Re: [foxboro] enterasys switches

Ron,
        I want to re-iterate what Alex and his other brother Dave
"Johnson" said.  It helps all of us if you enter a descriptive subject
when sending mail to the list.  It helps immediately and in the future
as we dig through the archives searching for information about
"Enterasys Switches" or any one of a hundred other topics.
        I personally understand your confusion about pricing,
compatibility and valid firmware revisions.  We struggled trying to
understand it all and had to do a lot of digging within Foxboro as well
as with individual switch vendors.  There is no short or lasting answer
about the Enterasys firmware issue.  Foxboro IS using firmware that is,
or was, a commercial version offered by Enterasys, but as Enterasys
firmware for your particular switches evolves, there is no guarantee
that Foxboro will test and adopt the latest Enterasys firmware for use
on the MESH.
        It is likely that once Foxboro achieves satisfactory performance
of the switches on the MESH they will not adopt or test newer Enterasys
firmware for those switches and the Foxboro tested firmware will lag
farther and farther behind the current Enterasys commercial firmware
offering.
        Foxboro made a big boo-boo when they initially advertised that
the MESH could run using COTS, (Commercial off the Shelf), HSE, (High
Speed Ethernet), switches.  I haven't seen any of that hype in recent
publications and I don't think anyone in the Foxboro organization would
dare say now that the MESH switches are COTS.
        To be sure about firmware and even compatibilities between one
series Enterasys switch and another on the MESH you need to refer to
Appendix B. "Qualified Switch Firmware Compatibilities Matrix" in the
Switch Installation and Configuration Guide (B0700CA).  Currently, the
document says that the firmware for the A-Series switches should be at
1.03.18 to insure proper MESH operation.
        As far as pricing goes, there is still a significant difference
between buying switches from an Enterasys commercial vendor and buying
the same switch from Foxboro.  In Foxboro's defense they had to do a lot
of digging, testing, documenting, and developing to optimize the
Enterasys switches for the MESH and they have to maintain personnel to
answer your questions and troubleshoot future problems, and that ain't
cheap.  Somebody has to pay for it so it might as well be you.  Hope
this helps.

Cheers,
Tom VandeWater
Dow Corning Corp.
Carrollton, KY   USA

-----Original Message-----
From: foxboro-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:foxboro-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of David Johnson
Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 1:29 PM
To: foxboro@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [foxboro] enterasys switches & buyautomation.com

1st of all Alex is right, it would help all of us follow the=20
conversation if you would include a subject line.

2nd, I don't know what kind of premium Invensys gets for the=20
Enterasys switches, but I'd buy it from them since that is=20
essentially your nodebus. Which is pretty dang important.  If=20
problems arise, at least you would have some support.

3rd, I've used buyautomation.com a few times with good results. (Of=20
course we don't get a negotiated discount, so it's just as cheap for=20
me to buy that way.)

David

=20
=20
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