HPE JL263A 24 Ports Aruba 24G POE+ QSFP+ Managed Stackable Switch

HPE JL263A Aruba 2930F 24G Switches

The HPE JL263A (Aruba 2930F 24G PoE+ 4SFP+/QSFP-capable model) represents a cornerstone access-layer switch for campus, branch, and SMB networks where reliability, Power over Ethernet (PoE+) capability, simple stacking, and enterprise-class Layer 3 features are required in a compact 1U, rack-mountable form factor. This category description expands on the JL263A and closely related SKUs in the Aruba 2930F family, covering physical design, porting and uplink options, PoE power and budgeting, Layer 3 switching and routing functionality, stacking and resilience, management and security features, typical deployment topologies, and operational considerations for integrators and IT teams.

Category at-a-glance

Products in this category are characterized by a fixed-port 24× 10/100/1000BASE-T access layer with integrated PoE+ on the RJ-45 ports, plus four SFP/SFP+ capable uplinks for 1G/10G fiber or DAC connections. They are managed switches with Layer 3 capabilities (including static routing, RIP and Access OSPF) and are designed for stacking to create logical single-switch domains for simplicity and resiliency. The platform emphasizes ease of deployment (Zero Touch Provisioning), strong QoS, and integration with Aruba management and policy tools for unified wired-and-wireless control.

Detailed technical profile

Physical & mechanical specifications

The JL263A-class chassis is a 1U rack-mountable fixed-configuration unit engineered for standard equipment racks. The front panel houses 24 Gigabit RJ-45 autosensing ports with PoE+ on each access port, and four combo SFP/SFP+ cages for 1G or 10G uplink modules. The design supports enterprise cable management and standard 19" rack ears for secure mounting. Thermal design prioritizes front-to-back airflow in many SKUs to match data center or closet cooling practices; check the specific regional SKU for power cord and PDU options.

Porting, uplinks and switching capacity

The switch offers 24 gigabit access ports and four SFP/SFP+ uplinks enabling flexible aggregation to core switches or direct 10Gb connections for servers and storage. Typical switching capacity for the 24-port model is in the order of 128 Gbps with forwarding rates that support wire-speed gigabit on all ports concurrently. The platform supports jumbo frames and a large MAC address table suitable for dense access scenarios. Performance figures and forwarding capacity vary by firmware revision, but the family is designed for predictable low-latency access-layer switching.

PoE+ capabilities

Power over Ethernet (PoE+) on the JL263A family enables the delivery of up to 30W per port for powered devices such as VoIP phones, wireless access points, and security cameras. The total PoE budget depends on the specific internal power supply fitted to the SKU — commonly in the 370W ballpark for the 24-port PoE+ model — which allows dozens of mid-power devices to be powered simultaneously when planned correctly. Accurate budgeting requires calculating peak draw per PD (Powered Device) and factoring in reserved capacity for uplinks and future growth.

Layer 3 features

The Aruba 2930F family delivers a useful L3 feature set targeted at access-aggregation environments: static routing, RIP, Access OSPF (for small dynamic routing domains), and support for IPv6 addressing. Advanced access control lists (ACLs), policy-based routing capabilities, and VLAN routing allow the switch to act as a scalable gateway for campus edge deployments without the overhead of a dedicated router in every closet. Notably, Aruba positions this family as license-free for core L3 capabilities, simplifying total cost of ownership.

Stacking, resiliency and simplified operations

The Aruba 2930F line supports stacking technologies that let multiple physical units operate as a single logical switch — reducing management overhead, simplifying link aggregation across units, and providing higher availability. Stack-aware forwarding and distributed control ensure that a single failed member does not significantly disrupt the logical switch’s operation. For many deployments, the ability to stack (or use Aruba's Virtual Switching Framework where available) is one of the defining advantages vs. non-stackable fixed switches.

Typical deployment scenarios

Campus edge access switch

In campus deployments, JL263A-class switches live in edge closets providing desktop, VoIP, and AP connectivity. Uplinks using SFP+ modules provide 10Gb aggregation back to distribution/core switches. PoE+ supports ceiling-mounted wireless access points and IP phones, while stacking reduces the management footprint for closets covering multiple adjacent floors.