The Cisco 250 Series is the next generation of affordable smart switches that combine powerful network performance and reliability with the essential network management features you need for a solid business network. These expandable Fast Ethernet or Gigabit Ethernet switches provide basic management, security, and quality-of-service (QoS) features beyond those of an unmanaged or consumer-grade switch, at a lower cost than managed switches. And with an easy-to-use web user interface, Auto Smartports, and flexible Power over Ethernet (PoE) Plus capability, you can deploy and configure a complete business network in minutes.

Business Applications

Whether you need basic high-speed connectivity for your computers and servers or a comprehensive voice, data, and wireless technology solution, Cisco 250 Series switches can meet your business needs. Possible deployment scenarios include:

• High-speed desktop connectivity: Cisco 250 Series switches can quickly and securely connect employees working in small offices with one another and with all of the printers, servers, and other devices they use. High performance and reliable connectivity help speed up file transfers and data processing, improve network uptime, and keep your employees productive.
• Flexible wireless connectivity: Cisco 250 Series switches work with Cisco and third-party wireless solutions to extend the reach of your network. With security features, Power over Ethernet (PoE), VLAN, and QoS, these switches are the perfect foundation to add business-grade wireless to a network.

The capability of up to 30W of power per port provided through the Ethernet cable means you can easily deploy innovative 802.11ac wireless technology to maximize workforce productivity.

• Unified communications: The Cisco 250 Series provides QoS features to enable you to prioritize delay-sensitive traffic in your network and let you converge all of your communications solutions such as IP telephony and video surveillance onto a single Ethernet network. Cisco offers a complete portfolio of IP telephony and other unified communications products designed for small businesses, and Cisco 250 Series switches have been rigorously tested to help ensure easy integration and full compatibility with these and other vendor products.

Features and Benefits

Cisco 250 Series Smart Switches provide all of the features you need to create a basic business-class network at an affordable price. These features include:

• Easy configuration and management: Cisco 250 Series switches are designed to be easy to deploy and use by small businesses or the partners that serve them:
• Simple and advanced-mode graphic user interfaces reduce the time required to deploy, troubleshoot, and manage the network. Configuration wizards simplify the most common configuration tasks and provide the ultimate tool for anyone to set up and manage the network.
• The USB port on the front panel of the switch enables easy image and configuration transfer for faster deployment or upgrade.
• Cisco Smartports technology provides more advanced capabilities and hands-on control by automatically configuring ports with specific levels of security, QoS, and availability according to the type of connected device, based on Cisco best practices and pretested configurations. The Auto Smartports feature automatically applies the intelligence delivered through the Smartports roles to the port based on the device types discovered over Cisco Discovery Protocol or LLDP-MED. This capability facilitates zero-touch deployments.
• Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP) provides a simple configuration to take full advantage of redundant paths in the network and maximize network throughput.
• The Cisco FindIT Network Discovery Utility works through a simple toolbar on the user’s web browser to discover Cisco devices on the network and display basic device information, inventory, and new firmware updates to aid in the configuration and speed the deployment of Cisco Small Business products.