Guide to Inline Power, PoE and PoE+ Standards | Curvature
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Power over Ethernet

Your Guide to Inline Power, PoE and PoE+

Before the IEEE began work on the 802.3af standard, Cisco and a few other companies released their own proprietary inline power systems which had 7W power per port. But once the IEEE approved the 802.3af standard at 15.4W, Cisco began to release POE products that supported both the Cisco pre-standard power systems AND the new 802.3af standard. Over time, the pre-standard inline power devices began to be phased out.

The 802.3af standard (PoE) was a major improvement over early inline power solutions, with features like GigE compatibility and more power per port (15.4W, vs. 7W). Recently, the 802.3af standard was extended to provide up to 30W per port of power to expand the usefulness of PoE to other devices besides the usual phone and wireless AP uses that the 802.3af standard sees. Recently Cisco released its first few devices for the new, 30W PoE+ standard.

 

Guide to Power Standards

Cisco Inline

  • Cisco-proprietary
  • 10/100 only
  • 7W/port
  • Incompatible with all non-Cisco devices that accept power over Ethernet

802.3af PoE

  • IEEE standard
  • 15.4W/port
  • Compatible with gigabit Ethernet
  • PoE devices are not compatible with Cisco inline power – the power negotiation process is completely different
  • Cisco PoE switches are backwards compatible with Cisco’s Inline Power
  • Enough power for most IP phones and wireless access points from all manufacturers

802.3at PoE+

  • Backwards compatible with 802.3af; PoE+ just adds additional class of power to the 802.3af standard
  • 30W/port
  • Relatively new; currently only Cisco is shipping PoE+ phones

 

Power Sources: PoE Switches
Part ID Description Inline 802.3af PoE 802.3at PoE+
WS-C3524-PWR-XL-EN Catalyst 3500 24 Port 10/100 inline power switch with 2 GBIC slots, Enterprise Edition +
WS-C3550-24PWR-SMI Catalyst 3550 24-10/100 inline power + 2 GBIC ports: SMI +
WS-C3560-24PS-S Catalyst 3560 24 10/100 PoE + 2 SFP + IPB Image + +
WS-C3560G-24PS-S Catalyst 3560 24 10/100/1000T PoE + 4 SFP + IPB Image + +
WS-C3560E-24PD-S Catalyst 3560E 24 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),750W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3560X-24P-S Catalyst 3560X 24 Port PoE IP Base + + +
WS-C3560-48PS-S Catalyst 3560 48 10/100 PoE + 4 SFP IPB Image + +
WS-C3560G-48PS-S Catalyst 3560 48 10/100/1000T PoE + 4 SFP + IPB Image + +
WS-C3560E-48PD-S Catalyst 3560E 48 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),750W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3560E-48PD-SF Catalyst 3560E 48 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),1150W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3560X-48P-S Catalyst 3560X 48 Port PoE IP Base + + +
WS-C3560X-48PF-S Cisco Catalyst 3560X-48PF-S – switch – managed – 48 ports + + +
WS-C3750-24PS-S Catalyst 3750 24 10/100 PoE + 2 SFP + IPB Image + +
WS-C3750G-24PS-S Catalyst 3750 24 10/100/1000T PoE + 4 SFP + IPB Image + +
WS-C3750E-24PD-S Catalyst 3750E 24 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),750W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3750X-24P-S Catalyst 3750X 24 Port PoE IP Base + + +
WS-C3750E-24PD-S Catalyst 3750E 24 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),750W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3750E-48PD-SF Catalyst 3750E 48 10/100/1000 PoE+2*10GE(X2),1150W,IPB s/w + +
WS-C3750X-48P-S Catalyst 3750X 48 Port PoE IP Base + + +
WS-C3750X-48PF-S Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 1100W AC power supply + + +
WS-C2960-24PC-L Catalyst 2960 24 10/100 PoE+ 2 T/SFP LAN Base Image + +
WS-C2960-48PST-L Catalyst 2960 48 10/100 PoE+ 2 1000BT +2 SFP LAN Base Image + +
WS-C2960S-24PS-L Catalyst 2960S 24 GigE PoE+ 370W, 4 x SFP LAN Base + + +
WS-C2960S-24PD-L Catalyst 2960S 24 GigE PoE+ 370W, 2 x 10G SFP+ LAN Base + + +
WS-C2960S-48LPS-L Catalyst 2960S 48 GigE PoE+ 370W, 4 x SFP LAN Base + + +
WS-C2960S-48LPD-L Catalyst 2960S 48 GigE PoE+ 370W, 2 x 10G SFP+ LAN Base + + +
WS-C2960S-48FPS-L Catalyst 2960S 48 GigE PoE+ 740W, 4 x SFP LAN Base + + +
WS-C2960S-48FPD-L Catalyst 2960S 48 GigE PoE+ 740W, 2 x 10G SFP+ LAN Base + + +

To request a quote for any of these items, click here. 

 

Power Sources: PoE Modules – Catalyst 4500
Part ID Description Inline 802.3af PoE 802.3at PoE+
WS-X4148-RJ45V Catalyst 4000 inline power 10/100, 48-ports (RJ45) +
WS-X4248-RJ45V Catalyst 4500 PoE 802.3af 10/100, 48-Ports (RJ45) + +
WS-X4548-GB-RJ45V Catalyst 4500 PoE 802.3af 10/100/1000, 48-Ports (RJ45) + +
WS-X4548-RJ45V+ 4500 PoE+ Ready 10/100/1000, 48-Port (RJ45) + + +
WS-X4648-RJ45V-E Catalyst 4500 E-Series 48-Port PoE 802.3af 10/100/1000(RJ45) + +
WS-X4648-RJ45V+E Catalyst 4500 E-Series 48-Port Premium PoE 10/100/1000 + + +

To request a quote for any of these items, click here. 

 

Power Sources: PoE Modules – Catalyst 6500
Part ID Description Inline 802.3af PoE 802.3at PoE+
WS-X6348-RJ45V Catalyst 6000 48-port 10/100, ENH QOS, inline power, RJ-45 +
WS-X6148-RJ45V Catalyst 6500 48-port 10/100 inline power, RJ-45 +
WS-X6148-45AF Catalyst 6500 PoE 802.3af 10/100, 48-port (RJ45) line card + +
WS-X6148A-45AF Catalyst 6500 48-port PoE 802.3af 10/100,card w/TDR + +
WS-X6148V-GE-TX Catalyst 6500 48-port 10/100/1000 inline power module, RJ-45 +
WS-X6148A-45AF Cat6500 48-Port PoE 802.3af & ePoE 10/100/1000 line card + +
WS-X6148A-GE-45AF Cat6500 48-Port PoE 802.3af & ePoE 10/100/1000 with Jumbo Frame + +
WS-X6548V-GE-TX Catalyst 6500 48-port fabric-enabled inline power 10/100/1000 module +
WS-X6548-GE-45AF Cat6500 48-port PoE 802.3af & ePoE 10/100/1000 CEF256 card + +

To request a quote for any of these items, click here. 

 

Sample Devices
Part ID Description Inline 802.3af PoE 802.3at PoE+
CP-7940G Cisco IP Phone 7940G, Global +
CP-7960G Cisco IP Phone 7960G, Global +
CP-7941G Cisco IP Phone 7941 + +
CP-7961G Cisco IP Phone 7961 + +
CP-7945G Cisco Unified IP Phone 7945, Gig Ethernet, Color +
CP-7965G Cisco Unified IP Phone 7965, Gig Ethernet, Color +
AIR-AP1231G-A-K9 802.11a/g Non-modular IOS AP; RP-TNC; FCC Cnfg +
AIR-AP1242AG-A-K9 802.11a/g Non-modular IOS AP; RP-TNC; FCC Cnfg +
AIR-AP1252AG-A-K9 802.11a/g/n-d2.0 2.4/5-GHz Mod Auto AP; 6 RP-TNC; FCC +
WS-C2960PD-8TT-L Catalyst 2960 Powered Device 8 10/100 + 1 1000BT LAN Base +

For additional products that are PoE, PoE+ and Inline Power related, please contact your Curvature representative or click here.

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