

Free Trial

—

Free/Freemium Version

—

Premium Consulting/Integration Services

—

Entry-level set up fee?

No

Starting Price

—

Likelihood to Renew

Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switches 1.6

Based on 2 answers

We are extremely happy with the Cisco Catalyst series and don't have any reason to switch. As long as we continue to get great use and service out of the products we'll continue to use them for the foreseeable future.

Read full review

Matthew Cable

Network Engineer II

Hall County SchoolsEducation Management, 1001-5000 employees

View all 2 answers on this topic

No score

No answers yet

No answers on this topic

Usability

Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switches 9.0

Based on 2 answers

Cisco by and far does a great job with the Catalyst line. From a layer 2 dumb switch all the way up to ISP carrier grade switching within the Catalyst portfolio. The best part about it is command parity among the various tiers of product. The only differences are going to lie in what features are available per switch.

Read full review

Matthew Cable

Network Engineer II

Hall County SchoolsEducation Management, 1001-5000 employees

View all 2 answers on this topic

No score

No answers yet

No answers on this topic

Support Rating

Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switches 8.4

Based on 6 answers

So far we haven't had very many support issues with our Catalyst switches. When we have had issues TAC is always a pleasure to work with. They're prompt, knowledgeable, and take ownership of the case from open to close. Also, this isn't attributed to Cisco support directly. But because they are so widely known and have such a great market share you can find a solution to almost any issue with a quick internet search.

Read full review

Matthew Cable

Network Engineer II

Hall County SchoolsEducation Management, 1001-5000 employees

View all 6 answers on this topic

No score

No answers yet

No answers on this topic

Alternatives Considered

The Cisco Catalyst switch is a robust switch and has a long lifespan regardless of the cost. it is easy to deploy and configure as a layer 3 device. As compared to other devices like Juniper Switch, it is easy to configure on the network.

Read full review

Olumayowa Mosuro

Systems Admin

MultiChoiceBroadcast Media, 1001-5000 employees

View all 11 answers on this topic

HP switches were used in our organization but many of those did not have as many of the features at the lower price point.

Read full review

Mike O'Rourke

Director of Information Technology

Lighthouse Resources IncMining & Metals, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Return on Investment

Expansion has been made in our organization. We recently use a 24 port switch but as the company grew, we required a more robust switch
Core switches are able to do MPLS to reach other locations
Most switches are now 48 port and support fiber ports not only Gigabit ports

Read full review

Olumayowa Mosuro

Systems Admin

MultiChoiceBroadcast Media, 1001-5000 employees

View all 11 answers on this topic

They have all lasted well beyond the 5 year depreciation cycle.
They get reused in other projects because they are still a viable solution.

Read full review

Mike O'Rourke

Director of Information Technology

Lighthouse Resources IncMining & Metals, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Cisco Catalyst 3560-CX Series Switches vs Cisco Catalyst Digital Building Series Switches