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Is the Distribution Layer Still Needed?

Posted by Cliff on from the it's-a-cisco-thang dept.

arnie_apesacrappin wonders: "I'm in the process of designing the network for a new building in what I would consider a small to medium sized company. It is on the scale of tens of access layer switches, not hundreds. There is a ongoing argument about the need for a distribution layer. My position is that with today's layer 2/3 switches in the core, the distribution layer is outdated for a network of this size. The layer 2/3 core can provide all the aggregation services of the old distribution layer and the routing/filtering functionality of the core with better price and performance. My opponents can only argue that having a distribution layer is the standard. So, are there good reasons for having a distribution layer in a small to medium network? If you were going to argue against the distribution layer, what points would you make?"

5 of 72 comments (clear)

  1. What? by Bootle · · Score: 4, Funny

    All your technical mumbo jumbo is leaving me bamboozilified. Could ya tone it down a tad?

    1. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Mr. President, what have we told you about posting on Slashdot?

  2. Re:Glad you don't work here. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    haha "Flamebait"? you must have pissed off an MCSE with mod points.

  3. Re:Spoken like a true CCNA by NoMoreNicksLeft · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yeh, but did your fancy university classes teach you how to route appletalk with EIGRP? Huh? Huh? Did you learn how to bridge CDP across legacy switches? Did you even learn why open standards like OSPF may not be the best choice in a modern high-powered network, you savage? I think not.

  4. Absurd! by wonkavader · · Score: 2, Funny

    Nothing could be more useless than an MSCE.