As a network expert, an unglamorous part of our job is tied to tedious, but important tasks. A perfect example is tracking how old devices are so we can monitor upgrade needs, end of life, and/or end of support issues.
If we had plenty of time and kept meticulous notes and documentation on each and every device, it might not be too painful. But who among us really has that much time?
A key component to the Infoblox Network Automation platform is the ability to continuously handle tasks such as this use case quickly and easily.
I just published a Tech Tip on Finding How Old Cisco Devices Are Based on Serial Number. You can view the details by following the link, but here’s a quick snapshot of the power of network automation.
- Track current inventory including chassis serial number with NetMRI
- Create a custom filter based on serial number using a simple RegEx command in NetMRI
- Receive a list of all serial numbers that matched the criteria
- Save filter for future use
Be sure to visit the Tech Tip for a Cheat Sheet to determine the age of the device based on criteria tied to the serial number.