CCIE blasts download policies, practices in trying to rid router of bugs
A rather interesting IOS licensing situation has cropped up, chronicled here by CCIE Ethan Banks of Packet Pushers, a site recognized by NW. Banks was recently denied a download of bug-free code for a Cisco 831 Ethernet Broadband Router running what Cisco identified as an old, vulnerable image of IOS because the 831 was not listed on his SmartNet contract.
Instead, Cisco charged him for the download. Banks thought this was Cisco essentially charging for a bug-fix.
In any event, the 831 has reached the end-of-life stage, and the last software release and service attachment dates were in 2008. The service contract renewal date, however, was Sept. 28, and Cisco will continue to support the product until June 2012.
In his Nov. 9 post, Banks assumes the Cisco policy is SOP and that he’s only just encountered it. But he doesn’t mince words in some of his beefs with it, especially at the end when he lambastes Cisco’s SmartNet labyrinth:
I’ve worked for multiple Cisco partners as well as large Cisco customers, and I’ve done my time in the SmartNet trenches. SmartNet contracts are one of the most poorly organized and administrated systems I’ve seen in the world of technology… Migrating devices between contracts is a brutal process. Co-terminus agreements are a battle to obtain…It’s an epic, end-to-end FAIL. And now I’m forced to maintain my Cisco infrastructure based on this foundation?
Ouch. Sounds like felons have better service from SmartNet.
Indeed, most of the comments to Banks’ post were bemoaning the administrative nightmare that apparently is SmartNet. But what about charging for the download: is this a bug-fix? Or did Banks miss his software/service support window with an EoLed product? Should he be charged or not?
He obviously feels not:
I need to upgrade bad code Cisco shipped to me with a smile, but instead I’m stuck with the problems. In the auto industry, that would be called selling me a lemon. Therefore, Cisco is making me pay extra for the privilege of running code that isn’t borked.
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