It wasn’t that long ago we highlighted the astounding bridge of Catalyst & Meraki finally coming together to offer the best of both solutions from both sides of the spectrum! Now that marriage is taking it to the next level.
With growing sites opened globally & the constant demand for increased bandwidth at every facet, it was no secret that the demand & hunger for more power & more simplicity was needed, enter the Catalyst 9300-M series switches! The perfect mix of Catalyst 9300 hardware & Meraki’s intuitive cloud managed dashboard Let’s take a look at some of the newer features & products!
We’ve Got The Power!
My love for Catalyst & Meraki switches knows no limits! So, for the first time to have a switch that encompasses the best of both of these worlds is game changing! Not only can this entire portfolio of gear run in Meraki mode & be onboarded & managed in the Meraki dashboard. But this also changes the dynamic of just how we leverage this gear. Supporting up to 90W of power per port is one of the first of many features that’s huge for any engineer. Gone are the days of your standard PoE per port just powering phones & PC’s, but now devices such as dongles, UHD camera, LCD board displays, even the capability to fully charge laptops without power cords is incredible!
Providing lower power costs & better overall performance.1T StackWise capabilities also fully support 3290 watts of POE with the supplies providing total power of over 1900W ensuring maximum power & efficiency at all levels!
Zero Touch Provisioning & Seamless Upgrades!
There has never been a more dedicated & top-tier cloud-based solution than the Catalyst 9300-M series. From a multitude of mGig speeds, to improved physical stacking & increased stack power. This hardware is designed with even more power & capabilities than its predecessors! With these devices now also capable of being configured via the cloud for direct out of the box management & analytics. Another huge feature that I’m ecstatic for is their unique & simplistic approach to zero touch provisioning! So how does that work? Through the Meraki dashboard you would preconfigure your templates & prepare for multi-site deployments. Before you even have the tracking of your devices you can input the serial numbers into the platform & begin the initial configuration & preparation before you even receive a box! Then once received, stage, begin your cabling & you’re good to go!
I’m also pumped for real time visibility & control through the Meraki dashboard! From scheduling firmware upgrades & change logging to simplistic hardware upgrades, replacement & license management! Adaptive Policy is another big feature focusing on leveraging not only inline security group tags but also policy enforcement for wired & wireless clients as well as more detailed segmentation & better encrypted traffic analytics.
Insights For Simplistic Outcomes!
Meraki’s phenomenal dashboard is key for providing real time insights into preventive maintenance from client health & usage, to targeting network issues & immediate resolution! Their deeper dive into application visibility is also an exciting feature introduced into this series that provides a granular insight into usage, connection detail as well as tools to collect PCAP’s & logs pertaining to any connectivity drops & more!
You won’t have to wait long to get these devices ordered & deployed as availability begins Feb 13th with over 15 new models to choose from to what suits your environment!
Cisco Meraki continues to change the game & leverage cloud platforms for its customers in assuring continued success for tomorrow & beyond. Until next time, stay safe & get ready for more simplicity in Meraki switching!
Best Regards,
Girard
TechHouse570 
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