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Network Upgrade Time Calculator

Estimate a fleet software upgrade: image transfer, reload time, per-device duration and total elapsed campaign time.

About Network Upgrade Time Calculator

Within a batch the devices are upgraded in parallel, so the campaign length is the number of batches multiplied by the time one device takes rather than the sum over all devices. Only the reload and health-check portion is customer-affecting; the image transfer happens while the device is still in service. Rollouts are planned in change windows of a few hours, and the batch arithmetic is what tells you whether a 120-device fleet is one night's work or six.

Formula

Network Upgrade Time

transfer minutes = image MB × 8 ÷ (Mbps × 60); per device = transfer + reload + health check; campaign = batches × per-device time.

× 8
Megabytes converted to megabits
batches
ceil(devices ÷ devices per batch)

Worked example

With the default values below, Network Upgrade Time Calculator returns Total Campaign Time of 4.10. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Devices to upgradeaccepts 1–100,000 devices
120 devices
Software image sizeaccepts 1–100,000 MB
900 MB
Transfer bandwidth per deviceaccepts 0.1–100,000 Mbps
50 Mbps
Reload and boot timeaccepts 0.1–500 minutes
9 minutes
Health check per deviceaccepts 0–500 minutes
5 minutes
Devices upgraded per batchaccepts 1–5,000 devices
8 devices

Results

Total Campaign Time
4.10 hours
Time per Device
16.40 minutes
Image Transfer Time
2.40 minutes
Batches Required
15
Service Outage per Device
14.00 minutes

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2Network Upgrade Time
  3. 3Total Campaign Time= 4.10 hours
  4. 4Time per Device= 16.40 minutes
  5. 5Image Transfer Time= 2.40 minutes
  6. 6Batches Required= 15
  7. 7Service Outage per Device= 14.00 minutes

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 6 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax or compounding frequency into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is Network Upgrade Time calculated?

transfer minutes = image MB × 8 ÷ (Mbps × 60); per device = transfer + reload + health check; campaign = batches × per-device time. Within a batch the devices are upgraded in parallel, so the campaign length is the number of batches multiplied by the time one device takes rather than the sum over all devices. Only the reload and health-check portion is customer-affecting; the image transfer happens while the device is still in service.

Why does Network Upgrade Time matter?

Rollouts are planned in change windows of a few hours, and the batch arithmetic is what tells you whether a 120-device fleet is one night's work or six.

What values do I need to enter?

This calculator takes 6 inputs: Devices to upgrade, Software image size, Transfer bandwidth per device, Reload and boot time, Health check per device, Devices upgraded per batch. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.

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