Field Notes
The Townsend Networks Blog
Practical intelligence for hardware buyers: model comparisons, lead times, end-of-life deadlines, refurbished TCO math, and what actually matters in the secondary market. Written by people who test this gear for a living.
Cisco ASA 5508-X and 5516-X After End of Support: What Changed on August 31, 2026
Cisco ASA 5508-X / 5516-X: end of sale August 2, 2021. Support ended August 31, 2026. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Arista 7050SX3-48YC8 End of Sale: Last Order December 31, 2026, Support to 2031
Arista 7050SX3-48YC8 / 7050SX3-48C8: end of sale December 31, 2026. Support ends December 31, 2031. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Juniper MX Routing Engines: RE-S-1800X4 End of Support and the RE-S-X6
Juniper RE-S-1800X4 routing engines: end of sale June 30, 2021. Support ended June 30, 2026. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Arista 7060CX, 7060CX2 and 7060SX2 End of Sale: Dates and Replacements
Arista 7060CX / 7060CX2: end of sale October 1, 2026. Support ends October 1, 2031. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Ruckus ICX 7150 End of Sale: Which Models and When
Ruckus ICX 7150 (24, 24P, 48, 48P, 48PF): end of sale March 10, 2025. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX and 9372 End of Life: Where Each One Stands
Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX: end of sale August 9, 2022. Support ends August 31, 2027. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Juniper EX2300 End of Life: End of Sale September 30, 2026, Support to 2031
Juniper EX2300: end of sale September 30, 2026. Support ends September 30, 2031. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Cisco Catalyst 2960-X After End of Sale: Support Ends October 31, 2027
Cisco Catalyst 2960-X: end of sale October 31, 2022. Support ends October 31, 2027. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Juniper QFX5100 End of Support: 2027 Dates for the 24Q, 48S, 48T and 96S
Juniper QFX5100 (24Q, 48S, 48T): end of sale July 1, 2022. Support ends July 1, 2027. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Juniper MX204 End of Life: Last Order June 15, 2027, Support to 2032
Juniper MX204 (MX204-HW-BASE): end of sale June 15, 2027. Support ends June 30, 2032. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Juniper EX4300 End of Sale: Dates for the 24 and 48 Port Models, the 32F and the 48MP
Juniper EX4300 (24P, 24T, 48P, 48T): end of sale March 31, 2024. Support ends March 31, 2029. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Cisco ASR 1001-X and ASR 1002-X End of Life: Support Ends July 31, 2027
Cisco ASR 1001-X / ASR 1002-X: end of sale August 1, 2022. Support ends July 31, 2027. The maker dates, what they change, and what we list.
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Airflow Suffixes Explained: Arista -F and -R, Juniper AFO and AFI
The same switch is sold with air moving in two opposite directions, and the only clue is a letter or three at the end of the part number. What -F, -R, AFO and AFI mean, how to pick the right one for your rack, and why the fans and power supplies must all match.
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Ruckus ICX 7150 vs ICX 7250: Choosing a Campus Access Switch, and Reading the Part Number
Two 1U Ruckus (formerly Brocade) access switches that look alike on a spec sheet. The real differences are the number of 10GbE uplinks, fanless models, and how the uplinks were licensed, which the part number tells you if you know how to read it.
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Juniper MX204 vs MX304: Which Edge Router to Buy Refurbished
Both are compact Juniper MX edge routers. One is a 1U, 400 Gbps fixed box; the other is a 2U, 4.8 Tbps modular chassis with 400GbE ports and routing-engine redundancy. How to pick, and what to check before buying either one refurbished.
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The AI Buildout Is Squeezing Enterprise Switch Supply: What It Means for Your Refresh
Hyperscalers are absorbing switch silicon and optics capacity at a record pace. Here's what the AI data-center boom means for enterprise lead times, pricing, and how to plan a refresh around it.
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Cisco End-of-Life Deadlines, 2026-2028: What's Expiring and What to Do About It
ASA 5500-X support ends this August. Catalyst 3650 goes dark in October. A field guide to the Cisco last-day-of-support dates hitting between now and 2028, and the migrate, sustain, or sell decision for each.
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Refurbished vs. New in 2026: The Real TCO Math for Network Hardware
Refurbished enterprise gear typically runs 40-90% below list. Even Cisco's own remanufactured line prices 25-70% under. The honest TCO comparison: where the savings are real, where new still wins, and how to avoid the counterfeit trap.
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Wi-Fi 7 and 800G Are Here. Here's What a Mid-Size Enterprise Actually Needs
Wi-Fi 7 APs are shipping from every major vendor, and 800G optics dominate the AI headlines. A practical guide to which upgrades matter for a mid-size network in 2026, and the switch-layer costs nobody puts on the first slide.
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Decommissioning a Rack? How to Turn Retired Network Gear into Budget
Retired switches and routers are an asset, not a disposal problem. What holds value in 2026, why timing beats haggling, and the data-sanitization and chain-of-custody standards to demand before anything leaves the building.
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The Role of MPC7E-MRATE in Optimizing Network Performance
The Juniper MPC7E-MRATE enhances network efficiency with flexible port configurations, high-speed 100GbE support, and advanced traffic performance management.
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How the Juniper MX204 Powers Multi-Cloud Networking
The Juniper MX204 delivers 400 Gbps throughput, high-density 10GbE, 25GbE, and 100GbE ports, and advanced automation for seamless multi-cloud networking.
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Expand Your Network Capacity | EX4600-EM-8F Expansion Module
Practical and Real-world Explanation of Expanding Network Capabilities of EX4600-EM-8F Expansion Module. Buy Refurbished & New Modules on 3 Years of Warranty.
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Scaling Your Data Center with the Juniper QFX5120-48Y Switch
Juniper QFX5120-48Y, a powerful 25G Ethernet switch with 48x 25GbE ports and 8x 100GbE uplinks, designed for high-speed enterprise and data center networking.
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Compact and Efficient: Exploring the Juniper EX2300-C-12T Switch
Juniper EX2300-C-12T is Suitable for small and medium-sized companies. It has layer 2 and layer 3 management capabilities, making it a stand-alone solution.
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Juniper QFX Series | The Backbone of Modern Data Center Networks
Juniper QFX Series are high-end networking best data centers, big companies, and clouds. QFX also provides features like programmability and integration.
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How to Choose Between Different Juniper EX Switch Models for Enterprise Networks
Juniper EX Switches are one of the fast rated switches for small and medium size companies. Townsend Networks deals in all kinds of switches and network equipment.
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Why the Juniper MX304 Is a Game-Changer for Edge Networking
Juniper MX304 Series is a kind of magical machine for networking professionals. It can handle up to 5 Tbps of traffic load with low latency and high bandwidth.
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How Arista is leading the race in 100G and 400G Hardware
The industry's leader in high-speed networking is Arista Networks' 7368X4 series. It is available with Line-Speed 100G, 200G, and 400G.
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License Options for the Brocade 6740T Switch: Capacity on Demand
The Brocade 6740T and 6740T-1G are high-performing Top-of-Rack (ToR) Ethernet fabric switches built to address emerging data center requirements. These include 1GbE, 10GbE, and 40GbE, which provide high performance with an acceptable amount of latency. Intended for modern networks, these switches have different functionality options called Capacity on Demand (CoD) that enable organizations to expand their capabilities and performance.
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The Role of Juniper MX204 in Multi-Cloud Networking Solutions
Explore why Juniper MX204 Routers are a preferred choice these days for Multi-Cloud Networking Solutions. Detailed overview of the advantages and features.
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Understanding Arista DCS7050CX3 vs DCS7050SX3: A Detailed Comparison
A Detailed Comparison of Arista DCS7050CX3 and DCS7050SX3. Figure out the differences and similarities between these 2 popular models of Arista Family.
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Choosing the Right Arista DCS Switch for Your Business: A Quick Guide
In the current world that is dominated by the use of technology, businesses require reliable networks that will address the issue of data flow. To that extent, Arista Networks, which specializes in high-performance switches, currently provides a number of Arista DCS switches that are suitable for organizations of all sizes.
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Future-Proofing Your Network with the Juniper MX Series
Juniper MX Series is a series of flexible, high-density routers intended to meet the various networking requirements of businesses, data centers, and telecom operators. Well known for its scalability, which is the best in the industry, the MX Series enables deployment of the network on a small edge to a large global scale.
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Enhancing Connectivity with Brocade ICX Switches
High availability and scalability are the key factors that determine the need for networking in today’s business world. When talking about networking needs, Brocade ICX switches meet the challenges of modern enterprise networks. With stacking capabilities, high availability, efficiency, and enhanced security, the Brocade ICX series is well-suited for small office and branch installations as well as data center environments.
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Juniper EX4300 vs EX4600: Which Network Switch Is Right for You?
The Juniper EX4300 switch is flexible and economical for SMBs or small and medium enterprises. It can accommodate up to 48 GbE interfaces and up to four 40GbE uplinks, which makes it perfect for companies seeking reliable performance rather than a large network, which can only have up to four 40GbE connections. The EX4300 is stackable, and in environments, up to 10 units can be managed as a single logical device, which is beneficial where networks are expanding.
Read more →Refreshing, or decommissioning?
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