Cisco Ethernet Switches Reviews

We use these switches to improve client connections.

We're a manufacturing facility — we have POCs and terminals. We have maybe 90 to 100 users with desk phones, and roughly 20 printers.

We don't perform maintenance ourselves. A third-party company handles the maintenance. We also outsource other vendors to help us with some complex configurations that we've had implemented.  

I would like to have a way to access a graphical web interface, but they either have an outdated iOS or they don't work well with Flash. They don't work well or show us enough details. They don't show errors or bandwidth on particular reports. 

I don't know if there were optional models, but the models that we bought don't have a redundant power supply. It would be nice if they had higher wattage for PoE+.

It would also be nice if they didn't have plastic faceplates that break easily.

I have been working with Cisco Ethernet Switches for over 13 years.

These switches are both stable and scalable. 

Cisco's technical support is usually quite helpful.

The initial setup is not complex, but it's not easy either. I know what to do with Cisco switches, but we had one FortiGate switch that we used to connect our firewalls which I liked because it was easy to set up and had a nice interface. 

Deployment was easy. I just took it out of the box and configured it. Deployment only took a few hours. I deployed them myself. 

We haven't seen any gains as of yet.

I am interested in switching over to Fortinet FortiSwitches. I've been checking them out, comparing the price, features, and compatibility compared to Cisco Ethernet Switches. It may be a mixed environment for a while.

We're looking for a better graphical interface and price. 

My advice would be to look at Fortinet. Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give Cisco Ethernet Switches a rating of eight. 

On-premises

The blade module feature which provide the scalability for site expansion.

A Cisco Network Structure consisted of 3 Layers (Core, Distribution & Access). We used the FWSM (Firewall Services Module) to route the traffic and as a gateway to get to the WAN. As a result, we were able to collapse the Core Layer into the Distribution Layer with a few blade modules (FWSM, SUP & Ethernet).

A FoE module would be imminent in the future. This module can communicate with storage devices' and ESXi Servers' HBA (fiber) connection via fibre channel switches (Brocade or Cisco MDS). This can provide a cost effective method in a data center environment without upgrading to a more advanced Cisco Nexus core switch.

5 years

The power supply requires certain sockets and UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). Each device should require a designated UPS for it. The UPS should not be shared with other devices. An improper termination of the switch's power supply cased a power surge and took out a SUP module during an annual power test.

No extraordinary issues. Just minor day-to-day issues.

The Chassis can run out of slots as the environment expand further along.

Customer Service: Great but Cisco outsources its customer support services to India since most of our issues and outages occurred after hours. Some support technicians have a heavy Indian accent which led to difficult comprehension and time consumption.Technical Support: 4.5 out of a 5 since Tech Support personnels are very knowledgeable of the product.

No, I have not due to our contract agreement with Cisco.

The initial setup consist of the right personnel to set up and administer the product.

All implementation were completed by in-house team members.

Centralized administration and reduced time consumption.

The SUP (Supervisor) module can provide up to 720 GBPS of data transmission compared to a stackable Cisco 3750 switches.

Yes, the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series core switches.

No further comments.

The use case for Cisco Ethernet switches is foundational networking, which includes packet switching and routing within the organization's network. It facilitates communication between devices and networks, ensuring data packets are appropriately directed to their destinations.

Cisco Ethernet Switches are rugged, secure, and scalable. It provides smart devices and reliable switches.

There are instances where the commands you are familiar with might change or be replaced with newer syntax. They could provide details to know about the changed processes. Additionally, its pricing needs improvement.

It is a stable platform.

We can find references in the product's knowledge base to resolve the technical issues.

The initial setup process is straightforward. It involves understanding the user's configuration requirements. Setting up IP addresses or configuring security features like authentication can be accomplished within three to four minutes. Further, we configure security features like passwords, consoles, and connectivity to help prevent unauthorized access. It requires one technical executive for deployment and maintenance.

The product is worth the investment.

The product is expensive. However, it is cost-effective, considering its durability. There is only a need for licensing in case of specific security requirements or advanced configurations where we need to activate certain modules. We need to buy licenses for wireless controllers or VPNs. 

I recommend Cisco Ethernet Switches to others and rate it a ten out of ten.

The solution is basically issue-free. They are constantly upgrading their technology.

It's an easy solution to set up. 

Technical support is helpful and responsive. 

It's a stable product. 

The user interface could be improved. 

The licensing is too expensive. It's one of the main reasons customers leave Cisco. 

I've been working with Cisco products for more than ten years. I've used the product for a very long time. 

The stability has been very good. It's quite reliable. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. 

It's a scalable product. If a company needs to expand it, it can do so. It's no problem. 

We've used it in a large company and had no issues. 

Technical support is the best. Compared to other solutions, like Aruba, Cisco is top-notch. 

Typically, the agents are good and helpful. Sometimes we may run into issues, however, 90% of the time, they are great. 

Positive

The solution is easy to implement. The process is not overly complex. Technically speaking, it's pretty simple. 

The solution is not cheap. Cisco is quite pricey.

We're customers and end-users. 

I'd advise users to try out the product. I've been happy with its capabilities. 

I would rate the solution nine out of ten. 

We are using it for user connectivity. We are using its latest version. 

It is deployed on a public cloud and on-premises.

It is very scalable.

If we can have fewer bugs on our switches, that would be great. We had bugs that caused the switch to reboot. There is probably a problem with the software. 

Their technical support can be improved in terms of response time and overall efficiency.

I have been using this solution for about 20 years.

It is very scalable. We have about 8,000 users.

We use their technical support a lot. They are okay. There is definitely room for improvement in terms of response time and overall efficiency.

We didn't use any other solution.

For our setup here, it was pretty straightforward.

I pay a fixed price on it. I'm not the person on the pursing, so I don't really compare.

I would advise others to shop around and maybe compare it with some of the other vendors such as Juniper or Arista.

I would rate Cisco Ethernet Switches a seven out of 10.

We are using the solution as switches for our organization's network.

One main feature of this solution is the POE switches.

The interface and dashboard could look better.

I have been using the solution for approximately two years.

I have been using a lot of hardware that is probably close to 10 years old. We did have an issue once with one of our switches that would just auto-reset and wipe out and randomly restart. I do not know the full details, but we ended up just replacing it.

In the future, there should be readily available instructional videos.

The scalability is pretty good, all you need to do is add more racks. We have approximately 70 people that rely on this solution from my organization.

We paid for the technical support and they were good.

The initial setup is straightforward.

I have been evaluating Fortinet solutions.

I rate Cisco Ethernet Switches an eight out of ten.

On-premises

We use these switches as part of our data center infrastructure.

These switches are stable and they have a good replacement service.

The support is good.

The procedures and handling of these switches are easy. Anything that you need to know is available in a Google search, or from the technical support.

The initial setup can be simplified.

We have been using Cisco Ethernet Switches for approximately 10 years.

Stability is one of the key features of this product.

We are using the Cisco 4503-E and these switches are very scalable. There are some models that have plenty of ports.

Users do not connect directly to this switch. Rather, only servers are connected and we have perhaps 20 of them.

We also have experience with HPE switches. The HPE switches are okay, but Cisco is the best when it comes to things like the CLI. I prefer them.

Juniper is also a good company and they have good switches.

Cisco Switches are the best and I recommend them.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

On-premises

Cisco is our backbone. This includes switches, main office, links - all Cisco. For the one between branches, we have Riverbed to speed it up. For internet analytics, we have Palo Alto, Fortinet Security. For application delivery, Citrix. Database, Microsoft SQL, and Oracle. We also have business tools and developer bots with Oracle. That is a lot of products!

We keep Cisco for normal switches for corrective flows and the data center. But they are not so good with the firewall so we use Palo Alto and FortiGate. 

In terms of the most valuable feature, I would say the user interface. We also have Citrix XenApp for the remote service. And Exchange and other Microsoft solutions.

We have other software for software control, for users and help desk. For security, we have RSA Netwitness and Netwitness Security Analytics,

We are only using Cisco for switches and for the IP telephony call center. 

It needs to be manageable, easy, and fast with Windows and other GUIs. They must improve their interface and stability.

We have been using Cisco Ethernet Switches since 1997.

Yes, it is stable. That's why we've stuck with it. It's very stable.

The IT department is more than 55 people. But the server team has three teams of four people. The security team, four people. Database team, five people. We have one supervisor, the head of the team, and two or three under him for his team. I am the head of the security team and the infrastructure team, for servers, switches, and security. So I can tell you that it takes five to seven people to handle Cisco and the security.

In terms of scalability, it is scalable. With Cisco we have built-in stacks and stackable switches. And it has a stackable fiber from the main office to the Catalyst and the Nexus switch.

The problem with customer support is that they give you beginners. We need the experts after the first, second, or third call. Only after a week do you get the expert after you explain and complain about it.

We are the Qatar government authority. So with Cisco, we are dealing with all types of gateways. Cisco is in Kuwait. Many times when we are building something with Cisco we design the infrastructure, everything. Then we go to the Cisco dealers. Because this is our strategy, we work with Cisco directly. With the firewall, I work with Palo Alto or FortiGate or any other brand. Who will give good support, good installation? The solution for installation will be provided and approved by the center itself. That is our strategy. We are happy with this. Before we develop a solution, we sit down directly with the vendor.

Our IP telephony is all Cisco. I would consider another data component.

Cisco is very good and stable. But the problem is that it is costly. It's a very good service but it would be costly for small companies. They should go for lower-end, cheaper switches. Because we are the government, we are stuck with Cisco. But the small and medium-sized businesses must go lower, such as with Huawei or another brand.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate Cisco Ethernet Switches a nine.

The main problem is the support in the Middle East. This is a problem for all products, not just Cisco. When you contact support, they don't give you the expert at first, they give you the beginner. Only after going around in a circle do they give you experts. Why don't they just give the expert from the beginning?