[c-nsp] advice for L2 switches

[Lamar Owen]

On Saturday 23 June 2007, Sridhar Ayengar wrote:
> A pair of Cisco 5513s should get you to the number of ports and do it on
> the cheap on the used market.  They do have Layer 4 filtering features,
> but what I don't know is whether you need the Route Switch Module + IOS
> to use them.

Either Supervisor III with multiple RSM's (RSM's are limited to about 200Mbps 
max to the backplane each) or two Supervisor IIIG's with RSFC's (still 
limited, but they don't take slots).  Without RSM's or RSFC's you are 
straight L2 with Cat5K.  However, if I remember correctly, RSFC's max at an 
IOS 12.1 train.  RSM's can do a 12.2, but I don't know if they will do 
Option-82.  According to a feature guide on cisco.com, that requires a 12.2ZH 
train, or 12.3T or better.  So, you won't get that on Cat 5k unless you plop 
something like a 7401 out there to do this.  You could run the 7401 or 
similar as a router-on-a-stick but then you can use a layer 2 Cat4k or 5k for 
cheap access.

The 3.6Gbps three-way backplane buses on the Cat 5513 might be a limitation 
here, though.
-- 
Lamar Owen
Chief Information Officer
Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute
1 PARI Drive
Rosman, NC  28772
(828)862-5554
www.pari.edu