The Cisco® Catalyst® 4900M Switch (Figure 1) is designed for data center network top-of-rack switching and midmarket collapsed core and aggregation layer deployment. Optimized for ultimate deployment flexibility for the data center, the Cisco Catalyst 4900M can be deployed for 10/100/1000 or 1/10GBASE-T server access with 1:1 uplink-to-downlink oversubscription and environments with a mix of 10/100/1000 and 10 Gigabit Ethernet servers or all 10 Gigabit Ethernet servers.

The Cisco Catalyst 4900M is a 320-Gbps, 250-million-packets-per-second (mpps), two-rack-unit (2RU) fixed-configuration switch with eight fixed wire-speed X2 ports on the base unit and two optional half-card slots for deployment flexibility and investment protection. Low latency, scalable buffer memory, and high availability with 1+1 hot-swappable AC or DC power supplies and a field-replaceable fan tray optimize the Cisco Catalyst 4900M for data centers of any size.

For the midmarket collapsed core and aggregation layer and in the branch office, the Cisco Catalyst 4900M provides an ideal solution for space-constrained deployments that require high-performance wire-speed services and high availability. With the unique semifixed architecture and support of the Cisco TwinGig Converter Module, the Cisco Catalyst 4900M can be used in a collapsed core and aggregation layer LAN deployment, providing the flexibility to deploy Gigabit Ethernet now and cost-effectively migrate to 10 Gigabit Ethernet as requirements change.

The Cisco Catalyst 4900M configuration provides wire-speed connection, buffers to handle bursty traffic, and a comprehensive set of Layer 3 features required at the collapsed core and aggregation layer of the network. The Cisco Catalyst 4900M also supports a suite of ease-of-management features to simplify operations.

Operational Consistency and Control

The Cisco Catalyst 4900M includes a console port to manage all system features. Remote in-band management is available with Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), Telnet client, BOOTP, and Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP). Support for local or remote out-of-band management is delivered through a terminal or modem attached to the console interface.

The Cisco Catalyst 4900M supports file allocation table (FAT) file systems. System images can be updated directly through Microsoft Windows–based machines with compact flash memory readers.

Using CiscoWorks solutions, Cisco Catalyst switches can be configured and managed to deliver end-to-end device, VLAN, traffic, and policy management. The CiscoWorks LAN Management Solution (LMS) bundle offers tools such as CiscoWorks Resource Manager Essentials and CiscoWorks CiscoView. These web-based management tools offer several services, including automated inventory collection, software deployment, easy tracking of network changes, views into device availability, and quick isolation of error conditions.