Extreme Networks

H

hutchingsp

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 24, 2006
Messages
150
Is anybody using them?

We're looking at phone systems, which co-incides with a core switch replacement, and one of our requirements is that whichever phone vendor we go with, the reseller also supplies switch gear to avoid finger-pointing.

We're in the situation where basically we have a right old mix of kit with no central management, and at a basic level almost any network vendors kit should be more than up to the task.

The kit looks nice and they talk the talk, but I don't see as many examples of people using them as I do HP and Cisco so I'm after any feedback that I can get.
 
The company I work for right now uses Extreme Networks for wifi, switch, etc hardware instead of Cisco/HP but I can not speak to specific equipment. I rarely see any hardware issues and it's a large, multi site college.
 
Thanks, that's good to know on the hardware issues side of things.

One of their selling points is a single OS across all the range so I don't think I have much to ask regarding specific models, but if you get involved in the config/management side of things I'd be interested in any feedback.
 
I wouldn't suggest them. I used them in the labs back in school, and they sponsor the LAN group I game with so we have a stack of 2 X670s and the stacking cables for them for our core.

As far as hardware goes, they work just as well as any Cisco, HP, Dell or other enterprise switch I have used in the past. However working with their warranty repair is a pain in the ass (worse then HP). If you are expecting to need a lot of support I would suggest going to cisco and buying smart-net.

For software they are a complete pass for me. The CLI isn't exactly intuitive, and things like randomly dropping VLANs after reboots or having trunks randomly cause problems (say the trunk drops and suddenly you have a loop created) are not uncommon with these. They also had some issues playing with some older Cisco gear (not sure of what version of IOS) we had ( A couple 2950-24s would not pass traffic through the trunk that we setup, however 2960 and 3650s setup exactly the same way worked fine).

Personally If it were my money I would go to HP.
 
from what i've heard extreme may not be around much longer. i've worked with extreme stuff since 2000. hardware wise they're great. idk wtf c7 is talking about their cli is better than cisco's IMO. also every switch that isn't a cisco switch has problems with older cisco switches, that is cisco's fault btw.

for new build outs if i were you i would look to dell. they just purchased force10 so they have a very compelling switch line from the affordable broadcom based powerconnects all the way up to the highest of the highend with their new force10 switches.

with dell you can also get avaya or fonality based voip systems which dell will certify. at that point you're only dealing with dell's support and dell's warranties so that simplifies things.
 
I'd avoid them if I were you. They're ok for L2 ... but they are pretty bad at L3 (and extremely bad at L3 multicast).

As for CLI ... for basic features, it's ok to use ... for advanced features, it's a real pain in the ass to use. (e.g. to negate some commands, you have to put the "no" midway through the whole command instead of at the beginning and it changes all the time... REALLY stupid idea).

The worst part of the Extreme CLI is redistributing between routing protocols. It's done via in built-in text editor separate from the running-config file... and you have to build it from scratch with terms you need to look up in their manual and enclose them in braces. ARE THEY SERIOUS? It drove me crazy.

In terms of CLI, Juniper is leaps and bounds ahead of everyone else, including Cisco. But Cisco is definitely a hell of a lot better than Extreme once you configure more advanced things. I'd say it's a tie on basic L2 config.
 
I've heard mixed stuff. One thing that seems to be consistent is that the service sucks. I wouldn't lead with Extreme to any customer.
 
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