As the title suggests I am looking for a 10G switch for lab upgrade. I am looking for fiber options so sfp+ and higher cages all around. Apart from that I need atleast 24 ports, and low noise. I am a student in a tiny apartment and have to sleep beside my lab. Low power consumption is a plus. I prefer cli and know cisco’s environment so Aristas Brocades Junipers etc are all welcome. I am on a budget so something under 800$ US would be ideal
The only thing that fits your criteria that immediately comes to mind is mikrotik’s switch lineup - this one specifically
Problem you’re going to have with the cisco/arista/etc is noise imo
2 Likes
Any models you know of which allow for easy fan replacements to noctua? Those enterprise options offer many more L3+ features which the microtik wont and I would like to test some of it out
I’d check idle power of any switch for home lab stuff like Cisco idles very high last time I looked
1 Like
I mean, when you want to keep your dinner or coffee warm, go Cisco.
For reasonable power draw, go elsewhere.
2 Likes
L3 features also need more processor power. You can’t get 10G, L3, 24 ports and ~noiseless operation. Even the Mikrotik switch pulls like 60W and 1U 40mm Noctua fans would still require high rpm
2 Likes
Well, do you want a switch or a router?
For under 800 USD, maybe get a second-hand Arista 7000-series, a second-hand watercooling system (because the entry-level ones start at 140W power draw) and a second-hand 2U/3U shallow rackmount server case to bung it all in. I can’t see any possibility of anything going wrong with that /s 
I have a few passive-cooled 10G Mikrotiks that barely get warm, but I don’t use them for routing (apparently the CPU cannot keep up on some models).
1 Like
- 2x 40 Gbps QSFP+ ports and 24x 10 Gbps SFP+
- $500
- 4x 100 Gbps QSFP
- 16x 25Gbps w/ breakout cables
- 25w before connecting SFP’s, so if you use DAC’s it wont go up much past that.
- $800
The cheapest 10G switch that I found on ebay was a Cisco UCS-6296 Fabric Interconnect and it has 96 SFP+ ports and for me is under $150 including shipping the noise isn’t too bad but you might find otherwise (I also am a student and had it in my dorm room) Link to the 10G switch I purchased (from same seller)
The fans are hotswap not sure about ease of switching them to Noctua ones though but could take photos on the modules if your interested
