To make you more familiar with the concepts of network routing and to get acquainted with the reputable vendors of network routers, we have prepared a number of blogs as a series, the different parts of which are as follows:

Part 1 – What is a Network Router? Routing Terms (Such as Routing Protocols, and Types of Routers)

Part 2 – Cisco Routers: Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization

Part 3 – Other Cisco Routers:  Service Provider, Small Business, Virtual, WAN)

Part 4- Mikrotik Routers: RB Routers, CCR Routers, PowerBox Routers and hEX Routers

Part 5- HP Routers: Branch, Campus, Data Center, Virtual and Small Business

In these posts we have a mental premise: Everyone who reading these posts has enough understanding and knowledge about the different layers of OSI and TCP/IP architectural models and especially knows the difference between the roles and function of layers two and three.

In this series of blogs you will come across a variety of terms, abbreviations, concepts, and technologies. We have tried to explain the general concepts and terms as much as possible in the first part of this series. In the following sections, we assume that you have read first part and therefore we will not re-explain these concepts and terms in the following sections. Of course, each vendor also has a number of specific terms and concepts that are explained in blogs related to the same vendor’s products.

Last note, all the content as well as the images used in this series of blogs are taken from the official websites of the reviewed vendors (Cisco, Microtik, and HP ).


 

 

Part 3 – Other Cisco Routers: Service Provider, Small Business, Virtual, WAN

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, service provider core routers

These routers are made in various series, which include:

  • Cisco Network Convergence System 6000 Series: The NCS 6000 helps enable superior network agility, packet optical convergence, and petabits-per-second system scale. Innovations include Cisco nPower X1 NPUs, hardware-enabled true zero-packet, zero-topology loss ISSU, capability to scale beyond 1 petabit in a multiphasic configuration, enhanced operations support, and packet-optical integration. You can read more about this series: Cisco NCS 6000 Series Routers
  • Cisco 8000 Series: These routers deliver provider-class routing functionality at unmatched density, performance, and power, and they combine Cisco’s revolutionary Cisco Silicon One and IOS XR software as well as a set of clean-sheet chassis to deliver a breakthrough in high-performance routers. This series includes deep-buffered, on-chip High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) and 400G-optimized routers ranging from 10.8 to 12.8 Tbps in a 1 RU footprint or an available an industry-leading, rack-mountable modular system. This series also inclides two distinct router architectures that both utilize the Cisco Silicon One ASIC. The 8800 Series provides the highest bandwidth via modular chassis with a redundant control plane and switch fabric. The 8800 Series includes the Cisco 8804, 8808, 8812, and 8818. These chassis deliver up to 14.4 Tbps per line card via 100 and 400 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) ports. Also, the Cisco 8100 and 8200 provide up to 12.8 Tbps of network bandwidth with dramatically lower power than similar bandwidth systems. You can read more about this series: Cisco 8000 Series Routers

 

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, Service Provider Edge Routers

These routers are made in various series, which include:

  • Cisco Network Convergence System 500, and 520, and 540, and 560 Series: The Cisco NCS 500 Series has many facilitating advanced features for automation and programmability throughout your access network for 5G, Remote PHY, Carrier Ethernet, and FTTx. This series itself has a wide variety of models that have different configurations. You can compare these models on this page of the official Cisco website.
  • Cisco ASR 900 Series Interface Modules: This series delivers unbounded scale with Circuit Emulation (CEM) and Optical Transport Network (OTN) capabilities, in addition to supporting Carrier Ethernet business services, over a redundant and protected packet-based network (Multiprotocol Label Switching [MPLS]/FlexLSP). You can read more about this series: Cisco ASR 900 Series Interface Modules
  • Cisco ASR 920 Series Aggregation Services Routers: These routers provide a comprehensive and scalable set of Layer 2 and Layer 3 VPN services in a compact package. They are temperature-hardened and have a small form factor. They also offer the high throughput and low power consumption ideal for mobile backhaul, business services, and residential voice, video, and data applications. This series itself has a wide variety of models that have different configurations. You can read the datasheets of each of them on this page of the official Cisco website.
  • Cisco 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers: These routers provide a Software Defined WAN platform that aggregates multiple WAN connections and network services including encryption and traffic management, and forward them across WAN connections at line speeds from 2.5 to 200 Gbps. The Cisco ASR 1000 Series Embedded Services Processors (ESPs), which are based on Cisco Flow Processor technology, accelerate many advanced features such as crypto-based access security; Network Address Translation (NAT), thread defense with Cisco Zone-Based Firewall (ZBFW), Deep Packet Inspection (DPI), Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE), and a diverse set of Data-Center-Interconnect (DCI) features. You can read more about this series: 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers
  • Cisco ASR 9000 Series Aggregation Services Routers: The ASR 9000 series is an edge routing device capable of supporting the application performance required to power 5G service needs. This series has line cards supporting 400 GbE. These routers also support for coherent optics to drive the convergence of IP and optical layers. This series itself has a wide variety of models that have different configurations. You can compare these models on this page of the official Cisco website.

 

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, Small Business Routers

These routers are made in various series, which include:

  • Cisco Small Business RV Series Routers: Securely connecting your small business to the outside world is as important as connecting your internal network devices to one another. Cisco Small Business RV Series Routers offer virtual private networking (VPN) technology so your remote workers can connect to your network through a secure Internet pathway. This series itself has very, very diverse models that have different configurations. You can read the datasheets of each of them on this page of the official Cisco website.
  • Cisco 800M Series: This series Integrated Services Router (ISR) is a modular platform in the Cisco 800 Series ISR product family. Intended for small to medium sites. This series is a good suitable for the following uses: (1) Secure WAN connectivity for branches, (2) Transmitting transactional data from ATM machines, point-of-sale terminals, and kiosks, (3) Locations with WAN services requiring serial connectivity. This series supported RIPv1, RIPv2, OSPF, EIGRP, BGP, IS-IS. These routers have maximum 8 10/100/1000 LAN ports LAN, and 2 10/100/1000 WAN ports onboard, and two WAN Interface Slots. Some models in this series are also equipped with a serial port WAN Interface Module, or a 4G/3G WAN Interface Module. You can read more about this series: Cisco Router 800M Series
  • Cisco 860 Series: This series delivers features, including firewall, IPSec VPNs, and WLANs, at broadband speeds to small offices. This series routers have 4-port 10/100 Fast Ethernet managed switch with VLAN support, and CON/AUX Port for console or external modem, and finally Secure 802.11g/n access point option based on IEEE802.11n draft 2.0 standard. You can read more about this series: Cisco Router 860M Series
  • Cisco 880 Series: This series ISRs combine Internet access, security, voice, and wireless services onto a single, secure device that is simple to use and manage for small businesses and enterprise small branch offices and teleworkers. Cisco 880 Series Integrated Services Routers are fixed-configuration routers that provide collaborative business solutions for secure voice and data communication to small businesses and enterprise teleworkers. They offer concurrent broadband services over third-generation (3G), Metro Ethernet, and multiple DSL technologies to provide business continuity. Wireless 802.11n and 3G offer LAN and WAN mobility. You can read more about this series: Cisco Router 880M Series  
  • Cisco 890 Series: This series routers deliver integrated security and threat defense, protecting networks from both known and new Internet vulnerabilities and attacks. These powerful, fixed-configuration routers provide secure broadband, Metro Ethernet, and Wireless LAN (WLAN) connectivity. Service providers offering managed Ethernet WAN services can deploy them in customer locations as CPE. These routers come with an 8-port managed switch, providing LAN ports to connect multiple devices. An optional Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) capability can also supply power to IP phones and other devices. You can read more about this series: Cisco Router 890M Series
  • Cisco 900 Series Integrated Services Routers: These ISRs provide secure broadband and Metro Ethernet and wireless LTE WAN connectivity. Service providers offering both managed Ethernet and wireless LTE WAN services can deploy them in customer locations as CPE. The Cisco 900 Series ISRs come with a 4-port managed switch, providing LAN ports to connect multiple devices. You can read more about this series: Cisco 900 Series Integrated Services Routers

 

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, Virtual Routers

These routers are suitable and practical for cloud service providers. These routers are made in various series, which include:

  • Cisco Catalyst 8000V Edge Software: This router is a virtual-form-factor router that delivers comprehensive SD-WAN, WAN gateway, and network services functions into virtual and cloud environments, and it enables enterprises to transparently extend their WANs into provider-hosted clouds. Similarly, cloud providers themselves can use the Catalyst 8000V to offer enterprise-class networking services. You can read more about this series: Cisco Catalyst 8000V Edge Software
  • Cisco Cloud Native Broadband Router: This router delivers nonpareil scalability, elasticity, and resilience. This router is an open, and modular router, and it has written for the cloud as software independent of hardware. This router utilizes Cisco Operations Hub (Ops Hub) as the single plane of glass dashboard to configure, monitor and operate the platform. You can read more about this series: Cisco Cloud Native Broadband Router
  • Cisco Cloud Services Router 1000V Series: This router is suitable for enterprise network to public and private clouds. This series offers routing, security, and network management as cloud services with multitenancy. Secure features include IPsec VPNs and built-in zone-based firewalls, among others. We can scale beyond the limitations of IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging and we can build a VXLAN network or even extend Layer 3 routing deeper into the cloud environment. The series is infrastructure agnostic and programmable across the LAN and WAN and in the cloud. You can read more about this series: Cisco Cloud Services Router 1000V Series

 

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, WAN Aggregation and Internet Edge Routers

These routers are made in various series, which include:

  • Cisco Network Convergence System 5000 Series: This series is designed to economically scale large enterprise, over-the-top (OTT), and service provider data center networking architectures. This series includes routers named NCS 5001, NCS 5002 and NCS 5011, which you can compare them on this page of Cisco official website.
  • Cisco Network Convergence System 5500 Series: The NCS 5500 Series offers industry-leading density of routed 100 GE ports for high-scale WAN aggregation. It is designed to efficiently scale between data centers and large enterprise, web, and service provider WAN and aggregation networks. This series includes routers named NCS 5501, NCS 5501-SE, NCS 5502, NCS 5502-SE, NCS 5508 and NCS 5516, which you can compare them on this page of Cisco official website.
  • Catalyst 8500 Series Edge Platforms: These routers are compact 1RU devices with flexible interface options, including 1GE, 10GE, 40GE, and 100GE ports. Cisco Catalyst 8500 Series Edge Platforms (Catalyst 8500 and Catalyst 8500L) feature the all-new third-generation Cisco Quantum Flow Processor (QFP), the Catalyst 8500 Series Edge Platforms are built for services from the ground up. You can read more about this series: Catalyst 8500 Series Edge Platforms
  • Cisco ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers: These routers provide a Software Defined WAN platform that aggregates multiple WAN connections and network services including encryption and traffic management, and forward them across WAN connections at line speeds from 2.5 to 200 Gbps. The Cisco ASR 1000 Series Embedded Services Processors (ESPs), which are based on Cisco Flow Processor technology, accelerate many advanced features such as crypto-based access security; Network Address Translation (NAT), thread defense with Cisco Zone-Based Firewall (ZBFW), Deep Packet Inspection (DPI), Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE), and a diverse set of Data-Center-Interconnect (DCI) features. You can read more about this series: 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers

 

 

ITperfection, Cisco Routers Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization, Wireless WAN

A series of such routers are currently on sale by Cisco called Catalyst Cellular Gateways.  These routers combine the latest in cellular technology with deployment flexibility, investment protection, and ease of management, with both traditional and SD-WAN deployments. Powered by gigabit-class 5G and 4G standards, the Catalyst Cellular Gateways bring blazing-fast cellular connection to virtually any Cisco host platform. Connected to the host router via Ethernet and available with PoE. In fact, wireless could be considered for primary connectivity, alongside internet and Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) modes of transport. You can read more about this series: Catalyst Cellular Gateways

 

 

 

————–

Source: In preparing this blog, we have tried to use the documents and content available on the Cisco official website, namely the website cisco.com. All information is based on the contents of this website.

 

 

 

Read other blogs related to this series:

Part 1 – What is a Network Router? Routing Terms (Such as Routing Protocols, and Types of Routers)

Part 2 – Cisco Routers: Branch Routers, Industrial Routers, and Network Functions Virtualization

Part 4- Mikrotik Routers: RB Routers, CCR Routers, PowerBox Routers and hEX Routers

Part 5- HP Routers: Branch, Campus, Data Center, Virtual and Small Business