Alexis Rosen <alexis@panix.com> wrote:
Of course I'm not saying that I *Want* to use an HD in this situation; flash is clearly a big win.
In my experience flash is a lot _less_ reliable than HDs. Ciscos losing flash contents aren't that uncommon.
Is this a general statement about flash, or just about the flash in Ciscos? I'd find it hard to believe that well designed solid state devices could be lest reliable than a disk drive, especially since a large part of a disk drive is solid state as well.
But I don't see how using a floppy or ZIP improves wins.
Floppy doesn't rotate until it's boot time; and in COs dust is not a big problem.
So, for a boot device floppy is probably the best (providing it's not an el cheapo device). An additional benefit is that it's easy for field personnel to handle.
--vadim