Does Cisco make a RELIABLE small business router?

[charlesandrewpaul]

Just as I asked, does Cisco make a RELIABLE small business router?  Common features required would be single or dual WAN, VLAN support (at least 4), multiple SSIDs, some measure of inter-VLAN routing (such as a shared printer in an office) and firewall.  A GUI interface is really a must for small business routers, but everything that has a GUI seems to either be terrible in terms of reliability and firmware, or be crippled by a lack of features (such as the InterVLAN Routing ON/OFF setting!)

From what I have seen there are several extremely unreliable options available (such as the RV220W & WRVS4400N), but nothing that is stable.  I am familiar with the Cisco 800 series routers and deployed these, but they take quite awhile to configure properly unless you have a template or a vast understanding of the CLI.  The lack of a true GUI and requirement to run a specific version of Java for the SDM to function makes them a pain for a SMALL business enviroment, but good for someone who has an IT department on staff. 

Any options here, Cisco?  I would love to use your products on these smaller jobs as opposed to the Sonicwall and Watchguard brands, but I keep getting "pushed" back to them by issues with your products.

[doug_counsil]

The latest Beta firmware (1.0.4.6?) for the RV220W seems promising.  I wouldn't give up hope on this router.  It is only been old for a year or so.  Cisco has put out *several* firmware builds that has corrected lots of the initial bugs.

The SA540 has proven to be very reliable for us.  We use access points with it.  The SA520W should fit your needs.  The SA500 Series of routers has been out for a few years so most bugs have already been addressed.

[Leo Laohoo]

Common features required would be single or dual WAN, VLAN support (at least 4),

With a minimum of 4 VLANs, the 860 is out of the question as this model can support only 2 VLANs.   The 880 can support up to 8 VLANs.  Now both the 860 and the 880 has a 4-port, FastEthernet, layer-2 switch. The 890 can support up to 12 VLANs and have an 8-port, FastEthernet, layer-2 switch at the back.

Now all the models mentioned, 860, 880 and 890, can support PoE.  The 860, 880 and 890, can support 4-ports of PoE.

I've two vital questions for you.  They are:

1.  Are you planning to integrate your wireless with your router?

2.  What is your bandwidth?

If you plan to integrate a wireless access point with your router, you need to be mighty careful with this.  The reason is because of the potential location of the router in the premises.  Most of the time, the router is located in the far corner of a property and inside a metal box/cabinet.  For starters, the location is far (to very far) from the clients so the wireless signal is propagating to no one.  Next, if it's inside a box or a cabinet the metal shell of the cabinet can disrupt the way wireless propagates.

This is the reason why I mentioned the PoE option.  If the location is similar to what I've described, then it's better to get a router AND WAPs separate.  This way you can move the WAP to wherever your clients might be.

Next is your bandwidth.  What router to buy depends on what bandwidth you've got.