Before buying a network
hardware product, it’s necessary to know about the business requirements of the
network. Then, you can select the appropriate products like the Cisco hardware.
Today, WAN
technologies most often take advantage of high-speed connections, such as T-1
and E-1. Additional WAN technologies exist, including Frame Relay, ISDN, and
dial-up asynchronous connections. ISDN or dial-up is used if infrequent
connection is made. If a connection is used for more than two to four hours, you
should use a Frame Relay or a leased line. Based on the different services
available through the service provider; you can select Cisco products that can fulfill your office requirements.
Selecting Hubs
Cisco has
various hub products. You can select hubs according to the type of connection
required. Higher-end hubs offer network management port and console
connections, middle-end hubs offer both 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps auto-sensing
connections, and the lower-end hubs offer only 10 Mbps connections. Examples of
fast hub series of Cisco are Cisco Fh100, Cisco Fh200,
Cisco Fh300, and Cisco Fh400. Examples of micro hub series are Cisco
MH1500 and Cisco MH1528.
Selecting Routers
Routers are the most popular Cisco products. To select a router, you must first know the port density and the
interface speed required based on the LAN or WAN technologies used. In
addition, you must identify the capacity and performance requirements of your
business. The cost of the router varies according to the features you select.
Selecting Switches
A switch can be
used instead of a hub in newer networks. Most switches are configured to limit
collision domains, which often provides a limited security feature because
users will not be able to sniff traffic as easily as in a standard hub-based
network. This feature can cause confusion when using a network sniffer to
analyze traffic. It is possible, however, to analyze packets on a switched
network by enabling mirroring on the switch, or by using a dedicated port that
allows authorized users to view all network traffic. It is important to
consider whether you need 10, 100, or 1000 Mbps for each desktop or to connect
between switches. To select a switch, you must consider various issues, such as
business requirements, requirements for inter-switch links and trunking, port
density, and type of user interface.
…
Product Selection Criteria, More Questions
- Will the device be used as a core device, distribution device, or access device?
- Does the device provide the functions that your business requires?
- Does the device have adequate number of ports and the right mix of interfaces as required by your business?
- Do you have to pay a lot for installing the device or can it be easily installed?
- Can the device be centrally managed from an SNMP Management station or do you have to physically access the device to manage it?
- Is the migration path easy?
- How well does the device handle redundancy requirements?
- Do you have to change your existing infrastructure, such as cabling or existing devices, to install the new device?
If you want to
know more Cisco products and its updates, you can visit its web site http://www.cisco.com to see
more. If you want to buy some Cisco products, such as Cisco 1900, 2900, 3900
series router, Cisco Catalyst 2960-X, 3750-X and 3560-X series, Cisco ASA 5500
series, Cisco wireless AP and so on. More Cisco’s new products you can see at http://www.router-switch.com/
More Cisco
hardware guides and tips you can visit: http://blog.router-switch.com/
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