[c-nsp] Cisco Catalyst 4948E vs Nexus 3048

[Vincent Aniello]

We have been using Cisco Catalyst 4948 switches with a layer 3 image in 
our data center as core switches for a small network.  Due to the nature 
of the traffic on the network we regularly experience microbursts that 
non-data center class switches, such as 3560Es and 3750Gs are unable to 
handle without dropping packets.

We are looking to deploy a similar network setup in a new data center and 
want to have 10Gb trunks between the two core switches so we are looking 
at using Catalyst 4948E or Nexus 3048 switches.

I noticed that the Nexus 3048s only have a shared buffer of 9MB, while the 
4948s we currently use have a shared buffer of 16MB and the 4948E has a 
shared buffer of 17.5MB.  Given the problems we have in the past handling 
microbursts I am hesitant to go with a switch that has smaller buffers 
than what we are using now.

However, I am unsure of is if the comparing the shared buffer size on the 
switches is an apples-to-apples comparison or if there are differences in 
how the switches operate that make the smaller buffer on the Nexus a 
non-issue.  Can anyone shed any light on this?

Also, are there any other differences between the Catalyst 4848E and Nexus 
3048 switches that I should take into account when choosing which one to 
go with?

Thanks.

--Vincent