Helpful support links - Videos, Hardware Installation Guides

[CoreyP319]

Hello!

This sticky-post will serve as a sign-post for incoming community members. Below you will find links to pages that you may find helpful. 

Catalyst 1200 & 1300

• Hardware Installation Guide - Catalyst 1300
• Hardware Installation Guide - Catalyst 1200

Support Pages

• Catalyst 1300 Support Page
• Catalyst 1200 Support Page

These guides were built in-house by our support team so please feel free to share any feedback.

General Support Links

• Virtual Assistant  - Discover support content and options for your gear
• Support page index - Contains a directory of existing product support pages, support pages contain links to documents for that specific product.
• Device emulator index - Contains a directory of existing device emulators by device and firmware
• Cisco Tech Talks - Homepage of our Tech Talks video channel, explore hundreds of support videos by device or topic
• Stacking Guidelines for Cisco Business Switches - Document outlining the all you need to know about stacking CBS350 switches - check out the stacking mode picker for immediate guidance on which mode to choose

Let us know if there are any topics you'd like us to produce guides for and we'll get it done. If it already exists, we'll link you there. 

[JyrkiHalonen]

Thanks for the list and links

[pinneyj]

Is there an updated stacking guide for the 1200/1300 series? The online manual doesn't do a great job at explaining much other than the CLI - nothing about topologies or if I can link aggregate between them, etc. Also would be helpful to define what Active/Standby means in regard to stacking these switches.

[CoreyP319]

Hi pinneyj,

You are correct; there isn't a single, comprehensive stacking guide for the Catalyst 1200/1300 series that covers advanced topics in detail.

Note: The Catalyst 1200 is not stacking capable.

Our team creates videos that are excellent resources that provide a much clearer visual walkthrough:

- Stacking via GUI: [Watch here]
- Stacking via CLI: [Watch here]

To answer your specific questions:

- Stacking Topologies & Link Aggregation: You've raised an excellent point about the documentation gaps for these advanced topics. I will pass your feedback along to our content team to see if we can get the content on the slate to be produced.

- Active vs. Standby Roles: You asked for a definition, and it's pretty straightforward:

- Active: This is the stack master. It's the switch that controls and manages the entire stack.
- Standby: This is the backup master. It's ready to take over instantly if the Active switch fails, ensuring the stack stays online.

Hope this helps clarify things, and thank you for helping us identify areas where we can do better.

[Chloeharper]

Thanks for sharing these updated Catalyst 1200 & 1300 support links! Having all the hardware guides and support pages in one place really helps newcomers and seasoned pros alike. The virtual assistant and tech talks are great resources too.