Core and data center applications are the strengths of Arista products. The distribution layer is also a good fit. For the access layer, it would be more of a niche product.
In our head office where there is a low dust environment, it best suits this use. But in a plant where there is a dusty environment, you may face in and outs and the Network team may be in a bit of a hurdle.
Overall, the product is great and we have configured it at our plant and head offices. It is a great product to use and can be configured with minimal efforts and minimal qualifications required. The network engineer doesn't;t need to be a specialized person but needs to be a well aware person so that he may configure it.
We have never used D-Link support services for our ethernet switches. We only looked for new firmware from their website, which was available for most of the models that are being used in our environment. Other than that, the official blogs and community pages of D-Link support were very helpful for small issues related to different features like NTP, stp, etc.
I have used the Catalyst 6500 series in the past. From my point of view, the Arista surpasses the Catalyst on just about every front. Originally we were planning on implementing the Nexus 7000/7700 series switches for our core. Though a little more feature rich, it did not provide features we needed that the Arista did. The Nexus also was a confusing and complex platform to work with. Also, the Nexus was a significantly more expensive solution. Although very happy with the Arista switches we may evaluate the Aruba HPE 8400 chassis-based switches along with Arista switches in the future.
For the use we have proposed for DE-Links (use in locations with difficult access, or for expanding the network inside rooms), its main advantage is its low price. It has a large part of the competitors' functionalities, of course, in a simpler way, but serving efficiently and at a lower price.
