Stack Setting on ESW2-550X Series Stackable Switches

Objective

The stacking of switches allows the configuration and management of all the switches in the stack as one logical switch. The stack can be thought as a single unit wherein all ports on any of the stacked switches can be used and configured from the Active unit in the stack. ESW2-550X runs on both layer 2 and layer 3 mode.

This article explains how to configure a stack on the ESW2-350G Series Stackable Switches.

If you are unfamiliar with the terms used below, check out Cisco Business: Glossary of New Terms.

Applicable Devices

• ESW2-550X
• ESW2-550X-DC

Software Version

• 1.3.0.62

Initial Stack Configuration

Step 1.  Log in to the web configuration utility and choose Administration > System Mode and Stack Management. The System Mode and Stack Management page opens:

The Operational Status area displays the following information:

• Stack Mode — Displays whether the device is part of a stack or not.

– Standalone — The switch is not a part of a stack and act alone.

– Native Stacking — The switch is part of a stack and act as Active/Member/Standby based on user configuration.

• Stack Topology — If the switch is part of a stack, this field displays what type of stack topology it is using.

– Chain — The switch is a part of a stack using the chain topology. The illustration below shows an example chain stack topology. A chain stack topology does not have full redundancy. If a stack cable connection fails, two switch stacks will be formed.

– Ring — The switch is part of a stack using the ring topology and has full redundancy. The illustration below shows an example of a ring stack topology. If a stack cable connection fails in the ring topology, the stack will revert to a chain topology but will still act as one stack. Repair or replace the faulty link to return back to a ring topology.

• System Mode — Displays whether the devices in the stack are in Layer 2 or Layer 3 mode. Layer 3 mode supports routing functionalities.
• Active Election Status — Displays how the stack Active unit was chosen. The possible options are:

– Force Active — Denotes that the Active is user selected and forced.

– System Up Time — Denotes that the Active is selected based on the number of time segments (Up time). The highest number will be the Active where a segment is 10 minutes.

– Unit ID — Denotes that the Active is selected based on the lowest Unit ID.

– MAC Address — Denotes that the Active is selected based on the lowest available MAC address.

Step 2. Check the check box next to the switch that needs to change stack settings for in the Stack Administration Settings Table.

The following information of the switch is displayed:

• Stack Unit Number — The unit ID of the switch in the stack.
• Model Name — The model name of the switch.
• Stack Connection 1 — The information about the port, speed and neighbor to the switch to troubleshoot, configure or to understand the stack connection.

– Port — Port with which the stack is configured. Example : S1,XG1 etc.

– Speed — Speed of the connection with which the stack is maintained.

– Neighbor — Neighor switch to present switch.

Step 3. Choose Native Stacking from the Stack Unit Mode drop-down list.

Step 4. Choose the unit number for the switch in the stack from the Stack Unit Number drop-down list. Choose Auto if you would like the system to number the unit. Choose 1,2,3 to assign the unit to be the designated unit number. Choose 1-Force Active or 2-Force Active to assign the unit number and to make it the Active unit after reboot.

Step 5. Choose the pair of ports on the switch to be used for stacking from the Stack Ports drop-down list.

Step 6. Choose the port speed of the stack from the Stack Ports Speed drop-down list. The possible values are 1G (1 Gigabit) and 5G (5 Gigabit). If the connection is 100 Mbps, only 1G option would be available at the drop-down list.

Step 7. Click Apply and Reboot to reboot the device with the configured settings. Rebooting the switch takes 1-2 minutes.

Step 8. Connect the switches that require stacking by inserting the appropriate cables into the appropriate stacking ports as designated in Step 6. You may then configure the rest of the switches using the above steps.