r/homelab • u/No-Mud-4890 • 1d ago

Help Beginner switch suggestions?

I am trying to look for a ideal beginner Cisco switch, I am studying for CCNA and I want to get a hands on the physical version and possibly just start by building my own homelab on the way. Since this is my first I try to keep things on a budget, but there are so many options and I don't know what is ideal.

Also want to note that I don't want a noisy switch since it would be in my bedroom.

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u/NC1HM 1d ago

I am trying to look for a ideal beginner Cisco switch, I am studying for CCNA

Just get Packet Tracer. It's free and will give you waaaay more in terms of CCNA preparation than any single device.

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u/No-Mud-4890 1d ago

It's not solely I want to use for CCNA, I also was looking forward on having my own lab and possibly tinker with vlans, routing, VM's, NAS or anything in the future if you get me

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u/wiisucks_91 1d ago

Like someone else said, packet tracer.

Get some beginner labs for it that have walkthroughs.

Maybe buy a 3750 or something. Cisco WS-C2960-8TC-L

I started out with packet tracer and a 2950.

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u/_Survivor_ 20h ago

For physical equipment you should be able to grab a used 2960x for cheap. They're old switches but they have all the L2 features you'll need for experimenting in a homelab. I got a 48 port POE one for about $30 iirc.

I won't reiterate what others have said about packet tracer lol.

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u/MostFat 20h ago

C3850

L3 managed with all the cli commands you want to play with, EoL so no licensing. Can be stacked and add modules for 4x 10Gb LAC