Brands we trade
Cisco Switches, Routers and UCS: What You Have
GTR Supply buys and sells Cisco networking and compute hardware by the lot: Catalyst and Nexus switching, ISR and ASR routing, ASA and Firepower security appliances, UCS servers and loose transceivers on their own. This page shows you how to read what is on the label and flags the one thing that catches sellers out more than anything else in this brand. Meraki hardware is cloud managed and licence bound, and without a transferable licence it is worth very little as networking equipment, which is something to know before a pallet ships rather than after. GTR Supply buys switches whose licences cannot transfer, so you do not need to resolve that position before selling. Every product ID and model name on this page is identification help for the reader, never a stock listing. Send the product IDs with quantities and we will tell you where we stand.
How to identify it
Work out what you have.
Where the identifying number physically sits, how to read each field in it, and what it tells a buyer. Useful whether or not you ever trade anything with us.
The product ID, the serial, and dating a unit from its label
Cisco identifies hardware by a product ID rather than a model name, and the product ID is what you should copy onto a list. It is printed on a label on the chassis, usually on the underside of a switch, on the rear of a router or on a pull tab, alongside the serial number and a version identifier.
The product ID is dense and every character earns its place. On a Catalyst access switch, the number gives the platform, the port count follows, then a letter for the power over Ethernet capability, and the final letter is the software tier the unit was sold with. On a Nexus switch, the platform number is followed by a code for the port speeds and mix and a two letter generation code.
The serial number is more useful than it looks. Cisco serials begin with three letters for the manufacturing site, then four digits that are the year and the week of manufacture. That lets you date a unit from the label without powering anything on, which is genuinely handy across a pallet.
The Meraki licence position, and why it matters before you ship
Meraki hardware is cloud managed by design. A Meraki switch, access point or security appliance needs an active licence claimed into a Meraki dashboard organisation before it will do its job, and without one it stops passing traffic once the grace period ends. This is not a fault or a firmware state that can be reset out of the device: it is how the product works.
Two consequences follow for anybody clearing a room. First, a licence is issued to the original purchaser and generally does not travel with the hardware to a new owner. Second, a device that is still claimed to the previous owner's dashboard organisation has to be released by that owner before anybody else can claim it, and once the original organisation is gone that becomes difficult.
So Meraki hardware without a transferable licence and without being released is worth very little as networking equipment.
GTR Supply buys switches whose licences cannot transfer. You do not need to resolve the licensing position before selling, and you should not delay a sale trying to.
Support status, software tiers and what stays with the box
Support and software entitlement change what a Cisco lot is worth to a buyer, and it is worth understanding the shape of it even though a trader cannot alter it. GTR Supply does not provide or transfer manufacturer licences, warranty, support or firmware entitlement of any kind.
Cisco's support contract is what gives an owner access to software images and to technical support. Second hand equipment does not carry a previous owner's contract, so a buyer who needs current software has to deal with that separately, which is why the support position affects what a lot is worth rather than whether it works.
On the current Catalyst switching line there are two different things that both get called a licence. The network tier the switch was sold with behaves like part of the box. The subscription layered on top of it is a term subscription bought by the owner and does not behave like part of the box at all.
When you sell, record what the unit reports rather than trying to establish what transfers. Say what it says and let the valuation be built from an accurate picture.
Airflow direction, stacking parts and loose optics
Three physical details decide whether a Cisco lot is usable, and all three go missing during decommissions.
Airflow direction. Data center switches ship with power supplies and fan modules in two variants, drawing air towards the ports or away from them, and every module in one chassis has to match. A switch with mismatched modules will complain, and a switch with the wrong direction for the rack it is going into is the wrong item however healthy it is. The direction is marked on the modules themselves, usually by colour and by a code in the part number.
Stacking hardware. Access switches sold as a stack need their stacking modules and stacking cables, and a stack shipped without them is a set of standalone switches. Those cables are short, specific and easy to leave behind in the rack.
Optics. Transceivers are bought on their own, so a box of loose modules is a lot in its own right rather than an accessory. List them by part number with counts, and say which switch family they were coded for.
What is in circulation
The families you will meet.
Placing your hardware in the right family does most of the work of describing it. Each note below says what separates that family from the one above it.
Catalyst access and aggregation switching
The campus and access line across several generations. The product ID gives the port count, the power over Ethernet capability and the software tier the unit was sold with.
Nexus data center switching
The data center line, including fabric extenders and modular chassis. Airflow direction on the power supplies and fan modules matters more here than anywhere else.
ISR and Catalyst 8000 routing
Branch and edge routers, with the Catalyst 8000 line succeeding the ISR 4000 series. Module cards and interface cards are separately valuable and often removed.
ASR aggregation routing
The larger aggregation and service provider routers. Heavy, chassis based in the bigger models, and shipped with route processors and line cards that are separate items.
ASA and Firepower security
The firewall and security appliance lines. Software entitlement is a larger part of what these are worth than it is on a switch, so record what the unit reports.
UCS B, C and X series
Cisco's server line. B series blades need a chassis and fabric interconnects, C series are standalone rack servers, and X series is the current modular platform.
Meraki cloud managed
Switches, access points, security appliances and cameras that need an active licence claimed into a dashboard organisation. Read the licence section above before shipping any.
Transceivers, modules and cables
Optics, network modules, stacking cables and direct attach cables. Bought on their own as a lot rather than only as accessories to a switch.
The same categories, every manufacturer
The families above are this manufacturer's own lines. The category pages carry the wider list, everything that circulates in each category whoever built it, with the part number prefix or physical marker that identifies each one. They are identification help rather than stock lists.
None of this is a stock list
Every model name and part number on this page is identification help for the reader. None of it is a stock listing, and nothing here says that GTR Supply holds a particular item. Send the part number and the quantity you need and we will tell you where we stand.
What it is worth
What decides the number.
Condition is only part of it. These are the things that genuinely move a valuation in this line, and most of them are still in your hands when you write the list.
- The exact product ID rather than the model name, since the port count, power over Ethernet capability and software tier are all inside it
- Port count and port speed, which decide the market for a switch more than the platform name does
- Airflow direction on the power supplies and fan modules, and whether every module in the chassis matches
- Whether stacking modules and stacking cables are with the switches they belong to
- Power supply and fan module count, since redundant bays frequently arrive half populated
- Generation code, because two switches on the same platform number can be several years apart
- Whether the unit is Meraki, since the licence position changes what the hardware is worth as networking equipment
- Loose optics listed by part number with counts, because transceivers are bought on their own
- Rack ears, cable management and the correct rails, which are separate parts and routinely left behind
Both sides of the desk
We supply it, and we buy it.
If you are buying
On the selling side GTR Supply supplies Cisco switching, routing and compute in volume, tested, port tested and reset to factory defaults so no previous configuration, credentials or logging remains. Send the product ID and the quantity you need and pricing normally comes back the same business day. For a rack refresh, send the whole bill of materials and it will be quoted as one package rather than line by line, including the items that are easy to leave off and then hold up an install: rails, cable management, stacking cables, direct attach cables and the exact optic types needed at both ends of every link. Say which switch platform any optics have to work in, since a module that is physically and optically correct can refuse to come up if the coding does not match. Nothing on this page is a stock list.
If you are clearing
On the buying side GTR Supply buys Cisco by the lot: switches, routers, firewalls, UCS nodes, line cards, network modules and loose transceivers on their own. Switches whose licences cannot transfer are bought, so do not delay a sale trying to resolve a licensing position, and that applies to Meraki hardware as well. Nothing needs testing or resetting first, and every unit is reset to factory defaults here, which clears stored configuration, logs and credentials. List by product ID with a count against each line, and photograph the label on the underside or the rear if typing is not realistic. Leave the rack ears, stacking cables, power cords and optics with the hardware rather than stripping them out, because they are separately wanted and they are the parts that go missing first.
Common questions
Cisco, answered.
Can I sell Meraki hardware if I do not have the licences?
Yes. GTR Supply buys switches whose licences cannot transfer, and that includes Meraki hardware, so you do not need to resolve the licensing position before selling and you should not delay a sale trying to.
It is worth understanding what you are holding, because it sets expectations. Meraki equipment is cloud managed and needs an active licence claimed into a dashboard organisation before it will do its job, and without one it stops passing traffic once the grace period ends. A licence is issued to the original purchaser and generally does not travel with the hardware. A device still claimed to a previous owner's organisation also has to be released by that owner before anyone else can claim it, and once that organisation is gone, that becomes difficult.
The practical result is that Meraki hardware without a transferable licence is worth considerably less as networking equipment than the same specification from a conventionally managed line. It is still bought, and a straight answer beats a delayed one.
Where do I find the product ID on a Cisco switch?
On a label on the chassis. On most access switches it is on the underside, on routers it is usually on the rear, and on some platforms it is printed on a pull tab at the front. The label carries the product ID, the serial number and a version identifier.
Copy the product ID rather than the model name, because it is far more specific. On a Catalyst access switch it gives the platform, the port count, the power over Ethernet capability and the software tier the unit was sold with, all in one string. On a Nexus switch it gives the platform, the port speed mix and a two letter generation code.
The serial is worth capturing too. Cisco serials begin with three letters for the manufacturing site and then four digits giving the year and week of manufacture, so you can date a unit without powering anything on.
A photograph of that label per model plus a count is enough for GTR Supply to work from.
Do you buy loose transceivers on their own?
Yes. Optics are bought as a lot in their own right rather than only as accessories to the switches they came out of, so a box of loose modules is worth listing properly rather than throwing in.
What to write down is the part number and the count for each type. The part number carries the speed, the reach and the connector, and those are what decide who wants them. Say as well which switch family they were coded for, because most transceivers carry a small chip identifying the vendor and many switches check it, so coding narrows the buyers for a given batch.
Direct attach copper and active optical cables count too, and so do the network modules and stacking cables that come out of the same racks.
If the modules are still in the switches, leaving them in is fine and often simpler. Just say they are in there, so the count on your list matches what actually arrives on the pallet.
Guides
Identifying it is half the job. These cover what a buyer actually does with your list once you send it, and what the words on a quote mean before you agree to any of them.
Grade A vs Grade B Hardware Explained
What a condition grade covers, what it cannot cover, and why the same letter means two different things at two suppliers.
What Is a Hardware Lot Manifest
The document that lets you price a mixed lot line by line instead of guessing at an average.
How to Sell a Decommissioned Hardware Lot
The method: what a buyer prices, how to write the list, and the habit that costs sellers the most.
Hardware we hold
Clearing it rather than buying
Trademarks
All product and company names are the trademarks of their respective owners. GTR Supply is an independent trader with no affiliation to, authorization from, or endorsement by any manufacturer named on this page.
Tell us the part number and the quantity.
Buying or selling. Send what you are looking for, or a photograph of what you are holding, and we will tell you where we stand. Pricing and valuations normally come back the same business day.
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