WS-C3750X-24U-E Cisco Catalyst 3750X-24U-E Managed L3 Ethernet Ports Switch

Product Summary

The Cisco WS-C3750X-24U-E Catalyst 3750X Series Switch is a powerful, enterprise-grade Layer 3 managed switch designed for scalable, high-performance network environments. With advanced routing, stacking, and Universal Power over Ethernet (UPOE) capabilities, this switch is ideal for modern business networks, campuses, and data-driven infrastructures.

General Specifications

• Brand: Cisco Systems, Inc.
• Model / SKU: WS-C3750X-24U-E
• Device Category: Managed Layer 3 Ethernet Switch
• Form Factor: 1U Rack-Mountable
• Stacking Support: Yes (Cisco StackWise Technology)
• Network Interface: Gigabit Ethernet

Port Configuration & Connectivity

High-Density Gigabit Ports

• 24 x 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet ports
• Auto-negotiation and Auto MDI/MDI-X support
• Designed for high-speed LAN and access-layer deployments

Universal Power over Ethernet (UPOE)

• Supports UPOE for powering advanced devices
• Total PoE power budget up to 800W
• Ideal for IP phones, wireless access points, and IoT devices

Performance & Switching Capacity

Enterprise-Level Throughput

• Switching fabric bandwidth up to 160 Gbps
• Optimized for high traffic and low latency environments
• Reliable performance for mission-critical applications

Jumbo Frame Support

• Supports jumbo frames up to 9216 bytes
• Improves efficiency for data-intensive network traffic

Advanced Routing Capabilities

Dynamic and Static Routing Protocols

• OSPF, OSPFv3, BGP-4, IS-IS
• RIP v1, RIP v2, RIPng
• EIGRP and EIGRP for IPv6
• PIM-SM, PIM-DM, PIM-SSM
• Static IPv4 and IPv6 routing
• Policy-Based Routing (PBR)
• HSRP for gateway redundancy

Layer 2 & Layer 3 Features

Security, Availability & Optimization

• VLAN and trunking support
• Access Control Lists (ACL)
• DHCP Snooping and Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI)
• Quality of Service (QoS) for traffic prioritization
• High availability with hot-swappable modules
• Storm control for broadcast, multicast, and unicast traffic
• IGMP and MLD snooping

Spanning Tree & Link Management

• Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP)
• Per-VLAN Spanning Tree Plus (PVST+)
• Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP)
• Port Aggregation Protocol (PAgP)
• Uni-directional Link Detection (UDLD)

Additional Intelligent Features

• Virtual Routing and Forwarding Lite (VRF-Lite)
• Remote Switch Port Analyzer (RSPAN)
• Energy Efficient Ethernet
• Shaped Round Robin (SRR) scheduling
• Syslog and traffic shaping support

Standards & Compliance

• IEEE 802.3, 802.3u, 802.3z, 802.3ab
• IEEE 802.1D, 802.1Q, 802.1P
• IEEE 802.3x, 802.3ad (LACP)
• IEEE 802.1W, 802.1X, 802.1S
• IEEE 802.1AE

Power Requirements

• AC Input: 120V / 230V
• Frequency: 50/60 Hz
• Designed for enterprise-grade power efficiency

Architectural Excellence and StackWise Plus Technology

At the heart of the Catalyst 3750X platform is its innovative stacking architecture, which is central to its value proposition for scalable and simplified network growth.

Cisco StackWise Plus: Unified Scalability and Resiliency

StackWise Plus technology allows up to nine individual Catalyst 3750X switches to be interconnected and operate as a single, logical switching unit. This creates a resilient, unified system with a common control plane and a collective forwarding capacity of up to 468 Gbps. Unlike traditional standalone switches, a StackWise Plus system simplifies management—you configure and monitor the entire stack as one device—while enhancing performance and redundancy.

Key Stacking Benefits:

Single IP Management: Manage the entire stack through one master switch's IP address, drastically reducing administrative overhead.
Cross-Stack EtherChannel: Create multi-switch Link Aggregation Groups (LAGs) to upstream devices, providing high-bandwidth uplinks and eliminating single-point-of-failure risks for interswitch links.
Stateful Switchover (SSO): Offers sub-second failover for control plane processes, ensuring minimal disruption during a master switch failure.
Hot Swapping & Auto-Configuration: Add or replace switches in the stack without powering down, with the ability to automatically inherit the stack's configuration.

Robust Hardware Design and Redundancy Features

The WS-C3750X-24U-E is built with enterprise-grade reliability. Its modular, field-replaceable power supply and fan tray units are key to achieving high availability.

Dual Field-Replaceable Power Supplies (FRUs)

The switch supports one or two modular, hot-swappable AC or DC power supplies. This enables N+1 power supply redundancy for critical deployments. The switch can also leverage the combined capacity of dual supplies to support higher PoE+ budgets when powering a large number of devices like IP phones, wireless access points, and video surveillance cameras.

Modular Fan Tray

The fan tray is also field-replaceable and hot-swappable, ensuring continued operation in the event of a fan failure. Its side-to-side airflow design is optimized for compatibility with modern data center and wiring closet cooling schemes.

Comprehensive Connectivity and Expansion Modules

The fixed 24 Gigabit Ethernet ports provide dense, high-speed access to end-users and devices. However, the true flexibility of the platform lies in its modular uplink capabilities.

Integrated Network Module Slot

Every Catalyst 3750X switch includes a dedicated internal slot for a pluggable network module. This allows network architects to tailor uplink connectivity to their specific environment without sacrificing fixed port density.

Available Network Module Options Include:

4 x 1 Gigabit SFP: For additional fiber or copper Gigabit Ethernet uplinks.
2 x 10 Gigabit SFP+: For high-bandwidth aggregation to network cores or storage. This is a critical module for overcoming 1Gbps uplink bottlenecks and preparing for 10G network convergence.
2 x 10GBASE-T: Provides 10 Gigabit Ethernet over standard copper cabling (Cat6a/Cat7), ideal for cost-effective high-speed server connections or short-run uplinks.

Power over Ethernet Plus (PoE+) Capabilities

The "-U-E" model is a PoE+ switch, delivering up to 30 watts per port (IEEE 802.3at) and supporting the legacy 15.4-watt PoE (IEEE 802.3af) standard. With a total power budget of up to 740W (with dual power supplies), it can simultaneously power a vast array of devices.

PoE+ Applications and Benefits:

Unified Communications: Power IP phones, speakerphones, and video conferencing units.
Wireless Networking: Power next-generation 802.11ac Wave 2 and Wi-Fi 6/6E access points that require more than 15.4 watts for full functionality.
Physical Security: Power PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) cameras, biometric access controls, and networked LED lighting.
Intelligent Power Management: Features like Cisco EnergyWise allow for granular monitoring and control of PoE power consumption, contributing to corporate sustainability goals.

Advanced Software Features with Enhanced Image (EI)

The "Enhanced" (EI) software image unlocks the full Layer 3 and advanced feature set of the Catalyst 3750X platform, transforming it from a smart access switch into a powerful, routing-capable network node.

Sophisticated Layer 3 Routing

The switch supports static routing and dynamic routing protocols, enabling it to serve as a routing aggregation point in branch offices or at the distribution layer.

Routing Protocol Support:

RIP (v1 & v2): For basic routing in smaller networks.
OSPF (Open Shortest Path First): Advanced link-state protocol for efficient, scalable routing within an autonomous system.
EIGRP (Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol): Cisco's advanced, hybrid routing protocol offering fast convergence and efficient bandwidth usage.
BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) (limited): Support for external BGP (eBGP) peering, suitable for enterprise WAN edge connections.

Enterprise-Grade Security and Policy Enforcement

Security is embedded at multiple levels, from port access to network-wide threat control.

Key Security Features:

IEEE 802.1X (Port-Based Authentication): Provides identity-based network access control for users and devices. Supports advanced extensions like Flexible Authentication (FlexAuth) and downloadable ACLs.
ACLs (Access Control Lists): Extensive support for standard, extended, named, and VLAN ACLs (VACLs) to filter traffic based on Layer 2, 3, and 4 parameters.
Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI) & IP Source Guard: Protect against ARP spoofing and IP address theft attacks.
DHCP Snooping: Prevents rogue DHCP server attacks and builds a trusted database of IP-to-MAC address bindings.
Cisco TrustSec (Security Group Tagging): Enables role-based access control by classifying traffic with security group tags, allowing policy enforcement based on user/device identity rather than just IP address.

Advanced Quality of Service (QoS) for Application Prioritization

The switch provides sophisticated, hardware-accelerated QoS to ensure optimal performance for latency-sensitive applications like voice and video.

QoS Capabilities Include:

Classification & Marking: Trust boundaries, classification based on DSCP, CoS, IP Precedence, and ACLs. Can remark traffic to ensure proper treatment across the network.
Congestion Management: Supports multiple egress queue scheduling algorithms, including Strict Priority Queuing (PQ) and Weighted Round Robin (WRR), to guarantee bandwidth for critical traffic.
Congestion Avoidance: Implements Weighted Random Early Detection (WRED) to intelligently manage buffer congestion and prevent TCP global synchronization.
AutoQoS: Automatically generates QoS configurations based on recognized application traffic, simplifying deployment for VoIP and other real-time applications.

Management, Visibility, and Programmability

The Catalyst 3750X-24U-E offers a multi-faceted approach to management, catering to both traditional CLI practitioners and modern GUI-focused administrators.

Diverse Management Interfaces

Cisco CLI (Command-Line Interface): The industry-standard, powerful text-based interface accessed via console, SSH, or Telnet for precise configuration and scripting.
Cisco Prime Infrastructure & DNA Center: For centralized, automated management and policy-based automation across the entire network fabric (DNA Center requires compatibility mode).
Embedded Web Management Interface: A built-in, browser-based GUI for intuitive point-and-click configuration and monitoring.
SNMP (v1, v2c, v3): Comprehensive support for network monitoring systems like SolarWinds, LibreNMS, or PRTG.
Syslog & NetFlow: Detailed event logging and traffic flow export for advanced troubleshooting, security analysis, and capacity planning.

Energy Efficiency and Operational Sustainability

The switch incorporates several technologies to reduce operational expenses (OpEx) related to power and cooling.

Cisco EnergyWise Technology

This holistic architecture enables the network to become a platform for monitoring and managing power consumption of connected devices (PoE and non-PoE) and even building systems. It allows for policies to be set to power down devices during off-hours, achieving significant energy savings.

Ideal Deployment Scenarios and Use Cases

The versatility of the Cisco WS-C3750X-24U-E makes it suitable for a wide range of network roles.

Enterprise Wiring Closet / Access Layer

Its primary role, providing high-density Gigabit Ethernet and PoE+ access to end-users, IP phones, and wireless access points. Stacking provides scalability as the number of connected devices grows.

Branch Office Aggregation

With its Enhanced Image routing capabilities, it can serve as the core switch for a branch office, performing inter-VLAN routing and connecting to the WAN via its modular 10G uplinks.

Mid-Sized Network Core / Distribution Layer

In smaller campuses or organizations, a stack of Catalyst 3750X switches can effectively serve as the network core, aggregating traffic from multiple access switches and providing routing and policy enforcement.

Data Center Server Access

With the 10GBASE-T network module, it can function as a cost-effective Top-of-Rack (ToR) switch for server farms requiring 1G or 10G copper connectivity, especially where PoE is needed for connected devices.