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Catalyst 4507R vs. 3750E Series for Collapsed Core DC

rfranzke
Level 1
Level 1

Netpros,

Would like some input on a project I am working on. We currently have a DC in an office space coupled with some 35 users. We are planning on moving the DC out to a collocation facility instead of the office space for the backup power and such that it would afford us. Because of this I have the opportunity to make some infrastructure changes. We currently are using a pair of Catalyst 4507R (Sup V) non-E series switches at the office DC. We have some 3750E (non-stacked) series switches at another collocation site which we are using for the same collapsed core setup. We are, by the way, running some E-commerce websites, Email, CRM apps, etc.

One of the things I am thinking of doing is swapping the sets of switches around such that the 3750Es will be at the Office space and the 4507Rs will be at the new collocation facility. We will be getting some 100MB Ethernet point to point links to connect the two sites together and users at the office will access resources from the office to the colo facility over these links.

What I would to get is some input on if this is a good idea. There is no upgrade money available for this project. What we have is what I have to work with. So what I am after is some input on if this is a sound idea or not. I know that technically the 3750s are a bit faster but they present some challenges such as needing more power plugs for stacked configs, the need to reboot whole stacks at once to perform upgrades, among others. I have always liked the chassis switches better than stacks.

I know no one can possibly provide an accurate answer based on the information given. There are a ton of things to consider, I understand. Not looking for definitive answers on what to do but rather just some input on what others might choose to do if faced with the same situation. 3750E stacks or 4507R chassis based switches. Thanks in advance.

Regards-

1 Reply 1

Reza Sharifi
Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame

Hi,

I personally like the overall flexibility of chassis based devices (4500 in this case) for the data center for a few reasons:

1-As you noted, you can upgrade one device at the time if you are running HSRP or VRRP.

2-The option to add a second sup

3-The option to add a second power supply

4-The option of being able to add copper (POE or non-POE) or fiber modules without using media converters.

In the user space, the media they use is usually copper, so fixed copper switches are just fine for that purpose.

HTH

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