Today's routers ordinarily include L2 switches, and many modern switches include some Layer 3 routing functionality. Routers offered by Cisco, the supplier of the vast majority of the industry's routers, have advanced significantly in function and speed and Cisco offers a comprehensive portfolio that features routers designed to handle the requirements of customers ranging from households to nationwide service providers.
The most recent Integrated Services Routers released by Cisco offer the speed and built-in functionality to manage IP voice and video as well as virtualization while at the same time providing fault tolerance, web-based management, easy scalability, and advanced protection. These routers allow you to establish a solid basis for an IT environment that can grow seamlessly as you add more employees, open new sites, deploy new services, give access to your network to customers and vendors, and build an expanding mobile user base. Progent's Cisco certified CCIE network consultants can provide immediate and economical remote support to help your company to select, configure, manage, upgrade, and support Cisco's latest routers and can assist you to support your older routers or migrate efficiently to Cisco's current router products.
Cisco Routers Designed for Home Offices and Small Offices and Branches
Cisco's routers for smaller companies and branch offices offer low-cost and dependable no-frills solutions that allow limited groups of users to have safe connectivity to the Internet. These fixed-configuration desktop routers feature at minimum four switched Ethernet with Wi-Fi options and integrated firewall to provide advanced protection. Built for easy setup, administration, and support, Cisco's entry-level routers minimize TCO by cutting acquisition and maintenance investments. Progent's remote troubleshooting experts have extensive experience providing fast and affordable technical assistance for small companies to configure and support these devices, and Progent's Cisco-certified CCIE network consultants can assist your company to understand whether and how Cisco's entry-level routers can increase the strategic value of your IT system.
ISR 900 Series Integrated Services Routers
Cisco's ISR 900 Series routers are small-footprint, quiet, fixed-configuration devices designed for SMBs, branch offices, and home offices. These value-priced routers include four GE LAN ports and offer Metro Ethernet, LTE, and DSL WAN connections. Cisco's ISR 900 router product line provides three times the IPsec throughput of the ISR 800 Series family of routers. All ISR 900 models offer Group Encrypted TransportVPN (GETVPN), DMVPN, Cisco FlexVPN, and firewall. VPN throughput is up to 250 Mbps. All versions allow up to 50 VLANs. Supported dynamic failover protocols for business continuity include Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol, Hot Standby Router Protocol, and MHSRP. Setup and management can be done with Cisco Configuration Professional Express, Cisco DNA Center, and Cisco IOS. ISR 900 Series routers do not work with Cisco's SD-WAN solution.
Cisco's ISR 921 router features dual GE WAN, LTE Cat 4, and a built-in power supply. GE WAN VPN throughput is 150 Mbps. Cisco's ISR 926 and ISR 927 routers include external power supplies and support one GE WAN port, Category 4 LTE, VDSL2 and ADSL2/2+. VPN throughput for both devices is 150 Mbps. The top-of-the-line Cisco ISR 931 router features dual GE WAN and has an internal power supply. VPN performance is 250 Mbps.
Cisco Meraki MX Series SD-WAN Security Appliances
The Cisco Meraki MX portfolio of desktop routers combine SD-WAN and cloud-based unified threat management in a single compact appliance able to handle 50 to 200 users. Each MX router must be licensed to the Meraki cloud. For sites having multiple external network connections (e.g., MPLS, broadband, cellular), SD-WAN technology permits administrators to specify the WAN connection an app should use or to create performance-based rules to select the preferred connection. Cisco Meraki MX fixed-configuration desktop routers share key capabilities including:
Cisco 1000 Series ISR Branch Routers
Cisco 1000 Series Integrated Services Routers powered by Cisco IOS XE internetworking operating system are a line of fanless routers intended to provide network connectivity, wireless support, and multilayer cybersecurity for SMBs, branch offices, retail stores, kiosks, and machine-to-machine environments. Multiple parallel processing CPU cores and the ability to run Cisco IOS XE enable these routers to offer features consistent with Cisco's complete line of modern Enterprise routers. 1000 family ISR routers are offered with 4 or 8 LAN switch ports and offer Gigabit Ethernet (GE) packet forwarding. Available features include PoE and PoE+, auto provisioning, plus a selection of integrated or pluggable connections including LAN, WAN, wireless LAN, G.fast DSL, 3G/4G wireless, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and SFP Fiber. Cisco 1000 Series ISR routers work with Cisco's SD-WAN subscription services for transparent multiple-cloud access, advanced security, and unified monitoring and management across hybrid network models.
Cisco's rackmount or desktop 1100-4G ISR router includes four integrated GE ports, built-in 3G/4G LTE with two LTE SMA connectors, and one micro-SIM slot. Encryption throughput is 200 Mbps. The Cisco ISR 1100-6G router also includes two 1G SFP connections and features encryption performance of 520 Mbps. Cisco's desktop ISR 1101-4P router has four integrated GE connections, offers 802.11ac Wi-Fi and 3G/4G LTE wireless, and delivers encryption throughput of 280 Mbps. The ISR 1109-2P/4p desktop routers have two or four built-in switched GE connections and two pluggable 3G/4G LTE wireless ports. Encryption packet processing throughput is 200 Mbps.
The Cisco 1RU or desktop ISR 111x-4P/8P routers include four or eight integrated GE connections (two or four with Power over Ethernet) and support VDSL2/ADSL2+, 802.11ac, 3G/4G LTE wireless, and SFP Fiber. Encryption speed is 280 Mbps. Cisco's 1RU or desktop ISR 1111X-8P router comes with eight built-in switched GE ports (four with POE) and a port for 1G SFP. Encryption rate is 340 Mbps. The ISR 112x-8P router has eight integrated switched GE interfaces with PoE and features SHDSL, VDSL2/ADSL2+, 802.11ac, 3G/4G LTE wireless, and 1G SFP. Encryption speed is 340 Mbps. The 1161X-8P ISR router has eight integrated switched GE connections with Power over Ethernet and provides 3G/4G LTE and SFP. Encryption rate is 450 Mbps.
Cisco Catalyst 8000 Series Branch and WAN Edge Platforms for SD-WAN and Routing
Cisco's Catalyst 8000 family of routers are modular appliances designed to work at the enterprise branche and the WAN edge to support hybrid network environments that can incorporate a mix of public and private clouds and cloud-hosted applications. All Catalyst 8000 routers use Cisco IOS XE SD-WAN Software and provide expandability, advanced cybersecurity, and 5G connectivity. Performance is enhanced via custom silicon, a multicore architecture, high port density, and in-line encryption. Cisco's subscription software services offer ongoing access to the latest SD-WAN technology and enable centralized management with advanced security, application-based policies, segmentation, and cloud readiness.
Cisco Catalyst 8200 Series Enterprise Branch Edge Routers
Cisco Catalyst 8200 routers are upgrades to Cisco's 4300 Series ISRs, offering higher IPsec throughput and expandability, hardware-accelerated crypto, plus higher integrated WAN port density. These one-rack unit routers are designed to provide Cisco's Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), Software-Defined WAN and 5G-interface technology to enterprise branches and the enterprise access edge. The Catalyst C8200L-1N-4T model includes four CPU cores, enables 500 Mbps IPsec performance, and allows 1,500 SD-WAN tunnels. The Catalyst 8200L platform does not support container-based apps. The Catalyst C8200-1N-4T router includes eight CPU cores, delivers 1Gb IPsec performance, permits 2,500 SD-WAN tunnels, and allows edge computing with in-place container architectures. Both appliances include a Network Interface Module slot, a PIM slot, two 1G Ethernet WAN interfaces, and two 1G Ethernet WAN Small-Form-Factor Pluggable interfaces. 4-port and 8-port 1 Gigabit Ethernet switch NIM modules are supported by both 8200 routers.
Catalyst 8300 Series Enterprise Edge Routers
Catalyst 8300 Series WAN Edge routers are intended to replace Cisco's 4400 line of Integrated Services Routers, providing Cisco's secure SD-WAN architecture to medium-sized and large company branch offices looking for high WAN IPSec throughput combined with cohesive SD-WAN services. Enhanced features include 5G wireless support, integrated cybersecurity, WAN MACSec, integrated enhanced Layer 2 switching, and DPI with application-aware optimization. Cisco Catalyst 8300 Series WAN Edge routers enable edge computing for an existing container environment for Cisco UCS-E modules offered on Cisco's 4000 line of ISR routers. All versions in the Catalyst 8300 line support 4,000 SD-WAN tunnels and feature backup power supplies for improved uptime.
The Cisco Catalyst 8300-1N1S-6T router model is a one-rack unit appliance that features 8 CPU cores and delivers 2G SD-WAN performance and IPsec data rates as high as 1.9Gbps. The router includes one Service Module plug-in slot, a Network Interface Module slot, and six built-in 1-Gigabit Ethernet WAN ports. The Catalyst 8300-2N2S-6T appliance is a two-rack unit model that includes 8 CPU cores and delivers 2G SD-WAN throughput and IPsec performance of up to 1.9Gbps. The unit includes two Service Module expansion slots, two NIM slots, and six integrated 1G Ethernet WAN ports. The Catalyst C8300-1N1S-4T2X router model is a 1RU device that has eight CPU cores and delivers 5G SD-WAN data rates and IPsec throughput as high as 15Gbps. The device features one a single SM expansion slot, a NIM slot, two integrated 10-Gigabit Ethernet WAN ports, and four built-in 1-Gigabit Ethernet WAN ports. The Catalyst C8300-2N2S-4T2X model is a 2RU device that features 12 CPU cores and offers 5G SD-WAN throughput and IPsec data rates as high as 18Gbps. The appliance has two SM expansion slots, two Network Interface Module slots, two built-in 10-Gigabit Ethernet WAN interfaces, and four integrated 1-Gigabit Ethernet WAN ports. LAN plug-in modules available from Cisco range from a four-port 1-Gigabit Ethernet switch Network Interface Module module to a 50-port Catalyst L2 switch SM module.
Cisco Catalyst 8500 Series Aggregation Edge Routers
The Catalyst 8500 Aggregation Edge routers are fixed, one-rack unit aggregation appliances for SD-WAN and colocation deployments. Built-in features include route processor, embedded services processor, plus aggregation hardware for multiple interfaces and connectivity choices. IPsec throughput is twice that of Cisco's prior generation ASR1001-X router. Available interface options include 1GE to 100 GE WAN interfaces. 8500 routers include dual AC or DC power supplies for improved resilience. Software subscription packages allow ongoing access to Cisco DNA Center Software for SD-WAN and routing and enable unified management of cybersecurity, application-based policies, network segmentation, and cloud support.
The Catalyst C8500L-8S4X router is designed to offer the same basic functionality as Cisco's ASR 1000 router. The C8500L-8S4X has four 1/10GE WAN interfaces and supports up to 20 Gbps Cisco Express Forwarding aggregate performance. SD-WAN IPsec performance is up to 19Gbps. The Cisco Catalyst C8500-12X appliance includes 12 integrated 1/10GE WAN ports and delivers as high as 120 Gbps aggregate throughput. SD-WAN IPsec throughput is up to 51 Gbps. The C8500-12X4QC aggregation router comes with four integrated 1/10GE WAN ports and eight 1GE interfaces and can support up to 200 Gbps aggregate throughput. SD-WAN IPsec throughput is up to 68 Gbps.
Cisco Integrated Services G2 Routers
Cisco's ISR G2 routers are designed to provide satellite offices of enterprises with advanced video and voice applications, virtual networking, security, and dependable WAN access. Integrated Services G2 routers feature a design that preserves past investments in modules for older ISR routers and lowers down-the-line costs by permitting easy installation of new modules as they are developed. Compared to previous Integrated Services Routers, Cisco's ISR G2 routers offer 2-7 times higher throughput, far more, and easier maintenance. All Cisco Integrated Services G2 routers support GE switching and incorporate multi-core CPUs and ultra-fast fabric for higher throughput. Integrated Services G2 routers also offer intelligent power management for better energy conservation.
A major advance with ISR Generation 2 routers is the Cisco IOS Universal image which includes all of the Cisco IOS feature sets so that your company can rapidly authorize and deploy new services as desired without needing to download and transfer a new IOS Software image to yourrouter. Progent's team of Cisco-certified CCIE network engineers offer world-class skills to assist you to design, configure, and maintain multi-location installations of Cisco ISR Generation 2 routers that improve branch office productivity and reduce the costs of expansion and support.
Cisco's ISR 800 Family of Routers
The 800 Series of ISR routers has been superseded by the higher performance Cisco ISR 900 line but is still widely used. Cisco's comprehensive portfolio of 800 Series ISR routers is made up of desktop, fanless devices designed and priced for small organizations, branch locations, retail shops, telecommuters, and clients of ISPs. A wealth of devices in the 800 product line have been released with various options for many years. Cisco's 881 line of ISR routers exemplifies the wide array of options offered within the Cisco 800 Series product family. Various models in Cisco's 881 router portfolio can enable unified media environments by providing IP voice and video, Wi-Fi and cellular wireless and data in one integrated router and switch. Advanced data protection can include encryption, VPN, firewall, and URL filtering. For business continuity, available options for 881 routers include duplicate WAN connections or support for landline broadband WAN connections such as DSL plus multiple 3G and 4G wireless connections all on a single appliance.
The baseline Cisco 881 router features a 4-port 10/100-Mbps managed switch that delivers 15 Mbps throughput, support for 20 users, two-port integrated Power over Ethernet, and IPv6 support. The Cisco 881W ISR router supports 802.11g/n Wi-Fi. The 881 SRST router features four FXS ports and 1 FXO port for public-switched-telephone-network (PSTN) fallback with Cisco Survivable Remote Site Telephony (SRST). With a Cisco CUBE feature license, the Cisco 881 ISR router supports SIP trunk connectivity to replace outdated Primary Rate Interface (PRI) lines or FXO voice connectivity to a PSTN service provider. SIP trunks also connect remote agents in Cisco Call Center deployments.
Cisco 4000 Series Integrated Services Routers
Cisco's 4000 Line of Integrated Services Routers are compact modular and scalable platforms designed for businesses with multiple branches and remote workers who need direct communication with private data centers and public clouds across VPNs and the Internet. Cisco's 4000 series provides the throughput needed for hybrid WAN environments to accommodate mobile workers, cloud services, and multimedia applications by using network optimization, deep packet inspection, and traffic-management technology. Devices in the 4000 family are powered by Cisco's IOS XE operating system, come in a 1RU or 2RU form factor, are able to support Up to 2 Gbps of traffic, and can include up to 3 network interface slots, 2 service module slots, 4 integrated 10/100/1000 Ethernet switches, and 8 CPU core server modules. ISR 4000 models support integrated Gigabit Ethernet, T1/E1, T3/E3, PRI and xDSL. For unified communications, Cisco's 400o ISR provides comprehensive edge support technology for policy-enhanced SBC, telephony survivability, and Time Division Multiplexing gateways.
The primary difference between the Cisco 4400 ISR and 4300 Series is the inclusion of dual power supply support in the 4400 ISR Series, providing a greater degree of fault tolerance. The 4321 ISR Router has a 1 RU desktop form factor and includes two network interface modules (NIMs), provides as much as 100 Mbps throughput, and supports 240 Digital Voice/Video Channels. Cisco's 4331 Integrated Services Router has a 1 RU package and includes two network interface modules, delivers as much as 300 Mbps throughput, and allows up to 360 Digital Voice/Video Channels. The 4351 router has a 2 RU form factor with three NIMs, offers as much as 400 Mbps performance, and supports 720 Digital Voice/Video Channels. The power-redundant 4431 model has a 2 RU form factor and includes three network interface modules, provides as much as 1 Gbps performance, and supports 720 Digital Voice and Video Channels. The fault-tolerant 4431 model features a 2 RU form factor with three NIMs, offers up to 2 Gbps performance, and can handle 1200 Digital Voice/Video Channels.
Cisco's WAN Edge Routers and Carrier-class Routers
Cisco's WAN aggregation and carrier routers offer enterprises with fast, secure headends to aggregate branch office and off-site data packets and to provide service providers cost-optimized WAN edge solutions. Cisco's WAN aggregation and service provider router portfolio features the ASR 1000 routers and the 9000 ASR family.
Progent's nationwide group of Cisco CCIE network experts have in-depth backgrounds helping enterprise businesses and Internet service providers to design optimal installations and smooth expansion of Cisco's midrange and carrier-class routers. Progent's GIAC-certified information assurance consultants offer unbiased, third-party security vulnerability evaluations, stealth penetration testing and advanced SIEM solutions to help companies with Cisco's WAN aggregation routers to meet industry guidelines and government mandates for network data protection and reporting.
Cisco ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers
Cisco's ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services family of routers is designed to fill the middle of Cisco's midrange routers that concentrate on aggregating services at the WAN edge. Cisco's ASR 1000 Series WAN Edge routers offer a small form factor, single-product solution for large businesses who need satellite office service aggregation at multigigabit Ethernet speeds. Cisco's ASR 1000 Series WAN Edge routers incorporate a revolutionary design that combines on-board acceleration with programmable versatility to offer a multitude of simultaneous services without sacrificing consistent performance.
Cisco's ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services routers include Cisco's new QuantumFlow Processor incorporating 40 purpose-built Packet Processing Engines (PPEs) that together can handle up to 160 simultaneous processor threads. This parallel CPU architecture, in conjunction with hardware acceleration for every service, enables the top-of-the-line ASR 1006 router to expand up to 000 hardware queues, 32K subscribers, 4,000 IPsec tunnels at 10,000 sessions per second, and 2 million Netflow records. This CPU power allows Cisco's ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services routers to support a wide variety of advanced services concurrently in massive volume without suffering throughput degradation that could threaten compliance with SLAs. Examples of these services include IOS Firewall, intrusion-detection services, Network Address Translation, Flexible Packet Matching, and in-line deep packet inspection. The Cisco ASR 1000 also allows tiered traffic control for applying numerous levels of Quality of Service to a packet in one pass, enhancing the user experience for high-bandwidth voice, video, and conferencing applications.
Cisco ASR 9000 Series Routers
Cisco's ASR 9000 Series Aggregation Services Routers are designed as WAN-edge routers for service providers who are required to support the highest quality HD multimedia services to home, business, and mobile users by offering zero downtime operation, high speed, and application awareness. All platforms in the ASR 9000 Series of Aggregation Services Routers run Cisco's IOS XR, a self-healing, distributed OS built for continuous uptime. Throughput of the ASR 9000 portfolio of Routers can scale to as high as 96 Tbps per system. Cisco's ASR 9000 family of Aggregation Services Routers can handle Gigabit Ethernet, 10 GE, and 100 GE and feature redundant fabric and power supply, power entry modules, and fan trays plus redundant control planes and switch fabric.
The Cisco ASR 9001 platform is a provider-edge router that comes in a 6 RU package that delivers 120 Gbps of nonblocking, full-duplex fabric performance. The Cisco ASR 9001 has two modular bays which can support adapters for 1, 10, and 40 Gigabit Ethernet. The base chassis has four 10 Gbit Ethernet SFP+ ports and ports for GPS Stratum 1 clocking, building integrated timing supply (BITS), and management. The Cisco ASR 9904 Router comes in a 6 RU chassis and provides line-rate 10 and 100 Gigabit Ethernet connections in space-constrained sites. The 4-slot ASR 9094 can support up to 4 Tbps of capacity in a single chassis. The ASR 9912 platform has a 30 RU chassis with 12 slots slots that can provide 550 Gbps of switching capacity. The ASR 9912 Router incorporates 2 route CPUs as well as 6+1 Fabric Cards for N+1 redundancy.
How Progent Can Assist Your Business with Cisco Routers
Progent's Cisco certified engineers can assist your business to design, setup, and maintain a converged network infrastructure that can simplify operations, lower expenses, and accelerate the path to positive ROI. By combining Cisco routers with Cisco Catalyst switches support and Catalyst and Meraki Wi-Fi wireless expertise, Progent can dramatically increase the business value of your information network. Progent can provide onsite and off-site support and offers data center support throughout the U.S.
To find out additional details concerning Progent's consulting expertise for Cisco networking products, choose a topic: