Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series Replacement: What Cisco Recommends
Cisco support for the Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series has ended for some part numbers (last group runs to Oct 2022). Unsupported units need a plan. Cisco's own end-of-life bulletin names the successor below, quoted from the source, with the successor's live support status where EOSL.ai tracks it.
The Cisco-named replacement
named in the Cisco EOL bulletin ↗ as the migration path.
Cisco Catalyst 4948E / 4948E-F is not yet tracked on EOSL.ai — no vendor end-of-life notice has been captured for it, which is typical of current products.
Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series lifecycle dates
| SKU group | End of sale | EOSL / last support | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Switch hardware | Aug 2013 | Jul 2018 | bulletin ↗ |
| Catalyst 4948E | Oct 2017 | Oct 2022 | bulletin ↗ |
| Catalyst 4948-10GE / 4928-10GE / ME 4924-10GE | Feb 2013 | Feb 2018 | bulletin ↗ |
Per-part-number replacement mapping (6)
As listed in the Cisco bulletin's migration table for each part number.
| End-of-life part | Description | Bulletin-listed replacement |
|---|---|---|
| WS-C4948 | WS-C4948E / WS-C4948E-F | |
| WS-C4948-BDL | Green Bundle 10x WS-C4948 | WS-C4948E-F-BDL |
| WS-C4948-E | Catalyst 4948, ES s/w, 48-Port 10/100/1000+4 SFP, 1 AC p/s | WS-C4948E-F-E |
| WS-C4948-S | Catalyst 4948, IPB s/w, 48-Port 10/100/1000+4 SFP, 1 AC p/s | WS-C4948E-S |
| ME-4924-10GE | ME4924 Switch - 24x 1GE SFP + 4x SFP or 2x 10GE X2, No PS | WS-C4500X-F-32SFP |
| WS-C4928-10GE | Catalyst 4928, no p/s, 28x 1GBase-X SFP, 2x 10GBase-X X2 | WS-C4500X-F-32SFP |
Migration questions
What is the replacement for the Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series?
Cisco's end-of-life bulletin names Cisco Catalyst 4948E / 4948E-F as the recommended migration path for the Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series. The exact wording and any per-part-number mapping are in the linked bulletin.
Is the Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series end of life?
Cisco support for the Cisco Catalyst 4948 Series has ended for some part numbers (last group runs to Oct 2022). Unsupported units need a plan. Full lifecycle dates by part number: https://eosl.ai/system/cisco-catalyst-4948/.
Is there a per-part-number replacement mapping for the 4948 Series?
Yes. The bulletin maps replacements at the part-number level for 6 SKUs (for example WS-C4948 → WS-C4948E / WS-C4948E-F). The full table is on this page.
Do I have to buy the Cisco-recommended replacement?
No. The bulletin's named successor is Cisco's suggested path, not an obligation. Teams also keep 4948 Series units running under third-party maintenance after the support cutoff, migrate to a different vendor, or run low-criticality units to failure with the risk documented. See the support-options guide for the trade-offs.