ESM vs COM

[Flintstone]

Hi jfarinha,

I too have a mixed environment like yourself and have decided to use Solarwinds NPM for monitoring etc and Solarwinds NCM for automatic backups etc.  We also use Solarwinds IPAM and APM.  I also use JDM and EDM for everyday use on the Avaya/Nortel switches.

CheerZ

[Dominik]

@jfarinha

I use COM since 3 month and really like it. If you have used ESM before it is really easy to move to COM.
The biggest benefit in my opinion is the genral overview over your network. If you have 500+ devices it can be very difficult
to manage all devices and have quick access to all devices.
I also use COM for the following tasks:
-inventory management
-config backups
-mass configuration
-single dvice configuration

I use 3rd party tools for monitoring, here it comes to your personal needs, I prefer to have monitoring and the configuration tool seperatly.

Cheers

[trevans]

@jfarinha

I have COM/VPFM running in our production environment and the only major detail was finding the right "seed" formula for our environment. I have several large sites and hundreds of remote sites across the state that we need to monitor. My only regret was that I was not involved in the initial purchase discussion or I would have included BCM in our package. Hope this helps.

[mwclarke13]

We use JDM, We have not yet to upgrade to the later versions that can no longer use JDM and really have not researched  much about it.

I am assuming with the latest versions would need to us the COM application, requires a license that has to be purchased and runs on a dedicated server (no client based) ?

We are needing to upgrade all our 8600's and other edge switches soon in our main data centers.
My new boss indicates that that is not a viable solution to manage the devices, not willing to have to purchase a separate license to manage the devices (other than the CLI)

So he is intending to go to Cisco for all our hardware refresh, He is kind of biased toward Cisco, however I think if could still use JDM may have still been able to keep Avaya in the plans for all the upgrades but I think that was the nail in the coffin, as Management does not feel comfortable buying the same again after Nortel went under (Although I try and convince them is now part of a different company)

I would prefer to have the Nortel/Avaya Switches, as for switching, these fly past Cisco in my opinion.
But Avaya has made a terrible mistake not to support single device management using JDM, or at least providing a dirtect not separately licensed product.

So, I would difinatly have to go with COM which will require me to purchase a license for, how much is that license ?

Thanks,
Mike

[jfarinha]

Well, you still have a built in GUI called EDM. This runs as a http server in the switch and gives you the same kind of functionality of jdm.

[mwclarke13]

Well, you still have a built in GUI called EDM. This runs as a http server in the switch and gives you the same kind of functionality of jdm.

I have not read up much on the new EDM so did not realize that, good to know

Thanks,

[Dominik]

@mwclarke13

The EDM gives you pretty much the same features as the JDM. But instead having a apllication on your computer that runs java code as it has done th JDM with the EDM you have a web server on the switch
that you can access with the browser of your choice.
I was also very sceptic if that is a good decision from Avaya, but after a few software updates the EDM runs
smooth and has even some advantages over the old JDM.
If you have previous worked with the JDM you will get used to the EDM very fast, in fact it is very similar to
the JDM.

With COM you have a Management and Massconfiguration application, wich is also capable of automated backups. The equivalent from Cisco LMS (works) cost even more $ than COM.
You have nearly on all enterprise switches that are available a CLI interface. At all Avaya switches wich you can buy you will find the ACLI command line interface, so you can for sure do all the configuration with that.
In my opinion for some tasks it is really a good idea to have a graphical interface. It can safe you a lot
of time and when you have a management application like COM it can even safe more time in your daily work.

[TankII]

@ mwclarke13 - You do NOT need to purchase COM to manage your switches.  Yes, JDM goes away, but if you think about it, there is a huge security hole in the SNMP stack in being able to do full administration without logging who made the changes.  EDM allows Radius authentication and logging, even without COM, on a per-switch basis.  It gives you the JDM functionality in a Web environment that frees you from having the JDM application on every system you intend to use.  I would not swap switches out just because you are concerned about an interface change. 
You can run JDM against the newer code - it's not recommended as certain fields are no longer populated/viewable via JDM.  Basic port functions still work though.

First:  Get some L-2 switches on EDM based code and see what everyone thinks about the new Web interface.
Next:  Get prices of the Cisco Equivalent (fully outfitted) of the 5000 series switches and compare to what you have in production.  A Cost-Benefit analysis of the 'Forklift' upgrade approach makes purchasing COM look like peanuts!
Third:  Compare the 8600 to 8800 upgrade hardware costs and features to what an equivalent 6500 or Nexus 7000 would cost, port for port.  Do the same for the VSP9000, just to play fair.
Last:  Remember, the SMLT technology allows you to use almost anyone's L-2 switch on the edge, including those from vendors that support FCoE and FC, just with what is arguably the fastest failover mechanism available this side of a VSP9000.

TankII

P.S.  Don't forget to include power consumption and heat load in your matrix.  If you have issues now, major upgrades from any manufacturer could negatively impact your environment.