Two answers: First (considering who you work for) would be how much you could convince the customer they need (or how much they have to spend). :-)
Second, I take into consideration how long this device will have to live on the network and what I may ask of it during its lifetime. If, for example, my budget allows for a 4006 or 4500 with toys but not a 6509 with toys, I may design as much horsepower into the smaller switch and include L3 features (L4 if available) and stretch the money as far as it will go. Rarely do I have the chance to purchase without considering budget. I do like to consider CPU, but with MLS, it's not as important, IMHO. I also prefer to purchase the options I might need later if there's funds available. That way I won't have to worry about it when the funds may not be available. We are using 6509s as BDF switches in many places. Why? Because we can and the money is there right now. We could also save money on IOS features. Our Cisco rep said we could just download whatever we wanted. (We were asking about how to upgrade and *PAY* for it). :-) Ken >>> "The Long and Winding Road" 01/05/03 01:52PM >>> This one came up at the water cooler the other day. When going through the design process, what factors are useful for determining router and switch equipment requirements. In other words, how do I know when it is time to upgrade my router? Not numbers and types of ports, but what factors should be considered when determining if a router or switch will have sufficient horsepower to serve an organization's need for the purpose and time frame required. For example, if I were to determine that my requirement is ATM DS3, simple QoS ( for voice prioritization ) my non voice data will flow at 10 megabits peak on the WAN and typical flow of 3 megabits, and that my voice traffic will use G729 and end up with about 1 megabit average and 3 megabit peak. I can look at things like Cisco's published numbers on PPS, I can set up a test lab, simulate traffic flow, and check out CPU usage. I suppose if I were very sophisticated, I could measure throughput, latency, etc. I understand that as with all things networked, the answer is "it depends". things like access-lists, process switching, policy routing, etc can effect things. Some of us are just debating whether or not CPU utilization is the "best" measure. Over what period? What other factors might be best brought into the mix of factors to consider? Just wondering. Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=60371&t=60371 -------------------------------------------------- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
