Introduction to Cisco Routers

A router is a network communication device that is used to connect the LAN with WAN, LAN with LAN and WAN with WAN. Every router contains a specialized operating system, RAM, NVRAM and Flash memory. Routers provide connectivity between the corporate networks, between the networks are internet and in the ISPs. There are different vendors that manufacture the routers such as Cisco, Juniper, Foundry, Extreme Networks, Nortel, D-Link and LinkSys etc. Cisco is the largest manufacturer of the routers.

Router works at the network layer of the OSI model. Every router maintains a routing table that contains the IP addresses of the source and destination nodes in a network. The Cisco routers are renowned for their support for the scalable networks, high performance, VPN support, fast Ethernet support, call manager, IP sec and support for the integrated services such as voice, video, data, wireless and security.
In this article, we will discuss the different types of the Cisco routers and their features. The most common series of the Cisco routers include 800, 1800, 2600, 3600, 7200 and 7600 series.


800 Series

The award winning Cisco 800 Series router provides the data communication, security and wireless connectivity. The key features include built-in security, 10 VPN tunnels, support for the wireless LAN standards 802.11b and 802.11g, four 10/100 switch ports, advanced quality of server, fixed platform and DSL, Ethernet and fast Ethernet support. Cisco 800 Series routers also include the wireless broadband routers that provide the high quality support for the voice, data and video applications. The 800 series include 815, 851, 857, 871, 876, 877 and 878 routers.

1800 Series

The award winning Cisco 1800 series routers are ideal for the small to medium sized businesses and medium sized organizations. 1800 series routers provide the multiple missions critical business services, which includes data communication, security, wireless connectivity and broadband internet access. The key features include multiple WAN interface options, up to 800 VPN tunnels, four 10/100 mbps built in switch ports, support for wireless LAN, support for voice messaging, voice ports for PSTN and PBX and modular platform with multiple interface options. The 1800 series include 1801, 1802, 1803, 1811, 1812, 1841 and 1861 routers.

2600 Series

Cisco 2600 series is an award winning is a series of award winning multiple service access routers. The key features include built-in security, multiple LAN/WAN configurations options, Ethernet, faster Ethernet, ring network port, serial ports and broadband internet access. 2600 Series routers are ideal for the medium to large size businesses. The 2600 series include 2612, 2610, 2620, 2611, 2621, 2650 and 2651 routers.

2800 Series

The 2800 series is an award winning series of the Cisco routers and it provides services for the data, voice, video, security and wireless businesses around the world. It has been designed for providing the high speed concurrent services that can accommodate T1/E1 connections. 2800 series routers are well renowned for their high performance, availability and reliability for the mission critical businesses around the world. It supports upto 1500 VPN tunnels, up to two built in 10/100/1000 mbps routed ports, port for fast Ethernet, built in redundant power supply connector, 64 10/100 mbps switch ports and a modular platform with a wide range of interface options. The 2800 series include 2801, 2811, 2821 and 2851 routers.

3800 Series

The 3800 series is an award winning series of integrated service routers that are used for the complex network infrastructures and mission critical business applications. They provide the integrated services for the branch office and provide a concurrent T3/E3 wire speed delivery of the data, voice, video and wireless. They provide the high performance, reliability, availability and security to business applications in a complex IT infrastructure. 3800 series support wireless LAN standards of 802.11 a/b/g, 2500 VPN tunnels, two 10/100/1000 built in routed ports, up to 112, 10/100 mbps switch ports, built in security, Cisco call manager express/Call processing support and modular platform for the multiple integrated services. The 3800 series include 3825 and 3845 routers.

7200 Series

7200 series routers are the industry’s most widely deployed routers for the enterprise businesses and the ISPs around the world. The key features include the wide range of connectivity options, award winning quality of service, IP security, VPN tunnels up to 5000, video/voice/data integration, support for fast Ethernet, gigabyte Ethernet and packet over sonnet, support for multiprotocol label switching, bandwidth management, increased VPN performance, scalability and flexibility. The 7200 series include the 7201, 7204 and 7206 series routers.

7600 Series

The Cisco’s 7600 series routers offer high density Ethernet switching, high performance with up to 720 GB in a single chassis, integrated Video Call Admission Control, integrated Session border control, support for wireless mesh networking, intelligent service gateway, enterprise WAN aggregation and career-class IP/MPLS routing. It has been benefiting the enterprise organizations and ISPs to provide both consumer and business services over a converged Ethernet network. The 7600 series include the 7603, 7604, 7606, 7609 and 7613 routers.
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