I received a Cisco 3750X the other day. I went to go plug it in for testing and found that the standard three prong female power connector is no longer compatible with the power supply. Cisco has added a notch to their power supply port making the standard cable incompatible with their 3750X C3KX-PWR-1100WAC power supply.
Here is a picture of the required cable below that does fit the 3750X switches. Notice the notch on the female end.
My question: Is there a specific reason as to why Cisco has done this? Is there some sort of specific power requirements that the "standard" power cable cant handle that this compatible cable can? Or, is this simply Cisco being Cisco and making something proprietary because it can.
Best Answer
The cable pictured is a standard: IEC320-C15. The difference is in the temperature rating of the cable. These are rated to 120C, while the "ordinary" ones (IEC320-C13) are 70C.
I believe the increased load for PoE switches requires the higher temperature rating.