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Executive Summary
Storage networks, voice systems and video-streaming applications are being melded with the traditional data network to create one enterprise that handles a wide variety of traffic. As a result, the newly converged enterprise network requires a robust, highly available, highperformance infrastructure. Key to building a converged network are the switches that connect the various network segments at the edge of the network to the backbone.
Fixed configuration — or 'stackable' — Ethernet switches are designed specifically to allow flexible deployments around the network, as well as support the often complex bandwidth requirements of a converged network. Versatile, powerful and inexpensive, these switches allow companies of all sizes to extend gigabit connectivity to the desktop. They're also reliable enough to trust with your businesscritical applications and are capable of handling voice and data in the same pipe.
The bottom line when it comes to this class of switches is that it gives even smaller enterprises an aff ordable path to advanced communications applications, such as IP telephony. They feature built-in security features to bolster network defenses, make operations simpler in the wiring closet for greater operational efficiencies and ease network management tasks, especially for a small IT staff . Just as important, they make for a smart investment, one which will scale along with the network. This Buyer's Guide focuses on one-rack unit-high stackable 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet Layer 3 switches that provide high-density gigabit desktop connectivity. You will find details on what to features to look for, how much you can expect to pay and the benefits your enterprise will reap from their deployment.
Stackable 10/100/1000 Ethernet Switches Overview
It's a fact of modern life: Users need more bandwidth. Today's communications and storage applications are bandwidth-eating monsters, and most enterprises require that they coexist on a single, converged network that handles voice, video and storage traffic, as well as the traditional data traffic. Users taking calls on an IP phone or participating in a videoconference don't have time to waste on lag time or dropped packets. Deploying gigabit edge switches alleviates these problems, and users' access to business-critical applications is guaranteed.
When shopping for an Ethernet edge switch, the primary question to answer is modular or stackable? Both types of switches are equally capable, scalable and robust, and they perform at speeds fast enough for any enterprise. The choice may come down to the almost limitless flexibility of stackables to scale up, space constraints in the wiring closet — stackables tend to take up 30 percent to 50 percent less vertical rack space than an equivalent modular solution, according to Nortel — and costs, both initial and over the life of the device. In general, the purchase price of stackable switches tends to be less than its modular cousin, and if future network requirements have been accurately defined, a stackable can outlive a switch's usual sell-by date.
Once you've decided to deploy stackable Ethernet switches in the LAN wiring closet, the next question to ask is which vendor to buy from? If your company has standardized on a particular hardware vendor — say, 3Com, Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco Systems Inc., Enterasys Networks Inc., Hewlett-Packard or Nortel — that's an easy question to answer. But each vendor's family of stackable switches off ers several diff erent models with a variety of fixed-configuration options — units with 24 or 48 ports, optional PoE (Power over Ethernet) support, 10/100 Ethernet interfaces, 10/100/1000 Mbps interfaces, or even 10/100/1000/10,000 Mbps interfaces.
You don't need to immediately decide on the number of switches in a stack because you can add units as your network needs evolve. On average, the maximum number of units in a stack is eight, but it varies among vendors — that can yield as many as 400 ports, typically a mix of 10/100/1000 Mbps, PoE and gigabit Ethernet ports.
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