LANCOM XS-4554YUP VPC configuration with switches User Guide
- August 26, 2024
- LANCOM
Table of Contents
LANCOM XS-4554YUP VPC configuration with switches
Specifications
- Product: LANCOM switches
- Feature: Virtual Port Channel (VPC)
- Benefits: Redundancy, reliability, high availability, improved performance
Product Usage Instructions
Assign System Name
- In order to identify the switches, set the hostname using the CLI:
(XS-4530YUP)#hostname VPC_1_Node_1``(XS-4530YUP)#hostname VPC_1_Node_2
Switch Stacking Ports to Ethernet Ports
- Change port mode from Stack to Ethernet:
(VPC_1_Node_1)(Config-stack)#stack-port 1/0/29 ethernet(VPC_1_Node_1)(Config-stack)#stack-port 1/0/30 ethernet - Repeat the same configuration on VPC_1_Node_2.
- Note: Restart the switch after changing the port mode.
Check Port Mode and Restart
- Verify the port mode status:
(VPC_1_Node_1)#show stack-port - Save the configuration, restart the switch, and recheck the port mode.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What are the benefits of using VPC with LANCOM switches?
A: VPC provides redundancies that improve reliability, high availability, and network performance.
Q: Do I need any special knowledge to configure VPC on LANCOM switches?
A: A basic understanding of switch configuration is recommended.
INTRODUCTION
Setup guide: VPC configuration with LANCOM switches
- The virtualization feature Virtual Port Channel (VPC) provides redundancies that significantly improve the reliability, high availability, and performance of network infrastructures.
- This setup guide gives you step-by-step instructions for configuring your VPC-enabled LANCOM core and aggregation/distribution switches.
- This document assumes the reader has a general understanding of a switch configuration.
- This paper is part of the series “Switching Solutions.
- Click on the icons to find out more about the information available from LANCOM.
- Basics
- Basics
- Design Guide
- Setup guide
- VPC configuration with LANCOM switches
- Setup guide
- Setup guide
Virtual Port Channel explained in brief
Virtual Port Channel, or VPC for short, is a virtualization technology that makes two interconnected switches appear to devices on the underlying access layer to be a single logical layer-2 node. This is ensured by the “peer link”, which is a virtual group of port channels established via VPC. The connected device could be a switch, server, or other network device that supports link aggregation technology. VPC belongs to the Multichassis EtherChannel [MCEC] family and is also known as MC-LAG (Multi-Chassis Link Aggregation Group).
- The commands below must all be executed in a coordinated manner on both switches.
- In this example, the configuration is carried out using two LANCOM XS-4530YUP switches.
Assign system name
In order to identify the switches during configuration, the host name should be set correspondingly. The hostname is always displayed on the command line at the beginning of a prompt.
Switch stacking ports to Ethernet ports
Most of the LANCOM VPC-enabled switches are also capable of stacking. However, VPC and stacking are mutually exclusive. A switch that is a member of a VPC domain cannot be a member of a stack at the same time. Stacked switches can of course be redundantly connected to a VPC domain as “VPC Unaware LAG partners” via LACP. If the switch used is stacking-capable, the predefined stacking ports should be put into Ethernet mode. This eliminates accidental stacking (stacks are formed automatically as soon as stacking ports are connected to stacking ports of a compatible switch) and the highest-value stacking ports are available for the VPC interconnect.
Displaying the port mode
VPC_1_Node_1 (example)
Changing the port mode from Stack to Ethernet
VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
- The switch must be restarted to change the port mode. With show stack-port, you can see that the current mode is still set to Stack, but the configured mode is already Ethernet.
- After saving the configuration and restarting the switch, the configuration is now Ethernet in both cases.
- Check the port mode, save and restart the switch, check again
VPC_1_Node_1
(VPC_1_Node_1)#write memory confirm
- Config file ‘startup-config’ was created successfully.
Configuration Saved!
- (VPC_1_Node_1)#reload
- Are you sure you want to reload the stack? (y/n) y
[… reboot Ausgabe gekürzt …]
- (VPC_1_Node_1)>en
- (VPC_1_Node_1)#show stack-p
VPC_1_Node_2
- (VPC_1_Node_2)>en
- (VPC_1_Node_2)#show stack-port
VPC_1_Node_2
Activate feature
Activate VPC: Enables the VPC feature on the switch.
Create VPC VLAN and set up VLAN interface
VPC_1_Node_2
Set up the VPC Control Plane
- For the VPC keepalive (split-brain detection) of the VPC domain, both switches require a dedicated L3 interface. Use an outband interface (service port / OOB) or an inband interface (VLAN) for this task.
Option 4.1 / alternative 1 (outbound)
- The out-of-band configuration can be used if the members of the VPC domain are installed close to one another (e.g. in the same rack) or if an out-of-band management network is set up.
- Without out-of-band management, the service port (OOB, rear of the device) can be connected directly with a patch cable.
- In this configuration, a split-brain situation can be detected even if the VPC peer link is down.
Set up VPC Keepalive on the service port VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
Option 4.2 / Alternative 2 (Inband)
- The inband configuration can be used for VPC domains that cover long distances where direct cabling via the service port is not possible. In this case, a device failure of the peer node can be detected.
- However, the failure of the VPC peer link cannot be compensated because it transports both payload data and the keepalive.
- To do this, a new VLAN is first created in the VLAN database (VLAN ID 100 in the following example). The L3 VLAN interface is then created on VLAN 100 and the IP address is assigned according to the network plan.
Set up VPC Keepalive on a VLAN interface VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
In the next step, the VPC domain is set up and the peer keepalive is configured to the IP address of the other switch. The lower role priority sets the switch VPC1_Node_1 as the VPC primary node.
Create VPC VLAN and set up VLAN interface VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
Assign system MAC address
- Both devices of the VPC group in the VPC LAG role must appear as a single device to non-VPC-capable lower-layer devices, so the same virtual system MAC must be assigned (default 00:00:00:00:00).
- The default MAC should urgently be changed to a single unique address, even if only one VPC domain is currently in use. Otherwise, having more than one VPC domain connected to a lower-layer switch may lead to failures.
- To avoid conflicts with other systems, we recommend that you use a Locally Administered MAC Address (LAA). If a MAC address generator is used, make sure that the U/L flag = 1 (LAA).
Create VPC VLAN and set up VLAN interface VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
Create a VPC peer link
Next, a static LAG is created for the VPC peer link and assigned to the physical ports. The Spanning Tree Protocol must be disabled on the VPC Interconnect. The example uses LAG1 and physical ports 1/0/29 and 1/0/30 (see network diagram).
Configuring the VPC Interconnect VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
- Outside of the VPC, the VPC Interconnect functions like a regular uplink. Here, too, all configured VLANs must be able to be transmitted.
- The VLAN-Range command as shown configures all known VLANs on the LAG. If additional VLANs are created, they must be added subsequently to the Interconnect.
Assign the configured VLANs to the VPC peer link VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
Enable UDLD (optional / if required)
- If the VPC domain covers long distances via fiber-optic cables, one of the fiber pairs can fail at one end (e.g. mechanical damage). In this case, from the perspective of a switch, the transmit direction is disturbed, while the receive direction still works.
- The switch with a functional receive direction has no way of detecting a failure in the send direction, so it continues to send on this interface, which leads to packet loss. The UDLD (Unidirectional Link Detection) function provides a solution here.
- This takes the port affected by the fault completely out of service. For short connections (short fiber-optic patch cables within a rack, or DAC cables) this step is usually unnecessary.
Assign the configured VLANs to the VPC peer link VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
Connecting a lower-layer switch via LACP (Link-Aggregation Control Protocol)
- The redundant connection of a lower-layer switch is shown using the example of a LANCOM GS-3652X. For this example, additional VLANs were created in the VLAN database (10-170) and assigned to the VPC peer link as described above.
- On the VPC domain side, interfaces 1/0/1 are used on both nodes, and interfaces 1/0/1-1/0/2 are used on the GS-3652X on the lower layer.
- In the LAG 2 configuration, vpc2 specifies the shared port-channel ID within the VPC domain. For the sake of clarity, it is advisable to use the local port-channel IDs (light blue) on both nodes and also the VPC port-channel ID (electric blue) to match.
- The local LAG IDs of the VPC nodes do not have to match one another or the VPC LAG ID. The connection of a logical VPC LAG to a third-party device must always have the same VPC port channel ID.
Create the VPC port channel on the nodes of the VPC domain 1 VPC_1_Node_1
VPC_1_Node_2
The switch on the lower layer can then be configured.
Create the VPC port channel on the nodes of the VPC domain 1 GS-3652X (VPC Unaware LAG Partner)
After successful configuration and cabling, check the configuration with the following commands.
Checking the configuration on VPC_1_Node_1 (example)
Checking the configuration on VPC_1_Node_1 (example)
Functional test
GS-3652X (VPC Unaware LAG Partner)
Further information
- For a full overview of VPC commands, see the CLI Reference Manual LCOS SX 5.20.
- General configuration instructions and assistance can also be found in the LANCOM Support Knowledge Base under “Articles on Switches & Switching”.
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- LANCOM, LANCOM Systems, LCOS, LANcommunity, and Hyper Integration are registered trademarks. All other names or descriptions used may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their owners.
- This document contains statements relating to future products and their attributes. LANCOM Systems reserves the right to change these without notice. No liability for technical errors and/or omissions. 07/2024
References
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