Goodwill And Intangible Assets (Schedule Of Goodwill Activity By Reportable Segment) (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended				9 Months Ended
	Aug. 02, 2014		Jul. 27, 2013		Aug. 02, 2014		Jul. 27, 2013
Goodwill
Goodwill, Gross, Beginning Balance					$ 1,691,269
Accumulated impairment losses, Beginning Balance					(45,832)
Goodwill, Net, Beginning Balance					1,645,437
Goodwill, Impairment Loss	0	[1]	0	[1]	(83,382)	[1],[2]	0	[1]
Goodwill, Written off related to divestitures					(4,131)	[3]
Goodwill, Tax and other adjustments					(1,563)	[4]
Goodwill, Gross, Ending Balance	1,685,575				1,685,575
Accumulated impairment losses, Ending Balance	(129,214)				(129,214)
Goodwill, Net, Ending Balance	1,556,361				1,556,361
SAN Products
Goodwill
Goodwill, Gross, Beginning Balance					176,878
Accumulated impairment losses, Beginning Balance					0
Goodwill, Net, Beginning Balance					176,878
Goodwill, Impairment Loss					0	[2]
Goodwill, Written off related to divestitures					(474)	[3]
Goodwill, Tax and other adjustments					(52)	[4]
Goodwill, Gross, Ending Balance	176,352				176,352
Accumulated impairment losses, Ending Balance	0				0
Goodwill, Net, Ending Balance	176,352				176,352
IP Networking Products
Goodwill
Goodwill, Gross, Beginning Balance					1,358,975
Accumulated impairment losses, Beginning Balance					(45,832)
Goodwill, Net, Beginning Balance					1,313,143
Goodwill, Impairment Loss					(83,382)	[2]
Goodwill, Written off related to divestitures					(3,657)	[3]
Goodwill, Tax and other adjustments					(1,511)	[4]
Goodwill, Gross, Ending Balance	1,353,807				1,353,807
Accumulated impairment losses, Ending Balance	(129,214)				(129,214)
Goodwill, Net, Ending Balance	1,224,593				1,224,593
Global Services
Goodwill
Goodwill, Gross, Beginning Balance					155,416
Accumulated impairment losses, Beginning Balance					0
Goodwill, Net, Beginning Balance					155,416
Goodwill, Impairment Loss					0	[2]
Goodwill, Written off related to divestitures					0	[3]
Goodwill, Tax and other adjustments					0	[4]
Goodwill, Gross, Ending Balance	155,416				155,416
Accumulated impairment losses, Ending Balance	0				0
Goodwill, Net, Ending Balance	$ 155,416				$ 155,416

[1] For additional discussion on goodwill impairment, see Note 4, “Goodwill and Intangible Assets,” of the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

[2] In the second quarter of fiscal year 2014, the Company made a strategic shift in the allocation of its engineering resources and has reduced its investment in the hardware-based Brocade ADX® products and increased investment in the software-based Brocade ADX products for Layer 4-7 applications. As a result of this change in strategy, the Company expects hardware-based Brocade ADX and related support revenue to be negatively impacted. Based on these changes in estimates, the Company recognized an impairment charge during the second fiscal quarter of 2014 because the book value of its Application Delivery Products (“ADP”) reporting unit net assets, which includes the Brocade ADX products, exceeded the estimated fair value of these assets. The goodwill amount related to the Company’s other reporting units was not impacted.

[3] The goodwill disposed relates to the sale of the Company’s network adapter business, see Note 3, “Acquisitions and Divestitures,” of the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

[4] The goodwill adjustments during the nine months ended August 2, 2014, were primarily a result of tax benefits from the exercise of stock awards of acquired companies.