Cisco has long established itself as a manufacturer of reliable and high-quality network equipment. Many organizations and corporations work on the basis of the devices of this manufacturer, and it is important for them to provide a connection between branches or within an enterprise. One of them, the Cisco 2921 router, will be discussed in the article.
Device description
Appearance of Cisco 2921 is laconic and is not replete with various design refinements and decorative elements. The front panel is a grill with a minimum number of connectors and buttons.
Closer to the left side there is a small block with a power indicator. Behind it is an on / off button. Well, the third element is the connector for AC power.
On the right side is the plug of the RPS adapter. And above it are a number of indicators that are carefully signed by the developers:
- POE Lights up green - IP phone power is on, orange - off.
- PS. The system works with a green indicator light, no - with an orange.
- PRS. Signals that the device is operating from an external power supply.
- Sys. This indicator has several provisions. Lights up green - normal operation of the equipment. The same color flashes - the system is in a boot state. Orange - an error has occurred. If it does not light at all, then the power is either turned off, or there is a fatal error.
- ACT. A blinking light indicates that the Cisco 2921 is currently transmitting data between ports or devices.
The rear panel is more saturated and has many connectors and indicators for them. At the very top left are 4 EHWIC ports. Next comes a serial USB port. Then one above the other - AUX and RJ-45. Moving to the right, you can find one SFP port and two gigabit Ethernet, plus one more side.
There are also two standard USBs.
The lower block contains contacts for grounding, ports for service and Flash modules.
Almost every connector on the rear panel of the Cisco 2921 has its own indicator, the signals of which are recognized by analogy with the front panel: green - everything is in order, orange - something is wrong. If it does not burn at all, it means it is turned off.
Features of Cisco 2921
The characteristics of the device make it clear that this instance is not for domestic use, but rather for enterprises and large networks. It is worth considering the technical description of Cisco 2921 in more detail.
There are two ways to connect to the provider - through the Ethernet port or using a USB and 3G modem.
There are no wireless technologies in the device. Of the supported protocols on board are: PPTP, L2TP, IPsec, PPPoE. It is possible to use VPN tunnels to create reliable and secure connections.
For security, there is a built-in brandmauer. The following types of encryption can be supported in hardware: DES, 3DES, AES 128, AES 192, AES 256.
At the same time, the router can support up to 100 sessions. The memory is represented by two types: 512 MB DRAM and 256 MB Flash. Both types can be expanded.
The device itself is quite weighty and amounts to 13 kg of "live" weight. And the dimensions are not the smallest - almost 50 to 50 cm. The device is only 89 mm high.
What you need to know before installing the router?
During installation, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the connectors and prevent their contamination and dust. The stubs installed on the router are there for a reason. It is worth remembering that under them there can be a dangerous voltage and emitter of electromagnetic interference.
This type of router is subject to the mandatory grounding procedure. Therefore, the electrical component must be connected by a professional electrician.
The device must be located away from water sources. The room should be dry and well ventilated.
Configure Cisco 2921
For connection and initial configuration of the router there is a special USB console port or RJ-45. If the procedure is performed via USB, you will first have to install the driver for the Cisco USB.
To access the settings in the Windows operating system, you will need HyperTerminal. Its options should be set as follows:
- 9600 baud;
- 8 data bits;
- no parity bit;
- 1 stop bit;
- without flow control.
Using the command line interface, you can access the primary settings of the router.
The first thing that meets the user will be an invitation to enter the initial configuration window. This is not required, since the task is to specify all the data manually. Therefore, you need to dial No. The system will ask you to confirm the interruption of the auto installation.
After initialization, the device will be prompted to enter a command. For privileged mode, type Enable.
Management and Configuration Commands
The following is a list of commands and their purpose for performing basic initial configuration:
- configure terminal - transition to global configuration settings mode;
- hostname - name, reassigns the host name to the specified;
- enable password - password, allows you to set a password for access to various privilege levels;
- enable secret - password, additional protection for the previous command;
- exec-timeout - minutes (seconds), sets the time during which the system will wait for the user to enter commands;
- show running-config - show the current configuration file;
- show ip interface brief - this command displays the status of IP interfaces;
- interface {fastethernet | gigabitethernet} - 0 / port, indicates the Ethernet interface and activates the configuration mode;
- description - a string that allows you to describe the interface in more detail. Optional parameter;
- ip address - address mask, setting the primary IP address for the interface;
- no shutdown - enable the interface.
The remaining commands for finer and more comprehensive device settings can be found in the official manual for the device.
Device Reviews
Many users of the Cisco 2921 celebrate its long and stable operation as part of large corporate networks. This can be explained by the accumulated experience of Cisco, which has been developing and implementing such devices for more than 25 years.
A special point is the modularity of this model and the entire 2900 series. This allows you to significantly expand the functionality of the device, use new modules, for example, the Cisco 2921 SEC K9 standard or other similar ones. Plus, you can upgrade the device without changing it entirely. This will keep the device up to date for a long time.
In general, reviews about the device are positive. It has its own software for faster and easier integration. It affects a good approach to production and the constant support of their equipment by the manufacturer.