Post EOSL Options for NetApp FAS6000 Equipment

With the forthcoming end-of-support-life (EOSL) for the NetApp FAS6040 and FAS6080, many customers are now making decisions about this storage hardware. Does it have a future in the production environment or elsewhere in the enterprise? Or is it time to install something new? Here we’ll lay out the options within the NetApp product ecosystem.

Upgrade Pathways

The FAS6000 series has undergone two overhauls since the FAS6040 and FAS6080. Customers in need of some added performance at an affordable cost may be able to find new or used FAS6210, FAS6240, or FAS6280 filers to meet their needs. The downside here is that the early FAS6200 series doesn’t delay the inevitable for long—EOSL reaches this line next year, in 2018.

A more recent product set includes the FAS6220, FAS6250, and FAS6290, which don’t reach EOSL until 2020. But they have already been replaced by the FAS8000 series.

All of these are valid options—but none necessitates remanding the FAS6040 or FAS6080 to the reclamation facility. Lab, remote offices, and backup locations can still benefit from these systems, especially if they continue to operate at peak performance.

Support Options for Any Decision

Different IT shops will make different decisions about the next steps after the FAS6040 and FAS6080, but Park Place Technologies offers support options to fit each and every one.

• Post-EOSL support. For customers opting to keep the FAS6040 and/or FASA6080—whether in production or for lab or backup purposes—there is no reason to worry about support. Park Place can take on these filers immediately. The same goes for the FAS6220, FAS6250, and FAS6290, whose fast-approaching EOSL dates make them a prime candidate for a third party maintenance provider like us.
• Post-warranty support. Hardware doesn’t need to be approaching OEM obsolescence to benefit from Park Place support. Many customers switch to our alternative support contracts as soon as the first warranty renewal, so they can benefit from our lower costs and more responsive service. Find out more about their reasoning here.
• Multi-vendor support. Customers using NetApp hardware alongside storage, server, and networking equipment from other OEMs have an extra reason to move toward Park Place for support—simplicity. Rather than manage the complexity of multiple support providers, each with their own contract specifics, renewal timeframes, support protocols, etc., customers can put a large proportion of data center or enterprise equipment under a single, high-performing contract. Find out more about the advantages of a “one stop support shop” here.

Park Place has NetApp experts in local markets around the world, as well as 110 spare parts depots. Combined with our instant escalation policy, these make it easy to get fast, effective service for any problem or question clients may have with NetApp hardware or ONTAP.

Check out the features and support for NetApp enterprise hardware click here or contact us today.