3com vs. Cisco

[Warbird]

Hey everyone,

I am currently designing a LAN for a company I just started with and need some advice. I am looking at putting in a 10/100 24 port switch with 3 10/100 24 port hubs hanging off of it to connect about 50 users and a couple network printers. We will also have internet connectivity (T1 or so) running in also. What brands should I be looking at?

So far I have looked at the Cisco 2924M XL switch and the Cisco Hub 400's. I have also been looking at 3Com's Superstack 3 3300 switch and possible 3 3com 10/100 switches to hang off of it. Any recommendations?

Thanks in advance,

-Bryan

 

[wybnormal]

Given the small fact that 3com is dying a slow and painful death, I would be very wary of installing their equipment. Cisco is pricy but there are other cheaper suppliers depending on what you want to do with it and your budget. Netgear is made by Bay, Linksys has some nice stuff as does Intel. Most of it's cheaper then Cisco but then none have the support structure in place that Cisco has.

Mike S "Diplomacy; the art of saying 'nice doggie' till you can find a rock" Wynn Catlin

 

[Warbird]

Thanks for the response. I really appreciate it. I believe Cisco is one of the few switches that does the VLAN stuff right? I am pretty sure this might come in very handy in my situation. I might just go ahead and budget for the Cisco stuff if I can get it.

Thanks again!

-Bryan

 

[wybnormal]

Cisco does do VLANs on their switches.. not the cheap ones.. read the specs carefully. The 1900s needed the Enterprise software for VLANs. I am not aware of any of the "off brand" switches that do VLANs. Make sure it talks 802.1Q for the VLAN tagging. Cisco does ISL which is an older an Cisco only system, the 802.1Q is an open source so even if you have a Cisco switch and a 3com, they can both connect via the 802.1Q.

Cisco supports the following hardware using 802.1Q

Cisco 2600 series

Cisco 3600 series

Cisco 4000-M series (Cisco 4000-M, 4500-M, 4700-M)

Cisco 7200 series

RSP1Cisco 7505

RSP2Cisco 7507 and Cisco 7513

RSP4Cisco 7505, Cisco 7507, Cisco 7513, and Cisco 7576 "Diplomacy; the art of saying 'nice doggie' till you can find a rock" Wynn Catlin

 

[Warbird]

Thanks again Wynn.

I was looking into purchasing a 2924XL. I may look into it a bit more.

Thanks,

-Bryan

 

[Warbird]

he he he ;-)

I just realized you're not "Wynn". LOL!

Thanks again Mike!

 

[Warbird]

Just found this about the 2900XL on cisco.com:

"Support for standards-based IEEE 802.1Q and Cisco ISL VLAN trunking protocols"

So it looks like the 2924XL does support 802.1Q?

-Bryan

 

[wybnormal]

You bet- My cut and paste might have been out of date which is why I suggested looking carefully at the software version and feature set. The 1900s had both versions.. with and without VLAN support.

Mike S
"Diplomacy; the art of saying 'nice doggie' till you can find a rock" Wynn Catlin

 

[proctorcw]

I would also look into Extreme networks. They tend to be less pricey than Cisco, have better features, better performance, and are a LOT easier to configure.

3Com products aren't bad, but their future is somewhat dubious. They also have a nasty habit of going dead during the 1st few weeks after the install or arriving dead at the outset.

I'd avoid most of the other vendors you mentioned for the reason I'd avoid 3Com. Quality control is important when you're talking about infrastructure. A dead switch can kill your entire network.