On Mon, 5 Nov 2001, Michael Chang wrote:
I would appreciate if you could share your experiences of settting up out-of-band management networks especially large # 50 - 100+ sites. Appreciate your experiences on the follwing and any other:
Most providers rely on dialup async terminal/console port access as their out-of-band management network. It is generally a terminal server connected to the equipment console ports, with a dialup modem for external access. A few (very few) providers have a dedicated out-of-band management network. Generally a frame-relay circuit to a management hub/router connected to the async terminal server and low-speed (10 meg) ethernet port on some routers. One problem with high-end routers, it is either expensive (lost opportunity cost) or impossible to connect low-speed circuits to high-end routers. Non-facility based providers often purchase their out-of-band circuits from a different provider than their primary circuits. AT&T is a popular supplier for out-of-band management networks. AT&T may not be price/competitive for high-bandwidth circuits, but for 64k/128k frame-relay management links, it may make sense. Carrier/facility based providers tend to use their own facilities. Yep, facility based providers have cut their own facilities in the past, including one provider which took their own NOC off-line for most of a day.