Juniper Switch Proves to be Credible Choice

Not Quite Reset

Our final check of device management involved a factory reset, which is generally considered a best practice when decommissioning a device (it's also a regulatory requirement in some industries).

Juniper offers four reset methods: There's a front-panel LED option, a CLI command and USB and TFTP file transfers of a new image. Unfortunately, the easiest of these -- using the front-panel LED menu -- doesn't fully restore the switch to its factory settings. After the reset, we found SSH keys and configuration files we'd previously stored. The USB and TFTP downloads actually do overwrite the existing file system. In any event, users are well advised to verify that any reset device really has been wiped clean.

Even considering the few shortcomings we found, the EX 4200 turned in solid results for a new product -- more solid, in fact, than some other vendors' third or fourth efforts. While Juniper clearly still has work to do, especially in its multicast code, the EX 4200 represents a real challenge to Cisco for enterprise access switching.