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Written from our library of end of service life dates. Every number in a post links to where it came from.
Latest post
4 min readServers
OCP servers follow the Open Compute Project designs Facebook published in 2011. Many need a 21-inch Open Rack and busbar power. What to check before you buy one used or remanufactured.
Read the post21 inOpen Rack width, against 19 in for a standard rack
Earlier posts
4 min readEOSL data
Our EOSL library by category: how much of each is already past EOSL, and which category has the most dates coming in the next 12 months.
25network models reach EOSL in the next 12 months
4 min readEOSL dates
Cisco's end-of-life notices set a schedule, from the announcement to the last date of support. What each milestone stops, how far apart they fall, and where to find the notice for your model.
5 yrsof hardware TAC support after end of sale
4 min readContracts
OEM maintenance is sold annual or multi-year, with auto-renewal. Month-to-month third-party maintenance works differently. What each term means for your budget, your exit and your refresh plan.
Monthlyterm available, no auto-renew
4 min readContracts
OEM maintenance contracts often need 30 to 90 days written notice to not renew. Miss the window and you pay for another year. How to find your date, what to send, and when.
30 to 90days of written notice OEM contracts often need
5 min readEOSL data
The OEM stops at end of service life. The hardware does not. How long it can keep running, what gets harder each year, and how far past the date the models in our library already are.
3.7 yrsmedian time past EOSL, for models already past it
Chart: <1 55, 1 51, 2 72, 3 74, 4 29, 5 35, 6 26, 7 29, 8 10, 9 11, 10+ 12.4 min readEOSL data
For each model in our EOSL library we record whether the date came from the OEM or from independent EOSL databases. The count by OEM, and what it means for your planning.
149 of 149Cisco dates from Cisco's own notices
4 min readEOSL data
We counted every model in our EOSL library: how many are past the date the OEM stops support, by OEM and by year, and how long ago they passed it.
404of the 563 models in our EOSL library are past EOSL
4 min readEOSL dates
Every Dell, HPE, Cisco, IBM and NetApp model in our EOSL library whose end of service life date fell in 2025, with the source for each date and what to do now.
48models reached EOSL in 2025
Chart: January 2, February 0, March 0, April 2, May 1, June 0, July 6, August 7, September 10, October 13, November 0, December 7.4 min readEOSL dates
Every Dell, HPE, Cisco, IBM and NetApp model in our EOSL library with a 2028 end of service life date, sorted by date, with the source for each one.
53models reach EOSL in 2028
Chart: January 0, February 0, March 1, April 0, May 6, June 0, July 14, August 7, September 0, October 14, November 10, December 1.5 min readEOSL dates
End of life, end of sale and end of service life are three different dates. What each one stops, and what Cisco's own notices show about the gap between them.
5.0 yrsmedian gap, end of sale to end of support
Chart: 4 yrs 2, 5 yrs 140, 6 yrs 1, 7 yrs 6.4 min readEOSL dates
Every Dell, HPE, Cisco, IBM and NetApp model in our EOSL library with a 2026 end of service life date: the ones already past, the ones still ahead, and the source for each.
43models with a 2026 EOSL date
Chart: January 5, February 0, March 1, April 0, May 1, June 0, July 17, August 11, September 0, October 4, November 3, December 1.5 min readMaintenance
What third-party maintenance covers for Dell, HPE, Cisco, IBM and NetApp hardware, what it leaves out, when to stay with the OEM, and five questions to ask any provider.
4 hon-site SLA, engineer and part
4 min readRefurbished hardware
Used hardware ships the way it came out of the last rack. Refurbished hardware is inspected, stress-tested, wiped and warrantied first. What that means for a server, drive or switch you run in production.
>30%of the hardware we buy fails QA and never ships
4 min readEOSL dates
Every Dell, HPE, Cisco, IBM and NetApp model in our EOSL library with a 2027 end of service life date, sorted by date, with the source for each one.
45models reach EOSL in 2027
Chart: January 8, February 7, March 4, April 7, May 6, June 0, July 3, August 5, September 1, October 2, November 0, December 2.563 models, each with its source. No sign-up.
Maintenance 3 to 5+ years past the OEM date, with a 4-hour on-site SLA. Refurbished parts, each through a 21-point test.