Brocade Maintenance
Independent support for Brocade and IBM SAN switches
Brocade Fibre Channel switches remain at the heart of many enterprise storage environments. Whether your hardware carries the Brocade name or is supplied as an IBM b-type SAN switch, Baby Blue can provide a cost-effective alternative to expensive OEM maintenance.
Our service helps organisations extend the life of their SAN infrastructure, reduce support costs and avoid unnecessary hardware refreshes.
Support for IBM b-type SAN switches
Many IBM SAN switches are built using Brocade technology. We support both Brocade-branded hardware and IBM equivalents including:
If you're unsure which platform you own, simply send us the model or serial number and we'll identify it for you.
Platforms we support
Our maintenance capability covers a wide range of Brocade technologies including:
Fibre Channel Switches
- Brocade 300
- 5100
- 5300
- 6505
- 6510
- 6520
- G610
- G620
- G630
- G710
- G720
- G730
- Gen 8 platforms
Directors
- DCX
- DCX-4S
- DCX 8510
- X6
- X7
SAN Extension
- 7500
- 7800
- 7810
- 7840
- 7850
- FCIP platforms
Support is also available for selected Brocade Ethernet, Foundry and legacy networking products. The maintenance capability available through our partners includes Brocade director blades, SAN directors, FCIP equipment, FICON acceleration and Brocade/Foundry networking platforms.
What's included?
Depending on your chosen service level, maintenance can include:
- Remote technical support
- Advanced hardware replacement
- On-site engineering
- Flexible response times
- UK and global parts logistics
- 24×7 support options
Whether you require next business day or mission-critical four-hour cover, we'll tailor a service around your business.
Why choose Baby Blue?
Unlike many maintenance providers, we understand the complete IBM storage ecosystem.
We don't just support the switch, we understand how it interacts with:
- IBM Power Systems
- IBM FlashSystem
- IBM Storwize
- IBM DS8000
- Dell EMC storage
- HPE storage
- Pure Storage
- Fibre Channel infrastructure
This allows us to support your wider environment, not just a single device.
OEM, Third-Party or Hybrid Support
Not every environment needs the same approach.
We'll help determine whether OEM support, independent maintenance or a hybrid model offers the best balance of cost, resilience and future upgrade flexibility.
Where firmware or Fabric OS entitlement is required, we'll advise accordingly as software licensing remains separate from hardware maintenance.
Don't replace your SAN before speaking to Baby Blue
Many organisations assume they need to replace perfectly good Brocade hardware simply because OEM support has become expensive or has ended.
In reality, independent maintenance can safely extend the life of your SAN for years while giving you time to plan upgrades around your business, not your support contract.
If you're approaching renewal, send us your asset list and we'll:
- Identify your Brocade and IBM models
- Confirm what can be supported
- Recommend the most appropriate service level
- Provide a competitive maintenance quotation
Don't renew until you've spoken to Baby Blue.
