I don’t think we’re buying hardware anymore at this level. I think we’re buying software and support with hardware included. Not sure how I feel about this on all situations but I’d say that’s the only perspective the vendors can defend. It’s too bad for them too since eventually someone will build free software too.
It’s too bad for them too since eventually someone will build free software too.
In many cases, they already are, though it's debatable whether it's ready to compete head-on with the major commercial offerings. You can buy white box switches and open software platforms to control them for SDN purposes right now, for example. But I'd say so far the main SDN suites haven't built up a great reputation and a lot of IT groups still prefer to source everything from one supplier with an expensive but all-encompassing support contract.
Sure. My point was just that the more free/open alternatives to newer technologies in the industry aren't necessarily advanced enough yet to displace coughing up whatever it takes to buy big name brands and their big budget support contracts so everything comes from one place.
