Cisco 550X Series Stackable Managed Switches vs. Lumen Ethernet

It works very well as stack of core switches in small/medium company with 4x 10Gbit SFP+ interfaces. Native stacking is simple and in ring topology every switch has 2 redundant connections. They support maximum of 8 units per stack. You could use Cisco SG500X in hybrid stack with other series of switches, but make sure if other switch is compatible with hybrid mode stacking. Hybrid stack mode lower the number of units in stack. You should consider other model of switches if you need more then four SFP+ ports to connect more access switches using fiber cables.

Incentivized

CenturyLink Ethernet Services (now known as Lumen) in our area is one of only a few options for fiber service. They have a really large infrastructure and offer competitive pricing with comparable speed to others. We found there was much to be desired in the customer service department. When we had techs onsite to assist in setting up it was fine but there was an issue with the additional networking equipment which caused the service connection to be delayed... Then once that problem was fixed we attempted to get help in the final configuration for many weeks.

Incentivized

• Easy to create stacking
• Easy to configure using web interface or command line
• Similar command line to Cisco IOS

Incentivized

• Small platform integration specially mobile related.
• Cost effective services.
• Great customer services.

Incentivized

• Missing command line options like show running-config "| include, exlude"
• Possibility to connect to switch using usb console cable or usb dongle
• Missing vtp protocol support, only gvrp available

Incentivized

• Configuration.
• Implementation.
• Customer Service.

Incentivized

Cisco 550X switches stack using 10Gbit SFP+ ports on the front, while Dell N Series has dedicated ports (with cables) on the back of the unit. On the other hand dell N switches has number on small digital display showing stack member number, which is easier to identify. The cisco switches has dot beside the number of the switch member. I think Cisco devices are more reliable and stable than dell switches.

Incentivized

AT&T I would say is the leader within this area in terms of handling any large-scale deployments and their services are awesome. No connectivity issues at all and no latency in feedback. Server deployments are handled very effectively, that's not the case with century link. Of course, security is second to none with AT&T.

Incentivized

• Money savings as they are cheaper than competative Cisco IOS switches
• Cisco Business Switches has limited lifetime warranty
• Good switching capacity, and reliability

Incentivized

• ROI was better than some competiters
• Fast connection speeds
• Quick updates to software and hardware

Incentivized