Cisco Catalyst 2960-S LAN Base Model

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Features HP 5120 and HP 2910 Switches Disadvantages

Stacking

HP Virtual Stacking is not true stacking. (HP 2910 only)• No automated configuration: HP Virtual Stacking requires manual configuration of each individual switch to create a stack,

which is complex, error prone, and time consuming. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S offers automatic stack formation without manual configuration for ease of management.

• No synchronized configuration among the switches in the stack: HP Virtual Stacking requires manual configuration for each switch in the stack. With Cisco Catalyst 2960-S, you configure only one switch in the stack, and the rest of the switches automatically synchronize the configuration for simplicity and fast deployment.

• No Cross-stack resiliency: HP Virtual Stacking does not support a backup master, which causes traffic interruption when a master switch fails. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S automatically elects the new master in case of master failure for business continuity.

• No Cross-stack features: HP Virtual Stacking does not support any cross-stack features such as QoS and link aggregation, which limits the true benefits of stacking. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports cross-stack EtherChannel for aggregation of multiple Ethernet links for scalability, cross-stack SPAN for port mirroring and traffic analysis, and cross-stack QoS for QoS consistency.

Security

HP switches lack advanced security features for network protection.• No 802.1x monitor mode: HP switches do not support 802.1x monitor mode, resulting in user traffic interruption when

deploying 802.1x the first time in the network. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports 802.1x monitor mode, which simplifies first-time 802.1x deployment by allowing user traffic passthrough while monitoring the access. IT can then implement 802.1x in phases.

• No role-based security: HP switches do not support dynamic role-based access control. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports Security Group Tag Exchange Protocol (SXP) to enable scalable and dynamic role-based (i.e., finance/marketing, employees/partners) security policies, versus tedious, manual, static IP address or port-based security.

Smart Operations

HP switches are difficult to install, manage, and troubleshoot. • No auto install: Software on HP switches must be manually installed and configured. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports Smart

Install, which automatically downloads software and configures the switch for zero-touch deployment.

• No port configuration automation: HP switches require manual configuration of VLANs and QoS on each switch port. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports Auto Smart Ports, which automatically configure ports based on device type (e.g., IP phones, access points) for simplified configuration and rapid deployment.

• Complex troubleshooting: HP switches require interruption of user traffic to troubleshoot. Cisco Catalyst 2960-S supports smart troubleshooting tools such as Generic Online Diagnostics (GOLD) enables running diagnostics and health checks without switch downtime.

QoS

HP switches QoS configuration is manual, complex, and error prone.• No Auto QoS: HP switches have to manually configure QoS on every device port. Cisco Auto QoS on Cisco Catalyst 2960-S

detects IP endpoints and automatically configures QoS policies for operational simplicity and rapid deployment.

• No Cross-stack QoS: HP switches have to manually configure QoS on each individual switch in the stack. Cisco Cross-stack QoS feature on Cisco Catalyst 2960-S automatically applies QoS configuration of the master switch to other stack members to ensure QoS consistency, configuration accuracy, and simplicity.

Power over Ethernet

HP switches have lower PoE/PoE+ density and consume more power.• Half of PoE/PoE+ ports density with integrated power supply: HP requires external power supply to support the same

number of PoE/PoE+ ports as Cisco, which adds cost and complexity.

• No Cisco EnergyWise™ support: Cisco EnergyWise monitors PoE/PoE+ device power consumption and can power on or off the connected device to reduce power consumption based on policies. For example, the IP phone can be set to turn off automatically after business hours.

• More power consumption: HP5120-48GEI (110W) consumes 36% more power, and HP2910-48GAL (105W) consumes 30% more power than the Cisco C2960S-48FPD-L switch (81W) with 100% throughput.

HP 5120 and HP 2910 switches offer basic switching but lack of critical features for 3Ss - Stacking, Security, and Smart operations, as well as Power over Ethernet and QoS. The Cisco® Catalyst® 2960-S switches offer these advanced features to lower total cost of ownership.