Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch vs Fortinet FortiGate 40F Next-Generation Firewall
What separates them
These two differ on 5 recorded specifications. The Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch is $54.00 dearer. They are different kinds of product — managed switch against network firewall appliance — so read the table as two spec sheets rather than a like-for-like.
Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch vs Fortinet FortiGate 40F Next-Generation Firewall
Cisco
Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch
$549.00
The 24T in the model number means twenty-four data ports and no PoE at all -- the PoE variants are the 24P and 24FP, and buying this one for access points is the common and expensive mistake.
Full details →Fortinet
Fortinet FortiGate 40F Next-Generation Firewall
$495.00
The 5 Gbps firewall figure and the 900 Mbps threat protection figure are the same appliance measured with inspection off and on -- the second number is what a site with security profiles enabled will actually see.
Full details →Who the Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch is for
Buy it if: Sites aggregating several access switches over fiber and wanting Cisco management without licensing.
Avoid it if: Anyone powering access points or cameras, who needs a 24P or 24FP instead.
Who the Fortinet FortiGate 40F Next-Generation Firewall is for
Buy it if: Branch offices needing SD-WAN, IPS and web filtering under central FortiManager control.
Avoid it if: Anyone budgeting for the appliance alone -- the subscription is the larger recurring cost.
Specifications, side by side
5 of 16 rows differ. Differences first.
| Specification | Cisco Catalyst 1200-24T-4G 24-Port Gigabit Managed Switch | Fortinet FortiGate 40F Next-Generation Firewall |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $549.00 | $495.00 |
| Annual energy use | About 166 kWh a year running continuously, roughly $28 at $0.17 per kWh | About 105 kWh a year running continuously, roughly $18 at $0.17 per kWh |
| Cooling | Fan cooled | Fanless |
| Port count | 24 x Gigabit Ethernet plus 4 x SFP | 5 x Gigabit Ethernet |
| Rated power | About 19 W typical | About 12 W typical |
| Warranty | Limited lifetime hardware warranty | 1-year limited hardware warranty |
| Concurrent sessions | not published | About 700,000 |
| Firewall throughput | not published | 5 Gbps with inspection disabled |
| Forwarding rate | 41.66 Mpps | not published |
| IPsec VPN throughput | not published | About 4.4 Gbps |
| Layer 3 features | Static routing and inter-VLAN routing | not published |
| Management | Web UI, CLI and Cisco Business Dashboard | not published |
| PoE budget | None -- see the 24P and 24FP variants | not published |
| Rack units | 1U | not published |
| Subscriptions | not published | FortiGuard bundle sold separately and renewed annually |
| Switching capacity | 56 Gbps | not published |
| Threat protection throughput | not published | About 900 Mbps with security profiles enabled |
Every row is a figure one or both products record. A blank is a figure the catalogue does not hold, not a zero.
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