Cisco Catalyst Has a Solid and Long Track Record
July 09, 2019

Cisco Catalyst Has a Solid and Long Track Record

Benjamin Story | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Catalyst Switches

  • Catalyst 3850 Series
  • Catalyst 9400 Series
We use the Cisco Catalyst Switch line as our campus access and core switching platform. They provide us the stable platform to build the rest of our architecture. The hardware is reliable which is a major need in a healthcare environment where replacement may only occur every 7-10 years. Also, the hardware is hardy enough to run reliably in network closets that are not environmentally controlled.

Pros

  • Hardware Reliability
  • Software is extensible to provide future proofing.
  • Support for security features on box.

Cons

  • Software quality assurance could use attention.
  • The Catalyst 9K requires subscription based software licensing.
  • Support and licensing options make it difficult to procure.
  • The Cisco Catalyst Switches generally last longer than our accounting depreciation which gives us an ROI by not having to replace them before they are off the books.
  • Cisco's change to subscription-based licensing makes self sparing support strategies more difficult which raises the cost.
  • Catalyst's reliability allows for a lower TCO.
The newer Catalyst switches are enabled with automation, virtualization, and analytics capabilities. At this point, our enterprise has not implemented the software tools needed to realize these benefits.
The Cisco Catalyst platform does provide for customization and manageability. We are able to manage our fleet of over 1000 switches mostly remotely using Cisco Prime Infrastructure. Normal SNMP tools using encrypted SNMPv3 are our primary management tools and they work well with these switches. We have not tried leveraging any APIs or other newer management paradigms.
The Arista switches have a superior track record with software quality. The last time we evaluated them they did not support POE at the levels needed to support a mass deployment of APs and phones. Arista's software story and pricing do make them an up and coming competitor in this space and once they have their full campus line of POE switches it will be a major competitor for Cisco Catalyst.
For enterprise businesses with a need for a reliable platform, the Catalyst switches are a very good option. Smaller businesses and non-profit or government customers may find that the price is too expensive for their budget. The Cisco Catalyst line is best suited for campus networks, and at this point, is not designed for data center networks.

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