United States
Q
What is the Cisco Catalyst 2960-Plus switch?
A
The Catalyst 2960-Plus is a fixed enterprise Ethernet switch offering 8 to 48 Gigabit Ethernet ports, advanced Cisco IOS software, and industry-leading reliability for branch and campus access networks.
Q
Which key features does the Catalyst 2960-Plus provide?
A
It delivers wire-speed forwarding, IPv4/IPv6 support, Power over Ethernet (PoE/PoE+), advanced QoS, Cisco EnergyWise™ and flexible uplink options to simplify deployment and management.
Q
How many ports and uplinks are available on the 2960-Plus?
A
Models range from 8 to 48 10/100/1000 PoE or non-PoE ports, with 2 dual-purpose Ethernet/SFP uplinks or 4 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks for redundant backbone connectivity.
Q
What is the PoE/PoE+ power budget on Catalyst 2960-Plus?
A
PoE models deliver up to 370 W of total power per switch, supporting up to 48 ports of 802.3af PoE or a mix of PoE and 802.3at PoE+ devices for cameras, phones, and wireless APs.
Q
How do I manage and deploy the 2960-Plus switch?
A
You can use Cisco Prime Infrastructure, CLI via console/SSH, web-based Device Manager or SNMP for zero-touch provisioning, template-based rollout, and monitoring.
Q
Is the Cisco Catalyst 2960-Plus stackable?
A
No, the 2960-Plus is a standalone switch; for stacking capabilities, consider the Catalyst 2960-X series with Cisco FlexStack or the Catalyst 9200 family.
Q
What is the switching capacity and forwarding rate of the 2960-Plus?
A
The switch delivers up to 176 Gbps switching capacity and a forwarding rate of 130 Mpps (million packets per second) for line-rate traffic handling.
Q
Which software image and licensing does the 2960-Plus support?
A
It runs Cisco IOS 15.0 (LAN Base), no additional licenses required; advanced features like IPv6 and security are included in the base image.
Q
Does the Catalyst 2960-Plus support IPv6?
A
Yes, it supports comprehensive IPv6 functionality including IPv6 unicast routing, ACLs, SNMP, MLD snooping and IPv6 DHCP relay for future-proof deployments.
Q
What security features are available on the 2960-Plus?
A
Security includes 802.1X port authentication, Dynamic ARP Inspection, IP Source Guard, Access Control Lists, DHCP snooping and MAC address filtering.
Q
How do I configure VLANs on the Catalyst 2960-Plus?
A
Use the Cisco IOS CLI or web GUI to create and assign VLAN IDs, configure trunk/access ports, and apply VLAN-based QoS and security policies in minutes.
Q
What warranty and support options are available?
A
Cisco offers a limited lifetime hardware warranty with next-business-day replacement and optional SMARTnet® support for 24×7 access to updates, patches and TAC assistance.
Q
When is the Catalyst 2960-Plus end-of-sale and end-of-support?
A
The 2960-Plus reached end-of-sale on January 23, 2017, with end-of-support services available until January 23, 2022; check Cisco’s EOL announcements for updates.
Q
What are common use cases for the 2960-Plus switch?
A
Ideal for small-to-medium branch offices, retail stores, schools and SMB networks requiring reliable PoE, simplified management, and secure Layer 2 switching.
Q
How many MAC addresses can the 2960-Plus learn?
A
It supports up to 8,000 MAC address entries in its CAM table to accommodate large access-layer deployments with diverse endpoint connectivity.
Q
What energy-efficiency capabilities does the Catalyst 2960-Plus include?
A
It features Cisco EnergyWise™, Energy-Efficient Ethernet (EEE), adjustable power timers and smart fan control to reduce power consumption and operating costs.
