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PeerSpot user
Director of Technical Services at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Consultant
Top 20
Mar 20, 2016
​This switch and its functionality allowed me to deploy a secure network connection in three months.​
Pros and Cons
  • "The stability has never been an issue."
  • "At first glance this switch looks exactly like an Ethernet switch, I would recommend that there be verbage in the documentation on exactly what gbit connectors are required."

What is most valuable?

  • Security
  • Configuration

What needs improvement?

At first glance this switch looks exactly like the an Ethernet switch, I would recommend that there be verbage in the documentation on exactly what gbit connectors are required.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've been using it for eight years.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

There have been no issues with the deployment.

Buyer's Guide
Cisco Catalyst Switches
May 2026
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Catalyst Switches. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2026.
893,438 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability has never been an issue.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We've had no issues scaling it for our needs.

How are customer service and support?

Customer Service:

It's great.

Technical Support:

It's great.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We didn't have anything in place and needed a fiber solution.

How was the initial setup?

It was very straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We did it in-house with help from the vendor.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

There were no other options looked at.

What other advice do I have?

Make sure you get the right connectors.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Customer Experience Manager at a comms service provider with 501-1,000 employees
Vendor
Aug 17, 2015
We now have the ability migrate to multiple sites, but the TAC speed needs improvement.
Pros and Cons
  • "It is easier to design and manage a network by enabling reuse and the ability to migrate to multiple sites."
  • "There were issues with the maximum stackable switches per site and monitoring setup."

What is most valuable?

  • Stackable module
  • Hot-swappable inventory

How has it helped my organization?

  • Easier to design and manage a network by enabling reuse
  • Ability migrate to multiple sites

What needs improvement?

Deliverability speed of the Terminal Access Controller.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used it for over four years.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

No issues encountered.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

No issues encountered.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

There were issues with the maximum stackable switches per site & monitoring setup.

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

7/10.

Technical Support:

7/10.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We switched because we had weak tech support, especially for the PoE product.

How was the initial setup?

It was a medium difficulty setup.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Licensing is one of the major areas of confusion for a person with a technical if they gain the verification from Cisco website.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at Dell options.

What other advice do I have?

Ensure you select the right license, power supply and other components to install the switch into the rack.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Cisco Catalyst Switches
May 2026
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Catalyst Switches. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2026.
893,438 professionals have used our research since 2012.
it_user5274 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Manager at a insurance company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Vendor
Apr 14, 2013
Small switch with a lot of features - good for enterprises and small businesses
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a nice product for enterprises and small businesses."
  • "If most of the switch ports get damaged then you have to replace the whole switch."

Valuable Features:

1. Cisco 2960 catalysts switch has lots of security features (Port Security, block DHCP snooping, VLAN).
2. I can create a stack with multiple Cisco 2960 switch which improve availability
3. I can create a port channel by merging multiple port of multiple switches which help me transfer large amounts of data traffic between serveres and it also increases reliability if one switch port becomes damaged.
4. It provides PoE (Power over Ethernet) which helps me easily setup Cisco wireless AP and IP phones at any office location.
5. RSPAN (Remote Switch Port Analyzer) enables me to monitor network traffic flow with of NMS software.
6. VTP (VLAN Trunking Protocol) helps me to transfer VLAN configuration from one switch to multiple switches.

Room for Improvement:

1. It does not provide any expansion slots so I cannot increase the number of ports.
2. If most of the switch ports get damaged than you have to replace the whole switch.

Other Advice:

It is a nice product for enterprises and small businesses. It is a small switch with a lot of features.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
it_user1068 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user1068Tech Support Staff at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Real User

We make use of Brocade's BigIron and IBM's Rackswitch in our data center. I would say they are the best; maybe because they are the ones I have experience using. How would you rate Catalyst in comparison two these two products: Rackswitch and BigIron?

Pre-Sales Solution Architect at CtrlS Datacenters Ltd
Real User
Apr 15, 2024
Provides DNS feature but has high pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "Cisco offers DNS features over other vendors."
  • "The product could be cheaper."

What is most valuable?

Cisco offers DNS features over other vendors.

What needs improvement?

The product could be simpler and cheaper.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cisco Catalyst Switches for over 5-10 years. We are using the 9000 series of the solution.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Switches are scalable in terms of logical configurations at VLAN. It is scalable because it depends on whether it is a manageable or non-manageable suite.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The product is expensive. They charge for support. It comes with many options that are not understandable.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Aruba and Dell are offering switches, too.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
reviewer2332008 - PeerSpot reviewer
Co- Founder at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Real User
Jan 18, 2024
The online support available for the tool is good, but it can be difficult to understand the functioning of the solution
Pros and Cons
  • "The benefit of the tool is that it is a stable product."
  • "There are multiple operating systems across Cisco's portfolio, which is problematic."

What is our primary use case?

I use the tool in my company for spine and leaf architectures and to deploy new data centers.

How has it helped my organization?

The benefit of the tool is that it is a stable product. You can find enough expertise in the market to hire someone for help if required. Cisco's technical support is great.

What is most valuable?

Cisco Catalyst Switches offer familiarity with operating systems. The operational knowledge that I have gained after working with Cisco for around ten to twelve years is the sole reason I prefer it. The stability in the operations that I get with Cisco Catalyst Switches, the support it offers to users through the articles available over the internet, and the expertise related to the tool available in the market are good.

What needs improvement?

There are multiple operating systems across Cisco's portfolio, which is problematic. Cisco's firewall has some different operating systems, while Cisco's routers have a different operating system, so you might need to have people with different expertise, and the learning curve might be a little high as compared to other network providers, which might have common operating systems across different types of devices.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cisco Catalyst Switches for ten to twelve years. Currently, I'm not working with Cisco. I have my own startup organization where I provide services related to networking devices.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution. I have no complaints about the tool's stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable solution.

Around 100 people in my company use the tool.

How are customer service and support?

I have experience with the solution's technical support. I found Cisco's support team to be one of the best in the industry.

I rate the overall tool a seven and a half out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

It doesn't take much time to set up any Cisco device, but again, it depends on how comfortable you are with the tool. From my personal viewpoint, Cisco Catalyst Switches are pretty much easy to set up.

The product's deployment phase initially starts with a discovery and a design workshop. After that, our company mostly automates a lot of stuff based on the design and discovery workshop, where we come up with some artifacts with respect to configuration, and then we leverage some automation tools to deploy it.

The solution is deployed on an on-premises model.

Depending on the size of the deployment, around eight to ten people are required from an operation standpoint, and not more than two people are required to manage the deployment process.

What about the implementation team?

The solution can be deployed with help from an in-house team.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The licenses are definitely expensive. There is a need to make annual payments towards the subscription or licensing costs attached to the solution.

What other advice do I have?

Before a user picks up any product or solution, due diligence should be followed. Though Cisco offers many services, features, and functionalities, better solutions might be available in the market. If users need only ten features, it is better to choose a solution that offers only ten features rather than opting for something like Cisco, which offers over a hundred features, making it an expensive product.

I rate the overall tool a seven and a half out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Catalyst Switches Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: May 2026
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Catalyst Switches Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.