A common misconception we often encounter is when people think that the pre-owned equipment we offer is “old.” We imagine that they picture it as ancient legacy hardware sitting in some company’s closet collecting dust and rusting.

Then we swoop in, wipe off the layers of dust that have accumulated over the years, and sell the equipment off. It may make for a funny mental image, but honestly, nothing could be further from the truth.

Legacy as well as newer models

In truth, most of the hardware we offer is newer models. While it’s true we carry quite a bit of legacy equipment to help anyone still using it to support their infrastructure, that’s certainly not the main part of our offering.

Our strength is helping organizations upgrade at a pace that makes sense for them. Rather than constantly being early adopters and always migrating to latest and greatest technology, we find that most organizations opt to upgrade at a more reasonable pace that keeps them within budget.

Constantly doing forklift upgrades every couple of years is expensive and time-consuming. With the economy having its own struggles, most organizations find it wise to utilize pre-owned hardware and gradually upgrade their infrastructures.

The advantages of pre-owned

The vast majority of the equipment we offer is from end-users who purchased it pretty recently. And the really great thing about pre-owned hardware is that most failures occur as DOAs or within 30 days of implementation.

This means that once that hardware is burned in and has been working flawlessly for a while, it is reliable throughout its lifetime. So you can get quality, reliable equipment that is fairly young in its lifetime for a price that is very budget-friendly.

And when you work with a reliable vendor, you can get an outstanding warranty that backs your investment and gives you long-term peace of mind.

Some examples

Don’t believe we really offer newer models? Check out some equal2new® products we recently ran specials on to see not everything we offer is older legacy equipment:

• equal2new® HP PROCURVE 3500YL 48 PORT POE+ SWITCH (J9311A)
• equal2new® NORTEL 5530-24TFD ETHERNET ROUTING SWITCH (AL1001E07E5)
• equal2new® NORTEL IP PHONES 1220 (NTYS19BA70)
• equal2new® CISCO CATALYST 3750X 24 PORT DATA LAN BASE (WS-C3750X-24T-L)
• equal2new® CISCO UNIFIED IP PHONES 6941 (CP-6941-C-K9)
• equal2new® AVAYA 1608 IP PHONES
• equal2new® MITEL 5330 IP PHONES (50005070)

Now do you believe you can get newer models of pre-owned hardware to help you upgrade your infrastructure at your own pace? Good. Don’t think “old” when you think “pre-owned.” Instead, think of the opportunity to get quality technology at prices that work best for your budget.

Once in a while it’s good to get back to basics and cover some fundamentals. Some folks are looking for some solid, useful information to help them get started on certain things. For instance, in this world where Cisco is so popular, you might wonder what Cisco router is right for you or your organization.

If you want to connect your organization’s network to the Internet, you might be thinking about going with a Cisco router. But with so many Cisco router models, it can be difficult to decide which is right for you. The first step is to identify your needs.

Consider the following when choosing a Cisco Router:

Know the speed of your Internet connection.

Your Internet connection will ultimately determine the type of router you need. Download speeds are measured in megabytes per second, or MBps. Most Internet connections run between 3-7 MBps, but there are a great number of commercial models that download at under 2 MBps.

There are also those that run at a much higher rate of 10-12 MBps, such as ADSL2, an extension of ADSL broadband. And beyond that, businesses using ADSL2+ will need a router that is equipped to handle downloads at 20 Mbps, while those using Fiber-based Internet will be looking at 50 MBps.

Understand what kind of support is available for that particular Cisco router.

Cisco routers come with various amounts of support depending on the model purchased and the amount it costs. It is important to understand how much support for your Cisco router your enterprise will need before making a purchase.

Decide how you will manage your router.

Certain Cisco routers are better equipped for management purposes than others. A device with a graphical user interface (GUI), for example, will provide a different managerial experience than a router that is equipped with a command line.

Determine if you are connecting the Cisco router wirelessly or through a landline.

If you choose to connect using Wi-Fi, there are a number of concerns to heed. While a wireless router is needed to connect your laptop or smartphone to the web, there are plenty of obstacles that can hinder connectivity, including the number of other networks in the vicinity that could cause interference and unpredictable environmental factors.

—

The above considerations are a good start when thinking about what Cisco router is right for your organization.

Want more information on how to select the best Cisco router for your business?

Stay tuned for part 2 of the series.

Have you considered stepping up your switching platform to the Cisco Nexus? Wondering what some of the differences are between the 6500 Series and the Nexus?

In this short, informative video, Nathan, CXtec’s Cisco Product Engineer, explains some of the differences between the Cisco 6500 and the Cisco Nexus, helping you decide which platform might work best for you.

Wondering how to cable up a stack of Cisco 3750s? Do you know how high you can stack them?

In this short, informative video, Nathan, CXtec’s Cisco Product Engineer, explains some of the factors and gotchas involved with stacking Cisco 3750 switches.

With so much going on in the IT world every day, sometimes it seems almost impossible to keep up on all the latest news and updates. We decided we wanted to start compiling all the most important news stories of the month to use as a resource for both our team – and yours. This post will be specifically on Cisco news.

Be sure to check back often to take advantage of this resource and stay up-to-date!

1. Cisco sells Linksys brand to Belkin

While this news initially broke in January, the acquisition was finalized mid-March. According to Computerworld, this move is significant because it shows a “continued a shift by Cisco away from consumer products and toward large architectures for enterprises and service providers.” It will be interesting to watch the shift as Cisco abandons the consumer market and dedicates its attention to the larger IT solutions industry.

2. Cisco Announces Platform that Provides Unified Access for Wired and Wireless Infrastructures

The Unified Access Data Plane, or UADP, is a way for enterprises to combine traditional data networks and mobile platforms. Enterprise Networking Planet states, “This proposal represents an entirely new class of networking hardware that allows people to build unified networks from the ground up, essentially uniting two distinct logical networks into one.” This development is important as demand for seamless solutions continues to grow and organizations look toward next-generation infrastructures.

3. Cisco Password Implementation Error Puts Hardware at Risk

 This news hit the IT world last week after research uncovered the security risk. Cisco then issued a warning about password weaknesses in some of its routers, switches and appliances that are using the Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE. According to InformationWeek, “The problem stems from Cisco’s use of the Type 4 password algorithm in the operating system, and its failure to salt – add random bits to – passwords or use PBKDF2, which randomizes passphrases and adds a salt, thus deriving a cryptographic key that’s more difficult to crack.” The company recommends that organizations search for any Type 4 passwords they’ve generated and replace with Type 5 passwords.

4. Cisco Owes $70 Million for Patent Fraud

A federal jury decided on Friday that Cisco owes XpertUniverse Inc. $70 million for patent fraud, alleged to have occurred during a partnership between the two companies. According to the Wall Street Journal, Cisco was found guilty of “fraud by concealment” in addition to violating two patents. Cisco continues to reject the allegations and states that it may pursue an appeal.