Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!oliveb!jerry
From: jerry@oliveb.olivetti.com (Jerry Aguirre)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re: Wanted: Delni
Summary: Cabletron has a rack mount kit
Keywords: DELNI DEMPR Cabletron
Message-ID: <23399@oliveb.olivetti.com>
Date: 9 Jun 88 20:13:53 GMT
References: <8806070434.AA09530@infidel.lanl.gov.ARPA> <10269@ncc.Nexus.CA>
Reply-To: jerry@oliveb.UUCP (Jerry Aguirre)
Organization: Olivetti ATC; Cupertino, Ca
Lines: 60

In article <10269@ncc.Nexus.CA> lyndon@ncc.UUCP (Lyndon Nerenberg) writes:
>In article <8806070434.AA09530@infidel.lanl.gov.ARPA> peter%infidel@LANL.GOV (Peter Ford) writes:
>>We have a cabletron DELNI clone which is better than the old DELNIs 
>>since it is loaded with lights which have helped in network debugging.
>
>Great! My question is: Do you have the rack mounting kit for
>the DELNI? Some of us like the lights mounted in the rack where
>everyone can see them.

When our DEC DELNI arrived I tried to mount it in a rack along with the
DEC LAT terminal servers.  They both come in a plastic case intended for
setting on a table or such.  To rack mount them you remove the plastic
case and inside there is a metal case that will fit into a rack.  (We
still have those empty plastic cases taking up room on a shelf.)

The LAT units installed with no problems but when I went to do the same
for the DELNI the brackets didn't line up with anything.  A little
investigation showed that the brackets included with the DELNI were the
ones for a LAT.  I thought this was just a fluke but others on the net
have complained that this always happens.  There is some screwup with
the part number so that even if you order the part for the DELNI you get
the bracket for the LAT.  According to one source the only way to get
the right part is to order the DELNI in one of DECs wiring cabinets.
Meanwhile our DELNI lays on the bottom of the rack.

The Cabletron MT-800 has a rack mount option (RMK-1000) that lists for
$75.  It is a little bulky for my tastes.  It is actually a shelf that
the MT-800 bolts to, but it works well and looks nice from the front.
(You want to be able to see those blinky lights.)

The MT-800 also comes (standard) with a bracket in the back that you can
tie-wrap all the cables to, including the power cord.  Those of you
familiar with transceiver connections and their slide-lock fasteners
will understand the importance of strain-relief.  The bracket and
tie-wrap combination is so effective that you can move the other end of
the cable arround and it wont pull out of the MT-800 even if the
slide-lock isn't fastened.

The Cabletron MR-9000 thin ethernet multiport repeater (DEMPR clone) has
the same chassis as the MT-800 and uses the same rack mount kit.  The
same strain relief bracket is included but I have not found it necessary
for BNC connections.  It does help for the power cord and transceiver
connection.

Cabletron has always shiped my orders very fast, usually in a couple of
days after we generate the PO.

Now for the bad news.  I had one of the MR-9000s fail.  No big deal, it
had been running for 6 months and I expect some failures.  (Actually I
also had a transceiver on a different floor fail at or about the same
time.  I suspect some kind of electrical spike.)  But I didn't find
Cabletron very responsive; it took several days and many phone calls to
get me the RMA number and the repair took over a week.  To be honest I
wasn't really pushing or screaming for immediate help.  I had borrowed
another unit and my network was working again the same day.  Perhaps if
I had told them I was off the air they would have arranged a loaner.
What was disturbing was that I have written a PO and received a new unit
from them in half the time it took to get an in-warranty repair.  I
finally decided to just order a spare unit.

				Jerry Aguirre