Today we are looking at the Cisco Catalyst C1300-24XTS. This is an interesting switch because it offers 24 independent 10GbE ports, split evenly between 12x 10Gbase-T ports and 12x SFP+ cages. That port mix matters for administrators who have a blend of 10GBase-T-capable servers or workstations alongside fiber-connected storage or uplinks. We have looked at a number of these switches before, including the C1300-16XTS, C1300-12XS, C1300-12XT-2X, and C1300-8FP-2G. The 24-port model is the one that is really neat, and it has been running without issue for months, so it is finally time for the review. Let us get into the hardware.
Cisco Catalyst C1300-24XTS Hardware Overview
The Cisco Catalyst C1300-24XTS is a 1U rackmount switch with a metal chassis. The unit measures 444.3mm by 273mm by 43.94mm and weighs 4.2kg. Unlike many of the lower-port-count models we have reviewed, this is a full 1U unit that fills out the rack and is much wider than the other units we have tested.
On the left side of the front panel is a cluster of management interfaces. These include several ways to access a console interface. Cisco makes this very easy.
The twelve copper data ports are numbered 1 through 12 and support 10GBase-T. These are arranged in two rows of six on the front panel. A question we often see about switches with SFP+ and 10Gbase-T is whether they are combo jacks, these are not.
Next to those are twelve SFP+ cages numbered 13 through 24, arranged in three banks of four. These provide fiber connectivity options for uplinks or storage networks. Also by going with this spread-out solution, Cisco makes putting SFP+ optics and DACs into the switch easier, and cooling is a bit easier as well.
On the far right of the front panel, there is a dedicated RJ45 connector that operates at 1GE. This port is physically separate from both the left console connector and the 24 data ports. It provides out-of-band management access, allowing administrators to reach the switch independently of the main data plane.
Both rack ears came supplied with this unit and are a bit different than we saw on the 12 and 16-port models.
On the sides of the chassis, we get large perforated vent banks along with screws and mounting positions. Both sides are vented on this switch.
Moving to the rear, there is a vent, the product label, lock points or slots for securing the unit, and a single AC power input. There is no redundant power input here, so for A+B power delivery, you would need an external automatic transfer switching PDU.
Next, let us get inside the switch to see what Cisco did there.
