Cisco Catalyst Switches review
Updated March 11, 2025

Cisco Catalyst Switches review

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Catalyst Switches

We use them in our campus network as a core sw, acc, and mgmt at our Data Centre. One of the business requirement is to provide the secure data network between our campus and data centre which Catalyst switches comes with MACsec, so we don't have to buy additional appliance just for that and also HA using Stacking.

Pros

  • Layer 2
  • Spanning tree
  • DHCPsnooping
  • Bpdu
  • Rapid STP
  • MACsec
  • VLAN

Cons

  • Nothing on the Tech side
  • Pricing
  • Licensing
  • Secure Network
  • Resilient network
  • Webex Meetings
Connectivity
VPN
Zerotrust
Motivation
Fully or wfh
Our engineers are more familiar with Cisco IOS. Cisco Catalyst switches are number one in the Campus network environment and they just work out of the box. We known that we won't go wrong with Cisco Catalyst switches if we use then in our network. Another thing we consider is Company which Cisco has hardware to software, kinda of one stop solution.

Do you think Cisco Catalyst Switches delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Cisco Catalyst Switches's feature set?

Yes

Did Cisco Catalyst Switches live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Cisco Catalyst Switches go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Cisco Catalyst Switches again?

Yes

They are not that suitable in the Data centre environment where east west traffic is heavy and buffering increases latency and also in the Service Provider Network but can be use to increase the port density. I think next suitable environment may be Internet of Thing where we need more number of devices and another one will be wifi environment.

Cisco Catalyst Addtional Questions

  • Wifi Controller
  • POE
  • Port density
  • Scalability
  • Integration with Other Systems
  • Ease of Use
Actually budgeting which is our main factor because we could compare with other player in the market and if the pricing is not competitive, it will not be easy to get approved and another important factor is the ease of licensing model which will really help our day to day operation.
There are a few important configurations we must configure before we use them for production. 1. Enable Spanning tree and shutdown unuse ports. 2. VTP in transparent mode. 3. Disable telnet and use SSH instead. 4. Enable COPP. 5. Enable dhcp snooping and broadcast strom control. 6. Enable Port security.
This is always a fun part, the vendor was responsive, helpful, and overall easy to work with, though there might have been minor issues. There were some challenges, but the vendor addressed them one by one in the end, or the process had some hiccups but it wasn’t that bad.
The vendor was generally responsive and helpful, but maybe had room for improvement in follow-up or troubleshooting, especially on the support and licensing because that's where the value add to our day to day operation. Some issues were resolved, but there were delays or miscommunications. Overall we are quite satisfy with the vendor services after the sale.
TAC Support is a must for us and it's most valuable service Cisco offers. For us, TAC is a lifeline when issues arise. The knowledge and depth of support can be invaluable, especially for complex problems. However there is room for improvement, sometimes there was some delays on resolving the issues.

Using Cisco Catalyst Switches

8 - Infrastructure services which involves the hardware, software, networks, security for all systems and systems that support data management, communication, and business operations. It includes network devices, servers, data centers, cloud services, cybersecurity, enterprise software, and support systems. We ensure the smooth operation of our tools and systems, enabling efficient communication and collaboration.
3 - A deep understanding of Cisco networking protocols (e.g., Routing, Ethernet, Switching, OSPF, BGP, and others). Expertise in configuring and managing Cisco Catalyst switches through Cisco IOS-XE. Ability to use the Cisco CLI to troubleshoot, configure, and maintain devices. Certifications are often required to validate networking expertise, particularly for troubleshooting and more advanced tasks.
  • Cisco wireless solutions
  • PoE
  • MACsec
  • NAT
  • Routing
  • Switching
  • Zero-Touch Provisioning (ZTP)
  • Cisco DNA Center
  • network slicing to segment traffic
Cisco Catalyst switches are known for their high reliability, providing stable and robust network performance. The switches handle large-scale and complex networking tasks with ease, ensuring consistent connectivity and performance. The Catalyst switches include advanced features like PoE, QoS, advanced security features, SD-WAN, and network automation. These features allow businesses to build flexible, scalable, and secure network infrastructures

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