Secure broadband access specialist ZyXEL has released 12- and 24-port 10-Gigabit switches, including the XS1920-12, a 12-port smart-managed 10-Gigabit switch and XS3700-24, a 24-port L2+ managed 10-Gigabit switch, aimed at small and midsize business (SMB) networks.
Both switches are backward-compatible, and offer port configuration for server and switch aggregation, along with its L2+ features and basic layer-3 routing.
The XS1920-12 enables SMBs to upgrade existing networks to 10G connectivity, can be used as a core switch through its L2 switching capacity, and is backward-compatible with existing gigabit networks.
“The proliferation of mobile and BYOD trends as well as adoption of bandwidth-hungry applications, such as cloud applications, VOIP, video streaming and IP surveillance, is driving the need for faster, high-performance switches,” Steven Joe, executive vice president of channel business for Americas at ZyXEL, told eWEEK. “Furthermore, the coming of the 802.11ac standard is expected to bring speeds of up to 7G bps to 10G bps, making current gigabit switches a bottleneck and paving the way for 10G switches. SMBs will strongly need to consider upgrading or being left behind.”
The XS1920-12 can be used to provide 10G connections to existing 10G-capable servers and storage devices while also ensuring a future-proofed network solution, and features a 10 x 10G Base-T ports for copper link.
Also included are two 10G SFP+ combo ports for fiber link, as well as central processing unit (CPU) protection, Loop Guard, Intelligent Platform Management Bus (IPMB) and dual image for network protection and reliability.
The XS3700-24’s dual-stack capabilities for both IPv4 and IPv6 include no single point of failure (NSPOF) features in both hardware and software to limit downtime, four 10G combo ports and eight 10G Base-T ports for copper link.
Both 10G switches support ZyXEL One Network (ZON) configuration utility to check locations, assign IPs, reboot and perform firmware upgrades on multiple switches, and the Smart Connect function of ZON enables both the XS1920-12 and the XS3700-24 to auto-discover other ZON-enabled ZyXEL devices on the network.
The ZON is a network device setup and maintenance application. The free ZON suite of tools and utilities offer SMBs and solution providers a simple app to centrally address, configure, reset, reboot and firmware update all ZyXEL networked devices.
“SMBs have limited IT resources and budgets. The available staff is often responsible for multiple job functions,” Joe said. “So they want networking devices like the 10G switches that are easy to manage without compromising any advanced functionality that they certainly need.”
ZyXEL also offers a variety of accessories for 10-Gigabit switching that include 10-Gigabit SFP+ and gigabit transceivers and direct attach cables.
The products are available for purchase through all ZyXEL authorized resellers, with the XS1920-12 retailing for $1,865 and the XS3700-24 offered at $3,860.
“Since SMBs don’t upgrade as often as large enterprises do, investment protection is key and these switches will future-proof SMBs networks while giving them the flexibility to do it on their timetable,” Joe said.