Forty-eight Fast Ethernet access ports, 2 dual-purpose combo uplinks, no Power over Ethernet on any port and the LAN Lite image describe the Cisco Catalyst 2960-Plus 48TC-S. It is the highest-density and the lowest-feature combination this range offers anywhere in its line-up, irreversibly so, since the two letters at the end pin the image for the life of the chassis.
The most ports on the smallest feature set
This model puts the maximum port count the series offers behind its smaller software image, and that combination deserves a second look rather than a shrug. Forty-eight ports serve roughly twice as many endpoints as a 24-port switch, and endpoint count is the main thing that drives VLAN count upward over time. Pairing the highest density with the lower feature ceiling is therefore the configuration most likely to run into that ceiling.
None of which makes it a bad switch. It makes it a switch whose fit should be established explicitly. A floor of 48 desktops on a data VLAN and a management VLAN will never trouble LAN Lite. A floor of 48 mixed endpoints across departments, guests, cameras and building systems is a different proposition, and the LAN Base version of the same chassis differs by one character in the part number.
| Specification | Catalyst 2960-Plus 48TC-S |
|---|---|
| Part number | WS-C2960+48TC-S |
| Access ports | 48 x 10/100 Fast Ethernet |
| Power over Ethernet | None |
| Uplinks | 2 dual-purpose combo, one port active per pair |
| Aggregate uplink capacity | 2 Gbps |
| Software image | LAN Lite |
| Stacking | Not offered on this series |
The image is fixed at manufacture
Cisco offers this series as LAN Base or LAN Lite and marks the choice with the final letter of the part number. LAN Lite carries the smaller feature set and a lower ceiling on active VLANs, and no licence, feature key or software release converts one image into the other on this hardware. A chassis bought as LAN Lite remains LAN Lite for its whole service life.
That permanence is the reason the check belongs before the order rather than after it. Almost every other constraint on a switch can be worked around at some cost; this one can only be resolved by replacing the unit.
Two uplink paths and no stacking
The two combo uplinks each hold an SFP slot and a 1000BASE-T copper port with one active, giving two usable paths from four connectors and letting the same chassis serve a fibre or a copper closet. Stacking is not offered anywhere on the Catalyst 2960-Plus series, so a room needing more than 48 ports takes a second independent device rather than a stack member, with its own configuration and address to maintain.
What a Fast Ethernet access layer still handles
All 48 ports run at 10/100, which is ample for desktops running line-of-business applications, printers, terminals, controllers and thin clients. Against 2 Gbps of uplink the theoretical access total of 4.8 Gbps gives a ratio near 2.4 to 1, so the uplink is rarely the constraint. The ceiling appears only when video, imaging, backup or wireless traffic enters the room, and at that point the generation rather than the model is what needs to change.
Worth separating clearly: the port speed and the software image are independent limits with independent consequences. A room can outgrow 100 Mbps while never approaching the VLAN ceiling, or exhaust the VLAN plan while every endpoint remains comfortable at Fast Ethernet. Checking both against the same three-year view is the only way to know which of the two will bite first, and neither can be resolved on this chassis.
Where the 48TC-S sits in the 2960-Plus range
Two single-variable comparisons cover it: the same chassis on the larger image, and the same image at half the port count.
| Model | Access ports | Image | Uplinks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2960-Plus 48TC-S | 48 Fast Ethernet | LAN Lite | 2 combo |
| 2960-Plus 48TC-L | 48 Fast Ethernet | LAN Base | 2 combo |
| 2960-Plus 24TC-S | 24 Fast Ethernet | LAN Lite | 2 combo |
Where Gigabit access and a faster uplink are needed, the Catalyst 2960S-48FPD-L belongs to a later generation built for it. The current-generation replacement line is the Catalyst 9300 family, and where a refresh also takes in routing the Cisco ISR 4000 family is the counterpart tier.
Support position for this series
No lifecycle dates appear here. The Catalyst 2960-Plus series has no Cisco end-of-life notice in the verified source material behind these pages, and every date shown across the rest of our Catalyst 2960 range is traceable to a specific named announcement. Keeping that rule means this section stays empty of figures.
Look the exact part number up in Cisco's own end-of-life listing before making a support commitment. Borrowing dates from the classic 2960, the 2960-S or the 2960-X families would be applying one product's calendar to another, and the similarity in naming makes that mistake easy to commit and hard to notice.
Condition, testing and what ships
Units are refurbished enterprise hardware bearing the original Cisco part number. Each is tested on receipt, then disassembled, cleaned, inventoried and returned to stock; at order time it is rebuilt, configured and bench tested a second time before packing. Whole systems including this switch carry the 2-year Enterasource warranty, and shipping is free FedEx Ground to the lower 48 states.
SFP transceivers and rack hardware are separate line items unless quoted with the chassis. Cisco software entitlement does not transfer with used hardware, and the LAN Lite image cannot be raised after purchase.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is LAN Lite a problem on a 48-port switch specifically?
It deserves closer attention there than on a smaller chassis. Forty-eight ports serve roughly twice as many endpoints as a 24-port switch, and endpoint count is what pushes VLAN count upward over time, so the highest-density model on the smaller feature set is the configuration most likely to meet the ceiling. In a simple two-VLAN room it remains entirely appropriate.
Can the image on a Catalyst 2960-Plus 48TC-S be changed later?
No. The software image is set at manufacture and identified by the final letter of the part number, S for LAN Lite and L for LAN Base. No licence, feature key or software release converts one into the other on this hardware, so the only route to the fuller feature set is buying the LAN Base model instead.
How many endpoints can a 2960-Plus 48TC-S serve at full speed?
All forty-eight at 100 Mbps, which is the access port speed across this Fast Ethernet series. The two usable uplink paths provide 2 Gbps in aggregate against a theoretical access total of 4.8 Gbps, a ratio near 2.4 to 1 that keeps the uplink out of the way for desktops, printers, terminals and controllers.
Does this switch supply power to telephones or cameras?
No. The T in the designation marks a data-only chassis with no power controller and no PoE budget, and the capability cannot be retro-fitted. Powered devices behind it require injectors, local adapters or a separate powered switch. Within the same range the PC, LC and PST models are the ones that source power.
What does Enterasource do to a used 2960-Plus 48TC-S before shipping?
It is bench tested on arrival, then stripped, cleaned and inventoried into stock as a known-good unit. At order time the chassis is rebuilt to the requested configuration, configured and tested a second time immediately before packing, with all forty-eight ports and both uplink pairs checked. Any defect is recorded per serial and published on that listing. The full range is on the Cisco networking hardware page.
