RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, CISCO SYSTEMS INC 25-Dec-2021
After only 22 years of service, a 6509 chassis deployed at a customer location has reportedly reached its final end of life. Taken from us in its prime, lon1-gandalf01, known simply as “Gandalf” by those close to it, put in its final notice after the power outage at Interexion’s LON1 facility killed off the last working PSU. Network Engineer Rich Ikhanda, the technician tasked with placing gandalf into its final resting box, stated “it’s a real shame to see this router taken out of service while it still had its youth. I mean, it was barely out of its teens! A true tragedy.” Rich reminisced that “once we disabled that bastard protocol, IPv6, we could easily fit the entire v4 table into Gandalf’s TCAM with plenty of room to spare, until everyone else had the same idea and even the “real” internet table grew too large, referencing the IPv4 default free zone. Luckily we were able to slice, dice, and julienne using as-paths, like real network engineers.”.
Gandalf will be replaced by a UniFi USG-Pro nicknamed “Gandalf the White”. When asked if there were any concerns with Gandalf’s replacement, Rich stated that “I am not sure about this whole app thing to run a network, but it has gigabit interfaces, it should be good to go.”
Gandalf is survived by nearly one million IPv4 routes and a 6513-E named Frodo, all of whom will feel the impact from this loss (as they continue to reconverge).