LAN Uplinks Manager

This chapter includes the following sections:

LAN Uplinks Manager

The LAN Uplinks Manager provides a single interface where you can configure the connections between Cisco UCS and the LAN. You can use the LAN Uplinks Manager to create and configure the following:

  • Ethernet switching mode

  • Uplink Ethernet ports

  • Port channels

  • LAN pin groups

  • Named VLANs

  • Server ports

  • QoS system classes

Some of the configuration that you can do in the LAN Uplinks Manager can also be done in nodes on other tabs, such as the Equipment tab or the LAN tab.

Launching the LAN Uplinks Manager

Procedure
    Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click LAN.
    Step 2   On the LAN tab, click the LAN node.
    Step 3   In the Work pane, click the LAN Uplinks Manager link on the LAN Uplinks tab.

    The LAN Uplinks Manager opens in a separate window.

    Changing the Ethernet Switching Mode with the LAN Uplinks Manager

    Important:

    When you change the Ethernet switching mode, Cisco UCS Manager logs you out and restarts the fabric interconnect. For a cluster configuration, Cisco UCS Manager restarts both fabric interconnects. The subordinate fabric interconnect reboots first as a result of the change in switching mode. The primary fabric interconnect reboots only after you acknowledge it in Pending Activities. The primary fabric interconnect can take several minutes to complete the change in Ethernet switching mode and become system ready. The existing configuration is retained.

    While the fabric interconnects are rebooting, all blade servers lose LAN and SAN connectivity, causing a complete outage of all services on the blades. This might cause the operating system to fail.

    Procedure
      Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
      Step 2   In the Uplink Mode area, click one of the following buttons:

      • Set Ethernet Switching Mode

      • Set Ethernet End-Host Mode

      The button for the current switching mode is dimmed.

      Step 3   In the dialog box, click Yes.

      Cisco UCS Manager restarts the fabric interconnect, logs you out, and disconnects Cisco UCS Manager GUI.

      Configuring a Port with the LAN Uplinks Manager

      All of the port types listed are configurable on both the fixed and expansion module, including server ports, which are not configurable on the 6100 series fabric interconnect expansion module, but are configurable on the 6200 series fabric interconnect expansion module.

      Procedure
        Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
        Step 2   In the Ports area, click the down arrows to expand the Unconfigured Ports section.
        Step 3   Expand Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name .
        Step 4   Expand the node where you want to configure ports.

        If no ports are listed below the node that you expanded, all ports in that module have already been configured.

        Step 5   Right-click the port that you want to configure and choose one of the following:
        • Configure as Server Port
        • Configure as Uplink Port
        Step 6   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

        Configuring Server Ports

        Enabling a Server Port with the LAN Uplinks Manager

        This procedure assumes that the port has been configured as a server port, but is disabled.

        Procedure
          Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
          Step 2   In the Ports area, click the down arrows to expand the Server Ports section.
          Step 3   Expand Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name .
          Step 4   Right-click the port that you want to enable and choose Enable.

          Disabling a Server Port with the LAN Uplinks Manager

          Procedure
            Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
            Step 2   In the Ports area, click the down arrows to expand the Server Ports section.
            Step 3   Expand Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name .
            Step 4   Right-click the port that you want to disable and choose Disable.
            Step 5   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

            Configuring Uplink Ethernet Ports

            Enabling an Uplink Ethernet Port with the LAN Uplinks Manager

            This procedure assumes that the port has been configured as an uplink Ethernet port, but is disabled.

            Procedure
              Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
              Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Interfaces > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name .
              Step 3   Right-click the port that you want to enable and choose Enable Interface.
              Step 4   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

              Disabling an Uplink Ethernet Port with the LAN Uplinks Manager

              Procedure
                Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Interfaces > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name .
                Step 3   Right-click the port that you want to disable and choose Disable Interfaces.

                You can select multiple ports if you want to disable more than one uplink Ethernet port.

                Step 4   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                The disabled port is removed from the list of enabled interfaces and returned to the Unconfigured Ports list.

                Configuring Uplink Ethernet Port Channels

                Creating a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                Procedure
                  Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                  Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, click Create Port Channel.
                  Step 3   From the pop-up menu, select one of the following fabric interconnects where you want to create the port channel:
                  • Fabric Interconnect A
                  • Fabric Interconnect B
                  Step 4   In the Set Port Channel Name panel, specify the ID and name, then click Next.
                  Step 5   In the Add Ports panel, specify the ports you want to add.
                  Note   

                  Cisco UCS Manager warns you if you select a port that has been configured as a sever port. You can reconfigure that port as an uplink Ethernet port and include it in the port channel by clicking Yes in the dialog box.

                  Step 6   In the Add Ports panel, specify the ports that you want to add.
                  Note   

                  Cisco UCS Manager warns you if you select a port that has been configured as a server port. You can click Yes in the dialog box to reconfigure that port as an uplink Ethernet port and include it in the port channel.

                  Step 7   Click Finish.

                  Enabling a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                  Procedure
                    Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                    Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Port Channels > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name.
                    Step 3   Right-click the port channel that you want to enable and choose Enable Port Channel.
                    Step 4   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                    Disabling a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                    Procedure
                      Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                      Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Port Channels > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name.
                      Step 3   Right-click the port channel that you want to disable and choose Disable Port Channel.
                      Step 4   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                      Adding Ports to a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                      Procedure
                        Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                        Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Port Channels > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name.
                        Step 3   Right-click the port channel to which you want to add ports and choose Add Ports.
                        Step 4   In the Add Ports dialog box, specify the ports that you want to add.
                        Note   

                        Cisco UCS Manager warns you if you select a port that has been configured as a server port. You can click Yes in the dialog box to reconfigure that port as an uplink Ethernet port and include it in the port channel.

                        Step 5   Click OK.

                        Removing Ports from a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                        Procedure
                          Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                          Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Port Channels > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name.
                          Step 3   Expand the port channel from which you want to remove ports.
                          Step 4   Right-click the port you want to remove from the port channel and choose Delete.
                          Step 5   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                          Deleting a Port Channel with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                          Procedure
                            Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                            Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, expand Port Channels > Fabric Interconnects > Fabric_Interconnect_Name.
                            Step 3   Right-click the port channel you want to delete and choose Delete.
                            Step 4   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                            Configuring LAN Pin Groups

                            Creating a Pin Group with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                            In a system with two fabric interconnects, you can associate the pin group with only one fabric interconnect or with both fabric interconnects.

                            Before You Begin

                            Configure the ports and port channels with which you want to configure the pin group. You can only include ports and port channels configured as uplink ports in a LAN pin group.

                            Procedure
                              Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                              Step 2   In the Port Channels and Uplinks area, click Create Pin Group.
                              Step 3   In the Create LAN Pin Group dialog box, enter a unique name and description for the pin group.
                              Step 4   To pin traffic for fabric interconnect A, do the following in the Targets area:
                              1. Check the Fabric Interconnect A check box.
                              2. Click the drop-down arrow on the Interface field and navigate through the tree-style browser to select the port or port channel you want to associate with the pin group.
                              Step 5   To pin traffic for fabric interconnect B, do the following in the Targets area:
                              1. Check the Fabric Interconnect B check box.
                              2. Click the drop-down arrow on the Interface field and navigate through the tree-style browser to select the port or port channel you want to associate with the pin group.
                              Step 6   Click OK.
                              What to Do Next

                              Include the pin group in a vNIC template.

                              Deleting a Pin Group with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                              Procedure
                                Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the LAN Uplinks tab.
                                Step 2   In the Pin Groups area, right-click the pin group you want to delete and choose Delete.
                                Step 3   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                                Configuring Named VLANs

                                Creating a Named VLAN with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                                In a Cisco UCS domain with two switches, you can create a named VLAN that is accessible to both switches or to only one switch.

                                Important:

                                You cannot create VLANs with IDs from 4030 to 4047. This range of VLAN IDs is reserved.

                                The VLAN IDs you specify must also be supported on the switch that you are using. For example, on Cisco Nexus 5000 Series switches, the VLAN ID range from 3968 to 4029 is reserved. Before you specify the VLAN IDs in Cisco UCS Manager, make sure that the same VLAN IDs are available on your switch.

                                VLANs in the LAN cloud and FCoE VLANs in the SAN cloud must have different IDs. Using the same ID for a VLAN and an FCoE VLAN in a VSAN results in a critical fault and traffic disruption for all vNICs and uplink ports using that VLAN. Ethernet traffic is dropped on any VLAN which has an ID that overlaps with an FCoE VLAN ID.

                                Procedure
                                  Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the VLANs tab.
                                  Step 2   On the icon bar to the right of the table, click +.

                                  If the + icon is disabled, click an entry in the table to enable it.

                                  Step 3   In the Create VLANs dialog box, specify the required fields and then click OK.
                                  Step 4   Click OK.

                                  Cisco UCS Manager adds the VLAN to one of the following VLANs nodes:

                                  • The LAN Cloud > VLANs node for a VLAN accessible to both fabric interconnects.

                                  • The Fabric_Interconnect_Name > VLANs node for a VLAN accessible to only one fabric interconnect.

                                  Deleting a Named VLAN with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                                  If Cisco UCS Manager includes a named VLAN with the same VLAN ID as the one you delete, the VLAN is not removed from the fabric interconnect configuration until all named VLANs with that ID are deleted.

                                  Procedure
                                    Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the VLANs tab.
                                    Step 2   Click one of the following subtabs, based on the VLAN that you want to delete:
                                    Subtab Description

                                    All

                                    Displays all VLANs in the Cisco UCS domain.

                                    Dual Mode

                                    Displays the VLANs that are accessible to both fabric interconnects.

                                    Fabric A

                                    Displays the VLANs that are accessible to only fabric interconnect A.

                                    Fabric B

                                    Displays the VLANs that are accessible to only fabric interconnect B.

                                    Step 3   In the table, click the VLAN you want to delete.

                                    You can use the Shift key or Ctrl key to select multiple entries.

                                    Step 4   Right-click the highlighted VLAN or VLANs and select Delete.
                                    Step 5   If a confirmation dialog box displays, click Yes.

                                    Configuring QoS System Classes with the LAN Uplinks Manager

                                    The type of adapter in a server might limit the maximum MTU supported. For example, network MTU above the maximums might cause the packet to be dropped for the following adapters:

                                    • The Cisco UCS M71KR CNA adapter, which supports a maximum MTU of 9216.

                                    • The Cisco UCS 82598KR-CI adapter, which supports a maximum MTU of 14000.

                                    Procedure
                                      Step 1   In the LAN Uplinks Manager, click the QoS tab.
                                      Step 2   Update the following properties for the system class you want to configure to meet the traffic management needs of the system:
                                      Note   

                                      Some properties may not be configurable for all system classes.

                                      Name Description

                                      Enabled check box

                                      If checked, the associated QoS class is configured on the fabric interconnect and can be assigned to a QoS policy.

                                      If unchecked, the class is not configured on the fabric interconnect and any QoS policies associated with this class default to Best Effort or, if a system class is configured with a Cos of 0, to the Cos 0 system class.

                                      Note   

                                      This field is always checked for Best Effort and Fibre Channel.

                                      CoS field

                                      The class of service. You can enter an integer value between 0 and 6, with 0 being the lowest priority and 6 being the highest priority. We recommend that you do not set the value to 0, unless you want that system class to be the default system class for traffic if the QoS policy is deleted or the assigned system class is disabled.

                                      Note   

                                      This field is set to 7 for internal traffic and to any for Best Effort. Both of these values are reserved and cannot be assigned to any other priority.

                                      Packet Drop check box

                                      If checked, packet drop is allowed for this class. If unchecked, packets cannot be dropped during transmission.

                                      This field is always unchecked for the Fibre Channel class, which never allows dropped packets, and always checked for Best Effort, which always allows dropped packets.
                                      Note   

                                      When you save changes to the Packet Drop, the following warning message displays:

                                      You are making changes to the QOS system class, which may cause momentary disruption to traffic forwarding. Are you sure you want to apply the changes?

                                      Weight drop-down list

                                      This can be one of the following:

                                      • An integer between 1 and 10. If you enter an integer, Cisco UCS determines the percentage of network bandwidth assigned to the priority level as described in the Weight (%) field.

                                      • best-effort.

                                      • none.

                                      Weight (%) field

                                      To determine the bandwidth allocated to a channel, Cisco UCS:

                                      1. Adds the weights for all the channels

                                      2. Divides the channel weight by the sum of all weights to get a percentage

                                      3. Allocates that percentage of the bandwidth to the channel

                                      MTU drop-down list

                                      The maximum transmission unit for the channel. This can be one of the following:

                                      • An integer between 1500 and 9216. This value corresponds to the maximum packet size.
                                        Note   

                                        When you save changes to the MTU, the following warning message displays:

                                        You are making changes to the QOS system class, which may cause momentary disruption to traffic forwarding. Are you sure you want to apply the changes?

                                      • fc—A predefined packet size of 2240.

                                      • normal—A predefined packet size of 1500.

                                      Note   

                                      This field is always set to fc for Fibre Channel.

                                      Multicast Optimized check box

                                      If checked, the class is optimized to send packets to multiple destinations simultaneously.

                                      Note   

                                      This option is not applicable to the Fibre Channel.

                                      Step 3   Do one of the following:
                                      • Click OK to save your changes and exit from the LAN Uplinks Manager.
                                      • Click Apply to save your changes without exiting from the LAN Uplinks Manager.