1.4 Selecting Cisco Remote Access Solutions
1.4.1 Routers
Cisco offers access servers, routers, and other equipment that allow connection to the WAN service. Figure highlights some of the products that are suited for the various company sites. (The Cisco 700 series, designed for telecommuters, is a multiprotocol ISDN router. The Cisco 700 router can connect to any network that supports the relevant standards for ISDN and IP/Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX) routing.

The Cisco 800 series ISDN access routers provide big-business networking benefits to small offices and corporate telecommuters. The Cisco 800 series offers secure, manageable, high-performance solutions for Internet and corporate LAN access.

The Cisco 1000 series router is intended for remote-office networking where Cisco IOS software, higher performance, and WAN options beyond ISDN are important.

The Cisco 1600 series routers are similar to the Cisco 1000 series routers, but they have a slot that accepts a WAN interface card. The Cisco 1720 access router is a desktop router for small- and medium-sized businesses, and for small branch offices that want to deploy Internet/intranet access or virtual private networks (VPNs). The Cisco 1720 access router has two modular WAN slots and an autosensing 10/100-Mbps Fast Ethernet LAN port to provide investment protection and flexibility for growth.

The Cisco 2500 series routers are designed for branch-office and remote-site environments. These routers are typically fixed configuration, with at least two of the following interfaces: Ethernet, Token Ring, synchronous serial, asynchronous serial, ISDN BRI, and a hub.

The Cisco 2600 series features single or dual fixed LAN interfaces. A network module slot and two WAN interface card slots are available for WAN connections.

The Cisco 3600 series multiservice access servers/routers also offer a modular solution for dialup and permanent connectivity over asynchronous, synchronous, and ISDN lines. Up to four network module slots are available for LAN and WAN requirements.

The Cisco 4500 and 4700 series access routers are high-performance modular central-site routers with support for a wide range of LAN and WAN technologies. The Cisco 4500 and 4700 are intended for large regional offices that do not require the density of the Cisco 7200 series. Their modular design allows easy reconfiguration as needs change.

The AS5000 series is the Cisco line of universal integrated access servers. The AS5000 integrates the functions of standalone CSUs, channel banks, modems, communication servers, switches, and routers in a single chassis. The AS5000 series contains synchronous serial, digital ISDN, and asynchronous modem access server functionality, which are ideal for mixed-media requirements.

The Cisco 7200 routers are also very high-performance, modular central-site routers that support a variety of LAN and WAN technologies. The Cisco 7200 is designed for large regional offices that require high-density solutions. Table highlights some of the features and WAN options for each series of routers.