Primary Device
Cisco Catalyst 9200
★ 3.3 Value Score
Technical Specifications
- Switching Capacity: 128 Gbps - 176 Gbps
- Forwarding Rate: 190.4 Mpps - 261.9 Mpps
- Ports: 24 or 48x 10/100/1000 ports (Data or PoE+); Modular Uplinks (4x 1G, 4x 10G, or 2x 25G)
- PoE Budget: Up to 1440W (with dual redundant power supplies)
- Layer: Layer 2 and Full Layer 3 (OSPF, EIGRP, ISIS, RIP, BGP)
- Stacking support: StackWise-160 (160 Gbps bandwidth, up to 8 units)
Curation Review
- ✔ Pros: High resiliency with dual FRU power supplies and fans, advanced security features like MACsec-128, modern IOS XE operating system supporting automation, and investment protection through modular uplinks.
- ✘ Cons: Significant price increase over previous generations, mandatory Cisco DNA licensing subscriptions required, and reduced stacking bandwidth on the 9200L models.
- Est. Price: $1,800 - $5,000
Compare Against
Fortinet FortiSwitch 124G (FS-124G)
★ 3.7 Value Score
Technical Specifications
- Switching Capacity: 240 Gbps
- Forwarding Rate: 355 Mpps
- Ports: 24 x 100/1000/2500 Mbps RJ45, 6 x 10 Gbps SFP+
- PoE Budget: 0W (Non-PoE)
- Layer: Layer 2 with Static Routing
- Stacking support: FortiLink (Management Stacking)
- Form Factor: 1 RU, Fanless
Curation Review
- ✔ Pros: High-speed 2.5G multi-gigabit ports ideal for Wi-Fi 6/7 access points; generous 6x 10G SFP+ uplinks for high backhaul capacity; fanless design ensures completely silent operation; seamless integration with FortiGate firewalls via FortiLink for centralized security management.
- ✘ Cons: Lacks Power over Ethernet (PoE) support, requiring injectors or a separate power source for connected devices; fanless design leads to high operating temperatures (often exceeding 50°C); limited Layer 3 features compared to enterprise core switches.
- Est. Price: $1,130 - $1,504