Don't have much to add other than Heath's response is pretty much what I would have said. It really all depends on your business needs as well as policy, or standards you need to meet....
Date: Sun, 3 Oct 2010 00:34:40 +0100 Subject: Re: router lifetime From: hj1980@gmail.com To: franck@genius.com CC: nanog@nanog.org
How long do you keep a router in production? What is your cycle for replacement of equipment?
Hi Franck
It really depends on the type of network you are running, the rate at which new features & bandwidth are required, and the availability of software and hardware upgrades. Also, in a lot of cases it is vendor driven - devices that are still very much in production are forced to be replaced because of vendor product lifecycle and the phasing out of support, even when serving their requirements well.
Care to elaborate a little more on your planned scenario?
Cheers Heath