Converged wired and wireless platform

The Cisco Catalyst 3650 is a stackable platform that converges wired and wireless services on a Cisco IOS XE Software based platform. The CAPWAP tunnels from the access points terminate at the 3650 switch, enabling users to configure and apply software features such as QoS, security, and FnF across wired ports and wireless SSIDs on the same switch at the same time. The converged wired and wireless platform supports the Cisco Unified Access solution. With “one policy, one management, one network,” the Cisco Catalyst 3650 and Cisco Unified Access help IT spend less time running the network and more time on business innovation.

Advanced security

The Cisco Catalyst 3650 is hardware capable of supporting Cisco TrustSec functionality. Cisco TrustSec uses the device and user credentials acquired during authentication for classifying the packets by security groups as they enter the network with scalability and simplified management. The classification is maintained through the network by the security group tag (SGT) and through integration with the Cisco Identity Services Engine. The Cisco Catalyst 3650 is also hardware-ready for link layer MACsec encryption, which provides network wide encryption to protect data traffic across the network.

Application Visibility and Control (AVC)

With the native support for FnF on all the ports, the Cisco Catalyst 3650 can monitor both east-west and north-south wired traffic at the same time. The Cisco Catalyst 3650 switch terminates the wireless CAPWAP tunnels from the access point, providing full visibility into the wireless traffic at the switch. Because the wireless traffic is now visible at the switch, it is possible to identify wireless traffic using FnF and prioritize the traffic using advanced QoS capabilities for an improved user experience and faster troubleshooting.

SmartOperations

The Cisco Catalyst 3650 supports Cisco Catalyst SmartOperations. SmartOperations features such as Auto Smartports, Auto QoS, and Smart Install reduce deployment time by automating most of the basic switch and port configurations.

Foundation for Cisco ONE Enterprise Networks Architecture

The Cisco Catalyst 3650 is built on the UADP ASIC, which provides wire-rate hardware performance with software programmability. The UADP ASIC features a programmable data plane, enabling deployment of SDN services and support of future software features over the product lifetime. The Cisco Catalyst 3650 supports the Cisco ONE Enterprise Networks Architecture for openness, programmability, and operational simplicity.