Cisco Switch in Hostile Environment

[DanZeMan]

Has anyone had any experience running Cisco switches in a zero-humidity environment?
We will be running the switches in a C1D2 Nitrogen (or instrument air w -60C dewpoint, approx .0002%) purged cabinet. Concerned about static, etc.

Also, will a grounded steel cabinet be sufficient to shield from RFI?

All answers appreciated.

PS: I know that their Specified Operating Conditions do NOT include 0%, but curious if anyone else is doing it, and what their experiences were....

 

[wybnormal]

I would take special care about static and grounding. We had issues with floating ground due to the house ground not quite being up to snuff. They(electricans) ended up core drilling a slab and thumping a ground rod into the hole for a direct earth ground. We would run copper braids from the racks to ground and braids from each piece of equipment to the rack. Overkill to a point but we needed to make absolutely sure we had grounds. You may run into floating ground issues with the network cables from the switch if you attach to anything outside the chamber. Also pay attention to inbound power.

The good news is the equipment wont corrode ;-) Wait till you play in the humitiy chamber. Everything gets conformal coated and that makes rework a huge pain.

MikeS
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