Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches vs. Ruckus ICX Switches

Even with the higher price point compared to other vendors, we highly recommend [Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches] to all of our clients. These switches are built to last. [They] make network management very easy and will benefit any business in the long run. Cisco stands behind its product. It is very easy to add additional switches as a network grows.

Incentivized

I love this switch for access and aggregate, especially due to the lack of needing reboots. [Other systems require this] reliable and stable platform.

• Cisco Catalyst Switches are very easy to use and manage.
• Cisco support it top notch.
• Very easy to scale up as [the] network infrastructure grows.

Incentivized

• They are relatively easy to configure and to maintain.
• They have all of the high-end configuration capabilities as Cisco switches.
• The switches have excellent performance and reliability.

Incentivized

• Programming is different from other providers; this has caused some issues with staffing
• The training opportunities do not provide the basics of programming or migration from other vendors' products.
• Unless you are willing to purchase renewed switches, cost can be out of line with other vendors

Incentivized

• Licensing for the 10GB ports is a bit pricey, but that was 5 years ago, so things may have changed
• The CLI commands are slightly different than typical Cisco commands
• Their rack mounting was not the prettiest in the world

Incentivized

Cisco is top of the class when it comes to comparing them to other vendors in the network hardware environment. They may have a higher price-point, but they justify it with great support and a very long lifecycle.

Incentivized

The switching holds up well against HP, Extreme, Juniper, et. al at the edge. Cost is also a huge factor, and played a part in the purchase. Not just for the switches themselves, but also optics can be purchased at a discount. Service delivery has been fantastic, and in 3 years I've not had to replace any of the brocade switches I've purchased.

Incentivized

• [There is a] high price point, but [Cisco Catalyst Series Switches] will save [you] in the long run because these switches are reliable and last a very long time.
• Cisco offers very good support so you can depend on them to keep everything running smoothly.
• Once techs are trained on Cisco devices, they will be able to save time making changes to networks.

Incentivized

• Equipment just runs
• Sometimes past EOL/EOS
• Firmwares just work