[volt-nuts] "*WAY* too expensive for even Keysight to redesign"

[Marv @ Home]

Aside, there are private fabrication houses that make short runs of 
obsolete chips in order to keep mission critical electronics running, 
such as in aerospace and military applications.  I'm not sure what 
Keysight would actually do, but I would presume not only do they 
stockpile key parts, both active and passives, as well as full boards 
for board level swaps, but periodic re-checking their inventory for 
functional integrity can be a never ending task as components age 
beyond their expected operational life.  If parts truly were to 
become obsolete even beyond private fabrication, their management 
should design replacements boards and field test them way in advance 
of parts becoming extinct, until they decided the product was not 
worth maintaining.

http://www.lansdale.com/