Fortinet FortiSwitch 424E-POE, 24-Port PoE+ Switch, 250W (FS-424E-POE)

For branch offices and small campuses where the total PoE device count stays under 24 and individual draws are modest, the 250 W budget on the FortiSwitch 424E-POE is usually enough headroom without paying for the larger power supply in the FPOE variant. You get 24 GE RJ45 access ports, all capable of 802.3at PoE+, four 10GE SFP+ uplinks to aggregation, and the same FortiLink management that lets a FortiGate control port security and VLAN assignment from a single console. It is a practical midpoint between the non-PoE 424E and the higher-budget 424E-FPOE.

Hardware Specifications

Where the 424E-POE Fits Best

The 250 W budget comfortably supports 12 to 16 dual-radio Wi-Fi 6 APs drawing around 15 to 20 W each, with headroom left for VoIP phones. In typical SMB offices, a single 424E-POE handles one floor with mixed wireless and IP telephony without pushing the power limit. Hotels with a single AP per room and a few per hallway find this model fits their density requirements without the extra cost of the FPOE variant.

In FortiLink mode, the FortiGate can remotely enable or disable PoE per port, monitor power usage, and cycle power on a stuck device, all without console access to the switch. Combine that with Security Fabric NAC rules and you have centralized device admission control alongside physical power management.

Choosing Between the 424E-POE and 424E-FPOE

The 250 W versus 421 W PoE budget is the deciding factor. If your 24 devices draw 10 to 12 W on average (single-radio APs, IP phones, basic cameras), the POE variant is sufficient. When devices include high-power APs drawing 20 to 25 W, or you want headroom for future port additions at full draw, the FPOE’s 421 W budget gives you that margin. Both models share the same switching engine, MAC table, and port count.

Who Buys the FS-424E-POE

Small-to-midsize Canadian businesses, school computer wings, and hotel floors where the AP and phone count per switch stays under 16 to 18 devices are the primary buyers. Organizations building Fortinet Security Fabric environments that want PoE switching without the cost premium of the full-budget FPOE also land here. IT teams managing multiple floors often deploy one 424E-POE per floor as the access layer, trunked back to a higher-capacity aggregation switch.

Next Step Up

When the 250 W PoE budget becomes limiting, the FortiSwitch 424E-FPOE (FS-424E-FPOE) doubles it to 421 W with no other changes to the switching specs. For a full-generation upgrade, the FS-624F-FPOE from the 600F series is the next-gen 24-port PoE option with updated hardware and higher throughput.

Buying from DataCenter360.ca

DataCenter360.ca carries the FortiSwitch 424E-POE as an authorized Fortinet Select Partner, shipping free from Canadian stock in 0 to 1 business day. The unit arrives brand new with Fortinet’s limited lifetime hardware warranty. If you are sizing PoE budget for a specific device list or need to confirm FortiGate compatibility, get in touch and we can help work through the numbers before you order.