Business Optimized Networking Product Comparison Guides: Nortel vs.
Cisco
Converge
and scale the network core around resilient IP/Ethernet with Nortel Ethernet
Routing Switches.
Extend
and simplify access to the multisite enterprise with Nortel Secure Routers.
Mobilize
the enterprise via ubiquitous access to all users with Nortel WLAN.
Accelerate
applications and business with Nortel Application Accelerators and Nortel
Application Switches.
Secure and manage
the infrastructure with Nortel Firewall, VPN Solutions, Threat Protection Systems
and Management.
Compare Nortels Data Solutions to the competition, and discover our differentiators and key features.
For more information visit nortel.com/data
Nortel vs. Cisco Model Comparison Guide Ethernet Switching
Fixed Configuration Fast Ethernet
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Catalyst 2960 24T and 2 dual-purpose uplinks
WS-C2960-24TC-L
Catalyst 2960 48T and 2 dual-purpose uplinks
WS-C2960-48TC-L
Catalyst 3560-24 + 2 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3560-48 + 4 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3560-24-PWR + 2 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3560-48-PWR + 4 SFP GBIC ports
WS-C3560-24TS-S
WS-C3560-48TS-S
WS-C3560-24PS-S
WS-C3560-48PS-S
ERS 2526T - 24 port 10/100BaseT + 2 Combo 10/100/1000 or SFP ports,
AL2515?01-E6
plus 2 1000BaseT rear ports, 46cm stack cbl with stacking enabled
ERS 2550T - 48 port 10/100BaseT + 2 Combo 10/100/1000 or SFP ports,
AL2515?02-E6
plus 2 1000BaseT rear ports, 46cm stack cbl with stacking enabled
ERS 4526T with 24 10/100BaseTX ports plus 2 combo 10/100/1000/SFP ports
AL4500?03-E6
ERS 4550T with 48 10/100BaseTX ports plus 2 combo 10/100/1000 SFP ports
AL4500?02-E6
ERS 4526T-PWR with 24 10/100 802.3af PoE ports plus 2 combo 10/100/1000/SFP ports
AL4500?13-E6
ERS 4550T-PWR with 48 10/100 802.3af PoE ports plus 2 combo 10/100/1000 SFP ports
AL4500?12-E6
* The seventh character (?) of the switch order number signifies country code identifier A-F for power cord
Nortel Differentiator
Nortel Standard Offering
Scalability to grow as your business grows while maintaining management simplicity
Flexibility to add support for Power over Ethernet to a stack
Always-on resilience through intelligent fail-safe stacking with up to 320 Gbps throughput
Standards-based can interoperate with other switches and IP Phones
Built-in stacking
Backed by Lifetime warranty
Part Number*
Fixed Configuration Gigabit Ethernet
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Catalyst 3560-24 10/100/1000T + 4 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3560-48 10/100/1000T + 4 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3560E-24TD 10/100/1000T + 2 X2 10Gigabit Ethernet uplinks
Catalyst 3750E-24 10/100/1000T + 2 X2 10 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks
Catalyst 3750G-24PS IEEE 802.3af PoE + 4 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3750G-48PS IEEE 802.3af PoE + 4 SFP GBIC ports
Catalyst 3750G-16TD + 10GE XENPAK port
WS-C3560G-24TS-S
WS-C3560G-48TS-S
WS-C3560E-24TD-S
WS-C3750E-24TD-S
WS-C3750G-24PS-E
WS-C3750G-48PS-E
WS- 3750G-16TD-S
ERS 4524GT with 24 10/100/1000BaseTX ports and 4 shared SFP ports
AL4500?05-E6
ERS 4548GT with 48 10/100/1000BaseTX ports and 4 SFP ports
AL4500?04-E6
ERS 4526GTX with 24 10/100/1000BaseTX ports + 4 SFP ports & 2 10GE XFP slots
AL4500?06-E6
ERS 4526GTX with 24 10/100/1000BaseTX ports + 4 SFP ports & 2 10GE XFP slots
AL4500?06-E6
ERS 5520-24T-PWR IEEE 802.3af PoE + 4 SFP GBIC ports
AL1001?06-E5
ERS 5520-48T-PWR IEEE 802.3af PoE + 4 SFP GBIC ports
AL1001?05-E5
ERS 5530-24TFD - 24 10/100/1000BaseT, 12 shared SFP GBIC ports,
AL1001?07-E5
2 built-in XFP 10 Gig ports
* The seventh character (?) of the switch order number signifies country code identifier A-F for power cord
Nortel Differentiator
Nortel Standard Offering
Scalability to grow as your business grows while maintaining management simplicity
Non-blocking stacking architecture with up to 640 Gbps throughput
Offers up to 72% lower cost per throughput than Cisco
Advanced security including Network Access Control
Built-in stacking across all Nortel switches
Backed by a Lifetime warranty
Part Number*
Modular Switches Catalyst 4500 vs ERS 8300
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Catalyst
Catalyst
Catalyst
Catalyst
WS-C4510R-E
WS-X45-SUP6-E
WS-X4606-X2-E
WS-X4648-RJ45V-E
ERS 8310 10-slot PoE Chassis
ERS 8394SF Switch Fabric/CPU module with 2-port 10GBASE-X XFP slots
ERS 8308XL 8-port 10GBASE-X XFP Ethernet Interface Module
ERS 8348GTX-PWR 48-port 10/100/1000BASE-TX Ethernet
Interface Module with Power-over-Ethernet
DS1402007-E5
DS1404099-E5
DS1404100-E5
DS1404094-E5
E Series 4510R Switch (10-slot chassis)
4500 Series Supervisor Engine 6-E, 2 x 10GbE (X2)
4500 E-Series 6-Port 10GbE (X2)
4500 E-Series 48-Port PoE 10/100/1000(RJ45)
Nortel Differentiator
Other Key Features
6- and 10-slot chassis options to best meet scalability needs
High density support of up to 400 1GbE and 68 10GbE ports
8394SF switch Fabric enables up to 464Gbps and 345Mpps per Switch; and these figures
double when Clustered
Enhanced network security with access control and host integrity checking via Nortels
Secure Network Access (SNA)
Optional redundant N-1 Switch Fabric and N+1 Power Supplies
Available with or without Standard-based Power over Ethernet
Supports Nortels Switch Cluster technology for delivering 99.999 % end-to-end
resilient application availability
Modular Switches Catalyst 6500 vs ERS 8600
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
E-Series 9-slot chassis
WS-C6509-E
DS1402001-E5
Cisco Express Forwarding 720 10/100/1000 Interface Module
WS-X6748-GE-TX
Catalyst 6500 4-Port 10 Gigabit Ethernet Module, requires XENPAK
Catalyst 6500 Supervisor 720 Fabric MSFC3 PFC3B
WS-X6704-10GE
WS-SUP720-3B
ERS 8010 10 slot chassis. Includes chassis, dual backplane, two fan trays,
RS232 cable for management console, rack mount kit, and cable guide kit.
ERS 8648GTR Routing Switch Module. 48 port 10/100/1000BaseT Ethernet
Layer 3 switching interfaces
ERS 8683XLR three-port 10GBaseX XFP Routing Switch Module baseboard
ERS 8692SF Switch Fabric/CPU
Nortel Differentiator
Other Key Features
ERS 8600 delivers Terabit performance with industry-leading resiliency all at a lower price
ERS 8600 R-modules provide enterprises with an effective product migration path and
investment protection.
Integrated SDM 8660 with Check Points Firewall-1 NG and SourceFires Snort-based TPS
High performance IPv6
HIgh Scalability Multi-Cast
Sub 100ms network convergence
DS1404092-E5
DS1404101-E5
DS1404065-E5
Nortel vs. Cisco Model Comparison Guide Secure (Branch) Routers
Single T1/E1 Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco 1841: Cisco 1841 T1 bundle with IOS IP BASE, WIC-1DSU-T1-V2,
32 MB Flash/128 MB DRAM
CISCO1841-T1
Secure Router 1001: 1-port active T1/E1, (2) 10/100 Eth. Ports,
16MB FLASH, 128MB SDRAM, AC power supply, OSPF, RIP, VLAN , BGP,
Firewall, Multicast, QoS, Compact Flash Slot Support
SR2101002E5
Nortel Differentiator
Price/performance ratio
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
2 x T1/E1 Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco ISR 2801: w/AC power, 2 x 100 ports, 4-slots
(2HWIC), IOS IP BASE, 64 MB Flash/128 MB DRAM
CISCO2801
Secure Router 1002: 2-ports active T1, (2) 10/100 Eth. Ports,
16MB FLASH, 256MB SDRAM, AC power supply, OSPF, RIP,
VLAN , BGP, Firewall, Multilink, Multicast, QoS
SR2101008E5
2-Port 2nd Gen Multiflex Trunk Voice/WAN Int. Card T1/E1
VWIC2-2MFT-T1/E1
Nortel Differentiator
Price/performance ratio
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
Comes with 2 active T1/E1 WAN ports
4 x T1/E1 Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco ISR 2801: w/AC power, 2 x 100 ports, 4-slots
(2HWIC), IOS IP BASE, 64 MB Flash/128 MB DRAM
CISCO2801
Secure Router 1004: 4-ports active T1, (2) 10/100 Eth. Ports,
32MB FLASH, 256MB SDRAM, AC power supply, OSPF, RIP,
VLAN , BGP, Firewall, Multilink, Multicast, QoS
SR2101018
2 x 2-Port 2nd Gen Multiflex Trunk Voice/WAN Int. Card T1/E1
Cisco ISR 2811: w/AC power, 2 x 100 ports, 4-slots (2HWIC), IOS IP BASE,
64 MB Flash/256 MB DRAM
2 x 2-Port 2nd Gen Multiflex Trunk Voice/WAN Int. Card T1/E1
VWIC2-2MFT-T1/E1
CISCO2811
VWIC2-2MFT-T1/E1
Nortel Differentiator
Price/performance ratio
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
Comes with 4 active T1/E1 WAN ports
1 x DS3 Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco ISR 3825: w/AC power, 2 x Gig E ports, 2 x NME slots, 4 x HWIC slots,
IOS IP Base, 64 MB Flash/ 256 MB DRAM
1-port clear channel T3/E3
CISCO3825
Secure Router 3120 Standard 2 slot chassis with 2 Fast Ethernet ports,
1 Console port, 1 AUX port and 1 AC power supply
1-port clear channel T3
SR2102001E5
NM-1T3/E3
Nortel Differentiator
Price/performance ratio
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Availability of channelized T3 interface
SR2104018E5
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
3 x DS3 Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco ISR 3845: w/AC power, 2 x Gig E ports, 4 x NME slots,
4 x HWIC slots, IOS IP Base, 64 MB Flash/256 MB DRAM
3 x 1-port clear channel T3/E3
CISCO3845
SR 4134 Chassis Base System, 4-ports Gig E, 128 MB Compact Flash,
1GB DRAM Software, fan tray and AC power supply
3 x 1-port clear channel T3
SR0005005E5
NM-1T3/E3
Nortel Differentiator
Integrated Mediation Server Technology for Office Communication Server 2007
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Availability of channelized T3 interface
SR2104018E5
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
4 x Gig E Connected Branches
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Cisco ISR 3845: w/AC power, 2 x Gig E ports, 4 x NME slots,
4 x HWIC slots, IOS IP Base, 64 MB Flash/256 MB DRAM
2 x 1 Port GE Network Module
CISCO3845
SR4134 Base System, 4-ports Gig E, 128MB Compact Flash,
1GB DDR RAM. Software, fan tray, and dual AC non PoE power supplies NM-1GE
SR0000002E5
Nortel Differentiator
Integrated Mediation Server Technology for Office Communication Server 2007
High density Gig E support
Wirespeed with any packet size, traffic load or services enabled
Advanced QoS with 8 priority queues
Availability of channelized T3 interface
Nortel Standard Offering
Routing, WAN and firewall all included in base software
Comes with 4 on-board Gig E ports
Nortel vs. Cisco Model Comparison Guide WLAN
WLAN Infrastructure
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Wireless LAN controller 4404 ( up to 100 APs)
AIR-WLC4404
WLAN Security Switch 2382 (up to 128 AP's)
x = varies depending on region
DR4001x80E5
1200 Series Access Point (802.11ag)
AIR-LAP1232AG
WLAN Access Point 2332 - 802.11a/b/g
x = varies depending on region
DR400108xE6
Location Appliance
AIR-LOC2710
WLAN 2340 Location Appliance
x = varies depending on region
DR4001x79E5
Nortel Differentiator:
Better user experience: Optimized to support voice and multimedia applications
Better administrative experience: Easy implementation from planning to production
Better security: Beyond latest industry standards
Better reliability: End-to-end wireless service resiliency
Lower cost
Nortel Standard Offering:
Complete mobility solution; seamless integration with any IP network
Flexible deployment options for branch offices to large enterprises
Global availability, services and support
WLAN Handsets
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
WiFi phone: Cisco IP Phone 7921
CP-7921G
WLAN Handsets 6140
NTTQ4021E6
Nortel Differentiator:
Durability: Purpose-built and certified for heavy-duty use environments like healthcare, manufacturing and retail
Voice Quality: Proven SpectraLink Voice Prioritization (SVP) protocol the defacto industry standard for delivering high-quality VoIP over Wi-Fi
Group communication: Integrated Push-to-talk for simultaneous broadcasting among group members
Nortel Standard Offering:
Emulates the functions of Nortels IP Phone 1100/1200
Supported on Nortel Communication Server 1000
WMM support for standards-based QoS
Nortel vs. Cisco Model Comparison Guide Application Switching and WAN Optimization
Application Switching
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Content Services Switch 11501
CSS11501
Application Switch 2208E
EB1412030E5
No equivalent model
N/A
Application Switch 2216E
EB1412029E5
Content Services Switch 11503
CSS11503-AC
Application Switch 2424E, 2424-SSL E
EB1412026E5, EB1412028E5
Content Services Switch 11503 DC
CSS11503-DC
Application Switch 2424E DC, 2424-SSL E DC
EB1412021E5, EB1412023E5
Content Services Switch 11506
CSS11506-2AC
Application Switch 3408E, 2424-SSL E
EB1412027E5, EB1412028E5,
Content Services Switch 11506 DC
CSS11506-2DC
Application Switch 3408E DC, 2424-SSL E DC
EB1412022E5, EB1412023E5
Note: Nortel equivalent product to CSS 11503/11506 is dependent on CSS hardware configuration
Nortel Differentiator:
Gigabit throughput performance
Intelligent Traffic Management and Symantec Intelligent Network Protection options
Integrated SSL VPN option (2424-SSL E)
Nortel Standard Offering:
Built-in performance acceleration (No Session Acceleration Module required)
1-4M concurrent session capacity
Massive SSL Acceleration/VPN scalability (2424-SSL E)
WAN Optimization
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
Nortel Application Accelerator 510
EB1639177E5
Application Velocity System 3110
AVS-3110-K9
Application Velocity System 3120
AVS-3120-K9
No equivalent model
N/A
Nortel Application Accelerator 610
EB1639178E5
Wide Area Application Services Model
WAAS-MBL-SRV-SW
WAAS-MBL-LIC25/100/500
Nortel Mobile Client Accelerator
EB1621001-3.3.0, EB1621003-3.3.0
EB1621002-3.3.0
Nortel Differentiator:
Ease of use
Application profiles to support common applications out of the box
Comprehensive reporting and performance statistics
Choice of client and clientless WAN optimization for the mobile worker
Nortel Standard Offering:
High SSL acceleration performance
Massive scalability with Single System Image
Enterprise model for continuos availability
Improves application performance 5 to 20 times
Nortel vs. Cisco Model Comparison Guide Security
SSL VPN
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
ASA 5520
ASA 5540
ASA 5550
ASA5520-SSL500-K9
ASA5540-SSL2500-K9
ASA5550-SSL5000-K9
VPN Gateway 3050
EB1639092E5
VPN Gateway 3070
EB1639124E5, EB1639121E5
Nortel Differentiator
Higher scale clustering and virtualization
Secure Portable Office
Disaster recovery licenses
Nortel Standard Offering
Integrated SSL/IPsec VPN support
Native clustering
SSL On Demand Protection or endpoint security
IPsec VPN
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
ASA 5505
ASA 5510
ASA 5520
ASA 5540
ASA 5550
ASA5505-SSL10-K9
ASA5510-SSL50-K9
ASA5520-SSL500-K9
ASA5540-SSL2500-K9
ASA5550-SSL5000-K9
VPN Router 1100
VPN Router 600
VPN Router 1750
VPN Router 2700
VPN Router 5000
DM1401096E5
DM1401066E5
DM1401149E5
DM1401104
DM1401167E5
Nortel Differentiator
Site to site VPN with integrated routing and WAN interfaces.
Nortel Standard Offering
Integrated site-to-site and end user IPsec VPN
Routing and WAN connectivity
VPN tunneling
Enterprise Firewall
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
PIX 525
PIX 535
PIX-525-FO-GE-BUN
PIX-535-FO-GE-BUN
ASA 5520
ASA 5540
ASA5520-BUN-K9
ASA5540-BUN-K9
Firewall Services Module (FWSM) for
Cisco Catalyst 6500 and 7600 Series
WS-6506-EXL-FWM-K9
Switched Firewall 5111
Switched Firewall 5114
Switched Firewall 5124
Switched Firewall 5111
Switched Firewall 5114
Switched Firewall 5124
Switched Firewall 6416
Switched Firewall 6426
Switched Firewall 6616
Switched Firewall 6626
EB1639127E5
EB1639128E5
EB1639129E5
EB1639127E5
EB1639128E5
EB1639129E5
EB1639173E5
EB1639067E5 + EB1639131E5 **
EB1639174E5
EB1639113E5 + EB1639131E5 **
Nortel Differentiator:
Nortel Standard Offering:
Higher number of concurrent connections
Higher throughput
Advanced clustering capablities with single system image
High performance through firewall acceleration*
High performance firewall with stateful inspection
* applies to Switched Firewall 6000 series only
** for the Switched Firewall 6426 and the 6626 you need to order both the accelerator and the director(per ordering codes above)
Network Access Control
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
NAC 3310
NAC3310-100-K9
NAC3310-250-K9
NAC3310-500-K9
NAC3350-1500-K9
NAC3350-2500-K9
Secure Network Access Switch 4050
EB1639170E5
NAC 3350
Nortel Differentiator:
Nortel Standard Offering:
Built in clustering capability
Framework-based appliance with Microsoft NAP integration
All-in-one NAC appliance
Intrusion Detection/Prevention
Cisco Product
Part Number
Nortel Product
Part Number
IPS 4260
IPS 4240
IPS 4215
MARS 50
IPS-4260-K9
IPS-4240-K9
IDS-4215-K9
CA-MARS-50-K9
Threat Protection System 2170 Intrusion Sensor
Threat Protection System 2150 Intrusion Sensor
EB1639156E5
EB1639155E5
Threat Protection System 2070 Defense Center
EB1639142E5
Nortel Differentiator:
Nortel Standard Offering:
More than twice the number of rules leveraging the Snort open source community
Defense center offers a unified management console
Ability to detect applications, operating systems and services
Fewer false positives through context awareness
Context-driven intrusion prevention leveraging endpoint and network intelligence
In the United States:
Nortel
35 Davis Drive
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 USA
In Canada:
Nortel
195 The West Mall
Toronto, Ontario M9C 5K1 Canada
In Caribbean and Latin America:
Nortel
1500 Concorde Terrace
Sunrise, FL 33323 USA
In Europe:
Nortel
Maidenhead Office Park, Westacott Way
Maidenhead Berkshire SL6 3QH UK
Phone: 00 800 8008 9009
In Asia:
Nortel
United Square
101 Thomson Road
Singapore 307591
Phone: (65) 6287 2877
Nortel is a recognized leader in delivering communications capabilities that make the
promise of Business Made Simple a reality for our customers. Our next-generation
technologies, for both service provider and enterprise networks, support multimedia
and business-critical applications. Nortels technologies are designed to help eliminate
todays barriers to efficiency, speed and performance by simplifying networks and connecting people to the information they need, when they need it. Nortel does business in
more than 150 countries around the world. For more information, visit Nortel on the
Web at www.nortel.com. For the latest Nortel news, visit www.nortel.com/news.
For more information, contact your Nortel representative, or call 1-800-4 NORTEL
or 1-800-466-7835 from anywhere in North America.
Nortel, the Nortel logo, Nortel Business Made Simple and the Globemark are trademarks of Nortel Networks. All other trademarks are the property of their owners.
Copyright 2008 Nortel Networks. All rights reserved. Information in this document
is subject to change without notice. Nortel assumes no responsibility for any errors
that may appear in this document.
NN123545-040108
BUSINESS MADE SIMPLE
