Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Cisco FabricPath comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Catalyst Switches and Cisco FabricPath based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two LAN Switching solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco FabricPath Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"Perpetual POE is a valuable feature, because when the switch reboots, access points do not.""Catalyst Switches are easy to install.""This technology is a completely mature technology and I don't think anything needs to be changed.""We use a lot of security features available with Cisco Catalyst Switches.""The quality of a Cisco switch is very high. They are extremely stable.""Technical support is very helpful, even during implementation.""We can have multiple Cisco switches, like seven or eight, on a stack for 300 users. So it is highly scalable and easy to manage.""The solution highly scalable."

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"The solution has excellent stability.""The most valuable features are the lead time and the high quality of the product.""As I mentioned earlier, the durability, flexibility, and security of Cisco devices are notable. Particularly with switches, the capability to implement multiple VLANs and easily aggregate the network has been advantageous. The ability to have different VLANs and aggregate the network without complications is a key feature of Cisco FabricPath.""It's very stable.""Cisco is the market leader in this space and it is a product that I recommend.""The technical support we get from Cisco is excellent. It's the best in the industry. We're more than satisfied with the level of service they provide.""The fact that the solution is on the cloud is its most valuable aspect. If you are on the cloud, you can manage your network from anywhere, any place. It's very good.""I like the 10G ports and the modular uplink port."

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Cons
"An area for improvement would be the documentation and training on configuring this product.""I think that the price should be cheaper and they should include at least one year of basic service for technical support for each product, and not just the 90 days from the time of purchase.""This product could be improved with cheaper pricing.""Cisco should support all of the features that are included with the suite.""In terms of what could be improved, more integration is the main thing they should be focused on.""Reporting could be improved as well as integration possibilities with other platforms.""They need to implement sFlow.""The general price of the solution could be cheaper."

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"I would like one management console to control the network.""If Cisco can include management for this protocol in Layer 3, that would be ideal.""The product lacks AI...The initial setup of Cisco FabricPath was a bit complex.""The management features are in need of improvement.""While Cisco products are excellent, the problem is the cost. Cisco products are product, Cisco products are very expensive. I rate Cisco FabricPath three out of 10 for affordability.""The documents could improve for Cisco FabricPath. There are times when the relevant information is not present in the different sections of the documents, such as deployment. The documents should be more detailed and enhanced.""The prices for FabricPath are very high, and Cisco also takes a long time to deliver products (in Mexico, the delivery time is eight months).""Lack of security features for which we need to use another solution."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "​The price should go down instead of up. ​"
  • "It has a very high cost, but understandably, due to its very good quality."
  • "Cisco's prices are not cheap, but the stability is worth it."
  • "Pricing could be better."
  • "If you consider Cisco's price with the Dell, you will definitely lose with Cisco. But Cisco has a major area of equipment in general. Cisco has routers, firewalls, NAC, certain video conferencing, Apple phones, and different security solutions. But Dell doesn't have such areas, Dell only has switching architecture."
  • "Generally, Cisco Catalyst would be relatively expensive compared to the competition, it would be on the expensive side."
  • "Pricing is an issue I have been facing, in comparison with HPE or Juniper. The Nexus series is out of the question right now. Scalability is more an issue on the pricing side and less on the technology side."
  • "Catalyst is very expensive."
  • More Cisco Catalyst Switches Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "The pricing for this product is good."
  • "The price of Cisco FabricPath could be reduced, it is expensive in the market here in Sri Lanka. The solution is subscriptions based, if the customer wants any future integrations, or if there are any future enhancements they will have to pay. There are different license options available, such as one or three years purchases."
  • "FabricPath is very reasonably priced."
  • "The solution falls under the pricier category, but it provides value for the price charged."
  • "It is very expensive."
  • More Cisco FabricPath Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Hello Mesfin It depends on the real scenario, the cisco 2960 is a very good device and they usually have routing functions but there are many different models within the same 2960 line, and on the… more »
    Top Answer:The most valuable features of the solution are BGP, VPN, and spine-leaf architecture.
    Top Answer:As I mentioned earlier, the durability, flexibility, and security of Cisco devices are notable. Particularly with switches, the capability to implement multiple VLANs and easily aggregate the network… more »
    Top Answer:In terms of the series, I find that the integration with other teleconferencing applications needs to be more seamless. I have suggested to Cisco that the endpoint device should allow joining calls… more »
    Ranking
    1st
    out of 16 in LAN Switching
    Views
    11,301
    Comparisons
    5,661
    Reviews
    20
    Average Words per Review
    449
    Rating
    8.8
    8th
    out of 16 in LAN Switching
    Views
    584
    Comparisons
    329
    Reviews
    11
    Average Words per Review
    335
    Rating
    8.3
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Cisco Catalyst, Catalyst
    FabricPath
    Learn More
    Overview

    Cisco Catalyst Switches are a reliable and scalable network switching and routing solution, focusing on VLANs and VLAN switching. They are used as access switches, distribution switches, and core switches in various environments, deployed on-premises, and used for long connections. The switches are easy to configure, install, and upgrade and offer good pricing. 

    The most valuable features include warranty and firmware support, stability, security, good performance, flexibility, etc. The Cisco Catalyst Switches have provided a stable solution for the organizations and are widely used, trusted, and well-known in the networking industry.

    Cisco FabricPath is a Cisco NX-OS software innovation combining the plug-and-play simplicity of Ethernet with the reliability and scalability of Layer 3 routing. Using FabricPath, you can build highly scalable Layer 2 multipath networks without the Spanning Tree Protocol. Such networks are particularly suitable for large virtualization deployments, private clouds, and high-performance computing (HPC) environments. The benefits of Cisco FabricPath include: Minimal commands per switch ease configuration and operation, Autodiscovery simplifies addition of new links and switches, Provision additional network bandwidth without impacting network, Supports one-, two-, or three-tier architectures, VLAN extensibility across the data center.
    Sample Customers
    Afni, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Del Papa Distributing, Explorer Pipeline, Mindtree, Omaha World Herald, Radio 538, Sony Corporation, Telecom Italia, Telenor Arena
    Bellevue, Calligaris, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Management Science Associates, Multi-Customer, Oediv, Roper St. Francis, SNAM
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company13%
    Comms Service Provider11%
    University10%
    Manufacturing Company10%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization52%
    Computer Software Company9%
    Government4%
    Manufacturing Company4%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider30%
    Financial Services Firm10%
    Manufacturing Company10%
    Integrator10%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company30%
    Government13%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    University9%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business41%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise42%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business11%
    Midsize Enterprise57%
    Large Enterprise31%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business43%
    Midsize Enterprise29%
    Large Enterprise29%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business9%
    Midsize Enterprise19%
    Large Enterprise72%
    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco FabricPath
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco FabricPath and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Cisco Catalyst Switches is ranked 1st in LAN Switching with 166 reviews while Cisco FabricPath is ranked 8th in LAN Switching with 21 reviews. Cisco Catalyst Switches is rated 8.6, while Cisco FabricPath is rated 8.4. The top reviewer of Cisco Catalyst Switches writes "Reliable and stable catalyst switch; can be easily installed". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Cisco FabricPath writes "On overall effective product with good performance and a simple setup ". Cisco Catalyst Switches is most compared with Arista Networks Platform, Dell PowerConnect Switches, HPE ProCurve, Cisco Nexus and ExtremeSwitching, whereas Cisco FabricPath is most compared with Juniper QFabric, Cisco Nexus and Arista Campus LAN Switches. See our Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco FabricPath report.

    See our list of best LAN Switching vendors.

    We monitor all LAN Switching reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.