Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO (http://quotes.nasdaq.com/asp/SummaryQuote.asp?symbol=CSCO&selected=CSCO)), one of the
most successful companies of the Internet era, originally manufactured just enterprise routing
equipment. These days, Cisco sells a variety of devices for both enterprises and telecommunications carriers. These include, but
are not limited to:
- Ethernet switches
- Branch office routers and CPE (Customer Premises Equipment)
- IP Telephony products such as IP PBXes (CallManager), VoIP gateways and IP phones
- Network security devices such as Firewalls and
VPN concentrators
- Metro optical switching platforms
- Large telco-class core and edge routers / MPLS switches
- Carrier and enterprise ATM switches
- Cable Modem Termination Systems (CMTSes)
- DSL subscriber aggregation / concentration equipment
- Remote access and universal gateways
- Storage Area Network (SAN) switches and appliances
- Network management software and appliances
Cisco calls itself "The Worldwide Leader in Networking for the Internet" [1] (http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/company_overview.html).
In 2003, Cisco acquired Linksys, a popular
manufacturer of computer networking hardware and positioned the Linksys brand it as a network-hardware
brand for the home and the end user installed SOHO network market. The Cisco brand is positioned to service the managed remote access,
teleworker access, security services, storage area networking, desktop and data center routing and switching, the commercial
market IP communication needs as well as the enterprise and service provider infrastructure and remote access market.
Using acquisitions, internal development and partnering with other companies Cisco has made inroads in the IP telephony part
of the voice market with the Cisco IP phones, call managers and telephony PSTN gateways. Cisco earlier made inroads in the ATM
market through its 1996 acquisition of StrataCom Inc.
The married couple Leonard Bosack and Sandra Lerner, who worked in computer
operations staff at Stanford University, founded Cisco
Systems in 1984. Bosack adapted multiple protocol router software originally written by William Yeager, another staff employee who had begun the work years before Bosack arrived from the University of Pennsylvania, where Bosack had received
his Bachelor's degree.
While Cisco was not the first company to develop and sell a router -- a device that
forwards computer traffic from one network to another -- it did create the first commercially successful multi-protocol router.
This is a device that allows previously incompatible computers to communicate, even though they use different network
protocols.
In 1990 Bosack and Lerner walked away with $170 million after the firm's venture
capitalists brought in professional managers [2] (http://www.forbes.com/forbes/1997/0825/6004058a.html). Bosack and Lerner later divorced.
Cisco has set up "Cisco Networking Academies" in 128 countries aimed at teaching students to design and maintain computer
networks.
Cisco provides certifications to professionals in the networking field. These include:
- CCIE (Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert)
- CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate)
- CCDA (Cisco Certified Design Associate)
- CCNP (Cisco Certified Network Professional)
- CCDP (Cisco Certified Design
Professional)
- CCIP (Cisco Certified Internetwork
Professional)
- CCSP (Cisco Certified Security
Professional)
The company has its corporate headquarters in San Jose,
California.
John Chambers is the current President and CEO.
History of the Cisco name
The name "Cisco" is not an acronym, but an abbreviation of San Francisco. In the early days, when the founders proposed names, they repeatedly
came up with names already reserved or in use. Eventually someone suggested "cisco", with a lowercase "c". (Another company named
"CISCO" already existed at that time.) The name ciscoSystems (with the lowercase "c") continued in use within the engineering
community at the company long after the official company name was changed to Cisco Systems, Inc. You can still see the name
ciscoSystems occasionally in bug reports and IOS messages.
The company's logo reflects its San Francisco name heritage: it represents a stylized Golden Gate Bridge.
A partial list of products:
- Cisco CallManager
- Wireless IP Phone 7920
- IP Phones 7960 and 7940
- Catalyst switch series:
29xx, 35xx, 37xx, 40xx, 45xx, 5xxx, 6xxx
- Routers: 700, 800, 1600, 1700, 1800, 2500, 2600, 3600, 3700, 3800, 4500, 4700,
7200, 7500, 7600, 12000, CRS-1 etc.
- Content
Loadbalancers (acquired from Arrowpoint)
- Content Engine
- CiscoWorks Network Management software
- Wireless
Access Points: 350, 1100, 1200, 1300
- Wireless LAN Solution Engine
- VPN Concentrator
- PIX Firewall
- AS5xxx Remote Access dial in servers
- AS5xxx series VoIP gateways
Diversity
Cisco received a 100% rating on the Corporate Equality Index released by the Human Rights Campaign starting in 2004, the third year of the
report. In addition, the company was named one of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers in 2004 by Working Mothers
magazine.
External links
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