On 04/16/98 09:10:23 you wrote:
I know that Stornet has a slightly better price than NetApp, but it is still several times what I'd expect to pay for RAM.
My experience has been that if you get third-party components, they are going to be less reliable. Period.
That's a shame. You might try some other third-party vendors.
Perhaps you'd care to tell us what "others" you refer to? I've had experience with just about every vendor I can think of. What third-party vendor have you found to be more reliable than Netapp's components? Perhaps your experience with a given vendor differs from mine.
Whatever the cheaper component is, be prepared to pay double that, because if the first RAM you buy fails, you'll have to buy it again and hope the timing and quality is better. If the Netapp RAM fails under support, they'll replace is for free.
And this borders on the absurd. It's been a long time since I bought RAM which did not have a lifetime warranty. The few times I have had problems with RAM, the vendor has been more than happy to replace it.
Well, I guess it depends on the vendor. The thing is that while you may say the RAM has problems, it appears to work for them in their tests, so I could see them arguing over taking it back. But I suppose for some vendors it's easier to just throw it back in stock for the next customer. :)
I guess that's my point. If Netapp's RAM fails in a Netapp, they'll replace it. If the memory you buy at Fry's fails in a Netapp, the customer service guy is gonna look at you and say "Netwhat?"
Bruce