Cisco Nexus7000 Interfaces Config Guide 8x

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide
First Published: 2016-12-24

Last Modified: 2017-02-01
Americas Headquarters
Cisco Systems, Inc.
170 West Tasman Drive
San Jose, CA 95134-1706
USA
http://www.cisco.com
Tel: 408 526-4000
800 553-NETS (6387)
Fax: 408 527-0883
THE SPECIFICATIONS AND INFORMATION REGARDING THE PRODUCTS IN THIS MANUAL ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. ALL STATEMENTS,
INFORMATION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS IN THIS MANUAL ARE BELIEVED TO BE ACCURATE BUT ARE PRESENTED WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. USERS MUST TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR APPLICATION OF ANY PRODUCTS.
THE SOFTWARE LICENSE AND LIMITED WARRANTY FOR THE ACCOMPANYING PRODUCT ARE SET FORTH IN THE INFORMATION PACKET THAT SHIPPED WITH
THE PRODUCT AND ARE INCORPORATED HEREIN BY THIS REFERENCE. IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO LOCATE THE SOFTWARE LICENSE OR LIMITED WARRANTY,
CONTACT YOUR CISCO REPRESENTATIVE FOR A COPY.
The Cisco implementation of TCP header compression is an adaptation of a program developed by the University of California, Berkeley (UCB) as part of UCB's public domain version
of the UNIX operating system. All rights reserved. Copyright © 1981, Regents of the University of California.
NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER WARRANTY HEREIN, ALL DOCUMENT FILES AND SOFTWARE OF THESE SUPPLIERS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS" WITH ALL FAULTS.
CISCO AND THE ABOVE-NAMED SUPPLIERS DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THOSE OF
MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT OR ARISING FROM A COURSE OF DEALING, USAGE, OR TRADE PRACTICE.
IN NO EVENT SHALL CISCO OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
LIMITATION, LOST PROFITS OR LOSS OR DAMAGE TO DATA ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THIS MANUAL, EVEN IF CISCO OR ITS SUPPLIERS
HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
Any Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and phone numbers used in this document are not intended to be actual addresses and phone numbers. Any examples, command display output, network
topology diagrams, and other figures included in the document are shown for illustrative purposes only. Any use of actual IP addresses or phone numbers in illustrative content is unintentional
and coincidental.
Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. To view a list of Cisco trademarks, go to this URL: http://
www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership
relationship between Cisco and any other company. (1110R)
© 2016-2016 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

CONTENTS
Preface Preface xix

Preface xix
Audience xix
Document Conventions xix
Related Documentation xxi
Documentation Feedback xxi
Obtaining Documentation and Submitting a Service Request xxi
CHAPTER 1 New and Changed Information 1

New and Changed Information 1
CHAPTER 2 Overview 3
Information About Interfaces 3
Ethernet Interfaces 4
Access Ports 4
Trunk Ports 4
Private VLAN Hosts and Promiscuous Ports 4
Routed Ports 5
Management Interface 5
Port Channel Interfaces 5
vPCs 5
Subinterfaces 5
VLAN Network Interfaces 6
Loopback Interfaces 6
Tunnel Interfaces 6
Virtualization Interfaces 6
High Availability for Interfaces 6

iii
Contents
Licensing Requirements for Interfaces 6
CHAPTER 3 Configuring Basic Interface Parameters 7

Finding Feature Information 7
Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters 8
Guidelines and Limitations for Basic Interfaces Parameters 8
Default Settings for Basic Interfaces Parameters 10
Information About Basic Interface Parameters 11
Interface Description 11
Beacon 11
MDIX 11
Debounce Timer 11
Error Disabled 12
Interface Status Error Policy 12
Rate Mode 13
Speed Mode and Duplex Mode 13
Flow Control 14
Port MTU Size 14
Bandwidth 15
Throughput Delay 15
Administrative Status 15
Unidirectional Link Detection Parameter 16
UDLD Overview 16
Default UDLD Configuration 17
UDLD Aggressive and Nonaggressive Modes 17
Carrier Delay 18
Port Channel Parameters 18
Port Profiles 19
Time Domain Reflectometry Cable Diagnostics 20
Configuring Basic Interface Parameters 21
Specifying the Interfaces to Configure 21
Configuring the Interface Description 22
Configuring the Beacon Mode 23
Changing the Bandwidth Rate Mode 24

iv
Contents
Dedicating Bandwidth to One Port 24

Sharing the Bandwidth Among a Port Group 25
Configuring the Error-Disabled State 26
Enabling Error-Disable Detection 26
Enabling Error-Disabled Recovery 27
Configuring the Error-Disabled Recovery Interval 27
Configuring the MDIX Parameter 28
Configuring the Debounce Timer 29
Configuring the Interface Speed and Duplex Mode 30
Configuring Flow Control 31
Configuring MTU Size 32
Configuring Interface MTU Size 33
Configuring System Jumbo MTU Size 33
Configuring Bandwidth for Ethernet Interfaces 35
Configuring Throughput Delay 35
Shutting Down and Activating an Interface 36
Configuring UDLD Mode 37
Configuring Carrier Delay Timer 39
Configuring Port Profiles 40
Creating a Port Profile 40
Entering Port-Profile Configuration Mode and Modifying a Port Profile 41
Assigning a Port Profile to a Range of Interfaces 42
Enabling a Specific Port Profile 42
Inheriting a Port Profile 43
Removing a Port Profile from a Range of Interfaces 44
Removing an Inherited Port Profile 44
Performing TDR Cable Diagnostics 45
Configuring Rate Limits for Packets that Reach the Supervisor 46
Verifying Basic Interface Parameters 47
Monitoring Interface Counters 48
Displaying Interface Statistics 48
Clearing Interface Counters 49
Related Documents 50
CHAPTER 4 Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces 51

v
Contents

Feature History for Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces 51
Prerequisites for Layer 2 Interfaces 53
Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 2 Interfaces 53
Default Settings for Layer 2 Interfaces 54
Information About Layer 2 Interfaces 54
Access and Trunk Interfaces 55
IEEE 802.1Q Encapsulation 56
Access VLANs 57
Native VLAN IDs for Trunk Ports 57
Tagging Native VLAN Traffic 58
Allowed VLANs 58
Default Interfaces 59
Switch Virtual Interface and Autostate Behavior 59
SVI Autostate Exclude 59
SVI Autostate Disable 60
High Availability 60
Virtualization Support 60
Configuring Access and Trunk Interfaces 60
Configuring a VLAN Interface as a Layer 2 Access Port 60
Configuring Access Host Ports 62
Configuring a Trunk Port 63
Configuring the Native VLAN for 802.1Q Trunking Ports 64
Configuring the Allowed VLANs for Trunking Ports 65
Configuring a Default Interface 67
Configuring SVI Autostate Exclude 68
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable for the System 69
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable Per SVI 70
Configuring the Device to Tag Native VLAN Traffic 71
Changing the System Default Port Mode to Layer 2 72
Configuration Examples for Access Ports and Trunk Ports 73
Configuring Slow Drain Device Detection and Congestion Avoidance 74
Configuring a Congestion Frame Timeout Value 74
Configuring a Pause Frame Timeout Value 76

vi
Contents
Verifying the Interface Configuration 78

Monitoring Layer 2 Interfaces 79
MIBs 81
CHAPTER 5 Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces 83

Feature History for Layer 3 Interfaces 83
Prerequisites for Layer 3 Interfaces 84
Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 3 Interfaces 85
Default Settings for Layer 3 Interfaces 85
Information About Layer 3 Interfaces 85
Routed Interfaces 86
Subinterfaces 86
VLAN Interfaces 87
Loopback Interfaces 88
Tunnel Interfaces 88
High Availability for Layer 3 Interfaces 88
Virtualization Support for Layer 3 Interfaces 89
Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces 89
Configuring a Routed Interface 89
Configuring a Subinterface 91
Configuring the Bandwidth on an Interface 92
Configuring a VLAN interface 93
Configuring Inband Management in the Nexus Chassis 94
Configuring a Loopback Interface 95
Assigning an Interface to a VRF 96
Verifying the Layer 3 Interfaces Configuration 97
Monitoring Layer 3 Interfaces 98
MIBs 100
CHAPTER 6 Configuring Bidirectional Forwarding Detection 101


vii
Contents
Feature History for BFD 101

Prerequisites for BFD 103
Guidelines and Limitations for BFD 103
Default Settings 106
Licensing Requirements for BFD 106
Information About BFD 106
Asynchronous Mode 107
Detection of Failures 107
Distributed Operation 108
BFD Echo Function 108
Security 108
BFD Interoperability 109
BFD ACP Offload on F3 Line Card and M3 Line Card 109
BFD on Unnumbered Interfaces 109
BFD Enhancement to Address Per-link Efficiency 110
Configuring BFD 110
Configuration Hierarchy 110
Task Flow for Configuring BFD 111
Enabling BFD 111
Configuring Global BFD Parameters 112
Configuring BFD on an Interface 113
Configuring BFD on a Port Channel 114
Configuring BFD Echo Function 116
Optimizing BFD on Subinterfaces 117
Configuring BFD for IPv6 117
Configuring Global BFD Parameters for IPv6 117
Configuring Per Interface BFD Parameters for IPv6 118
Configuring BFD on IPv6 Static Routes 118
Configuring BFD Echo Mode for IPv6 119
Configuring a BFD Echo Interface for IPv6 120
Configuring BFD Slow Timer for IPv6 120
Configuring BFD Support for Routing Protocols 121
Configuring BFD on BGP 121

viii
Contents
Configuring BFD on EIGRP 122

Configuring BFD on OSPF 123
Configuring BFD on OSPFv3 123
Configuring BFD for OSPFv3 for All Interfaces 124
Configuring BFD for OSPFv3 on One or More Interfaces 125
Configuring BFD on IS-IS 125
Configuring BFD on IS-ISv6 126
Configuring IS-IS IPv6 Client Support on an Interface 127
Configuring IS-IS IPv6 Client Support for BFD on All Interfaces 127
Configuring FabricPath BFD on a Specific Interface 128
Configuring FabricPath BFD on All IS-IS Interfaces 129
Configuring BFD on HSRP 129
Configuring BFD on VRRP 130
Configuring BFD on PIM 131
Configuring BFD on Static Routes 132
Configuring BFD on MPLS TE Fast Reroute 133
Disabling BFD on an Interface 133
Configuring BFD on Unnumbered Interfaces 133
Configuring BFD Interoperability 135
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in a Point-to-Point Link 135
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in a Switch Virtual
Interface 135
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in Logical Mode 137
Verifying BFD Interoperability in a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Device 137
Verifying BFD ACP Offload on F3 and M3 Modules 138
Configuring Micro BFD Sessions 139
Configuring Port Channel Interface 139
(Optional) Configuring BFD Start Timer 140
Enabling IETF Per-Link BFD 140
Configuring BFD Destination Address 140
RFCs 141
Verifying the BFD Configuration 141
Monitoring BFD 142
Configuration Examples for BFD 143

ix
Contents
CHAPTER 7 Configuring Port Channels 145

Feature History for Configuring Port Channels 145
Licensing Requirements for Port Channels 146
Prerequisites for Port Channeling 147
Guidelines and Limitations for Port Channels 147
Default Settings 148
Information About Port Channels 149
Port-Channel Interfaces 151
Basic Settings 151
Compatibility Requirements 152
Load Balancing Using Port Channels 154
Symmetric Hashing 155
Random Load Balancing (Port Channel) 156
LACP 157
Port-Channel Modes 158
LACP ID Parameters 159
LACP System Priority 159
LACP Port Priority 159
LACP Administrative Key 159
LACP Marker Responders 159
Differences Between LACP-Enabled Port Channels and Static Port Channels 160
LACP Compatibility Enhancements 160
LACP Port-Channel Minimum Links and MaxBundle 160
LACP Offload to Fabric Extenders 161
LACP Fast Timers 161
Minimum Number of Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel 161
Configuring Port Channels 163
Creating a Port Channel 163
Adding a Layer 2 Port to a Port Channel 164
Adding a Layer 3 Port to a Port Channel 166
Configuring the Bandwidth and Delay for Informational Purposes 167

x
Contents
Shutting Down and Restarting the Port-Channel Interface 168

Configuring a Port-Channel Description 169
Configuring the Speed and Duplex Settings for a Port-Channel Interface 170
Configuring Flow Control 171
Configuring Load Balancing Using Port Channels 172
Enabling LACP 174
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Port Modes 175
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Minimum Links 176
Configuring the LACP Port-Channel MaxBundle 177
Configuring the LACP Fast Timer Rate 178
Configuring the LACP System Priority 179
Configuring the LACP Port Priority 179
Disabling LACP Graceful Convergence 180
Re-Enabling LACP Graceful Convergence 181
Disabling LACP Port 181
Re-Enabling LACP Port 182
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution 183
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution at the Global Level 183
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution at the Port-Channel Level 184
Configuring RBH Modulo Mode 185
Configuring Minimum Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel 186
Configuring Random Load Balance 187
Configuring Random Load Balance on a Port Channel 187
Configuring Random Load Balance on an Interface 187
Configuring Random Load Balance for a VLAN 188
Configuring Random Load Balance for an SVI 188
Example: Configuring Random Load Balance 188
Verifying Port-Channel Configurations 189
Monitoring the Port-Channel Interface Configuration 190
Configuration Examples for Port Channels 191
Standards 192
MIBs 192
CHAPTER 8 Configuring vPCs 193

xi
Contents

Feature History for Configuring vPCs 194
Licensing Requirements for vPCs 196
Guidelines and Limitations for vPCs 196
Information About vPCs 199
vPC+ 199
vPC Terminology 201
vPC Peer Links 202
vPC Peer Link and I/O Modules Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2 203
vPC Peer Link and I/O Modules Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1 and Earlier
Releases 203
vPC Peer Link Overview 204
Features That You Must Manually Configure on the Primary and Secondary
Devices 205
Configuring Layer 3 Backup Routes on a vPC Peer Link 206
Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages 207
vPC Peer Gateway 208
Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules 208
Layer 3 over VPC Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1) 210
vPC Domain 215
vPC Topology 216
Physical Port vPCs 217
Physical Port vPCs for F2, F3, and FEX 217
Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces 218
Configuration Parameters That Must Be Identical 218
Configuration Parameters That Should Be Identical 220
Consequences of Parameter Mismatches 221
vPC Number 221
vPC Shutdown 222
Version Compatibility Among vPC Switches After vPC shutdown Command 222
Role of STP in vPC Shutdown 222
vPC shutdown Command for a Switch in FEX Active-Active Mode 222
Role of the Layer 2 MCECM in vPC Shutdown 223
Moving Other Port Channels into a vPC 223
Configuring vPC Peer Links and Links to the Core on a Single Module 223

xii
Contents
vPC Interactions with Other Features 225

vPC and LACP 225
vPC Peer Links and STP 225
vPC Peer Switch 227
vPC Peer Link's Designated Forwarder 228
vPC and ARP or ND 228
vPC Multicast—PIM, IGMP, and IGMP Snooping 229
Multicast PIM Dual DR (Proxy DR ) 230
IP PIM PRE-BUILD SPT 230
PIM DUAL DR and IP PIM PRE-BUILD SPT with VPC Peer Link on F2 Modules 231
vPC Peer Links and Routing 232
Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet 233
vPC and Orphan Ports 233
Fibre Channel over Ethernet over Physical Port vPCs 234
Shutdown LAN 234
vPC Recovery After an Outage 234
Restore on Reload 234
Autorecovery 235
vPC Peer Roles After a Recovery 235
Hitless vPC Role Change 236
Use Case Scenario for Hitless vPC Role Change 236
vPC Configuration Synchronization 236
Benefits of vPC Configuration Synchronization 237
Supported Commands for vPC Configuration Synchronization 237
Configuring vPCs 238
Enabling vPCs 238
Disabling vPCs 238
Creating a vPC Domain and Entering vpc-domain Mode 239
Configuring a vPC Keepalive Link and Messages 240
Creating a vPC Peer Link 241
Configuring Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX 243
Creating VLAN on vPC 244
Configuring Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules 244
Configuring a vPC Peer Gateway 245

xiii
Contents
Configuring a Graceful Consistency Check 246

Configuring vPC Shutdown 247
Configuring vPC Config Synchronization 248
Enabling vPC Configuration Synchronization 248
Synchronizing Configuration for a Physical Port vPC 249
Synchronizing Configuration of vPC Member Port Channel 251
Verifying vPC Configuration Synchronization 252
Checking Configuration Compatibility on a vPC Peer Link 253
Moving Other Port Channels into a vPC 253
Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically 254
Manually Configuring a vPC Domain MAC Address 256
Manually Configuring System Priority 257
Manually Configuring the vPC Peer Device Role 258
Configuring the Tracking Feature on a Single-Module vPC 259
Configuring for Recovery After an Outage 260
Configuring Reload Restore 260
Configuring an Autorecovery 261
Configuring the Suspension of Orphan Ports 263
Configuring the vPC Peer Switch 264
Configuring a Pure vPC Peer Switch Topology 264
Configuring a Hybrid vPC Peer Switch Topology 265
Enabling Distribution for vPC 266
Configuring FCoE Over a Physical Port vPC 268
Configure Physical Port vPC Interfaces 268
Configuring Hitless vPC Role Change 269
Upgrading Line Card Modules for vPC 270
Upgrading a Line Card Module Using the ISSU Method 270
Upgrading Line Card Modules Using the Reload Method 274
Installing a Cisco Image on vPC Peers 275
Installing a Line Card Module on a vPC Peer Using the Reload Method 277
Verifying the vPC Configuration 279
Verifying Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX 280
Monitoring vPCs 282
Configuration Examples for vPCs 282

xiv
Contents
Standards 285
MIBs 285
CHAPTER 9 Configuring Interfaces in Breakout Mode 287

Feature History for Breakout 287
Information About Breakout 288
Limitations for Breakout 288
Configuring Breakout in a Port 289
Removing the Breakout Configuration 289
Verifying a Breakout Configuration 290
CHAPTER 10 Configuring IP Tunnels 293

Feature History for Configuring IP Tunnels 293
Information About IP Tunnels 294
IP Tunnel Overview 294
GRE Tunnels 295
Path MTU Discovery 295
Licensing Requirements for IP Tunnels 296
Prerequisites for IP Tunnels 296
Guidelines and Limitations for IP Tunnels 296
Default Settings for IP Tunnels 297
Configuring IP Tunnels 297
Enabling Tunneling 297
Creating a Tunnel Interface 298
Configuring a GRE Tunnel 299
Enabling Path MTU Discovery 299
Assigning VRF Membership to a Tunnel Interface 300
Configuration Examples for IP Tunneling 301
Verifying the IP Tunnel Configuration 301

xv
Contents
CHAPTER 11 Configuring Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels 303

Feature History for Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling 303
Licensing Requirements for Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels 304
Guidelines and Limitations for Q-in-Q Tunnels 304
Information About Q-in-Q Tunnels 305
Q-in-Q Tunneling 305
Native VLAN Hazard 307
Information About Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling 308
Configuring Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling 311
Creating a 802.1Q Tunnel Port 311
Changing the EtherType for Q-in-Q 312
Enabling the Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel 314
Configuring Global CoS for L2 Protocol Tunnel Ports 315
Configuring the Rate Limit for Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel Ports 316
Configuring Thresholds for Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel Ports 316
Verifying the Q-in-Q Configuration 317
Configuration Examples for Q-in-Q and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling 318
CHAPTER 12 Configuring Ethernet OAM 319

Feature History for Ethernet OAM 320
Prerequisites for Ethernet OAM 320
Licensing Requirements for Ethernet OAM 321
Guidelines and Limitations for Ethernet OAM 321
Information About Ethernet OAM 321
Configuring Ethernet OAM 322
Configuring an Ethernet OAM Profile 322
Attaching an Ethernet OAM Profile to an Interface 327
Configuring Ethernet OAM at an Interface and Overriding the Profile Configuration 328
Clearing Ethernet OAM Statistics on an Interface 329
Verifying the Ethernet OAM Configuration 329
Configuration Examples for Ethernet OAM 333
Configuration Example for Configuring an Ethernet OAM Profile Globally 333

xvi
Contents
Configuration Example for Attaching an Ethernet OAM Profile to a Specific Interface 333
Configuration Example for Configuring Ethernet OAM Features on a Specific Interface 334
Configuration Example for Configuration of Ethernet OAM Features in a Profile Followed by
an Override of that Configuration on an Interface 334
CHAPTER 13 Configuring FEC on Optic Modules 337

Feature History for FEC Support on Optic Modules 337
Information About FEC Support on Optic Modules 337
FEC State Links 338
Configuring FEC on a Transceiver Module 338
Additional References 339
APPENDIX A IETF RFCs Supported by Cisco NX-OS Interfaces 341

xvii
Contents

xviii
Preface
The preface contains the following sections:
• Preface, page xix
Preface
This preface describes the audience, organization, and conventions of the Book Title. It also provides
information on how to obtain related documentation.
This chapter includes the following topics:
Audience
This publication is for experienced network administrators who configure and maintain Cisco NX-OS on
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Platform switches.
Document Conventions
Note • As part of our constant endeavor to remodel our documents to meet our customers' requirements,
we have modified the manner in which we document configuration tasks. As a result of this, you
may find a deviation in the style used to describe these tasks, with the newly included sections of
the document following the new format.
• The Guidelines and Limitations section contains general guidelines and limitations that are applicable
to all the features, and the feature-specific guidelines and limitations that are applicable only to the
corresponding feature.
Command descriptions use the following conventions:

xix
Preface
Document Conventions
Convention Description
bold Bold text indicates the commands and keywords that you enter literally
as shown.
Italic Italic text indicates arguments for which the user supplies the values.
[x] Square brackets enclose an optional element (keyword or argument).
[x | y] Square brackets enclosing keywords or arguments separated by a vertical

bar indicate an optional choice.
{x | y} Braces enclosing keywords or arguments separated by a vertical bar

indicate a required choice.
[x {y | z}] Nested set of square brackets or braces indicate optional or required

choices within optional or required elements. Braces and a vertical bar
within square brackets indicate a required choice within an optional
element.
variable Indicates a variable for which you supply values, in context where italics
cannot be used.
string A nonquoted set of characters. Do not use quotation marks around the
string or the string will include the quotation marks.
Examples use the following conventions:
Convention Description
screen font Terminal sessions and information the switch displays are in screen font.
boldface screen font Information you must enter is in boldface screen font.
italic screen font Arguments for which you supply values are in italic screen font.
<> Nonprinting characters, such as passwords, are in angle brackets.
[] Default responses to system prompts are in square brackets.
!, # An exclamation point (!) or a pound sign (#) at the beginning of a line

of code indicates a comment line.
This document uses the following conventions:
Note Means reader take note. Notes contain helpful suggestions or references to material not covered in the
manual.

xx
Preface
Related Documentation
Caution Means reader be careful. In this situation, you might do something that could result in equipment damage
or loss of data.
Related Documentation
Documentation for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches is available at the following URL:
• Configuration Guides
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-7000-series-switches/
products-installation-and-configuration-guides-list.html
• Command Reference Guides
products-command-reference-list.html
• Release Notes
products-release-notes-list.html
• Install and Upgrade Guides
products-installation-guides-list.html
• Licensing Guide
products-licensing-information-listing.html
Documentation for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches and Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extenders is
available at the following URL:
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-2000-series-fabric-extenders/
products-installation-and-configuration-guides-list.html
Documentation Feedback
To provide technical feedback on this document, or to report an error or omission, please send your comments
to [email protected]. We appreciate your feedback.
Obtaining Documentation and Submitting a Service Request

For information on obtaining documentation, using the Cisco Bug Search Tool (BST), submitting a service
request, and gathering additional information, see What's New in Cisco Product Documentation.
To receive new and revised Cisco technical content directly to your desktop, you can subscribe to the What's
New in Cisco Product Documentation RSS feed. RSS feeds are a free service.

xxi
Preface
Obtaining Documentation and Submitting a Service Request

xxii
CHAPTER 1
New and Changed Information
• New and Changed Information, page 1

The table below summarizes the new and changed features for this document and shows the releases in which
each feature is supported. Your software release might not support all the features in this document. For the
latest caveats and feature information, see the Bug Search Tool at https://tools.cisco.com/bugsearch/ and the
release notes for your software release.
Feature Name Description Changed in Release Where Documented

Control Plane Added support for 8.0(1) Configuring Bidirectional
Independent Bit Setting Control Plane Forwarding Detection, on
Independent Bit Ssetting page 101
for outgoing BFD
packets.
Port Channels Hash Added support for Port 8.0(1) Configuring Port
Distribution Channels Hash Channels, on page 145
Distribution on M3
modules.
FEC Support on Optic Added FEC support for 8.0(1) Configuring FEC on
Modules optic modules on M3 line Optic Modules, on page
cards. 337

1
Feature Name Description Changed in Release Where Documented

Breakout Added support for the 8.0(1) Configuring Interfaces in
Breakout feature on the Breakout Mode, on page
following I/O Modules: 287
• Cisco Nexus 7000
M3-Series 24-port
40-Gigabit Ethernet
Module
• Cisco Nexus 7700
M3-Series 24-port
40-Gigabit Ethernet
Module
Ethernet OAM Added support for the 8.0(1) Configuring Ethernet

following modules: OAM
• M3-Series 48-Port
10 Gigabit Ethernet
Module for Cisco
Nexus 7000
Switches and Cisco
Nexus 7700
Switches
• M3-Series 24-Port
40 Gigabit Ethernet
Module for Cisco
Nexus 7000
Switches and Cisco
Nexus 7700
Switches
• M3-Series 100
Gigabit Ethernet
Module for Cisco
Nexus 7000
Switches

2
CHAPTER 2
Overview
This chapter provides an overview of the interface types supported by the Cisco NX-OS software.
• Information About Interfaces, page 3

• Virtualization Interfaces, page 6
• High Availability for Interfaces, page 6
• Licensing Requirements for Interfaces, page 6
Information About Interfaces

Cisco NX-OS supports multiple configuration parameters for each of the interface types supported. Most of
these parameters are covered in this guide but some are described in other documents.
The table below shows where to get further information on the parameters you can configure for an interface.
Table 1: Interface Parameters
Feature Name Parameters Further Information

Basic parameters description, duplex, error disable, “Configuring Basic Interface
flow control, MTU, beacon Parameters”
Layer 2 Layer 2 access and trunk port "Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces”

settings
Layer 2 MAC, VLANs, private Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS

VLANs, Rapid PVST+, Multiple Layer 2 Switching Configuration
Spanning Tree, Spanning Tree Guide
Extensions
Port security Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS

Security Configuration Guide,
Release 6.x

3
Overview
Ethernet Interfaces
Feature Name Parameters Further Information

Layer 3 medium, IPv4 and IPv6 addresses “Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces"
bandwidth, delay, IP routing, VRFs Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS

Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide, Release 6.x
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Multicast Routing Configuration
Guide
Port Channels channel group, LACP "Configuring Port Channels”
vPCs Virtual port channels "Configuring vPCs”
Tunnels GRE Tunneling “Configuring IP Tunnels”
Security Dot1X, NAC, EOU, port security Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Security Configuration Guide,
Release 6.x
FCoE From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration
you can run Fibre Channel over Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 and
Ethernet (FCoE) on the Cisco Cisco MDS 9000
Nexus 7000 Series Switches
Ethernet Interfaces
Ethernet interfaces include access ports, trunk ports, private VLAN hosts and promiscuous ports, and routed
ports.
Access Ports
An access port carries traffic for one VLAN. This type of port is a Layer 2 interface only. For more information
about access-port interfaces, see “Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces.”
Trunk Ports
A trunk port carries traffic for two or more VLANs. This type of port is a Layer 2 interface only. For more
information about trunk-port interfaces, see “Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces.”
Private VLAN Hosts and Promiscuous Ports

Private VLANs (PVLANs) provide traffic separation and security at the Layer 2 level. A PVLAN is one or
more pairs of a primary VLAN and a secondary VLAN, all with the same primary VLAN. The two types of
secondary VLANs are called isolated and community VLANs.

4
Overview
Management Interface
In an isolated VLAN, PVLAN hosts communicate only with hosts in the primary VLAN. In a community
VLAN, PVLAN hosts communicate only among themselves and with hosts in the primary VLAN but not
with hosts in isolated VLANs or in other community VLANs. Community VLANs use promiscuous ports to
communicate outside the PVLAN. Regardless of the combination of isolated and community secondary
VLANs, all interfaces within the primary VLAN comprise one Layer 2 domain and require only one IP subnet.
You can configure a Layer 3 VLAN network interface, or switched virtual interface (SVI), on the PVLAN
promiscuous port, which provides routing functionality to the primary PVLAN.
For more information on configuring PVLAN host and PVLAN promiscuous ports and all other PVLAN
configurations, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide
Routed Ports
A routed port is a physical port that can route IP traffic to another device. A routed port is a Layer 3 interface
only and does not support Layer 2 protocols, such as the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP). For more information
on routed ports, see the “Routed Interfaces” section.
Management Interface
You can use the management Ethernet interface to connect the device to a network for remote management
using a Telnet client, the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), or other management agents. The
management port (mgmt0) is autosensing and operates in full-duplex mode at a speed of 10/100/1000 Mb/s.
For more information on the management interface, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Fundamentals
Configuration Guide. You will also find information on configuring the IP address and default IP routing for
the management interface in this document.
Port Channel Interfaces

A port channel is a logical interface that is an aggregation of multiple physical interfaces. You can bundle up
to eight individual links to physical ports into a port channel to improve bandwidth and redundancy. You can
also use port channeling to load balance traffic across these channeled physical interfaces. For more information
about port-channel interfaces, see “Configuring Port Channels.”
vPCs
Virtual port channels (vPCs) allow links that are physically connected to two different Cisco Nexus 7000
series devices to appear as a single port channel by a third device. The third device can be a switch, server,
or any other networking device. You can configure a total of 748 vPCs on each device. vPCs provide Layer
2 multipathing. For more information about vPCs, see “Configuring vPCs.”
Subinterfaces
You can create virtual subinterfaces on a parent interface configured as a Layer 3 interface. A parent interface
can be a physical port or a port channel. Subinterfaces divide the parent interface into two or more virtual
interfaces on which you can assign unique Layer 3 parameters such as IP addresses and dynamic routing
protocols. For more information about subinterfaces, see the “Subinterfaces” section.

5
Overview
VLAN Network Interfaces
VLAN Network Interfaces

A VLAN network interface is a virtual routed interface that connects a VLAN on the device to the Layer 3
router engine on the same device. You can route across VLAN network interfaces to provide Layer 3
inter-VLAN routing. For more information about VLAN network interfaces, see the “VLAN Interfaces”
section.
Loopback Interfaces
A virtual loopback interface is a virtual interface with a single endpoint that is always up. Any packet that is
transmitted over a virtual loopback interface is immediately received by that interface. Loopback interfaces
emulate a physical interface. For more information about subinterfaces, see the “Loopback Interfaces” section.
Tunnel Interfaces
Tunneling allows you to encapsulate arbitrary packets inside a transport protocol. This feature is implemented
as a virtual interface to provide a simple interface for configuration. The tunnel interface provides the services
necessary to implement any standard point-to-point encapsulation scheme. You can configure a separate tunnel
for each link. For more information, see “Configuring IP Tunnels.”
Virtualization Interfaces
You can create multiple virtual device contexts (VDCs). Each VDC is an independent logical device to which
you can allocate interfaces. Once an interface is allocated to a VDC, you can only configure that interface if
you are in the correct VDC. For more information on VDCs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual
Device Context Configuration Guide.
High Availability for Interfaces

Interfaces support stateful and stateless restarts. A stateful restart occurs on a supervisor switchover. After
the switchover, Cisco NX-OS applies the runtime configuration after the switchover.
Licensing Requirements for Interfaces

vPC requires no license. Any feature not included in a license package is bundled with the Cisco NX-OS
system images and is provided at no extra charge to you. For a complete explanation of the Cisco NX-OS
licensing scheme, see the Cisco NX-OS Licensing Guide.
IP tunnels require an Enterprise Services license. For a complete explanation of the Cisco NX-OS licensing
scheme and how to obtain and apply licenses, see the Cisco NX-OS Licensing Guide.
All other interfaces do not require a license.

6
CHAPTER 3
Configuring Basic Interface Parameters
This chapter describes how to configure basic interface parameters on Cisco NX-OS devices.
• Finding Feature Information, page 7

• Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters, page 8
• Guidelines and Limitations for Basic Interfaces Parameters, page 8
• Default Settings for Basic Interfaces Parameters, page 10
• Information About Basic Interface Parameters, page 11
• Unidirectional Link Detection Parameter, page 16
• Carrier Delay, page 18
• Port Channel Parameters, page 18
• Port Profiles, page 19
• Time Domain Reflectometry Cable Diagnostics, page 20
• Configuring Basic Interface Parameters, page 21
• Verifying Basic Interface Parameters, page 47
• Monitoring Interface Counters, page 48
• Related Documents, page 50
Finding Feature Information

Your software release might not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest caveats
and feature information, see the Bug Search Tool at https://tools.cisco.com/bugsearch/ and the release notes
for your software release. To find information about the features documented in this module, and to see a list
of the releases in which each feature is supported, see the “New and Changed Information” chapter or the
Feature History table below.

7
Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters
Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters

This table includes only the updates for those releases that have resulted in additions or changes to the feature.
Table 2: Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters
Feature Name Release Feature Information

Debounce link up time 7.3(0)D1(1) Added support for debounce link up time.
Updated thelink debounce {link-up | time}
milliseconds command.
Error disabled 6.2(2) Added the show errdisable {detect |

recovery} command.
Display errors during policy 6.2(2) Added the show interface status error policy
programming. command which displays the interfaces and
VLANs that produce an error during policy
programming.
Clear SNMP counters from 6.2(2) Updated the clear counters interface
the interface command to include the snmp keyword that
provides an option to clear SNMP values from
the interface.
Interface descriptions 6.2(2) Updated the description command for the

increased maximum of 254 case-sensitive,
alphanumeric characters.
Enhanced show output for 6.1(1) Updated the show interface eth command
interfaces output.
Port profiles 4.2(1) Allows you to apply several configurations

to a range of interfaces at once.
Basic interface settings 4.0(1) These features were introduced.
Guidelines and Limitations for Basic Interfaces Parameters

Basic interface parameters have the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• Fiber-optic Ethernet ports must use Cisco-supported transceivers. To verify that the ports are using
Cisco-supported transceivers, use the show interface transceivers command. Interfaces with
Cisco-supported transceivers are listed as functional interfaces.
• A port can be either a Layer 2 or a Layer 3 interface; it cannot be both simultaneously.
By default, each port is a Layer 3 interface.

8
Guidelines and Limitations for Basic Interfaces Parameters
You can change a Layer 3 interface into a Layer 2 interface by using the switchport command. You
can change a Layer 2 interface into a Layer 3 interface by using the no switchport command.
• When configuring flow control for a local port, consider the following:
◦To receive pause frames when you do not know how the remote port send parameter is configured,
set the local port receive parameter to desired.
◦To receive pause frames when you know that the remote port send parameter is enabled or desired,
set the local port receive parameter to enabled.
◦To ignore received pause frames, set the local port receive parameter to disabled.
◦To send pause frames when you do not know how the remote port receive parameter is configured,
set the local port send parameter to desired.
◦To send pause frames when you know that the remote port receive parameter is enabled or desired,
set the local port send parameter to enabled.
◦To prevent the sending of pause frames, set the local port send parameter to disabled.
• You usually configure Ethernet port speed and duplex mode parameters to auto to allow the system to
negotiate the speed and duplex mode between ports. If you decide to configure the port speed and duplex
modes manually for these ports, consider the following:
◦Before you configure the speed and duplex mode for an Ethernet or management interface, see
Speed Mode and Duplex Mode, on page 13 for the combinations of speeds and duplex modes
that can be configured at the same time.
◦If you set the Ethernet port speed to auto, the device automatically sets the duplex mode to auto.
◦If you enter the no speed command, the device automatically sets both the speed and duplex
parameters to auto (the no speed command produces the same results as the speed auto command).
◦If you configure an Ethernet port speed to a value other than auto (for example, 10, 100, or 1000
Mb/s), you must configure the connecting port to match. Do not configure the connecting port to
negotiate the speed.
Note The device cannot automatically negotiate the Ethernet port speed and duplex mode if
the connecting port is configured to a value other than auto.
• Debounce timer link up is supported only on F3-Series Line cards.
Caution Changing the Ethernet port speed and duplex mode configuration might shut down and reenable the
interface.

9
Default Settings for Basic Interfaces Parameters
Default Settings for Basic Interfaces Parameters

Table 3: Default Basic Interface Parameter Settings
Parameter Default
Description Blank
Beacon Disabled
Debounce timer link down Enabled. 100 milliseconds
Debounce timer link up Disabled
Bandwidth Data rate of interface
Throughput delay 100 microseconds
Administrative status Shutdown
MTU 1500 bytes
UDLD global Globally disabled
UDLD per-port enable state for fiber-optic media Enabled on all Ethernet fiber-optic LAN ports
UDLD per-port enable state for copper media Disabled on all Ethernet 10/100 and 1000BASE-TX
LAN ports
UDLD message interval Disabled
UDLD aggressive mode Disabled
Carrier delay 100 milliseconds
Error disable Disabled
Error disable recovery Disabled
Error disable recovery interval 300 seconds
Link debounce Enabled
Port profile Disabled

10
Information About Basic Interface Parameters
Information About Basic Interface Parameters

To configure the parameters that are specifically used for Layer 2 interfaces (access or trunking interfaces),
see “Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces.” To configure parameters that are specifically used for Layer 3 interfaces
(routed interfaces, subinterfaces, VLAN interfaces, loopback interfaces, and IP tunnels), see “Configuring
Layer 3 Interfaces.”
The following sections provide information about basic interface parameters:
Interface Description
For the Ethernet and management interfaces, you can configure the description parameter to provide a
recognizable name for the interface. Using a unique name for each interface allows you to quickly identify
the interface when you are looking at a listing of multiple interfaces.
For information about setting the description parameter for port-channel interfaces, see the “Configuring a
Port-Channel Description” section. For information about configuring this parameter for other interfaces, see
the “Configuring the Interface Description” section.
Beacon
The beacon mode allows you to identify a physical port by flashing its link state LED with a green light. By
default, this mode is disabled. To identify the physical port for an interface, you can activate the beacon
parameter for the interface.
For information about configuring the beacon parameter, see the “Configuring the Beacon Mode” section.
MDIX
The medium dependent interface crossover (MDIX) parameter enables or disables the detection of a crossover
connection between devices. This parameter applies only to copper interfaces. By default, this parameter is
enabled.
For information about configuring the MDIX parameter, see the “Configuring the MDIX Parameter” section.
Debounce Timer
The debounce timer delays notification of a link change, which can decrease traffic loss due to network
reconfiguration. You can configure the debounce timer separately for each Ethernet port and specify the delay
time in milliseconds. The default value for debounce timer link down is 100 milliseconds and the default value
for debounce timer link up is 0 milliseconds.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 7.3(0)D1(1), you can configure separate debounce timer values for debounce
timer link down and link up. The debounce timer for link up helps in better convergence after a system reloads
and avoids traffic blackholing.

11
Error Disabled
Caution Enabling the debounce timer causes the link-down detections to be delayed, which results in a loss of
traffic during the debounce period. This situation might affect the convergence and reconvergence of some
Layer 2 and Layer 3 protocols.
For information about configuring the debounce-timer parameters, see the “Configuring the Debounce Timer”
section.
Error Disabled
A port is in the error-disabled (err-disabled) state when the port is enabled administratively (using the no
shutdown command) but disabled at runtime by any process. For example, if UDLD detects a unidirectional
link, the port is shut down at runtime. However, because the port is administratively enabled, the port status
displays as err-disable. Once a port goes into the err-disable state, you must manually reenable it or you can
configure a timeout value that provides an automatic recovery. By default, the automatic recovery is not
configured, and by default, the err-disable detection is enabled for all causes.
When an interface is in the err-disabled state, use the errdisable detect cause command to find information
about the error.
You can configure the automatic error-disabled recovery timeout for a particular error-disabled cause and
configure the recovery period. The errdisable recovery cause command provides an automatic recovery after
300 seconds.
The errdisable recovery cause command provides an automatic recovery after 300 seconds.
You can use the errdisable recovery interval command to change the recovery period within a range of 30
to 65535 seconds. You can also configure the recovery timeout for a particular err-disable cause.
If you do not enable the error-disabled recovery for the cause, the interface stays in the error-disabled state
until you enter the shutdown and no shutdown commands. If the recovery is enabled for a cause, the interface
is brought out of the error-disabled state and allowed to retry operation once all the causes have timed out.
Use the show interface status err-disabled command to display the reason behind the error.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you can use the show errdisable recovery and show errdisable detect
commands to display the errdisable recovery and detection runtime information.
Interface Status Error Policy

Cisco NX-OS policy servers such as Access Control List (ACL) Manager and Quality of Service (QoS)
Manager, maintain a policy database. A policy, such as a Layer 2 port mode change from access to trunk,
which can be ingress, egress or bi-directional, is defined through the command line interface.
Policies are pushed when you configure a policy on an interface, if an interface VLAN membership changes
or when the line card boots up, all the configured policies get pushed simultaneously. To ensure that the
policies that are pushed are consistenet with hardware policiesThe is used to ensure that policies that are
pushed are consistent with the hardware policies and that they display the interfaces and VLANs that have
errors during the policy programming, enter the show interface status error policy command.
To clear the errors and to allow the policy programming to proceed with the running configuration, enter the
no shutdown command. If the policy programming succeeds, the port is allowed to come up. If the policy
programming fails, the configuration is inconsistent with the hardware policies and the port is placed in an
error-disabled policy state. The error-disabled policy state remains and the information is stored to prevent

12
Rate Mode
the same port from being brought up in the future. This process helps to avoid unnecessary disruption to the
system.
Rate Mode
On a 32-port, 10-Gigabit Ethernet module, each set of four ports can handle 10 Gb/s of bandwidth. You can
use the rate-mode parameter to dedicate that bandwidth to the first port in the set of four ports or share the
bandwidth across all four ports.
The table below identifies the ports that are grouped together to share each 10 Gb/s of bandwidth and which
port in the group can be dedicated to use the entire bandwidth.
Table 4: Dedicated and Shared Ports
Ports Groups that Can Share Bandwidth Ports that Can be Dedicated to Each 10-Gigabit
Ethernet of Bandwidth
1, 3, 5, 7 1
2, 4, 6, 8 2
9, 11, 13, 15 9
10, 12, 14, 16 10
17, 19, 21, 23 17
18, 20, 22, 24 18
25, 27, 29, 31 25
26, 28, 30, 32 26
Note All ports in each port group must be part of the same virtual device context (VDC). For more information
on VDCs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide.
Speed Mode and Duplex Mode

The speed mode and duplex mode are interrelated for each Ethernet and management interface. By default,
each of these interfaces autonegotiates its speed and duplex mode with the other interface, but you can change
these settings. If you change the settings, be sure to use the same speed and duplex mode setting on both
interfaces, or use autonegotiation for at least one of the interfaces.
For information about setting the speed mode and duplex mode for port-channel interfaces, see the “Configuring
the Speed and Duplex Settings for a Port-Channel Interface” section. For information about setting the speed
and duplex speed for other interfaces, see the “Configuring the Interface Speed and Duplex Mode” section.

13
Flow Control
Flow Control
When the receive buffer for an Ethernet port that runs 1 Gb/s or faster fills, flow control enables that port to
send an IEEE 802.3x pause frame to the transmitting port to request it to stop transmitting data for a specified
amount of time. Transmitting ports, running at any speed, can receive the pause frames to stop their transmission
of data.
To allow flow control to work between two ports, you must set the corresponding receive and send flow
control parameters for both ports as enabled or desired. When you set the parameter to enabled, the send or
receive flow-control function is activated regardless of the setting of the other port. When you set the parameter
to desired, the send or receive flow-control function is activated if you set the corresponding flow-control
state of the other port to enabled or desired. If you set one of the flow control states to disabled, flow control
is disabled for that transmission direction. To see how the different port flow-control states affect the link
flow-control state, see the table below.
Table 5: Port Flow Control Influences on Link Flow Control
Port Flow Control States Link Flow Control State

Port Receiving Data (Sends Pause Port Transmitting Data (Receives
Frames) Pause Frames)
Enabled Enabled Enabled
Enabled Desired Enabled
Enabled Disabled Disabled
Desired Enabled Enabled
Desired Desired Enabled
Desired Disabled Disabled
Disabled Enabled Disabled
Disabled Desired Disabled
Disabled Disabled Disabled
For information about setting the flow-control parameters, see the “Configuring Flow Control” section.
Port MTU Size

The maximum transmission unit (MTU) size specifies the maximum frame size that an Ethernet port can
process. For transmissions to occur between two ports, you must configure the same MTU size for both ports.
A port drops any frames that exceed its MTU size.

14
Bandwidth
By default, each port has an MTU of 1500 bytes, which is the IEEE 802.3 standard for Ethernet frames. Larger
MTU sizes are possible for more efficient processing of data with less overhead. The larger frames, called
jumbo frames, can be up to 9216 bytes in size, which is also the default system jumbo MTU size.
On a Layer 3 interface, you can configure an MTU size between 576 and 9216 bytes. You can configure up
to 64 MTU settings for each I/O module.
Note The global LAN port MTU size applies to the traffic through a Layer 3 Ethernet LAN port that is configured
with a nondefault MTU size.
For a Layer 2 port, you can configure an MTU size that is either the system default (1500 bytes) or the system
jumbo MTU size (initially 9216 bytes).
Note If you change the system jumbo MTU size, Layer 2 ports automatically use the system default MTU size
(1500 bytes) unless you specify the new system jumbo MTU size for some or all of those ports.
For information about setting the MTU size, see the “Configuring Interface MTU Size” section.
Bandwidth
Ethernet ports have a fixed bandwidth of 1,000,000 Kb at the physical level. Layer 3 protocols use a bandwidth
value that you can set for calculating their internal metrics. The value that you set is used for informational
purposes only by the Layer 3 protocols—it does not change the fixed bandwidth at the physical level. For
example, the Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP) uses the minimum path bandwidth to determine a
routing metric, but the bandwidth at the physical level remains at 1,000,000 Kb.
For information about configuring the bandwidth parameter for port-channel interfaces, see the “Configuring
the Bandwidth and Delay for Informational Purposes” section. For information about configuring the bandwidth
parameter for other interfaces, see the “Configuring Bandwidth for Ethernet Interfaces” section.
Throughput Delay
Specifying a value for the throughput-delay parameter provides a value used by Layer 3 protocols; it does not
change the actual throughput delay of an interface. The Layer 3 protocols can use this value to make operating
decisions. For example, the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) can use the delay setting
to set a preference for one Ethernet link over another, if other parameters such as link speed are equal. The
delay value that you set is in the tens of microseconds.
For information about configuring the bandwidth parameter for port-channel interfaces, see the “Configuring
the Bandwidth and Delay for Informational Purposes” section. For information about configuring the
throughput-delay parameter for other interfaces, see the “Configuring Throughput Delay” section.
Administrative Status
The administrative-status parameter determines whether an interface is up or down. When an interface is
administratively down, it is disabled and unable to transmit data. When an interface is administratively up, it
is enabled and able to transmit data.

15
Unidirectional Link Detection Parameter
For information about configuring the administrative status parameter for port-channel interfaces, see the
“Shutting Down and Restarting the Port-Channel Interface” section. For information about configuring the
administrative-status parameter for other interfaces, see the “Shutting Down and Activating an Interface”
section.
Unidirectional Link Detection Parameter

UDLD Overview
The Cisco-proprietary Unidirectional Link Detection (UDLD) protocol allows devices that are connected
through fiber-optic or copper (for example, Category 5 cabling) Ethernet cables to monitor the physical
configuration of the cables and detect when a unidirectional link exists. When a device detects a unidirectional
link, UDLD shuts down the affected LAN port and alerts the user. Unidirectional links can cause a variety of
problems, including spanning tree topology loops.
UDLD is a Layer 2 protocol that works with the Layer 1 protocols to determine the physical status of a link.
At Layer 1, autonegotiation takes care of physical signaling and fault detection. UDLD performs tasks that
autonegotiation cannot perform, such as detecting the identities of neighbors and shutting down misconnected
LAN ports. When you enable both autonegotiation and UDLD, Layer 1 and Layer2 detections work together
to prevent physical and logical unidirectional connections and the malfunctioning of other protocols.
A unidirectional link occurs whenever traffic transmitted by the local device over a link is received by the
neighbor but traffic transmitted from the neighbor is not received by the local device. If one of the fiber strands
in a pair is disconnected, as long as autonegotiation is active, the link does not stay up. In this case, the logical
link is undetermined, and UDLD does not take any action. If both fibers are working normally at Layer 1,
UDLD at Layer 2 determines whether those fibers are connected correctly and whether traffic is flowing
bidirectionally between the correct neighbors. This check cannot be performed by autonegotiation, because
autonegotiation operates at Layer 1.
The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device periodically transmits UDLD frames to neighbor devices on LAN ports
with UDLD enabled. If the frames are echoed back within a specific time frame and they lack a specific
acknowledgment (echo), the link is flagged as unidirectional and the LAN port is shut down. Devices on both
ends of the link must support UDLD in order for the protocol to successfully identify and disable unidirectional
links. You can configure the transmission interval for the UDLD frames, either globally or for the specified
interfaces.
Note By default, UDLD is locally disabled on copper LAN ports to avoid sending unnecessary control traffic
on this type of media.

16
Default UDLD Configuration
The figure below shows an example of a unidirectional link condition. Device B successfully receives traffic
from device A on the port. However, device A does not receive traffic from device B on the same port. UDLD
detects the problem and disables the port.
Figure 1: Unidirectional Link
Default UDLD Configuration

Table 6: UDLD Default Configuration
Feature Default Value

UDLD global enable state Globally disabled
UDLD per-port enable state for fiber-optic media Enabled on all Ethernet fiber-optic LAN ports
UDLD per-port enable state for twisted-pair (copper) Disabled on all Ethernet 10/100 and 1000BASE-TX
media LAN ports
UDLD aggressive mode Disabled
UDLD message interval 15 seconds
For information about configuring the UDLD for the device and its port, see the “Configuring UDLD Mode”
section.
UDLD Aggressive and Nonaggressive Modes

UDLD aggressive mode is disabled by default. You can configure UDLD aggressive mode only on
point-to-point links between network devices that support UDLD aggressive mode. If UDLD aggressive mode
is enabled, when a port on a bidirectional link that has a UDLD neighbor relationship established stops
receiving UDLD frame, UDLD tries to reestablish the connection with the neighbor. After eight failed retries,
the port is disabled.
To prevent spanning tree loops, nonaggressive UDLD with the default interval of 15 seconds is fast enough
to shut down a unidirectional link before a blocking port transitions to the forwarding state (with default
spanning tree parameters).
When you enable the UDLD aggressive mode, the following occurs:

17
Carrier Delay
• One side of a link has a port stuck (both transmission and receive)
• One side of a link remains up while the other side of the link is down
In these cases, the UDLD aggressive mode disables one of the ports on the link, which prevents traffic from
being discarded.
Note You enable the UDLD aggressive mode globally to enable that mode on all the fiber ports. You must
enable the UDLD aggressive mode on copper ports on specified interfaces.
Tip When a line card upgrade is being performed during an in-service software upgrade (ISSU) and some of
the ports on the line card are members of a Layer 2 port channel and are configured with UDLD aggressive
mode, if you shut down one of the remote ports, UDLD puts the corresponding port on the local device
into an error-disabled state. This behavior is correct.
To restore service after the ISSU has completed, enter the shutdown command followed by the no shutdown
command on the local port.
Carrier Delay
Note You can configure the carrier delay timer only on VLAN network interfaces. The timer cannot be configured
on physical Ethernet interfaces, port channels, and loopback interfaces. See “Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces,”
for information about configuring VLAN network interfaces.
If a link goes down and comes back up before the carrier delay timer expires, the down state is effectively
filtered, and the rest of the software on the device is not aware that a link-down event occurred. A large carrier
delay timer results in fewer link-up/link-down events being detected. When you set the carrier delay time to
0, the device detects each link-up/link-down event that occurs.
In most environments, a lower carrier delay time is better than a higher one. The exact value that you choose
depends on the nature of the link outages and how long you expect these linkages to last in your network. If
your data links are subject to short outages (especially if those outages last less time than it takes for your IP
routing to converge), you should set a long carrier delay value to prevent these short outages from causing
unnecessary problems in your routing tables. However, if your outages tend to be longer, you might want to
set a shorter carrier delay time so that the outages are detected sooner, and the IP route convergence begins
and ends sooner.
The default carrier-delay time is 100 milliseconds.
Port Channel Parameters

A port channel is an aggregation of physical interfaces that comprise a logical interface. You can bundle up
to eight individual interfaces into a port channel to provide increased bandwidth and redundancy. Port
channeling also load balances traffic across these physical interfaces. The port channel stays operational if at
least one physical interface within the port channel is operational.

18
Port Profiles
You can create a Layer 2 port channel by bundling compatible Layer 2 interfaces, or you can create Layer 3
port channels by bundling compatible Layer 3 interfaces. You cannot combine Layer 2 and Layer 3 interfaces
in the same port channel.
Any configuration changes that you apply to the port channel are applied to each interface member of that
port channel.
For information about port channels and for information about configuring port channels, see “Configuring
Port Channels.”
Port Profiles
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1) for the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices, you can create a port profile that
contains many interface commands and apply that port profile to a range of interfaces. Each port profile can
be applied only to a specific type of interface; the choices are as follows:
• Ethernet
• VLAN network interface
• Loopback
• Port channel
• Tunnel
When you choose Ethernet or port channel as the interface type, the port profile is in the default mode which
is Layer 3. Enter the switchport command to change the port profile to Layer 2 mode.
You inherit the port profile when you attach the port profile to an interface or range of interfaces. When you
attach, or inherit, a port profile to an interface or range of interfaces, the system applies all the commands in
that port profile to the interfaces. Additionally, you can have one port profile inherit the settings from another
port profile. Inheriting another port profile allows the initial port profile to assume all of the commands of
the second, inherited, port profile that do not conflict with the initial port profile.Four levels of inheritance
are supported. The same port profile can be inherited by any number of port profiles.
The system applies the commands inherited by the interface or range of interfaces according to the following
guidelines:
• Commands that you enter under the interface mode take precedence over the port profile’s commands
if there is a conflict. However, the port profile retains that command in the port profile.
• The port profile’s commands take precedence over the default commands on the interface, unless the
port-profile command is explicitly overridden by the default command.
• When a range of interfaces inherits a second port profile, the commands of the initial port profile override
the commands of the second port profile if there is a conflict.
• After you inherit a port profile onto an interface or range of interfaces, you can override individual
configuration values by entering the new value at the interface configuration level. If you remove the
individual configuration values at the interface configuration level, the interface uses the values in the
port profile again.
• There are no default configurations associated with a port profile.
A subset of commands are available under the port-profile configuration mode, depending on which interface
type you specify.

19
Time Domain Reflectometry Cable Diagnostics
Note You cannot use port profiles with Session Manager. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System
Management Configuration Guide for information about Session Manager.
To apply the port-profile configurations to the interfaces, you must enable the specific port profile. You can
configure and inherit a port profile onto a range of interfaces prior to enabling the port profile. You would
then enable that port profile for the configurations to take effect on the specified interfaces.
If you inherit one or more port profiles onto an original port profile, only the last inherited port profile must
be enabled; the system assumes that the underlying port profiles are enabled.
When you remove a port profile from a range of interfaces, the system undoes the configuration from the
interfaces first and then removes the port-profile link itself. Also, when you remove a port profile, the system
checks the interface configuration and either skips the port-profile commands that have been overridden by
directly entered interface commands or returns the command to the default value.
If you want to delete a port profile that has been inherited by other port profiles, you must remove the inheritance
before you can delete the port profile.
You can also choose a subset of interfaces from which to remove a port profile from among that group of
interfaces that you originally applied the profile. For example, if you configured a port profile and configured
ten interfaces to inherit that port profile, you can remove the port profile from just some of the specified ten
interfaces. The port profile continues to operate on the remaining interfaces to which it is applied.
If you delete a specific configuration for a specified range of interfaces using the interface configuration mode,
that configuration is also deleted from the port profile for that range of interfaces only. For example, if you
have a channel group inside a port profile and you are in the interface configuration mode and you delete that
port channel, the specified port channel is also deleted from the port profile as well.
Just as in the device, you can enter a configuration for an object in port profiles without that object being
applied to interfaces yet. For example, you can configure a virtual routing and forward (VRF) instance without
it being applied to the system. If you then delete that VRF and related configurations from the port profile,
the system is unaffected.
After you inherit a port profile on an interface or range of interfaces and you delete a specific configuration
value, that port-profile configuration is not operative on the specified interfaces.
If you attempt to apply a port profile to the wrong type of interface, the system returns an error.
When you attempt to enable, inherit, or modify a port profile, the system creates a checkpoint. If the port-profile
configuration fails, the system rolls back to the prior configuration and returns an error. A port profile is never
only partially applied.
Time Domain Reflectometry Cable Diagnostics

From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.0(2) for the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices and the introduction of the latest
generation of line cards, you can perform cable diagnostics without the use of expensive third-party equipment.
With the cable diagnostic capabilities embedded directly in the line cards, you no longer need to unplug cables
and connect cable testers to diagnose a link fault. Each port on the line card can independently detect cabling
issues and report them to the switch software using Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR).
You can use TDR to analyze a conductor by transmitting a pulsed waveform signal into it and then examine
the polarity, amplitude, and round-trip time of the reflected waveform.

20
By estimating the speed of propagation of the signal in the cable and by measuring the time it takes for its
reflection to travel back to the source, it is possible to measure the distance to the reflecting point. Also, by
comparing the polarity and amplitude of the original pulse with its reflection, it is possible to distinguish
between different types of faults, such as open or shorted pairs.
Being able to remotely diagnose a cable failure, you can now identify the root cause of a problem more quickly
and more effectively, providing your users with a prompt response to connectivity issues.


When you configure an interface, you must specify the interface before you can configure its parameters.
Specifying the Interfaces to Configure

Before you can configure the parameters for one or more interfaces of the same type, you must specify the
type and the identities of the interfaces.
The table below shows the interface types and identities that you should use for specifying the Ethernet and
management interfaces.
Table 7: Information Needed to Identify an Interface for Configurations
Interface Type Identity

Ethernet I/O module slot numbers and port numbers on the module
Management 0 (for port 0)
The interface range configuration mode allows you to configure multiple interfaces with the same configuration
parameters. After you enter the interface range configuration mode, all command parameters you enter are
attributed to all interfaces within that range until you exit out of the interface range configuration mode.
You enter a range of interfaces using dashes (-) and commas (,). Dashes separate contiguous interfaces and
commas separate noncontiguous interfaces. When you enter noncontiguous interfaces, you must enter the
media type for each interface.
This example shows how to configure a contiguous interface range:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 2/29-30

switch(config-if-range)#

21
Configuring the Interface Description
This example shows how to configure a noncontiguous interface range:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 2/29, ethernet 2/33, ethernet 2/35

switch(config-if-range)#
You can specify subinterfaces in a range only when the subinterfaces are on the same port, for example,
2/29.1-2. But you cannot specify the subinterfaces in a range of ports, for example, you cannot enter
2/29.2-2/30.2. You can specify two of the subinterfaces discretely, for example, you can enter 2/29.2, 2/30.2.
Note When you are in the interface configuration mode, the commands that you enter configure the interface
that you specified for this mode.
Procedure
Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 switch# configure Enters global configuration mode.
terminal
Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the interface that you are configuring.
interface You can specify the interface type and identity. For an Ethernet port,
use “ethernet slot/port.” For the management interface, use “mgmt0.”
Note You do not need to add a space between the interface type
and identity (port or slot/port number) For example, for the
Ethernet slot 4, port 5 interface, you can specify either
“ethernet 4/5” or “ethernet4/5.” The management interface is
either “mgmt0” or “mgmt 0.”
Configuring the Interface Description

You can provide textual interface descriptions for the Ethernet and management interfaces. Descriptions can
be a maximum of 254 case-sensitive, alphanumeric characters.
Procedure

Step 1 switch# configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.
Step 2 switch(config)# interface interface Specifies the interface that you are configuring.
You can specify the interface type and identity. For an
Ethernet port, use “ethernet slot/port.” For the
management interface, use “mgmt0.”
Step 3 switch(config-if)# description text Specifies the description for the interface. The
description is a maximum of 254 characters.

22
Configuring the Beacon Mode

Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode.
Step 5 switch(config)# show interface (Optional)

interface Displays the interface status, which includes the
description parameter.
Step 6 switch(config)# copy running-config (Optional)

startup-config Copies the running configuration to the startup
configuration.
This example shows how to set the interface description to Ethernet port 24 on module 3:
switch# configure terminal

switch(config)# interface ethernet 3/24
switch(config-if)# description server1
switch(config-if)#
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1, the output of the show interface eth command is enhanced as shown in the
following example:
switch# show interface eth 2/1

Ethernet2/1 is down (SFP not inserted)
admin state is down, Dedicated Interface
Hardware: 1000 Ethernet, address: 0026.9814.0ec1 (bia f866.f23e.0de8)
MTU 1500 bytes, BW 1000000 Kbit, DLY 10 usec
reliability 255/255, txload 1/255, rxload 1/255
Encapsulation ARPA, medium is broadcast
auto-duplex, auto-speed
Beacon is turned off
Auto-Negotiation is turned on
Input flow-control is off, output flow-control is off
Auto-mdix is turned off
Switchport monitor is off
EtherType is 0x8100
EEE (efficient-ethernet) : n/a
Last link flapped never
Last clearing of "show interface" counters never
0 interface resets
30 seconds input rate 0 bits/sec, 0 packets/sec
30 seconds output rate 0 bits/sec, 0 packets/sec
Configuring the Beacon Mode

You can enable the beacon mode for an Ethernet port to flash its LED to confirm its physical location.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an interface to configure, and enters

slot/port interface configuration mode.

23
Changing the Bandwidth Rate Mode

Step 3 switch(config-if)# {beacon | no beacon} Enables the beacon mode or disables the beacon
mode. The default mode is disabled.
Step 4 switch(config)# show interface ethernet (Optional)

slot/port Displays the interface status, which includes the
beacon mode state.

configuration.
This example shows how to enable the beacon mode for the Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# beacon
This example shows how to disable the beacon mode for the Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# no beacon

You can specify whether each 10 Gb of bandwidth on a 32-port 10-Gigabit Ethernet module is dedicated to
one port or shared by four ports in the same port group.
Dedicating Bandwidth to One Port

When you dedicate the bandwidth to one port, you must first administratively shut down the four ports in the
group, change the rate mode to dedicated, and then bring the dedicated port administratively up.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure, and

slot/port, ethernet slot/port, ethernet enters interface configuration mode.
slot/port, ethernet slot/port
Step 3 switch(config-if)# shutdown Administratively shuts down the ports.
Step 4 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies the first Ethernet interface in a group of
slot/port interfaces.

24

Step 5 switch(config-if)# rate-mode dedicated Dedicates the full bandwidth of 10 Gb to one port.
When you dedicate the bandwidth, all subsequent
commands for the port are for dedicated mode.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# no shutdown Brings the port administratively up.
Step 7 switch(config-if)# show interface (Optional)

ethernet slot/port capabilities Displays the interface information including the
current rate mode.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the dedicated mode for Ethernet port 4/17 in the group that includes
ports 4/17, 4/19, 4/21, and 4/23:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 4/17, ethernet 4/19, ethernet 4/21, ethernet 4/23
switch(config-if)# shutdown
switch(config-if)# interface ethernet 4/17
switch(config-if)# rate-mode dedicated
switch(config-if)# no shutdown
Sharing the Bandwidth Among a Port Group

You can share 10 Gb of bandwidth among a group of ports (four ports) on a 32-port, 10-Gigabit Ethernet
module. To share the bandwidth, you must bring the dedicated port administratively down, specify the ports
that are to share the bandwidth, change the rate mode to shared, and then bring the ports administratively up.
Before You Begin

All ports in the same group must belong to the same VDC.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies the first Ethernet interface in a group
slot/port of interfaces.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# shutdown Administratively shuts down the ports.
Step 4 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies four Ethernet interfaces to configure

slot/port, ethernet slot/port, ethernet (they must be part of the same port group), and
slot/port, ethernet slot/port enters interface configuration mode.

25
Configuring the Error-Disabled State

Step 5 switch(config-if)# rate-mode shared Sets the shared rate mode for the specified ports.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# no shutdown Brings the ports administratively up.
Step 7 switch(config-if)# show interface ethernet (Optional)

slot/port Displays the interface information including the
current rate mode.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the shared mode for Ethernet port 4/17 in the group that includes ports
4/17, 4/19, 4/21, and 4/23:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 4/17, ethernet 4/19, ethernet 4/21, ethernet 4/23
switch(config-if)# rate-mode shared

You can view the reason an interface moves to the error-disabled state and configure automatic recovery.
Enabling Error-Disable Detection

You can enable error-disable detection in an application. As a result, when a cause is detected on an interface,
the interface is placed in an error-disabled state, which is an operational state that is similar to the link-down
state.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# errdisable detect Specifies a condition under which to place the interface
cause {acl-exception | all | link-flap | in an error-disabled state. The default is enabled.
loopback}
Step 3 switch(config)# shutdown Brings the interface down administratively. To
manually recover the interface from the error-disabled
state, enter this command first.

26

Step 4 switch(config)# no shutdown Brings the interface up administratively and enables
the interface to recover manually from the
error-disabled state.
Step 5 switch(config)# show interface status (Optional)

err-disabled Displays information about error-disabled interfaces.

configuration.
This example shows how to enable the error-disabled detection in all cases:
switch(config)# errdisable detect cause all
Enabling Error-Disabled Recovery

You can specify the application to bring the interface out of the error-disabled state and retry coming up. It
retries after 300 seconds, unless you configure the recovery timer (see the errdisable recovery interval
command).
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# errdisable recovery cause Specifies a condition under which the interface
{all | bpduguard | link-flap | automatically recovers from the error-disabled state,
psecure-violation | security-violation | and the device retries bringing the interface up. The
storm-control | udld} device waits 300 seconds to retry. The default is
disabled.


configuration.
This example shows how to enable error-disabled recovery under all conditions:
switch(config)# errdisable recovery cause all
Configuring the Error-Disabled Recovery Interval

You can configure the error-disabled recovery timer value.

27
Configuring the MDIX Parameter
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# errdisable recovery Specifies the interval for the interface to recover from
interval interval the error-disabled state. The range is from 30 to
65535 seconds, and the default is 300 seconds.


configuration.
This example shows how to configure the error-disabled recovery timer to set the interval for recovery to 32
seconds:
switch(config)# errdisable recovery interval 32
Configuring the MDIX Parameter

If you need to detect the type of connection (crossover or straight) with another copper Ethernet port, enable
the medium dependent independent crossover (MDIX) parameter for the local port. By default, this parameter
is enabled.
Before You Begin

You must enable MDIX for the remote port.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an interface to configure, and enters

Step 3 switch(config-if)# {mdix auto | no mdix} Specifies whether to enable or disable MDIX
detection for the port.

ethernet slot/port capabilities Displays the interface status, which includes the
MDIX status.

28
Configuring the Debounce Timer

configuration.
This example shows how to enable MDIX for Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# mdix auto
This example shows how to disable MDIX for Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# no mdix
Configuring the Debounce Timer

You can enable the debounce timer for Ethernet ports by specifying a debounce time, in milliseconds (ms),
or disable the timer by specifying a debounce time of 0.
You can show the debounce times for all of the Ethernet ports by using the show interface debounce command.
Procedure
Step 1 switch# configure terminal

Enters the global configuration mode.
Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet slot/port

Specifies an interface to configure, and enters interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# link debounce [link-up | time] milliseconds

Enables the debounce link-up or down timer for the amount of time (0 to 5000 ms) specified. The default
value for link debounce link-up command is 0. We recommended setting the debounce link-up timer value
to 100 ms.
Note The link debounce command without the link-up keyword refers to link down debounce
time.
Note The link debounce link-up command will override all previous values configured by the
user.
Disables the debounce timer if you specify 0 milliseconds.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit

Exits the interface mode.
Step 5 (Optional) switch(config)# show interface debounce

Shows the link debounce time for all of the Ethernet interfaces.
Step 6 (Optional) switch(config)# copy running-config startup-config

Copies the running configuration to the startup configuration.

29
Configuring the Interface Speed and Duplex Mode
This example shows how to enable the link down debounce timer to 1000 ms for the Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# link debounce time 1000
This example shows how to enable the debounce link-up timer and set the debounce time to 1000 ms for the
Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# link debounce link-up time 1000
This example shows how to disable the debounce timer for the Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# link debounce time 0
Configuring the Interface Speed and Duplex Mode

The interface speed and duplex mode are interrelated, so you should configure both of their parameters at the
same time.
To see which speeds and duplex modes you can configure together for Ethernet and management interfaces,
see Speed Mode and Duplex Mode, on page 13.
Note The interface speed that you specify can affect the duplex mode used for an interface, so you should set
the speed before setting the duplex mode. If you set the speed for autonegotiation, the duplex mode is
automatically set to be autonegotiated. If you specify 10- or 100-Mb/s speed, the port is automatically
configured to use half-duplex mode, but you can specify full-duplex mode instead. If you specify a speed
of 1000 Mb/s (1 Gb/s) or faster, full duplex is automatically used.
Before You Begin

Make sure that the remote port has a speed setting that supports your changes for the local port. If you want
to set the local port to use a specific speed, you must set the remote port for the same speed or set the local
port to autonegotiate the speed.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the interface that you are configuring. You can
interface specify the interface type and identity. For an Ethernet port,
use “ethernet slot/port.” For the management interface, use
“mgmt0.”
Step 3 switch(config-if)# speed {{10 | For Ethernet ports on the 48-port 10/100/1000 modules, sets
100 | 1000 | {auto [10 100 the speed at 10 Mb/s, 100 Mb/s, or 1000 Mb/s, or sets the
[1000]]}} | {10000 | auto}}

30
Configuring Flow Control

port to autonegotiate its speed with the other 10/100/1000
port on the same link.
For Ethernet ports on the 32-port 10-Gigabit Ethernet
modules, sets the speed at 10,000 Mb/s (10 Gb/s) or sets the
port to autonegotiate its speed with the other 10-Gigabit
Ethernet port on the link.
For management interfaces, sets the speed as 1000 Mb/s or
sets the port to autonegotiate its speed.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# duplex {full | Specifies the duplex mode as full, half, or autonegotiate.
half | auto}

interface Displays the interface status, which includes the speed and
duplex mode parameters.
Step 7 switch(config)# copy (Optional)

running-config startup-config Copies the running configuration to the startup configuration.
This example shows how to set the speed of Ethernet port 1 on the 48-port, 10/100/1000 module in slot 3 to
1000 Mb/s and full-duplex mode:
switch(config-if)# speed 1000
switch(config-if)# duplex full
switch(config-if)#

For Ethernet ports that run at 1 Gb/s or faster, you can enable or disable the port’s ability to send and receive
flow-control pause frames. For Ethernet ports that run slower than 1 Gb/s, you can enable or disable only the
port’s ability to receive pause frames.
When enabling flow control for the local port, you either fully enable the local port to send or receive frames
regardless of the flow-control setting of the remote port, or you set the local port to use the desired setting
used by the remote port. If you enable both the local and remote port for flow control, or set the desired flow
control of the other port, or set a combination of those two states, flow control is enabled for those ports.
Note For ports that run at 10 Gb/s, you cannot use the desired state for the send or receive parameter.
Before You Begin

Make sure that the remote port has the corresponding setting for the flow control that you need. If you want
the local port to send flow-control pause frames, make sure that the remote port has a receive parameter set
to on or desired. If you want the local port to receive flow-control frames, make sure that the remote port has

31
Configuring MTU Size
a send parameter set to on or desired. If you do not want to use flow control, you can set the remote port’s
send and receive parameters to off.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure by its slot
slot/port number and port number, and enters the interface
configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# flowcontrol {send Specifies the flow-control setting for ports. You can
| receive} {desired | on | off} set the send setting for only the ports running at 1000
Mb/s or faster. You can set the receive setting for ports
running at any speed.

ethernet slot/port Displays the interface status, which includes the flow
control parameters.

flowcontrol Displays the flow control status for all Ethernet ports.

configuration.
This example shows how to set Ethernet port 3/1 to send flow control pause frames:
switch(config-if)# flowcontrol send on

You can configure the maximum transmission unit (MTU) size for Layer 2 and Layer 3 Ethernet interfaces.
For Layer 3 interfaces, you can configure the MTU to be between 576 and 9216 bytes (even values are
required). For Layer 2 interfaces, you can configure the MTU to be either the system default MTU (1500
bytes) or the system jumbo MTU size (which has the default size of 9216 bytes).
Note You can change the system jumbo MTU size, but if you change that value, the Layer 2 interfaces that use
that value automatically changes to the new system jumbo MTU value.
By default, Cisco NX-OS configures Layer 3 parameters. If you want to configure Layer 2 parameters, you
need to switch the port mode to Layer 2.
You can change the port mode by using the switchport command.

32
After changing the port mode to Layer 2, you can return to configuring Layer 3 interfaces by changing the
port mode again, by using the no switchport command.
Configuring Interface MTU Size

For Layer 3 interfaces, you can configure an MTU size that is between 576 and 9216 bytes.
For Layer 2 interfaces, you can configure all Layer 2 interfaces to use either the default MTU size (1500
bytes) or the system jumbo MTU size (default size of 9216 bytes).
If you need to use a different system jumbo MTU size for Layer 2 interfaces, see the “Configuring System
Jumbo MTU Size” section.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure, and enters
Step 3 switch(config-if)# {switchport | no Specifies to use Layer 2 or Layer 3.

switchport}
Step 4 switch(config-if)# mtu size For a Layer 2 interface, specifies either the default
MTU size (1500) or the system jumbo MTU size (9216
unless you have changed the system jumbo MTU size).
For a Layer 3 interface, specifies any even number
between 576 and 9216.

ethernet slot/port Displays the interface status, which includes the MTU
size.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the Layer 2 Ethernet port 3/1 with the default MTU size (1500):
switch(config-if)# switchport
switch(config-if)# mtu 1500
Configuring System Jumbo MTU Size

To configure jumbo MTU size for a Layer 2 interface and Layer 2 interfaces and subinterfaces, perform the
following task. If you do not configure the system jumbo MTU size, it defaults to 9216 bytes.

33
When you configure jumbo MTU on a port-channel subinterface you must first enable MTU 9216 on the base
interface and then configure it again on the subinterface. If you enable the jumbo MTU on the subinterface
before you enable it on the base interface then the following error will be displayed on the console:
switch(config)# int po 502.4
switch(config-subif)# mtu 9216
ERROR: Incompatible MTU values
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# system Specifies the system jumbo MTU size. Use an even number
jumbomtu size between 1500 and 9216.
Step 3 switch(config)# show (Optional)

running-config all Displays the current operating configuration, which includes the
system jumbo MTU size.
Step 4 switch(config)# interface Specifies an interface to configure and enters interface

type slot/port configuration mode.
When enabling a port-channel sub interface for Jumbo MTU, first
enable the base interface with 'mtu 9216' and then configure each
sub interface that supports the MTU size with the 'mtu 9216'. If
performed in the incorrect order, Jumbo MTU support will not be
enabled.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# mtu size For a Layer 2 interface, specifies either the default MTU size
(1500) or the system jumbo MTU size that you specified earlier.
For a Layer 3 interface, specifies any even size between 576 and
9216.
Note To enable jumbo MTU for Layer 3 port-channel
subinterfaces, you must first enable the base (parent)
interface using the mtu 9216 command and then configure
the mtu 9216 command for each subinterface on which
this MTU size is to be supported. If you configure the
commands in the reverse order (subinterface first and
then the base interface), the following message is
displayed: Incompatible MTU values.

running-config Copies the running configuration to the startup configuration.
startup-config
This example shows how to configure the system jumbo MTU as 8000 bytes and how to change the MTU
specification for an interface that was configured with the previous jumbo MTU size:
switch(config)# system jumbomtu 8000

34
Configuring Bandwidth for Ethernet Interfaces
switch(config)# show running-config

switch(config-if)# mtu 8000
Configuring Bandwidth for Ethernet Interfaces

You can configure the bandwidth for Ethernet interfaces. The physical level uses an unchangeable bandwidth
of 1 GB, but you can configure a value of 1 to 10,000,000 Kb for Level 3 protocols.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure, and

slot/port enters interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bandwidth kbps Specifies the bandwidth as an informational-only

value between 1 and 10,000,000.
Step 5 switch(config)# show interface ethernet (Optional)

slot/port Displays the interface status, which includes the
bandwidth value.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure an informational value of 1,000,000 Kb for the Ethernet slot 3, port 1
interface bandwidth parameter:
switch(config-if)# bandwidth 1000000
Configuring Throughput Delay

You can configure the interface throughput delay for Ethernet interfaces. The actual delay time does not
change, but you can set an informational value between 1 and 16777215, where the value represents the
number of tens of microseconds.
Procedure


35
Shutting Down and Activating an Interface

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure, and enters
Step 3 switch(config-if)# delay value Specifies the delay time in tens of microseconds. You
can set an informational value range between 1 and
16777215 tens of microseconds.

ethernet slot/port Displays the interface status, which includes the
throughput-delay time.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the throughput-delay time so that one interface is preferred over another.
A lower delay value is preferred over a higher value. In this example, Ethernet 7/48 is preferred over 7/47.
The default delay for 7/48 is less than the configured value on 7/47, which is set for the highest value
(16777215):
switch(config-if)# delay 16777215
switch(config-if)# ip address 192.168.10.1/24
switch(config-if)# ip router eigrp 10
switch(config-if)# exit
switch(config-if)# ip router eigrp 10
Note You must first ensure the EIGRP feature is enabled by running the feature eigrp command.
Shutting Down and Activating an Interface

You can shut down and restart Ethernet or management interfaces. When you shut down interfaces, they
become disabled and all monitoring displays show them as being down. This information is communicated
to other network servers through all dynamic routing protocols. When the interfaces are shut down, the interface
is not included in any routing updates. To activate the interface, you must restart the device.

36
Configuring UDLD Mode
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface interface Specifies the interface that you are configuring. You
can specify the interface type and identity. For an
Ethernet port, use “ethernet slot/port.” For the
management interface, use “mgmt0.”
Step 3 switch(config-if)# shutdown Disables the interface.

administrative status.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# no shutdown Reenables the interface.

administrative status.

configuration.
This example shows how to change the administrative status for Ethernet port 3/1 from disabled to enabled:

You can configure normal or aggressive unidirectional link detection (UDLD) modes for Ethernet interfaces
on devices configured to run UDLD. Before you can enable a UDLD mode for an interface, you must make
sure that UDLD is already enabled on the device that includes the interface. UDLD must also be enabled on
the other linked interface and its device.
The table below lists CLI details to enable and disable UDLD on different interfaces.
Description Fiber port Copper or Nonfiber port

Default setting Enabled Disabled
Enable UDLD command no udld disable udld enable
Disable UDLD command udld disable no udld enable

37
To use the normal UDLD mode, you must configure one of the ports for normal mode and configure the other
port for the normal or aggressive mode. To use the aggressive UDLD mode, you must configure both ports
for the aggressive mode.
By default, UDLD is disabled for the 48-port, 10/100/1000 Ethernet module ports but the normal UDLD mode
is enabled for the 32-port, 10-Gigabit Ethernet module ports.
Before You Begin

You must enable UDLD for the other linked port and its device.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature udld Enables UDLD for the device.

The no feature udld disables UDLD for the device.
Step 3 switch(config)# udld (Optional)

message-time seconds Specifies the interval between sending UDLD messages. The
range is from 7 to 90 seconds, and the default is 15 seconds.
Note The interface level timer changes only if
bidirectional UDLD status is detected, otherwise
the timer remains at 7 seconds and cannot be
changed.
Step 4 switch(config)# udld aggressive (Optional)
Specifies UDLD mode to be aggressive.
Note For copper interfaces, you enter the interface
command mode for those interfaces you want to
configure for UDLD aggressive mode and issue this
command in interface command model.
Step 5 switch(config)# interface (Optional)
ethernet slot/port Specifies an Ethernet interface to configure, and enters
interface configuration mode.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# udld {enable (Optional)

| disable} Enables UDLD on the specified copper port or disables
UDLD on the specified fiber port.
To enable UDLD on copper ports enter the udld enable
command. To enable UDLD on fiber ports, enter the no udld
disable command. See the table above for more details.
Step 8 switch(config)# show udld (Optional)

[ethernet slot/port | global | Displays the UDLD status.
neighbors]

38
Configuring Carrier Delay Timer

This example shows how to enable the UDLD for the device:
switch(config)# feature udld
This example shows how to set the UDLD message interval to 30 seconds:
switch(config)# udld message-time 30
This example shows how to enable the aggressive UDLD mode for fiber interfaces:
switch(config)# udld aggressive
This example shows how to enable the aggressive UDLD mode for the copper interface Ethernet 3/1:
switch(config)# udld aggressive
switch(config-if-range)# udld enable
This example shows how to disable UDLD for Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if-range)# no udld enable
switch(config-if-range)# exit
This example shows how to disable UDLD for the device:

switch(config)# no feature udld
switch(config)# exit
Configuring Carrier Delay Timer

The carrier delay timer sets a time during which all link-down/link-up events are not detected by any of the
other software on the device. When you configure a longer carrier delay time, fewer link-down/link-up events
are recorded. When you configure the carrier delay time to 0, the device detects each link-down/link-up event.
Note You can configure the carrier delay timer only on VLAN network interfaces; you cannot configure this
timer in any other interface modes.
Before You Begin

Ensure that you are in VLAN interface mode. You cannot configure the carrier delay timer in any other
interface mode.

39
Configuring Port Profiles
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface vlan vlan-id Enters the VLAN interface mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# carrier-delay {sec | Sets the carrier delay timer. You can set the time
msec number} between 0 to 60 seconds or 0 to 1000 milliseconds.
The default is 100 milliseconds.
Step 5 switch(config)# show interface vlan-id (Optional)

Displays the interface status.

configuration.
This example shows how to set the carrier delay timer to 20 seconds for VLAN 5:
switch(config)# interface vlan 5
switch(config-if)# carrier-delay 20

You can apply several configuration parameters to a range of interfaces simultaneously. All the interfaces in
the range must be the same type. You can also inherit the configurations from one port profile into another
port profile. The system supports four levels of inheritance.
Creating a Port Profile

You can create a port profile on the device. Each port profile must have a unique name across types and the
network.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# port-profile [type Creates and names a port profile for the specified
{ethernet | interface-vlan | loopback | port type of interface and enters the port-profile
channel | tunnel}] name configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-ppm)# exit Exits the port-profile configuration mode.

40

Step 4 switch(config)# show port-profile (Optional)
Displays the port-profile configuration.

configuration.
This example shows how to create a port profile named test for tunnel interfaces:
switch(config)# port-profile type tunnel test
switch(config-ppm)#
Entering Port-Profile Configuration Mode and Modifying a Port Profile

You can enter the port-profile configuration mode and modify a port profile. To modify the port profile, you
must be in the port-profile configuration mode.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# port-profile [type Enters the port-profile configuration mode for the
{ethernet | interface-vlan | loopback | specified port profile and allows you to add or
port channel | tunnel}] name remove configurations to the profile.


configuration.
This example shows how to enter the port-profile configuration mode for the specified port profile and bring
all the interfaces administratively up:
switch(config-ppm)# no shutdown
switch(config-ppm)#

41
Assigning a Port Profile to a Range of Interfaces

You can assign a port profile to an interface or to a range of interfaces. All the interfaces must be the same
type.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface [ethernet slot/port Selects the range of interfaces.

| interface-vlan vlan-id | loopback number |
port-channel number | tunnel number]
Step 3 switch(config-if)# inherit port-profile name Assigns the specified port profile to the
selected interfaces.


startup-config Copies the running configuration to the
startup configuration.
This example shows how to assign the port profile named adam to Ethernet interfaces 7/3 to 7/5, 10/2, and
11/20 to 11/25:
switch(config)# interface ethernet7/3-5, ethernet10/2, ethernet11/20-25
switch(config-if)# inherit port-profile adam
switch(config-if)#
Enabling a Specific Port Profile

To apply the port-profile configurations to the interfaces, you must enable the specific port profile. You can
configure and inherit a port profile onto a range of interfaces before you enable that port profile. You would
then enable that port profile for the configurations to take effect on the specified interfaces.
If you inherit one or more port profiles onto an original port profile, only the last inherited port profile must
be enabled; the system assumes that the underlying port profiles are enabled.
You must be in the port-profile configuration mode to enable or disable port profiles.
Procedure


42

Step 2 switch(config)# port-profile [type Creates and names a port profile for the specified
{ethernet | interface-vlan | loopback | port type of interface and enters the port-profile
channel | tunnel}] name configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-ppm)# state enabled Enables that port profile.


configuration.
This example shows how to enter the port-profile configuration mode and enable the port profile:
switch(config-ppm)# state enabled
switch(config-ppm)#
Inheriting a Port Profile

You can inherit a port profile onto an existing port profile. The system supports four levels of inheritance.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)#port-profile name Enters the port-profile configuration mode for the
specified port profile.
Step 3 switch(config-ppm)# inherit Inherits another port profile onto the existing one.
port-profile name The original port profile assumes all the
configurations of the inherited port profile.


configuration.

43
This example shows how to inherit the port profile named adam onto the port profile named test:
switch(config)# port-profile test
switch(config-ppm)# inherit port-profile adam
switch(config-ppm)#
Removing a Port Profile from a Range of Interfaces

You can remove a port profile from some or all of the interfaces to which you have applied the profile. You
do this configuration in the interfaces configuration mode.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface [ethernet slot/port Selects the range of interfaces.

| interface-vlan vlan-id | loopback number |
port-channel number | tunnel number]
Step 3 switch(config-if)# inherit port-profile name Assigns the specified port profile to the
selected interfaces.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the port-profile configuration mode.


startup-config Copies the running configuration to the
This example shows how to assign the port profile named adam to Ethernet interfaces 7/3 to 7/5, 10/2, and
11/20 to 11/25:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 7/3-5, 10/2, 11/20-25
switch(config-if)# inherit port-profile adam
switch(config-if)#
Removing an Inherited Port Profile

You can remove an inherited port profile. You do this configuration in the port-profile mode.
Procedure


44
Performing TDR Cable Diagnostics

Step 2 switch(config)# port-profile name Enters the port-profile configuration mode for the
specified port profile.
Step 3 switch(config-ppm)# inherit port-profile Removes an inherited port profile from this port
name profile.


configuration.
This example shows how to remove the inherited port profile named adam from the port profile named test:
switch(config)# port-profile test
switch(config-ppm)# no inherit port-profile adam
switch(config-ppm)#
Performing TDR Cable Diagnostics

You can perform cable diagnostics without the use of expensive third-party equipment. Each port on the line
card can independently detect cabling issues and report them to the switch software using TDR diagnostics.
Before You Begin

The TDR test guidelines are as follows:
• TDR can test cables up to a maximum length of 115 meters.
• Do not start the test at the same time on both ends of the cable. Starting the test at both ends of the cable
at the same time can lead to false test results.
• Do not change the port configuration during any cable diagnostics test. This action may result in incorrect
test results.
• All ports in the associated port group must be shut down before running the TDR test.
Procedure

Step 1 switch# test cable-diagnostics tdr Starts the TDR test on the specified interface. You
interface number must have previously run the shutdown command
on the interface.

45
Configuring Rate Limits for Packets that Reach the Supervisor

Step 2 switch# show interface number (Optional)
cable-diagnostics-tdr Shows the TDR test results for the specified
interface.
This example shows how to perform a TDR test on a specific interface. In this example, ethernet 3/1 has a
missing cable, and ethernet 3/12 is a good cable and connection.
switch(config-if-range)# shutdown
switch# test cable-diagnostics tdr interface ethernet 3/1
switch# test cable-diagnostics tdr interface ethernet 3/12
switch# show interface ethernet 3/1 cable-diagnostics-tdr
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interface Speed Pair Cable Length Distance to fault Channel Pair Status
-------------- ----- ---- -------------- ------------------- ------- -----------
Eth3/1 auto --- N/A 1 +/- 2 m Pair A Open
auto --- N/A 1 +/- 2 m Pair B Open
auto --- N/A 1 +/- 2 m Pair C Open
auto --- N/A 1 +/- 2 m Pair D Open
n7000# show interface ethernet 3/12 cable-diagnostics-tdr

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interface Speed Pair Cable Length Distance to fault Channel Pair Status
-------------- ----- ---- -------------- ------------------- ------- -----------
Eth3/12 1000 --- N/A N/A Pair A Terminated
--- N/A N/A Pair B Terminated
--- N/A N/A Pair C Terminated
--- N/A N/A Pair D Terminated
Configuring Rate Limits for Packets that Reach the Supervisor

From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can configure rate limits globally on the device for packets that reach
the supervisor module. For more information, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Security Configuration
Guide.
You can configure rate limits for packets that reach the supervisor module on a particular interface.
Note If the rate of incoming or outgoing packets exceeds the configured rate limit, the device logs a system
message, but does not drop any packets.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# [no] rate-limit cpu Configures the rate limits for packets that reach the
direction {input | output | both} pps supervisor module on a particular interface. If the rate of
packets action log incoming or outgoing packets exceeds the configured
rate limit, the device logs a system message but does not

46
Verifying Basic Interface Parameters

drop any packets. The range is from 1 to 100000. The
default rate is 10000.
Step 4 show system internal pktmgr (Optional)

interface ethernet slot/port Displays the inbound and outbound rate limit
configuration for packets that reach the supervisor module
on a specific interface.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the rate limits for packets that reach the supervisor module on a specific
interface:
switch# rate-limit cpu direction both pps 1000 action log
switch# show system internal pktmgr interface ethernet 4/9
Ethernet4/9, ordinal: 44
SUP-traffic statistics: (sent/received)
Packets: 528 / 0
Bytes: 121968 / 0
Instant packet rate: 0 pps / 0 pps
Packet rate limiter (Out/In): 1000 pps / 1000 pps
Average packet rates(1min/5min/15min/EWMA):
Packet statistics:
Tx: Unicast 0, Multicast 528
Broadcast 0
Rx: Unicast 0, Multicast 0
Broadcast 0
Verifying Basic Interface Parameters

You can verify the basic interface parameters by displaying their values. You can also clear the counters listed
when you display the parameter values.
Note The system displays only those ports that are allocated to the VDC that you are working in.
Use the information in the below table to verify the basic interface parameters.
Table 8: Verifying Basic Interface Parameters
Command Purpose
show cdp Displays the CDP status.
show interface interface Displays the configured states of one or all interfaces.
show interface brief Displays a table of interface states.

47
Monitoring Interface Counters
Command Purpose
show interface switchport Displays the status of Layer 2 ports.
show interface status err-disabled Displays information about error-disabled interfaces.
show interface status error policy [detail] Displays errors about interfaces and VLANs that are
inconsistent with hardware policies.
The detail command displays the details of the
interfaces that produce an error.
show vdc Displays the status of the existing VDCs.
show udld interface Displays the UDLD status for the current interface
or all interfaces.
show udld-global Displays the UDLD status for the current device.
show port-profile Displays information about the port profiles.
show system internal pktmgr internal ethernet Displays the inbound and outbound rate limit
slot/port configuration for packets that reach the supervisor
module on a specific interface.
show errdisable {recovery | detect} Displays the errdisable recovery and detection runtime
information.
For detailed information about the fields in the output from these commands, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference.
Monitoring Interface Counters

Displaying Interface Statistics
You can set up to three sampling intervals for statistics collections on interfaces.
Note F2 Series I/O modules do not support per-VLAN statistics. Therefore, the show interface command will
not display per-VLAN Rx/Tx counters or statistics for switch virtual interfaces (SVIs).

48
Clearing Interface Counters
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# load-interval Sets up to three sampling intervals to collect bit-rate and
counters {{1 | 2 | 3} seconds} packet-rate statistics. The default values for each counter
is as follows:
• 1—30 seconds; 60 seconds for VLAN network
interface
• 2—300 seconds
• 3—not configured

counters.
Step 4 switch(config)# exit Exits the port-profile configuration mode.
Step 5 switch# copy running-config (Optional)

configuration.
This example shows how to set the three sample intervals for the Ethernet port 3/1:
switch(config-if)# load-interval counter 1 60
switch(config-if)#
Clearing Interface Counters

You can clear the Ethernet and management interface counters by using the clear counters interface command.
You can perform this task from the configuration mode or interface configuration mode.
Procedure

Step 1 switch# clear counters interface {all [snmp] | ethernet Clears the interface counters.
slot/port [snmp] | loopback number | mgmt number |
port channel channel-number | tunnel tunnel-number |
vlan vlan-number}

49
Related Documents

Step 2 switch# show interface interface (Optional)
Displays the interface status.
Step 3 switch# show interface [ethernet slot/port | port-channel (Optional)

channel-number] counters Displays the interface counters.
This example shows how to clear the Simple Network Management protocol (SNMP) counters on Ethernet
port 5/5:
switch# clear counters interface ethernet 5/5 snmp
switch#
Related Documents
Table 9: Related Documents
Related Topic
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference
Interfaces Configuration Guide, Cisco DCNM for LAN
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System Management Configuration Guide
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS High Availability and Redundancy Guide
Cisco Nexus 2000 Series NX-OS Fabric Extender Software Configuration Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000
Series Switches, Release 6.x
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide
Cisco NX-OS Licensing Guide
VLANs, MAC address tables, private VLANs, and the Spanning Tree Protocol.
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Command Reference
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Configuration Guide
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes

50
CHAPTER 4
Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces
This chapter describes how to configure Layer 2 interfaces on Cisco NX-OS devices.

• Feature History for Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces, page 51
• Prerequisites for Layer 2 Interfaces, page 53
• Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 2 Interfaces, page 53
• Default Settings for Layer 2 Interfaces, page 54
• Information About Layer 2 Interfaces, page 54
• Configuring Access and Trunk Interfaces, page 60
• Verifying the Interface Configuration, page 78
• Monitoring Layer 2 Interfaces, page 79

Feature History for Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces


51
Table 10: Feature History for Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces

Native VLAN tagging on 6.2(10) Added support for the switchport trunk
Trunk Ports native vlan tag command and added the
exclude control keywords to the vlan dot1q
tag native command.
Display policy errors on 6.2(2) Added the show interface status error policy
interfaces and vlans command to display errors on interfaces and
VLANs that are inconsistent with hardware
policies.
the interface command to include the snmp keyword that
the interface.
SVI autostate disable 6.2(2) Added the no autostate command that allows
an SVI to be kept up even if no interface is
up in the corresponding VLAN.
Slow drain device detection 6.1(1) Added configuration for slow drain device
and congestion avoidance detection and avoiding congestion.
Default interfaces 5.2(1) Added the default interface command to

clear configuration of multiple interfaces.
SVI autostate exclude 5.2(1) Added the switchport autostate exclude

command to prevent a port’s state from
affecting the up or down state of the SVI.
Three configurable sampling 4.2(1) Added the load-interval command.

intervals for interface
statistics


52
Prerequisites for Layer 2 Interfaces

Layer 2 interfaces have the following prerequisites:
• You are logged onto the device.
• You must configure the port as a Layer 2 port before you can use the switchport mode command. By
default, all ports on the device are Layer 3 ports.
Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 2 Interfaces

VLAN trunking has the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• A port can be either a Layer 2 or a Layer 3 interface; it cannot be both simultaneously.
• When you change a Layer 3 port to a Layer 2 port or a Layer 2 port to a Layer 3 port, all layer-dependent
configuration is lost. When you change an access or trunk port to a Layer 3 port, all information about
the access VLAN, native VLAN, allowed VLANs, and so forth, is lost.
• Do not connect devices with access links because access links may partition a VLAN.
• When connecting Cisco devices through an 802.1Q trunk, make sure that the native VLAN for an 802.1Q
trunk is the same on both ends of the trunk link. If the native VLAN on one end of the trunk is different
from the native VLAN on the other end, spanning tree loops might result.
• Disabling spanning tree on the native VLAN of an 802.1Q trunk without disabling spanning tree on
every VLAN in the network can cause spanning tree loops. You must leave spanning tree enabled on
the native VLAN of an 802.1Q trunk. If you cannot leave spanning tree enabled, you must disable
spanning tree on every VLAN in the network. Make sure that your network has no physical loops before
you disable spanning tree.
• When you connect two Cisco devices through 802.1Q trunks, the devices exchange spanning tree bridge
protocol data units (BPDUs) on each VLAN allowed on the trunks. The BPDUs on the native VLAN
of the trunk are sent untagged to the reserved IEEE 802.1D spanning tree multicast MAC address
(01-80-C2-00-00-00). The BPDUs on all other VLANs on the trunk are sent tagged to the reserved Cisco
Shared Spanning Tree (SSTP) multicast MAC address (01-00-0c-cc-cc-cd).
• Non-Cisco 802.1Q devices maintain only a single instance of spanning tree (the Mono Spanning Tree)
that defines the spanning tree topology for all VLANs. When you connect a Cisco switch to a non-Cisco
switch through an 802.1Q trunk, the Mono Spanning Tree of the non-Cisco switch and the native VLAN
spanning tree of the Cisco switch combine to form a single spanning tree topology known as the Common
Spanning Tree (CST).
• Because Cisco devices transmit BPDUs to the SSTP multicast MAC address on VLANs other than the
native VLAN of the trunk, non-Cisco devices do not recognize these frames as BPDUs and flood them
on all ports in the corresponding VLAN. Other Cisco devices connected to the non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud
receive these flooded BPDUs. This BPDU reception allows Cisco switches to maintain a per-VLAN
spanning tree topology across a cloud of non-Cisco 802.1Q devices. The non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud that
separates the Cisco devices is treated as a single broadcast segment between all devices connected to
the non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud through 802.1Q trunks.
• Make certain that the native VLAN is the same on all of the 802.1Q trunks that connect the Cisco devices
to the non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud.

53
Default Settings for Layer 2 Interfaces
• If you are connecting multiple Cisco devices to a non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud, all of the connections must
be through 802.1Q trunks. You cannot connect Cisco devices to a non-Cisco 802.1Q cloud through
access ports because doing so places the access port on the Cisco device into the spanning tree “port
inconsistent” state and no traffic will pass through the port.
• You can group trunk ports into port-channel groups, but all trunks in the group must have the same
configuration. When a group is first created, all ports follow the parameters set for the first port to be
added to the group. If you change the configuration of one of these parameters, the device propagates
that setting to all ports in the group, such as the allowed VLANs and the trunk status. For example, if
one port in a port group ceases to be a trunk, all ports cease to be trunks.
• If you try to enable 802.1X on a trunk port, an error message appears, and 802.1X is not enabled. If you
try to change the mode of an 802.1X-enabled port to trunk, the port mode is not changed.
• Changing the native VLAN on an access port or trunk port will flap the interface. This behavior is
expected.

Table 11: Default Access and Trunk Port Mode Parameters
Parameter Default
Switchport mode Access
Allowed VLANs 1 to 3967, 4048 to 4094
Access VLAN ID VLAN1
Native VLAN ID VLAN1
Native VLAN ID tagging Disabled
Administrative state Shut
SVI autostate Enabled
Information About Layer 2 Interfaces
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2, the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices support FabricPath Layer 2 interfaces.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Command Reference for complete information about
the FabricPath feature and interfaces.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, a Layer 2 port can function as either one of the following:
• A trunk port

54
Access and Trunk Interfaces
• An access port
• A private VLAN port (see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide
for more information about private VLANs)
• A FabricPath port (see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Configuration Guide and the
Cisco DCNM FabricPath Configuration Guide for information about FabricPath)
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), a Layer 2 port can also function as a shared interface. You cannot configure
an access interface as a shared interface. See the Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration Guide for Cisco Nexus
7000 and Cisco MDS 9000 for information about shared interfaces.
A Layer 2 port can function as either a trunk port, an access port, or a private VLAN port.
Note • From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1, the slow drain device detection and congestion avoidance mechanism
is supported on F series I/O modules that carry the Fabric Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) traffic. See
the "Configuring Slow Drain Device Detection and Congestion Avoidance" section for more
information about configuring slow drain device detection and congestion avoidance on the Cisco
Nexus 7000 Series platform.
You can configure Layer 2 switching ports as access or trunk ports. Trunks carry the traffic of
multiple VLANs over a single link and allow you to extend VLANs across an entire network. All
Layer 2 switching ports maintain media access control (MAC) address tables.
• A Layer 2 port can function as either a trunk port, an access port, or a private VLAN port. See the
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information
about private VLANs.
Access and Trunk Interfaces
Note Cisco NX-OS device supports only IEEE 802.1Q-type VLAN trunk encapsulation.
A Layer 2 port can be configured as an access or a trunk port as follows:

• An access port can have only one VLAN configured on that port; it can carry traffic for only one VLAN.
• A trunk port can have two or more VLANs configured on that port; it can carry traffic for several VLANs
simultaneously.
By default, all ports on the device are Layer 3 ports.

You can make all ports Layer 2 ports using the setup script or by entering the system default switchport
command. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Fundamentals Configuration Guide for information about
using the setup script. To configure the port as a Layer 2 port using the CLI, use the switchport command.
All ports in one trunk must be in the same virtual device context (VDC). See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide for information about VDCs.
All ports in the same trunk must be in the same VDC, and trunk ports cannot carry VLANs from different
VDCs.

55
IEEE 802.1Q Encapsulation
The figure below shows how you can use trunk ports in the network. The trunk port carries traffic for two or
more VLANs.
Figure 2: Trunk and Access Ports and VLAN Traffic
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for information about
VLANs.
In order to correctly deliver the traffic on a trunk port with several VLANs, the device uses the IEEE 802.1Q
encapsulation, or tagging, method (see the “IEEE 802.1Q Encapsulation” section for more information).
Note See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information about
subinterfaces on Layer 3 interfaces.
To optimize the performance on access ports, you can configure the port as a host port. Once the port is
configured as a host port, it is automatically set as an access port, and channel grouping is disabled. Use the
host designation to decrease the time that it takes the designated port to begin to forward packets.
Only an end station can be set as a host port; you will receive an error message if you attempt to configure
other ports as hosts.
If an access port receives a packet with an 802.1Q tag in the header other than the access VLAN value, that
port drops the packet without learning its MAC source address.
A Layer 2 interface can function as either an access port or a trunk port; it cannot function as both port types
simultaneously.
When you change a Layer 2 interface back to a Layer 3 interface, that interface loses all the Layer 2
configuration and resumes the default VLAN configurations.
IEEE 802.1Q Encapsulation
Note For information about VLANs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration
Guide.
A trunk is a point-to-point link between the switch and another networking device. Trunks carry the traffic
of multiple VLANs over a single link and allow you to extend VLANs across an entire network.
To correctly deliver the traffic on a trunk port with several VLANs, the device uses the IEEE 802.1Q
encapsulation, or tagging, method that uses a tag that is inserted into the frame header (see the figure below).
This tag carries information about the specific VLAN to which the frame and packet belong. This method
allows packets that are encapsulated for several different VLANs to traverse the same port and maintain traffic

56
Access VLANs
separation between the VLANs. Also, the encapsulated VLAN tag allows the trunk to move traffic end-to-end
through the network on the same VLAN.
Figure 3: Header Without and With 802.1Q Tag
Access VLANs
Note If you assign an access VLAN that is also a primary VLAN for a private VLAN, all access ports with that
access VLAN will also receive all the broadcast traffic for the primary VLAN in the private VLAN mode.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for complete information
on private VLANs.
When you configure a port in access mode, you can specify which VLAN will carry the traffic for that interface.
If you do not configure the VLAN for a port in access mode, or an access port, the interface carries traffic for
the default VLAN (VLAN1).
You can change the access port membership in a VLAN by specifying the new VLAN. You must create the
VLAN before you can assign it as an access VLAN for an access port. If you change the access VLAN on an
access port to a VLAN that is not yet created, the system shuts that access port down.
If an access port receives a packet with an 802.1Q tag in the header other than the access VLAN value, that
port drops the packet without learning its MAC source address.
Native VLAN IDs for Trunk Ports

A trunk port can carry nontagged packets simultaneously with the 802.1Q tagged packets. When you assign
a default port VLAN ID to the trunk port, all untagged traffic travels on the default port VLAN ID for the
trunk port, and all untagged traffic is assumed to belong to this VLAN. This VLAN is referred to as the native
VLAN ID for a trunk port. That is, the native VLAN ID is the VLAN that carries untagged traffic on trunk
ports.

57
Tagging Native VLAN Traffic
Note Native VLAN ID numbers must match on both ends of the trunk.
The trunk port sends an egressing packet with a VLAN that is equal to the default port VLAN ID as untagged;
all the other egressing packets are tagged by the trunk port. If you do not configure a native VLAN ID, the
trunk port uses the default VLAN.
Note You cannot use a Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) VLAN as a native VLAN for an Ethernet trunk
switchport.
Tagging Native VLAN Traffic

The Cisco software supports the IEEE 802.1Q standard on trunk ports. In order to pass untagged traffic through
the trunk ports, you must create a VLAN that does not tag any packets (or you can use the default VLAN).
Untagged packets can pass through trunk ports and access ports.
However, all packets that enter the device with an 802.1Q tag that matches the value of the native VLAN on
the trunk are stripped of any tagging and egress the trunk port as untagged packets. This situation can cause
problems because you may want to retain the tagging on packets on the native VLAN for the trunk port.
You can configure the device to drop all untagged packets on the trunk ports and to retain the tagging of
packets entering the device with 802.1Q values that are equal to that of the native VLAN ID. All control traffic
still passes on the native VLAN. This configuration is global; trunk ports on the device either do or do not
retain the tagging for the native VLAN.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(10), you can specify whether control and data packets are tagged or untagged
using the switchport trunk native vlan tag command at the port level. For example, by using the switchport
trunk native vlan tag exclude control command, you can specify that data packets are tagged and control
packets are untagged.
Note When a port-level configuration is applied, the global configuration for native VLAN tagging will no
longer take effect on that port. Port-level configurations take priority over global configurations.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for more information on the
switchport trunk native vlan tag command.
Allowed VLANs
By default, a trunk port sends traffic to and receives traffic from all VLANs. All VLAN IDs are allowed on
each trunk. However, you can remove VLANs from this inclusive list to prevent traffic from the specified
VLANs from passing over the trunk. Later, you can add any specific VLANs that you may want the trunk to
carry traffic for back to the list.
To partition the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) topology for the default VLAN, you can remove VLAN1 from
the list of allowed VLANs. Otherwise, VLAN1, which is enabled on all ports by default, will have a very big
STP topology, which can result in problems during STP convergence. When you remove VLAN1, all data
traffic for VLAN1 on this port is blocked, but the control traffic continues to move on the port.

58
Default Interfaces
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information about
STP.
From Cisco Release 5.2, you can change the block of VLANs reserved for internal use. See the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information about changing the reserved
VLANs.
Default Interfaces
The default interface feature allows you to clear the existing configuration of multiple interfaces such as
Ethernet, loopback, VLAN network, port-channel, and tunnel interfaces. All user configuration under a
specified interface will be deleted. You can optionally create a checkpoint before clearing the interface
configuration so that you can later restore the deleted configuration. You can use the default interface feature
to clear the configured parameters for both physical and logical interfaces such as the Ethernet, loopback,
VLAN network, tunnel, and the port-channel interface.
Note The default interface feature is not supported for management interfaces because the device could go to
an unreachable state.
Note A maximum of eight ports can be selected for the default interface. The default interfaces feature is not
supported for management interfaces because the device could go to an unreachable state.
Switch Virtual Interface and Autostate Behavior

In Cisco NX-OS, a switch virtual interface (SVI) represents a logical interface between the bridging function
and the routing function of a VLAN in the device.
The operational state of this interface is governed by the state of the various ports in its corresponding VLAN.
An SVI interface on a VLAN comes up when at least one port in that VLAN is in the Spanning Tree Protocol
(STP) forwarding state. Similarly, this interface goes down when the last STP forwarding port goes down or
goes to another STP state.
SVI Autostate Exclude

Typically, when a VLAN interface has multiple ports in the VLAN, the SVI goes to the down state when all
the ports in the VLAN go down. You can use the SVI autostate exclude feature to exclude specific ports and
port channels while defining the status of the SVI (up or down) even if it belongs to the same VLAN. For
example, even if the excluded port or port channel is in the up state and other ports are in the down state in
the VLAN, the SVI state is changed to down.
You can configure the SVI autostate Exclude feature on an Ethernet interface or a port channel. You can use
the autostate Exclude option to enable or disable the port from bringing up or down the SVI calculation and
applying it to all VLANs that are enabled on the selected port. You can also use the SVI autostate Exclude
VLAN feature to exclude a VLAN from the autostate excluded interface.

59
High Availability
Note You can use the SVI autostate exclude feature only for switched physical Ethernet ports and port channels.
SVI Autostate Disable

You can also use the SVI for inband managment of a device. Specifically, you can configure the autostate
disable feature to keep an SVI up even if no interface is up in the corresponding VLAN. You can configure
this feature for the system (for all SVIs) or for an individual SVI.
High Availability
The software supports high availability for Layer 2 ports.
Note See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS High Availability and Redundancy Guide for complete information
about high availability features.
Virtualization Support
The device supports virtual device contexts (VDCs).
All ports in the same trunk must be in the same VDC, and trunk ports cannot carry VLANs from different
VDCs.
Note See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide for complete
information about VDCs and assigning resources.
Configuring Access and Trunk Interfaces

If you are familiar with the Cisco IOS CLI, be aware that the Cisco NX-OS commands for this feature might
differ from the Cisco IOS commands that you would use.
All VLANs on a trunk must be in the same VDC.
Configuring a VLAN Interface as a Layer 2 Access Port

You can configure a Layer 2 port as an access port. An access port transmits packets on only one, untagged
VLAN. You specify which VLAN traffic that the interface carries, which becomes the access VLAN. If you
do not specify a VLAN for an access port, that interface carries traffic only on the default VLAN. The default
VLAN is VLAN1.

60
Configuring a VLAN Interface as a Layer 2 Access Port
The VLAN must exist before you can specify that VLAN as an access VLAN. The system shuts down an
access port that is assigned to an access VLAN that does not exist.
Before You Begin

Ensure that you are configuring a Layer 2 interface.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface {{type Specifies an interface to configure, and enters interface
slot/port} | {port-channel configuration mode.
number}}
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the interface as a nontrunking nontagged, single-VLAN
mode {access | trunk} Layer 2 interface. An access port can carry traffic in one
VLAN only. By default, an access port carries traffic for
VLAN1; to set the access port to carry traffic for a different
VLAN, use the switchport access vlan command.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport Specifies the VLAN for which this access port will carry
access vlan vlan-id traffic. If you do not enter this command, the access port
carries traffic on VLAN1 only; use this command to change
the VLAN for which the access port carries traffic.
Step 6 switch(config)# exit Exits global configuration mode.
Step 7 switch# show interface (Optional)

Displays the interface status and information.
Step 8 switch# show interface status (Optional)

error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce errors during
policy programming to ensure that policies are consistent
with hardware policies.
Use the detail command to display the details of the interfaces
that produce an error.
Step 9 switch# no shutdown (Optional)

Clears the errors on the interfaces and VLANs where policies
correspond with hardware policies. This command allows
policy programming to continue and the port to come up. If
policies do not correspond, the errors are placed in an
error-disabled policy state.


61
Configuring Access Host Ports
This example shows how to set Ethernet 3/1 as a Layer 2 access port that carries traffic for VLAN 5 only:
switch(config-if)# switchport mode access
switch(config-if)# switchport access vlan 5
Configuring Access Host Ports
Note You should apply the switchport host command only to interfaces that are connected to an end station.
You can optimize the performance of access ports that are connected to end stations by simultaneously setting
that port as an access port. An access host port handles the STP like an edge port and immediately moves to
the forwarding state without passing through the blocking and learning states. Configuring an interface as an
access host port also disables port channeling on that interface.
Note See “Configuring Port Channels,” and the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration
Guide for information about port-channel interfaces
Before You Begin

Ensure that you are configuring the correct interface to an interface that is an end station.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface type Specifies an interface to configure, and enters interface
slot/port configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the interface to be an access host port, which
host immediately moves to the spanning tree forwarding state and
disables port channeling on this interface.
Note Apply this command only to end
stations.
Step 5 switch(config)# exit Exits the configuration mode.



62
Configuring a Trunk Port

Use the detail command to display the details of the


This example shows how to set Ethernet 3/1 as a Layer 2 access port with PortFast enabled and port channel
disabled:
switch(config-if)# switchport host
Configuring a Trunk Port

You can configure a Layer 2 port as a trunk port. A trunk port transmits untagged packets for one VLAN plus
encapsulated, tagged, packets for multiple VLANs. (See the “IEEE 802.1Q Encapsulation” section for
information about encapsulation.)
Note The device supports 802.1Q encapsulation only.
Before You Begin

Before you configure a trunk port, ensure that you are configuring a Layer 2 interface.
Procedure

number}}
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the interface as a Layer 2 trunk port. A trunk port can
mode {access | trunk} carry traffic in one or more VLANs on the same physical link
(VLANs are based on the trunk-allowed VLANs list). By
default, a trunk interface can carry traffic for all VLANs. To

63
Configuring the Native VLAN for 802.1Q Trunking Ports

specify that only certain VLANs are allowed on the specified
trunk, use the switchport trunk allowed vlan command.




This example shows how to set Ethernet 3/1 as a Layer 2 trunk port:
switch(config-if)# switchport mode trunk
Configuring the Native VLAN for 802.1Q Trunking Ports

You can configure the native VLAN for 802.1Q trunk ports. If you do not configure this parameter, the trunk
port uses the default VLAN as the native VLAN ID.
Note You cannot configure an FCoE VLAN as a native VLAN for an Ethernet interface.
Procedure


64
Configuring the Allowed VLANs for Trunking Ports

number}}
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the native VLAN for the 802.1Q trunk. Valid values
trunk native vlan vlan-id are from 1 to 4094, except those VLANs reserved for
internal use. The default value is VLAN1.
Step 6 switch# show vlan Displays the status and information of VLANs.

error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce errors
during policy programming to ensure that policies are
consistent with hardware policies.

Clears the errors on the interfaces and VLANs where
policies correspond with hardware policies. This command
allows policy programming to continue and the port to
come up. If policies do not correspond, the errors are placed
in an error-disabled policy state.

running-config startup-config Copies the running configuration to the startup
configuration.
This example shows how to set the native VLAN for the Ethernet 3/1, Layer 2 trunk port to VLAN 5:
switch(config-if)# switchport trunk native vlan 5

You can specify the IDs for the VLANs that are allowed on the specific trunk port.
The switchport trunk allowed vlan vlan-list command replaces the current VLAN list on the specified port
with the new list. You are prompted for confirmation before the new list is applied.
If you are doing a copy and paste of a large configuration, you might see some failures because the CLI is
waiting for a confirmation before accepting other commands. To avoid this problem, you can disable prompting
by using the terminal dont-ask command before you paste the configuration.

65
Before You Begin

Before you configure the allowed VLANs for the specified trunk ports, ensure that you are configuring the
correct interfaces and that the interfaces are trunks.
From Cisco Release 5.2, you can change the block of VLANs reserved for internal use. See the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information about changing the reserved
VLANs.
Procedure

number}}
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the allowed VLANs for the trunk interface. The default is
trunk allowed vlan {vlan-list | to allow all VLANs on the trunk interface: 1 to 3967 and 4048
add vlan-list | all | except to 4094. VLANs 3968 to 4047 are the default VLANs reserved
vlan-list | none | remove for internal use by default. By default, all VLANs are allowed
vlan-list} on all trunk interfaces. From Cisco Release 5.2(1), the default
reserved VLANs are 3968 to 4094, and you can change the
block of reserved VLANs. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more
information.
Note You cannot add internally allocated VLANs as allowed
VLANs on trunk ports. The system returns a message
if you attempt to list an internally allocated VLAN as
an allowed VLAN.
Step 6 switch# show vlan Displays the status and information of VLANs.

policy programming to ensure that policies are consistent with
hardware policies.

correspond with hardware policies. This command allows policy
programming to continue and the port to come up. If policies
do not correspond, the errors are placed in an error-disabled
policy state.

66
Configuring a Default Interface

This example shows how to add VLANs 15 to 20 to the list of allowed VLANs on the Ethernet 3/1, Layer 2
trunk port:
switch(config-if)# switchport trunk allowed vlan 15-20
Configuring a Default Interface

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# default Deletes the configuration of the interface and restores the default
interface int-if [checkpoint configuration. Use the ? keyword to display the supported
name] interfaces.
Use the checkpoint keyword to store a copy of the running
configuration of the interface before clearing the configuration.
Step 4 switch# show interface Displays the interface status and information.

hardware policies.

policy state.
This example shows how to delete the configuration of an Ethernet interface while saving a checkpoint of the
running configuration for rollback purposes:

67
Configuring SVI Autostate Exclude
switch(config)# default interface ethernet 3/1 checkpoint test8

.......Done
Configuring SVI Autostate Exclude

Procedure

slot/port} | {port-channel number}} configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the interface as a Layer 2 interface.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# [no] switchport Excludes this port from the VLAN interface link-up
autostate exclude calculation when there are multiple ports in the VLAN.
To revert to the default settings, use the no form of this
command.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# [no] switchport Excludes a vlan or a set of vlans from the
autostate exclude vlan vlan id autostate-excluded interface. This will help to minimize
any disruption to the system.
To revert to the default settings, use the no form of this
command.
Step 8 switch# show running-config (Optional)

interface {{type slot/port} | Displays configuration information about the specified
{port-channel number} interface.
Step 9 switch# show interface status error (Optional)

policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce errors

come up. If policies do not correspond, the errors are
placed in an error-disabled policy state.

68
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable for the System

configuration.
This example shows how to exclude a port from the VLAN interface link-up calculation on the Cisco NX-OS
device:
switch(config-if)# switchport autostate exclude
This example shows how to exclude a VLAN from the auto-excluded interface:
switch(config-if)# switchport autostate exclude
switch(config-if)# switchport autostate exclude vlan 10
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable for the System

You can configure the SVI autostate disable feature to keep an SVI up even if no interface is up in the
corresponding VLAN. Use this procedure to configure this feature for the entire system.
Before You Begin

Before you configure this feature for the entire system, ensure that you are in the correct VDC. To change the
VDC, use the switchto vdc command.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# system default Disables the default autostate behavior for the device.
interface-vlan no autostate
hardware policies.


69
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable Per SVI


[all] Displays the running configuration.
To display the default and configured information, use the all
keyword.
This example shows how to disable the default autostate behavior on the Cisco NX-OS device:
switch(config)# system default interface-vlan no autostate
switch(config)# show running-config
Configuring SVI Autostate Disable Per SVI

You can configure SVI autostate enable or disable on individual SVIs. The SVI-level setting overrides the
system-level SVI autostate configuration for that particular SVI.
Before You Begin

Before you configure this feature at SVI-level, ensure that you are in the correct VDC. To change the VDC,
use the switchto vdc command.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature Enables VLAN interface mode.

interface-vlan
Step 3 switch(config)# interface vlan Creates a VLAN interface and enters interface
vlan-id configuration mode. The range is from 1 and 4094.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# [no] autostate By default, enables the SVI autostate feature on specified
interface.
To disable the default settings, use the no form of this
command.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# exit Exits interface configuration mode.
Step 6 switch(config)#show running (Optional)

config-interface vlan vlan-id Displays the running configuration for the specified VLAN
interface.

70
Configuring the Device to Tag Native VLAN Traffic

status error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce errors
Step 8 switch(config)# no shutdown (Optional)


startup-config interface vlan vlan Displays the VLAN configuration in the startup
id configuration.
This example shows how to disable the default autostate behavior on an individual SVI:
switch(config)# feature interface-vlan
switch(config)# interface vlan10
witch(config-if)# no autostate
Configuring the Device to Tag Native VLAN Traffic

When you are working with 802.1Q trunked interfaces, you can maintain the tagging for all packets that enter
with a tag that matches the value of the native VLAN ID and drops all untagged traffic (you will still carry
control traffic on that interface). This feature applies to the entire device; you cannot apply it to selected
VLANs on a device.
The vlan dot1q tag native global command changes the behavior of all native VLAN ID interfaces on all
trunks on the device.
Note If you enable 802.1Q tagging on one device and disable it on another device, all traffic is dropped on the
device and this feature is disabled. You must configure this feature identically on each device.
Before You Begin

VDC, use the switchto vdc command. You can repeat VLAN names and IDs in different VDCs, so you must
confirm that you are working in the correct VDC.

71
Changing the System Default Port Mode to Layer 2
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vlan dot1q Modifies the behavior of a 802.1Q trunked native VLAN ID
tag native interface. The interface maintains the taggings for all packets
that enter with a tag that matches the value of the native VLAN
ID and drops all untagged traffic. The control traffic is still
carried on the native VLAN. The default is disabled.
Step 4 switch# show vlan (Optional)

Displays the status and information for VLANs.

hardware policies.

policy state.

startup-config Copies the running configuration to the startup configuration.
This example shows how to change the behavior of the native VLAN on an 802.1Q trunked interface to
maintain the tagged packets and drop all untagged traffic (except control traffic):
switch(config)# vlan dot1q tag native
switch#
Changing the System Default Port Mode to Layer 2

You can set the system default port mode to Layer 2 access ports.
See the Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 and Cisco MDS 9000 for information
on setting the system default port mode to Fibre Channel in storage VDCs.

72
Configuration Examples for Access Ports and Trunk Ports
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# system default Sets the default port mode for all interfaces on the system to
switchport [shutdown] Layer 2 access port mode and enters interface configuration
mode. By default, all the interfaces are Layer 3.
Note When the system default switchport shutdown
command is issued, any FEX HIFs that are not
configured with no shutdown are shutdown. To avoid
the shutdown, configure the FEX HIFs with no shut.
Step 4 switch# show interface brief (Optional)

Displays the status and information for interfaces.

hardware policies.

policy state.

This example shows how to set the system ports to be Layer 2 access ports by default:
switch(config-if)# system default switchport
Configuration Examples for Access Ports and Trunk Ports

This example shows how to configure a Layer 2 access interface and assign the access VLAN mode for that
interface:
switch(config-if)# switchport mode access
switch(config-if)#

73
Configuring Slow Drain Device Detection and Congestion Avoidance
This example shows how to configure a Layer 2 trunk interface, assign the native VLAN and the allowed
VLANs, and configure the device to tag the native VLAN traffic on the trunk interface:
switch(config-if)# switchport trunk allowed vlan 5, 10
switch(config)# vlan dot1q tag native
switch(config)#

The data traffic between the end devices in Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) uses link level and per-hop
based flow control. When the slow devices are attached to the fabric, the end devices do not accept the frames
at a configured rate. The presence of the slow devices leads to traffic congestion on the links. The traffic
congestion affects the unrelated flows in the fabric that use the same inter-switch links (ISLs) for its traffic,
even though the destination devices do not experience the slow drain.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1, slow drain device detection and congestion avoidance is supported on the
F-series I/O modules that carry the FCoE traffic. The enhancements are mainly on the edge ports that are
connected to the slow drain devices to minimize the congestion condition in the edge ports.
Once the slow drain devices are detected on the network, you can configure a smaller frame timeout value
for the edge ports and force a timeout drop for all the packets that are using the configured thresholds. The
smaller frame timeout value helps to alleviate the slow drain condition that affects the fabric by dropping the
packets on the edge ports sooner than the time they actually get timed out. The default timeout value is 500
milliseconds. This function empties the buffer space in ISL, which can be used by other unrelated flows that
do not experience the slow drain condition.
If you try to override the Embedded Event Manager (EEM) system policy __ori_mac_edge_pause for the F1
I/O module and __clm_sw_edge_port_pause for the F2 /I/O module, the default-action, default syslog, also
appears. We recommend that you specify action err-disable to isolate the faulty port where this condition
occurs.
This example shows how to override the EEM system policy for an F1 I/O module:
event manager applet my_eem_policy override __ori_mac_edge_pause
description "my_f1_Pause_eem_policy"
event policy-default count 1 time 2
action 1.0 cli switchto vdc storage
action 2.0 cli eth-port-manager internal-errdisable $interface $cause $SYSERR
Configuring a Congestion Frame Timeout Value

The default congestion frame timeout value is 500 milliseconds. We recommend that you retain the default
configuration for the ISLs and configure a value that does not exceed the default value for the edge ports. If
the frame is in the switch for a longer time than the configured congestion frame timeout, it gets dropped,
which empties the buffer space in the ISL and alleviates the congestion.

74
Procedure

Step 2 switch# [no] system default interface Configures a new congestion frame timeout value in
congestion timeout milliseconds mode milliseconds and the port mode for the device.
{core | edge} The congestion timeout range is from 100 to 1000
milliseconds.
Step 3 switch# system default interface Configures the default congestion frame timeout value
congestion mode {core | edge} in milliseconds and the port mode for the device.
The congestion timeout range is from 100 to 1000
milliseconds.
Step 4 switch# show logging onboard (Optional)

flow-control request-timeout Displays the request timeout for a source-destination
pair per module with the timestamp information.
Configuring a smaller timeout on the edge ports, for example 100 or 200 milliseconds, helps to reduce the
congestion on the edge ports. When congestion is observed, the packets on these ports time out sooner. Use
the no system default interface congestion timeout milliseconds mode {core | edge} command (or) system
default interface congestion mode {core | edge} to revert to the default timeout, which is 500 milliseconds.
Note • The congestion frame timeout configuration is local to a vdc and will be effective only on the ports
(edge/core) owned by the vdc.
• Use the default configuration for the core ports and configure a congestion frame timeout value for
the fabric edge ports that does not exceed 500 milliseconds. The recommended range for the
congestion frame timeout value is from 100 to 200 milliseconds.
This example shows how to display the request timeout for a source-destination pair per module with the
timestamp information for the supervisor CLI:
SUP CLI:
switch# show logging onboard flow-control request-timeout
----------------------------
Module: 2
----------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Dest | Source | Events | Timestamp | Timestamp |
| Intf | Intf | Count | Earliest | Latest |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 1736|11/14/2002-00:40:07|11/14/2002-00:57:22|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 3477|11/13/2002-23:23:27|11/14/2002-00:00:48|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 4298|11/13/2002-22:31:40|11/13/2002-23:18:00|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 9690|11/13/2002-04:54:50|11/13/2002-07:31:58|

75
This example shows how to display the request timeout for a source-destination pair per module with the
time-stamp information for the module CLI:
Module CLI:
module--x# show logging onboard flow-control request-timeout
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Dest | Source | Events | Timestamp | Timestamp |
| Intf | Intf | Count | Earliest | Latest |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 1736|11/14/2002-00:40:07|11/14/2002-00:57:22|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 3477|11/13/2002-23:23:27|11/14/2002-00:00:48|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 4298|11/13/2002-22:31:40|11/13/2002-23:18:00|
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|fc4/3 |eth2/1,eth2/2 | 9690|11/13/2002-04:54:50|11/13/2002-07:31:58|
Configuring a Pause Frame Timeout Value

From Cisco NX-OS 6.1, you can enable or disable a pause frame timeout value on a port. The system
periodically checks the ports for a pause condition and enables a pause frame timeout on a port if it is in a
continuous pause condition for a configured period of time. This situation results in all frames that come to
that port getting dropped in the egress. This function empties the buffer space in the ISL link and helps to
reduce the fabric slowdown and the congestion on the other unrelated flows using the same link.
When a pause condition is cleared on a port or when a port flaps, the system disables the pause frame timeout
on that particular port.
The pause frame timeout is enabled by default. We recommend that you retain the default configuration for
the ISLs and configure a value that does not exceed the default value for the edge ports.
For a faster recovery from the slow drain device behavior, you should configure a pause frame timeout value
because it drops all the frames in the edge port that face the slow drain whether the frame is in the switch for
a congested timeout or not. This process instantly clears the congestion in the ISL. You should configure a
pause frame timeout value to clear the congestion completely instead of configuring a congestion frame
timeout value.
Procedure

Step 2 switch# system default interface pause Configures a new pause frame timeout value in
timeout milliseconds mode {core | edge} milliseconds and the port mode for the device.
Step 3 switch# system default interface pause mode Configures the default pause frame timeout value
{core | edge} in milliseconds and the port mode for the device.
The congestion timeout range is from 100 to 500
milliseconds.
Step 4 switch# no system default interface pause Disables the pause frame timeout for the device.
timeout milliseconds mode {core | edge}
Step 5 switch# no system default interface pause Disables the default pause frame timeout for the
mode {core | edge} device.

76

Step 6 switch# show logging onboard flow-control Displays the total number of the pause events
pause-event [module x] per module per interface.
Step 7 switch# show logging onboard flow-control (Optional)

pause-count [module x] [last mm minutes] Displays the pause counters per module per
[last hh hours] [last dd days] interface with the time-stamp information.
Step 8 switch# show logging onboard flow-control (Optional)

timeout-drops [module x] [last mm minutes] Displays the timeout drops per module per
[last hh hours] [last dd days] interface with the time-stamp information.
Use the no system default interface pause timeout milliseconds mode {core | edge} command to disable
the pause frame timeout value on the edge ports. The default pause timeout value is 500 milliseconds.
This example shows how to display the total number of the pause events per module per interface for the
supervisor CLI:
SUP CLI:
switch# show logging onboard flow-control pause-event module 2
----------------------------
Module: 2
----------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATISTICS INFORMATION FOR DEVICE ID 137 DEVICE Orion MAC Driver
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | Time Stamp |In|Port
Error Stat Counter Name | Count |MM/DD/YY HH:MM:SS|st|Range
| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4e45b |06/18/03 05:27:50 |00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4e1a0 |06/18/03 05:25:50 |00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4dee5 |06/18/03 05:23:50 |00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4dc2a |06/18/03 05:21:50 |00|1
This example shows how to display the total number of the pause events per module per interface for the
module CLI:
Module CLI:
module-2# show logging onboard flow-control pause-event
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4e45b |06/18/03 05:27:50|00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4e1a0 |06/18/03 05:25:50|00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4dee5 |06/18/03 05:23:50|00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4dc2a |06/18/03 05:21:50|00|1
SW PL0 pause event VL3 |0x4d96f |06/18/03 05:19:50|00|1
This example shows how to display the pause counters per module per interface with time-stamp information
for the supervisor CLI:
SUP CLI:
switch# show logging onboard flow-control pause-count
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

77
Verifying the Interface Configuration

| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GD Received pause transitions of XO|0x984 |06/17/03 14:23:59|00|1
FF-XON UP3 | | | |
GD Received pause transitions of XO|0x41f |06/17/03 14:21:59|00|1
FF-XON UP3 | | | |
This example shows how to display the pause counters per module per interface with time-stamp information
for the module CLI:
Module CLI:
module-2# show logging onboard flow-control pause-count
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GD Received pause transitions of XO|0x984 |06/17/03 14:23:59|00|1
FF-XON UP3 | | | |
GD Received pause transitions of XO|0x41f |06/17/03 14:21:59|00|1
FF-XON UP3 | | | |
This example shows how to display the timeout drops per module per interface with time-stamp information
for the supervisor CLI:
SUP CLI:
switch# show logging onboard flow-control timeout-drops
switch# show logging onboard flow-control timeout-drops
----------------------------
Module: 2
----------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ORI_EB_CNT_P0_SF_TIMESTAMP_DROP |0x100e |11/14/02 00:45:43|00|1
ORI_EB_CNT_P0_SF_TIMESTAMP_DROP |0xfd2 |11/14/02 00:43:42|00|1
Module CLI:
This example shows how to display the timeout drops per module per interface with time-stamp information
for the module CLI:
module-2# show logging onboard flow-control timeout-drops
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | |Id|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ORI_EB_CNT_P0_SF_TIMESTAMP_DROP |0x100e |11/14/02 00:45:43|00|1
ORI_EB_CNT_P0_SF_TIMESTAMP_DROP |0xfd2 |11/14/02 00:43:42|00|1
Verifying the Interface Configuration

To display access and trunk interface configuration information, perform one of the following tasks:

78
Monitoring Layer 2 Interfaces
Table 12: Verifying the Interface Configuration
Command Purpose
show interface ethernet slot/port [brief | counters Displays the interface configuration.
| debounce | description | flowcontrol | mac-address
| status | transceiver]
show interface brief Displays interface configuration information,

including the mode.
show interface switchport Displays information, including access and trunk

interface, information for all Layer 2 interfaces.
show interface trunk [module module-number | vlan Displays trunk configuration information.
vlan-id]
show interface capabilities Displays information about the capabilities of the

interfaces.
show interface status error policy [detail] Displays errors about interfaces and VLANs that are
show running-config [all] Displays information about the current configuration.

The all command displays the default and current
configurations.
show running-config interface ethernet slot/port Displays configuration information about the specified
interface.
show running-config interface port-channel Displays configuration information about the specified
slot/port port-channel interface.
show running-config interface vlan vlan-id Displays configuration information about the specified
VLAN interface.
For detailed information about these commands, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching
Command Reference.

Use the following commands to display Layer 2 interfaces:

79
Related Documents
Table 13: Monitoring Layer Interfaces
Command Purpose
clear counters interface [interface] Clears the counters.
load-interval {interval seconds {1 | 2 | 3}} From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1) for the Cisco
Nexus 7000 Series devices, sets three different
sampling intervals to bit-rate and packet-rate statistics.
show interface counters [module module] Displays input and output octets unicast packets,
multicast packets, and broadcast packets.
show interface counters detailed [all] Displays input packets, bytes, and multicast as well
as output packets and bytes.
show interface counters errors [module module] Displays information on the number of error packets.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for information on these commands.
Related Documents
Related Topic

80
MIBs
Related Topic
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link
To locate and download MIBs, go to: http://
• BRIDGE-MIB
www.cisco.com/public/sw-center/netmgmt/cmtk/
• IF-MIB mibs.shtml
• CISCO-IF-EXTENSION-MIB
• ETHERLIKE-MIB

81
MIBs

82
CHAPTER 5
• Feature History for Layer 3 Interfaces, page 83
• Prerequisites for Layer 3 Interfaces, page 84
• Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 3 Interfaces, page 85
• Default Settings for Layer 3 Interfaces, page 85
• Information About Layer 3 Interfaces, page 85
• Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces, page 89
• Verifying the Layer 3 Interfaces Configuration, page 97
• Monitoring Layer 3 Interfaces, page 98

Feature History for Layer 3 Interfaces


83
Table 15: Feature History for Layer 3 Interfaces

Display errors during policy 6.2(2) Added the show interface status error policy
programming. command which displays the interfaces and
VLANs that produce an error during policy
programming.
the interface command to include a keyword snmp that
the interface.
FEX 6.2(2) Cisco Fabric Extenders support Layer 3

protocol adjacencies on host interfaces (HIFs)
and DSCP to queue mapping.
Note Before Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2),
you can configure a Fabric Extender
(FEX) port as a Layer 3 interface for
host connectivity, but not for routing.
Enhanced show output for 6.1(1) Updated the show interface eth command
sub-interfaces output.
Three configurable sampling 4.2(1) Added the load-interval command.

intervals for interface
statistics
Layer 3 interfaces 4.0(1) This feature was introduced.


Layer 3 interfaces have the following prerequisites:
• You have installed the Advanced Services license and entered the desired VDC (see the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide, if you are configuring VDCs.

84
• You are familiar with IP addressing and basic configuration. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Unicast Routing Configuration Guide, for more information on IP addressing.

Layer 3 interfaces have the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• If you change a Layer 3 interface to a Layer 2 interface, Cisco NX-OS shuts down the interface, reenables
the interface, and removes all configuration specific to Layer 3.
• If you change a Layer 2 interface to a Layer 3 interface, Cisco NX-OS shuts down the interface, reenables
the interface, and deletes all configuration specific to Layer 2.
• The Cisco Nexus 2000 Fabric Extender cannot participate in a routing protocol adjacency with a device
attached to its port. Only a static direct route is supported. This restriction applies to both of the supported
connectivity cases:
◦SVI with Fabric Extender single port or portchannel in Layer 2 mode.
◦Fabric Extender port or portchannel in Layer 3 mode.
• Layer 3 router interfaces and subinterfaces cannot be configured on an F1 I/O module.

• F2-series I/O modules do not support per-VLAN statistics. Therefore, the show interface command does
not display per-VLAN Rx/Tx counters or statistics for switch virtual interfaces (SVIs).
Note If you are familiar with the Cisco IOS CLI, be aware that the Cisco NX-OS commands for this feature
might differ from the Cisco IOS commands that you would use.

Table 16: Default Layer 3 Interface Parameters
Parameter Default
Administrative state Shut
Information About Layer 3 Interfaces

Layer 3 interfaces forward IPv4 and IPv6 packets to another device using static or dynamic routing protocols.
You can use Layer 3 interfaces for IP routing and inter-VLAN routing of Layer 2 traffic.
You cannot configure a shared interface as a Layer 3 interface. See the Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration
Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 and Cisco MDS 9000 for information about shared interfaces.

85
Routed Interfaces
For Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2) and later releases, the Cisco Fabric Extenders support Layer 3 protocol
adjacencies on host interfaces (HIFs) and DSCP to queue mapping. Before Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you
can configure a Fabric Extender (FEX) port as a Layer 3 interface for host connectivity, but not for routing.
See the Configuring the Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extender for more information about fabric extenders.
See the Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extender Software Configuration Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
Switches, Release 8.x for more information about fabric extenders.
Routed Interfaces
You can configure a port as a Layer 2 interface or a Layer 3 interface. A routed interface is a physical port
that can route IP traffic to another device. A routed interface is a Layer 3 interface only and does not support
Layer 2 protocols, such as the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP).
All Ethernet ports are routed interfaces by default. You can change this default behavior with the CLI setup
script or through the system default switchport command.
You can assign an IP address to the port, enable routing, and assign routing protocol characteristics to this
routed interface.
From Cisco Release 4.2(1), you can assign a static MAC address to a Layer 3 interface. By default, the MAC
address for the Layer 3 interfaces is the MAC address of the virtual device context (VDC) it is assigned to.
For information on configuring MAC addresses, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching
Configuration Guide.
You can also create a Layer 3 port channel from routed interfaces. For more information about port channels,
see “Configuring Port Channels.”
Routed interfaces and subinterfaces support exponentially decayed rate counters. Cisco NX-OS tracks the
following statistics with these averaging counters:
• Input packets/sec
• Output packets/sec
• Input bytes/sec
• Output bytes/sec
Subinterfaces
You can create virtual subinterfaces on a parent interface configured as a Layer 3 interface. A parent interface
can be a physical port or a port channel.
Subinterfaces divide the parent interface into two or more virtual interfaces on which you can assign unique
Layer 3 parameters such as IP addresses and dynamic routing protocols. The IP address for each subinterface
should be in a different subnet from any other subinterface on the parent interface.
You create a subinterface with a name that consists of the parent interface name (for example, Ethernet 2/1)
followed by a period and then by a number that is unique for that subinterface. For example, you could create
a subinterface for Ethernet interface 2/1 named Ethernet 2/1.1 where .1 indicates the subinterface.
Cisco NX-OS enables subinterfaces when the parent interface is enabled. You can shut down a subinterface
independent of shutting down the parent interface. If you shut down the parent interface, Cisco NX-OS shuts
down all associated subinterfaces as well.

86
VLAN Interfaces
One use of subinterfaces is to provide unique Layer 3 interfaces to each virtual local area network (VLAN)
supported by the parent interface. In this scenario, the parent interface connects to a Layer 2 trunking port on
another device. You configure a subinterface and associate the subinterface to a VLAN ID using 802.1Q
trunking.
The figure below shows a trunking port from a switch that connects to router B on interface E 2/1. This
interface contains three subinterfaces that are associated with each of the three VLANs carried by the trunking
port.
Figure 4: Subinterfaces for VLANs
For more information about VLANs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration
Guide.
VLAN Interfaces
A VLAN interface, or switch virtual interface (SVI), is a virtual routed interface that connects a VLAN on
the device to the Layer 3 router engine on the same device. Only one VLAN interface can be associated with
a VLAN, but you need to configure a VLAN interface for a VLAN only when you want to route between
VLANs or to provide IP host connectivity to the device through a virtual routing and forwarding (VRF)
instance that is not the management VRF. When you enable VLAN interface creation, Cisco NX-OS creates
a VLAN interface for the default VLAN (VLAN 1) to permit remote switch administration.
You must enable the VLAN network interface feature before you can see configure it. Beginning in Cisco
NX-OS Release 4.2, the system automatically takes a checkpoint prior to disabling the feature, and you can
roll back to this checkpoint. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System Management Configuration
Guide for information on rollbacks and checkpoints.
You must configure the VLAN network interface in the same VDC as the VLAN.
Note You cannot delete the VLAN interface for VLAN 1.
You can route across VLAN interfaces to provide Layer 3 inter-VLAN routing by configuring a VLAN
interface for each VLAN that you want to route traffic to and assigning an IP address on the VLAN interface.
For more information about IP addresses and IP routing, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast
Routing Configuration Guide.
The figure below shows two hosts connected to two VLANs on a device. You can configure VLAN interfaces
for each VLAN that allows Host 1 to communicate with Host 2 using IP routing between the VLANs. VLAN

87
Loopback Interfaces
1 communicates at Layer 3 over VLAN interface 1 and VLAN 10 communicates at Layer 3 over VLAN
interface 10.
Figure 5: Connecting Two VLANs with VLAN interfaces
Note You can configure VLAN interface for an inband management in the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices
with the F1 Series modules in the chassis.
Loopback Interfaces
A loopback interface is a virtual interface with a single endpoint that is always up. Any packet transmitted
over a loopback interface is immediately received by this interface. Loopback interfaces emulate a physical
interface. You can configure up to 1024 loopback interfaces per VDC, numbered 0 to 1023.
You can use loopback interfaces for performance analysis, testing, and local communications. Loopback
interfaces can act as a termination address for routing protocol sessions. This loopback configuration allows
routing protocol sessions to stay up even if some of the outbound interfaces are down.
Tunnel Interfaces
Cisco NX-OS supports tunnel interfaces as IP tunnels. IP tunnels can encapsulate a same-layer or higher layer
protocol and transport the result over IP through a tunnel created between two routers. See “Configuring IP
Tunnels,” for more information about IP tunnels.
High Availability for Layer 3 Interfaces

Layer 3 interfaces support stateful and stateless restarts. After the switchover, Cisco NX-OS applies the runtime
configuration after the switchover.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS High Availability and Redundancy Guide for complete information
on high availability.

88
Virtualization Support for Layer 3 Interfaces
Virtualization Support for Layer 3 Interfaces

Layer 3 interfaces support Virtual Routing and Forwarding instances (VRFs). VRFs exist within virtual device
contexts (VDCs). By default, Cisco NX-OS places you in the default VDC and default VRF unless you
specifically configure another VDC and VRF. A Layer 3 logical interface (VLAN interface, loopback)
configured in one VDC is isolated from a Layer 3 logical interface with the same number configured in another
VDC. For example, loopback 0 in VDC 1 is independent of loopback 0 in VDC 2.
You can configure up to 1024 loopback interfaces per VDC.
You can associate the interface with a VRF. For VLAN interfaces, you must configure the VLAN interface
in the same VDC as the VLAN.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide for information about
VDCs and see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information
about configuring an interface in a VRF.
Note You must assign an interface to a VRF before you configure the IP address for that interface.

Configuring a Routed Interface
You can configure any Ethernet port as a routed interface.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Enters interface configuration mode.

ethernet slot/port
Step 3 switch(config-if)# no switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 3 interface and deletes
any configuration specific to Layer 2 on this interface.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# {ip | ipv6} Configures an IP address for this interface. See the Cisco
address ip-address/length Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide for more information about IP and IPv6 addresses.

89
Configuring a Routed Interface

Step 5 switch(config-if)# show (Optional)
interfaces Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics.

error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce errors


Use the medium command to set the interface medium to either point to point or broadcast.
Command Purpose
medium {broadcast | p2p} Configures the interface medium as either point to
point or broadcast.
The default setting is broadcast, and this setting does not appear in any of the show commands. However, if
you do change the setting to p2p, you will see this setting when you enter the show running config command.
Use the switchport command to convert a Layer 3 interface into a Layer 2 interface.
Command Purpose
switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 2 interface and
deletes any configuration specific to Layer 3 on this
interface.
This example shows how to configure a routed interface:

switch(config-if)# no switchport
switch(config-if)# copy running-config startup-config

90
Configuring a Subinterface
The default setting for interfaces is routed. If you want to configure an interface for Layer 2, enter the
switchport command. Then, if you change a Layer 2 interface to a routed interface, enter the no switchport
command.
Configuring a Subinterface
You can configure one or more subinterfaces on a routed interface or on a port channel made from routed
interfaces.
Before You Begin

• Configure the parent interface as a routed interface.
• See the “Configuring a Routed Interface” section.
• Create the port-channel interface if you want to create a subinterface on that port channel.
• Before you configure this feature for the entire system, ensure that you are in the correct VDC. To change
the VDC, use the switchto vdc command.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Enters interface configuration mode.

slot/port
Step 3 switch(config-if)# {ip | ipv6} address Configures an IP address for this interface. See the
ip-address/length Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing
Configuration Guide for more information about IP
and IPv6 addresses.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# encapsulation dot1q Configures IEEE 802.1Q VLAN encapsulation on

vlan-id the subinterface. The range is from 2 to 4093.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# show interfaces (Optional)

Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics.

configuration.
This example shows how to create a subinterface:

switch(config)# interface ethernet 2/1.1
switch(config-if)# encapsulation dot1Q 33

91
Configuring the Bandwidth on an Interface
This example shows the output of the show interface eth command that is enhanced for the subinterfaces
from Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1:
switch# show interface ethernet 1/2.1
Ethernet1/2.1 is down (Parent Interface Admin down)
admin state is down, Dedicated Interface, [parent interface is Ethernet1/2]
Hardware: 40000 Ethernet, address: 0023.ac67.9bc1 (bia 4055.3926.61d4)
Internet Address is 10.10.10.1/24
Encapsulation 802.1Q Virtual LAN, Vlan ID 11, medium is broadcast
EtherType is 0x8100
L3 in Switched:
ucast: 0 pkts, 0 bytes - mcast: 0 pkts, 0 bytes
L3 out Switched:
ucast: 0 pkts, 0 bytes - mcast: 0 pkts, 0 bytes
Configuring the Bandwidth on an Interface

You can configure the bandwidth for a routed interface, port channel, or subinterface. Higher layer protocols
use a bandwidth parameter to calculate path costs. You can configure the bandwidth on a subinterface with
one of the following methods:
• Explicit—Sets the bandwidth value for the subinterface directly.
• Inherit—Sets the bandwidth that all subinterfaces inherit from the parent interface as either a specific
value or as the bandwidth of the parent interface.
If you do not set the subinterface bandwidth or configure it to inherit the bandwidth from the parent interface,
Cisco NX-OS determines the subinterface bandwidth as follows:
• If the parent interface is up, the bandwidth of the subinterface is the same as the operational speed of
the parent interface. For ports, the subinterface bandwidth is the configured or negotiated link speed.
For port channels, the subinterface bandwidth is the aggregate of the link speeds of individual members
of the port channel.
• If the parent interface is down, the bandwidth of the subinterface depends on the type of parent interface:
◦Port-channel subinterfaces have 100-Mb/s bandwidth for subinterfaces.
◦1-Gb/s Ethernet ports have 1-Gb/s bandwidth for subinterfaces.
◦10-Gb/s Ethernet ports have 10-Gb/s bandwidth for subinterfaces.
To configure the bandwidth of an interface, use the following command in interface mode:
Command Purpose
bandwidth Configures the bandwidth parameter for a routed
interface, port channel, or subinterface.
To configure subinterfaces to inherit the bandwidth from the parent interface, use the following command in
interface mode:

92
Configuring a VLAN interface
Command Purpose
bandwidth inherit [value] Configures all subinterfaces of this interface to inherit
the bandwidth value configured. If you do not
configure the value, the subinterfaces inherit the
bandwidth of the parent interface. The range is from
1 to 10000000, in kilobytes.
Configuring a VLAN interface

You can create VLAN interfaces to provide inter-VLAN routing.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)#feature Enables VLAN interface mode.

interface-vlan
Step 3 switch(config)# interface vlan Creates a VLAN interface. The number range is from 1 to
number 4094.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# {ip | ipv6} Configures an IP address for this interface. See the Cisco
address ip-address/length Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide for more information about IP and IPv6 addresses.

vlan number Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics.

Step 7 switch(config-if)# no shutdown (Optional)


93
Configuring Inband Management in the Nexus Chassis

Step 8 switch(config-if)# copy (Optional)
configuration.
This example shows how to create a VLAN interface:

Configuring Inband Management in the Nexus Chassis

You can create a VLAN interface for inband management in the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices when there
are only F1 Series modules in the chassis.
Note We recommend that you use a dedicated VLAN for inband management on the F1 Series modules. Do
not run data traffic on the VLAN that you are using for inband management.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)#feature Enables VLAN interface mode.

interface-vlan
Step 3 switch(config)# interface vlan Creates a VLAN interface. The number range is from 1
number to 4094.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# no shutdown Brings an interface administratively up (enable/disable an

interface).
Step 5 switch(config-if)# management Allows in-band management access to a VLAN interface

IP address.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# ip address Configures an IP address for this interface. See the Cisco
ip-address/length Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide for more information about IP addresses.

94
Configuring a Loopback Interface

vlan number Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics.



configuration.
This example shows how to create an inband management in the Cisco Nexus 7000 chassis:
switch(config-if)# management
Configuring a Loopback Interface

You can configure a loopback interface to create a virtual interface that is always up.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that the IP address of the loopback interface is unique across all routers on the network.
Procedure


95
Assigning an Interface to a VRF

Step 2 switch(config)# interface loopback Creates a loopback interface. The range is from 0
instance to 1023.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# {ip | ipv6} address Configures an IP address for this interface. See the
ip-address/length Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing
Configuration Guide for more information about IP
and IPv6 addresses.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# show interfaces Displays the loopback interface statistics.

loopback instance
Step 5 switch(config-if)# copy running-config (Optional)
configuration.
This example shows how to create a loopback interface:

switch(config)# interface loopback 0
Assigning an Interface to a VRF

You can add a Layer 3 interface to a VRF.
Before You Begin

• Assign the IP address for a tunnel interface after you have configured the interface for a VRF.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface interface-type Enters interface configuration mode.

number
Step 3 switch(config-if)# vrf member vrf-name Adds this interface to a VRF.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# ip address Configures an IP address for this interface. See

ip-address/length the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast
Routing Configuration Guide for more
information about IP addresses.

96
Verifying the Layer 3 Interfaces Configuration

Step 5 switch(config-if)# show vrf [vrf-name] (Optional)
interface interface-type number Displays VRF information.

configuration.
This example shows how to add a Layer 3 interface to the VRF:

switch(config)# interface loopback 0
switch(config-if)# vrf member RemoteOfficeVRF
Verifying the Layer 3 Interfaces Configuration

Table 17: Verifying the Layer 3 Interfaces Configuration
Command Purpose
show interface ethernet slot/port Displays the Layer 3 interface configuration, status,
and counters (including the 5-minute exponentially
decayed moving average of inbound and outbound
packet and byte rates).
show interface ethernet slot/port brief Displays the Layer 3 interface operational status.
show interface ethernet slot/port capabilities Displays the Layer 3 interface capabilities, including
port type, speed, and duplex.
show interface ethernet slot/port description Displays the Layer 3 interface description.
show interface ethernet slot/port status Displays the Layer 3 interface administrative status,
port mode, speed, and duplex.
show interface ethernet slot/port.number Displays the subinterface configuration, status, and
counters (including the f-minute exponentially
decayed moving average of inbound and outbound
packet and byte rates).
show interface port-channel channel-id.number Displays the port-channel subinterface configuration,

status, and counters (including the 5-minute
exponentially decayed moving average of inbound
and outbound packet and byte rates).

97
Command Purpose
show interface loopback number Displays the loopback interface configuration, status,
and counters.
show interface loopback number brief Displays the loopback interface operational status.
show interface loopback number description Displays the loopback interface description.
show interface loopback number status Displays the loopback interface administrative status
and protocol status.
show interface vlan number Displays the VLAN interface configuration, status,
and counters.
show interface vlan number brief Displays the VLAN interface operational status.
show interface vlan number description Displays the VLAN interface description.
show interface vlan number private-vlan mapping Displays the VLAN interface private VLAN
information.
show interface vlan number status Displays the VLAN interface administrative status
and protocol status.
show interface status error policy [detail] Displays errors on interfaces and VLANs that are
interfaces and VLANs that receive an error.

Use the following commands to display Layer 2 interfaces:
Table 18: Monitoring Layer 3 Interfaces
Command Purpose
load- interval {interval seconds {1 | 2 | 3}} From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1) for the Cisco
The range for VLAN network interface is 60 to 300
seconds, and the range for Layer interfaces is 30 to
300 seconds.
show interface ethernet slot/port counters Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics (unicast,
multicast, and broadcast).

98
Command Purpose
show interface ethernet slot/port counters brief Displays the Layer 3 interface input and output
counters.
show interface ethernet slot/port counters detailed Displays the Layer 3 interface statistics. You can
[all] optionally include all 32-bit and 64-bit packet and
byte counters (including errors).
show interface ethernet slot/port counters errors Displays the Layer 3 interface input and output errors.
show interface ethernet slot/port counters snmp Displays the Layer 3 interface counters reported by
SNMP MIBs.
show interface ethernet slot/port.number counters Displays the subinterface statistics (unicast, multicast,
and broadcast).
show interface port-channel channel-id.number Displays the port-channel subinterface statistics

counters (unicast, multicast, and broadcast).
show interface loopback number counters Displays the loopback interface input and output
show interface loopback number counters detailed Displays the loopback interface statistics. You can
[all] optionally include all 32-bit and 64-bit packet and
byte counters (including errors).
show interface loopback number counters errors Displays the loopback interface input and output
errors.
show interface vlan number counters Displays the VLAN interface input and output
show interface vlan number counters detailed [all] Displays the VLAN interface statistics. You can
optionally include all Layer 3 packet and byte
counters (unicast and multicast).
show interface vlan number counters snmp Displays the VLAN interface counters reported by
SNMP MIBs.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for information on these commands.

99
Related Documents
Related Documents
Related Topic
MIBs
Table 20: MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

To locate and download MIBs:
• IF-MIB
http://www.cisco.com/public/sw-center/netmgmt/
• CISCO-IF-EXTENSION-MIB cmtk/mibs.shtml
• ETHERLIKE-MIB

100
CHAPTER 6
Configuring Bidirectional Forwarding Detection
This chapter describes how to configure bidirectional forwarding detection.

• Feature History for BFD, page 101
• Prerequisites for BFD, page 103
• Guidelines and Limitations for BFD, page 103
• Default Settings, page 106
• Licensing Requirements for BFD, page 106
• Information About BFD, page 106
• Configuring BFD, page 110
• Verifying the BFD Configuration, page 141
• Monitoring BFD, page 142
• Configuration Examples for BFD, page 143

Feature History for BFD


101
Feature History for BFD
Table 21: Feature History for Configuring Basic Interface Parameters

Control Plane Independent bit 8.0(1) Added support for Control Plane Independent
setting bit setting for outgoing BFD packets.
BFD FSA offload on M3 7.3(0)DX(1) Added support for BFD FSA offload on the
M3 line cards.
BFD Support for HSRPv6 7.3(0)D1(1) Added support for BFD on HSRPv6.
BFD Enhancement to Address 7.3(0)D1(1) Added support for configuring individual

Per-link Efficiency BFD session on every LAG member interface
as an enhancement to BFD address per-link
efficiency.
BFD on unnumbered 7.2(1)D1(1) Added support for configuring BFD on

Interfaces unnumbered interface.
BFD FSA offload on F3 7.2(1)D1(1) Added support for BFD ACP offload on the
F3 line card.
Support for BFD over Layer 7.2(0)D1(1) Added support for BFD over Layer 2 over a
2 over a fabricpath core fabricpath core.
Support for BFD over SVI 7.2(0)D1(1) Added support for BFD over SVI over
over Fabricbath core Fabricbath core.
BFD on IPv6 Static Routes 6.2(2a) Added support for configuring BFD on all
IPv6 static routes on an interface.
BFD Interoperability 6.2(2) Added support for configuring BFD

interoperability with Cisco NX-OS and Cisco
IOS software.
BFD on IPv6 6.2(2) Added support for BFD on IPv6.
BFD on OSPFv3 6.2(2) Added support for BFD on OPSPv3.
BFD on IS-ISv6 6.2(2) Added support for BFD on IS-ISv6.
BFD on M2 and F2 modules 6.1(1) Added a note on M2 and F2 module support
BFD Authentication 5.2(1) Keyed SHA-1 authentication is supported on

BFD packets.
BFD for VRRP 5.2(1) Added support for BFD in VRRP.
BFD 5.0(2) This feature was introduced.

102
Prerequisites for BFD
Prerequisites for BFD

BFD has the following prerequisites:
• You must enable the BFD feature
• For any client protocols that you want to enable BFD on, you enable BFD in that client protocol.
• Disable Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) redirect messages on a BFD-enabled interfaces.
• Disable the IP packet verification check for identical IP source and destination addresses in the default
VDC.
• See other detailed prerequisites that are listed with the configuration tasks.
• From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), BFD for IPv6 is supported.
• To configure the Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System (IS-IS) IPv6 client for BFD, IS-IS must
be running on all participating routers. In addition, the baseline parameters for BFD sessions must be
configured on the interfaces that run BFD sessions to BFD neighbors.
• To enable BFD interoperability between Cisco IOS Software, Cisco NX-OS software, and Cisco IOS-XR
software, use BFD is in echo mode. In addition, configure the no ip redirect command on all the
interfaces that are part of BFD and also on the peer device.
Guidelines and Limitations for BFD

BFD has the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• BFD supports BFD version 1.
• In Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2) and later releases, BFD supports IPv4 and IPv6.
• BFD supports only one session per address family (IPv4 or IPv6), per interface.
• BFD supports single-hop BFD.
• BFD for BGP supports single-hop EBGP and iBGP peers.
• BFD supports keyed SHA-1 authentication from Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2 onwards.
• BFD supports the following Layer 3 interfaces—physical interfaces, port channels, subinterfaces, and
VLAN interfaces.
• BFD depends on a Layer 3 adjacency information to discover topology changes, including Layer 2
topology changes. A BFD session on a VLAN interface (SVI) may not be up after the convergence of
the Layer 2 topology if there is no Layer 3 adjacency information available.
• BFD does not support monitoring of multiple IPv6 next hops in the same subnet on a single interface.
• For BFD on a static route between two devices, both devices must support BFD. If one or both of the
devices do not support BFD, the static routes are not programmed in the Routing Information Base
(RIB).

103
• BFD does not support BFD multihop. When configuring BFD for iBGP, ensure to configure BGP
neighbor update-source command on connected interfaces.
• Port channel configuration limitations:
◦For Layer 3 port channels used by BFD, you must enable LACP on the port channel. BFD per-link
is supported only for EIGRP, ISIS, and OSPF clients.
Note To configure BFD per-link on a port channel, you need to shut down the interface and
configure the per-link and then bring up the port-channel again.
◦For Layer 2 port channels used by SVI sessions, you must enable LACP on the port channel.
• SVI limitations:
◦An ASIC reset will cause traffic disruption for other ports. This event could possibly cause SVI
sessions on other ports to flap. Some triggers for an ASIC reset are port moves between VDCs,
reloading a VDC, or if the carrier interface is a virtual port channel (vPC), BFD is not supported
over the SVI interface.
◦When you change the topology (for example, add or delete a link into a VLAN, delete a member
from a Layer 2 port channel, and so on), the SVI session could be affected. It may go down first
and then come up after the topology discovery is finished.
Note If you do not want the SVI sessions to flap and you need to change the topology, you
can disable the BFD feature before making the changes and re-enable BFD after the
changes have been made. You can also configure the BFD timer to be a large value (for
example, 5 seconds), and change it back to a fast timer after the above events complete.
• BFD over VLAN interfaces that have member ports only on a N7K-F132XL-15 module are not supported.
You should disable BFD over any VLAN with member ports only on a N7K-F132XL-15 module.
Note If you enable BFD at the router level (for example, from OSPF), any BFD sessions over
a N7K-F132XL-15 line card will not come up. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information about OSPF and other routing
protocols.
• When you configure the BFD Echo function on the distributed Layer 3 port channels, reloading a member
module flaps the BFD session hosted on that module, which results in a packet loss.
• If you connect the BFD peers directly without a Layer 2 switch in between, you can use the BFD per-link
mode as an alternative solution.
Note Using BFD per-link mode and subinterface optimization simultaneously on a Layer 3
port channel is not supported.

104
• The BFD echo function is not supported when using IPv6 link-local addresses.
• HSRP on IPv4 and IPv6 is supported with BFD.
• If HSRP BFD ALL-INTERFACE is configured, all IPv4 and IPv6 HSRP groups on all interfaces
automatically support BFD.
• BFD is not supported for Anycast HSRP.
◦Supports only port-channel interfaces that are directly connected between two switches (peer
devices) running BFD sessions.
◦Supports Layer 3 port channel interfaces in both On mode and LACP mode.
◦Supports all Line cards with Layer 3 capabilities.
◦IPv6 is not supported.
◦Fabric port-channel are not supported.
◦vPC is not supported.
◦Virtual switch interface over port-channels is not supported.
◦Storage VDCs is not supported.
◦Echo functionality is not supported for micro-BFD sessions.
◦RFC 7130 links cannot be configured along with proprietary links and BFD logical links.
◦If RFC 7130 is configured on the main port-channel interface and logical BFD is configured on
subinterfaces, the logical BFD session should have lesser aggressive timers than the RFC 7130
BFD sessions.
◦Micro BFD sessions are not supported on port-channel sub interfaces.
◦FEX interfaces (HIF) ports are not supported.
◦If IEFT-BFD is enabled on a port-channel interface, the operational state of port-channel will
depend on the minimum micro-BFD session members that are able to establish a session. If the
minimum number of links required to have port-channel UP is not met, the port-channel interface
is brought down. This in turn brings down the port-channel sub interfaces and the logical BFD
sessions.
◦If a LACP port-channel has members in hot-standby state and BFD failure link is one of the active
link, then hot-standby links might not come up directly. When the active link with BFD failure
goes down, the hot-standby member becomes active. This scenario can cause port-channel to go
down before the hot-standby can come up.
◦BFD per-link is not supported for BGP. It is supported only on EIGRP, OSPF, and ISIS.

105
Default Settings
Default Settings
Table 22: Default BFD Parameters
Parameter Default
BFD feature Disabled
Required minimum receive interval 50 milliseconds
Desired minimum transmit interval 50 milliseconds
Detect multiplier 3
Echo function Enabled
Mode Asynchronous
Port channel Logical mode (one session per source-destination pair

address).
Slow timer 2000 milliseconds
Subinterface optimization Disabled
Licensing Requirements for BFD

Information About BFD

BFD is a detection protocol designed to provide fast forwarding-path failure detection times for media types,
encapsulations, topologies, and routing protocols. You can use BFD to detect forwarding path failures at a
uniform rate, rather than the variable rates for different protocol hello mechanisms. BFD makes network
profiling and planning easier and reconvergence time consistent and predictable.
BFD provides subsecond failure detection between two adjacent devices and can be less CPU-intensive than
protocol hello messages because some of the BFD load can be distributed onto the data plane on supported
modules.

106
Asynchronous Mode
Asynchronous Mode
Cisco NX-OS supports the BFD asynchronous mode, which sends BFD control packets between two adjacent
devices to activate and maintain BFD neighbor sessions between the devices. You configure BFD on both
devices (or BFD neighbors). Once BFD has been enabled on the interfaces and on the appropriate protocols,
Cisco NX-OS creates a BFD session, negotiates BFD session parameters, and begins to send BFD control
packets to each BFD neighbor at the negotiated interval. The BFD session parameters include the following:
• Desired minimum transmit interval—The interval at which this device wants to send BFD hello messages.
• Required minimum receive interval—The minimum interval at which this device can accept BFD hello
messages from another BFD device.
• Detect multiplier—The number of missing BFD hello messages from another BFD device before this
local device detects a fault in the forwarding path.
The figure below shows how a BFD session is established. The figure shows a simple network with two
routers running OSPF and BFD. When OSPF discovers a neighbor (1), it sends a request to the local BFD
process to initiate a BFD neighbor session with the OSPF neighbor router (2). The BFD neighbor session with
the OSPF neighbor router is now established (3).
Figure 6: Establishing a BFD Neighbor Relationship
Detection of Failures
Once a BFD session has been established and timer negotiations are complete, BFD neighbors send BFD
control packets that act in the same manner as an IGP hello protocol to detect liveliness, except at a more
accelerated rate. BFD detects a failure, but the protocol must take action to bypass a failed peer.
BFD sends a failure detection notice to the BFD-enabled protocols when it detects a failure in the forwarding
path. The local device can then initiate the protocol recalculation process and reduce the overall network
convergence time.
The figure below shows what happens when a failure occurs in the network (1). The BFD neighbor session
with the OSPF neighbor router is torn down (2). BFD notifies the local OSPF process that the BFD neighbor
is no longer reachable (3). The local OSPF process tears down the OSPF neighbor relationship (4). If an
alternative path is available, the routers immediately start converging on it.

107
Distributed Operation
Note The BFD failure detection occurs in less than a second, which is much faster than OSPF Hello messages
could detect the same failure.
Figure 7: Tearing Down an OSPF Neighbor Relationship
Distributed Operation
Cisco NX-OS can distribute the BFD operation to compatible modules that support BFD. This process offloads
the CPU load for BFD packet processing to the individual modules that connect to the BFD neighbors. All
BFD session traffic occurs on the module CPU. The module informs the supervisor when a BFD failure is
detected.
BFD Echo Function

The BFD echo function sends echo packets from the forwarding engine to the remote BFD neighbor. The
BFD neighbor forwards the echo packet back along the same path in order to perform detection; the BFD
neighbor does not participate in the actual forwarding of the echo packets. The echo function and the forwarding
engine are responsible for the detection process. BFD can use the slow timer to slow down the asycnhronous
session when the echo function is enabled and reduce the number of BFD control packets that are sent between
two BFD neighbors. Also, the forwarding engine tests the forwarding path on the remote (neighbor) system
without involving the remote system, so there is less interpacket delay variability and faster failure detection
times.
The echo function is without asymmetry when both BFD neighbors are running echo function.
Note Unicast Reverse Path Forwarding check (uRPF) is disabled by default. If you need to enable it on an
interface functioning with BFD, the BFD echo function must be disabled.
Security
Cisco NX-OS uses the packet Time to Live (TTL) value to verify that the BFD packets came from an adjacent
BFD peer. For all asynchronous and echo request packets, the BFD neighbor sets the TTL value to 255 and

108
High Availability
the local BFD process verifies the TTL value as 255 before processing the incoming packet. For the echo
response packet, BFD sets the TTL value to 254.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2, you can configure SHA-1 authentication of BFD packets.
High Availability
BFD supports stateless restarts and in-service software upgrades (ISSUs). ISSU allows you to upgrade software
without impacting forwarding. After a reboot or supervisor switchover, Cisco NX-OS applies the running
configuration and BFD immediately sends control packets to the BFD peers.
BFD supports virtual routing and forwarding instances (VRFs). VRFs exist within virtual device contexts
(VDCs). By default, Cisco NX-OS places you in the default VDC and default VRF unless you specifically
configure another VDC and VRF. For more information, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual
Device Context Configuration Guide.
BFD Interoperability
This feature enables BFD interoperability between Cisco IOS software, Cisco NX-OS software, and Cisco
IOS-XR software.
BFD ACP Offload on F3 Line Card and M3 Line Card

The BFD Fabric Services Accelerator (FSA) Offload on F3 Line Card feature allows the offload of asynchronous
and echo BFD transmission (Tx) and reception (Rx) to the network processing unit on the F3 line card. The
BFD FSA Offload on F3 Line Card feature improves scale and reduces the overall network convergence time
by sending rapid failure detection packets or messages to the routing protocols for recalculating the routing
table. You should explicitly enable the BFD FSA Offload on F3 Line Card feature for each VDC, using the
bfd hw-offload-module module-name command. To disable the feature, use the no bfd hw-offload-module
module-name command. The feature can be enabled only if there are no active BFD sessions hosted on the
line card in that particular VDC.
The BFD FSA Offload feature is introduced on the M3 line card in Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Release
7.3(0)DX(1).
The offload of BFD sessions to the FSA is disabled by default on the F3 line card, and is enabled by default
on the M3 line card. BFD sessions can run at 15 ms when the session is offloaded to FSA.
BFD on Unnumbered Interfaces

The Cisco unified fabric needs to support 32 spines with 1024 leaves with bipartite connectivity. In a 32-spine
Vinci Fabric, a given leaf will have 32 Layer3 links, one to each spine. Similarly, each spinet will have 1024
Layer3 links, one to each leaf. Typically, each Layer3 link at spine and leaf needs as many IP addresses, which
is complex to assign and manage. To reduce the complexity, these Layer3 links derive IP address from a
specified loopback interface, and such Layer3 links are referred as unnumbered links. These Layer3 unnumbered

109
BFD Enhancement to Address Per-link Efficiency
links are associated with their respective Router's MAC address. BFD is used for fast failure detection on
these links. This necessitates support for BFD over unnumbered interfaces.
You can use either OSPF or ISIS protocols to provide Layer3 connectivity between spines and leaves.
The following BFD sub features are applicable on unnumbered interfaces:
• Address Family Support
BFD clients can bootstrap BFD with either IPv4 or IPv6 address.
• Echo Support
By default, echo function is supported on both IPv4 and IPv6 BFD sessions. However, if BFD IPv6
sessions are bootstrapped with link-local addresses, echo will not be supported.
• BFD session over unnumbered port-channel
Both Logical Mode and Per-link mode sessions are supported. By default, with no configuration on the
port-channel, BFD sessions are in the logical mode.
The following configurations are not supported on unnumbered interfaces:

• Switched Virtual Interfaces (SVIs) are not expected to be unnumbered.
• Multipath links between the same set of spines and leaves are not supported.
• Sub interfaces are not expected to be unnumbered and hence sub interface optimization is not supported.
BFD Enhancement to Address Per-link Efficiency

The Bidirectional Forwarding (BFD) enhancement to address per-link efficiency feature enables users to
configure individual BFD sessions on every Link Aggregation Group (LAG) member interfaces (as defined
in RFC 7130).
With this enhancement BFD sessions will run on each member link of the port-channel. If BFD detects a link
failure, the member link is removed from the forwarding table. This mechanism delivers faster failure detection
as the BFD sessions are created on individual port-channel interface.
Users can configure RFC 7130 BFD over main port-channel interface, which does bandwidth monitoring
over LAG by having one micro-BFD session over each member. If any of the member port goes down, the
port is removed from the forwarding table and this prevents black holing of traffic on that member.
Micro BFD sessions (BFD sessions running on member links of the port-channel are called as "micro BFD
sessions") are supported for both LACP and non-LACP based-port channels.
For more information on how to configure micro BFD sessions, see "Configuring Micro BFD Sessions" topic.
Configuring BFD
Configuration Hierarchy
You can configure BFD at the global level and at the interface or subinterface level (for physical interfaces
and port channels). The interface or subinterface configuration overrides the global configuration. On supported

110
Task Flow for Configuring BFD
interfaces, the subinterface-level configuration overrides the interface or port channel configuration unless
subinterface optimization is enabled. See the “Optimizing BFD on Subinterfaces” section for more information.
Note Using BFD per-link mode and subinterface optimization simultaneously on a Layer 3 port channel is not
supported.
For physical ports that are members of a port channel, the member port inherits the master port channel BFD
configuration. The member port subinterfaces can override the master port channel BFD configuration, unless
subinterface optimization is enabled.
Task Flow for Configuring BFD

Follow these steps to configure BFD:
Step 1: Enabling BFD, on page 111
Step 2: Configuring Global BFD Parameters, on page 112 or Configuring BFD on an Interface, on page 113
Step 3: Configuring BFD for IPv6, on page 117
Enabling BFD
You must enable the BFD feature before you can configure BFD on an interface and protocol within a device
(VDC).
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature bfd Enables the BFD feature.
Step 3 switch(config)# show feature | include bfd (Optional)

Displays enabled and disabled features.

configuration.
Use the no feature bfd command to disable the BFD feature and remove all associated configuration.

111
Configuring Global BFD Parameters
Command Purpose
no feature bfd Disables the BFD feature and removes all associated
configuration.
Configuring Global BFD Parameters

You can configure the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on the device. The BFD session parameters
are negotiated between the BFD peers in a three-way handshake.
See the “Configuring BFD on an Interface” section to override these global session parameters on an interface.
Before You Begin

• Enable the BFD feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# bfd interval Configures the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on
mintx min_rx msec multiplier the device. This command overrides these values by configuring
value the BFD session parameters on an interface. The mintx and msec
range is from 15 to 999 milliseconds and the default is 50. The
multiplier range is from 1 to 50. The multiplier default is 3.
Note Even if the value of the mintx argument is configured as
15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-module command is not
enabled on the session, the configuration is not applied
and the session functions at the default timer value, which
is 50 ms.
Step 3 switch(config)# bfd Configures the slow timer used in the echo function. This value
slow-timer [interval] determines how fast BFD starts up a new session and at what speed
the asynchronous sessions use for BFD control packets when the
echo function is enabled. The slow-timer value is used as the new
control packet interval, while the echo packets use the configured
BFD intervals. The echo packets are used for link failure detection,
while the control packets at the slower rate maintain the BFD
session. The range is from 1000 to 30000 milliseconds. The default
is 2000.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# bfd Configures the interface used for Bidirectional Forwarding
echo-interface loopback Detection (BFD) echo frames. This command changes the source
interface number address for the echo packets to the one configured on the specified
loopback interface. The interface number range is from 0 to 1023.

112
Configuring BFD on an Interface

Step 5 switch(config)# bfd c-bit Configures the Control Plane Independent bit setting for outgoing
BFD packets.
running-config bfd all Displays all the BFD running configurations.

running-config Copies the running configuration to the startup configuration.
startup-config
This example shows the peer-configured Control Plane Independent bit setting for outgoing BFD packets:
show bfd neighbors dest-ip 10.1.2.2 details
OurAddr NeighAddr LD/RD RH/RS Holdown(mult)
State Int Vrf Type
10.1.2.1 10.1.2.2 1090519041/1107296257 Up 8598(5) Up
Eth9/21 default SH
Session state is Up and using echo function with 50 ms interval
Session type: Singlehop

Local Diag: 0, Demand mode: 0, Poll bit: 0, Authentication: None
MinTxInt: 50000 us, MinRxInt: 2000000 us, Multiplier: 3
Received MinRxInt: 2000000 us, Received Multiplier: 5
Holdown (hits): 10000 ms (0), Hello (hits): 2000 ms (49104)
Rx Count: 49086, Rx Interval (ms) min/max/avg: 0/32150/1516 last: 1401 ms ago
Tx Count: 49104, Tx Interval (ms) min/max/avg: 1515/1515/1515 last: 1402 ms ago
Registered protocols: netstack
Uptime: 0 days 20 hrs 39 mins 44 secs
Last packet: Version: 1 - Diagnostic: 0
State bit: Up - Demand bit: 0
Poll bit: 0 - Final bit: 0
Multiplier: 5 - Length: 24
My Discr.: 1107296257 - Your Discr.: 1090519041
Min tx interval: 555000 - Min rx interval: 2000000
Min Echo interval: 50000 - Authentication bit: 0
C bit : 1
Hosting LC: 9, Down reason: None, Reason not-hosted: None, Offloaded: No
This example shows the locally-configured Control Plane Independent bit setting for outgoing BFD packets:
show running-config bfd all
!Command: show running-config bfd
!Time: Tue Nov 22 06:15:17 2016
version 8.0(1)
feature bfd
bfd interval 555 min_rx 555 multiplier 5
bfd slow-timer 2000
no bfd echo-interface
bfd echo-rx-interval 50
bfd c-bit
Configuring BFD on an Interface

You can configure the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on an interface. The BFD session
parameters are negotiated between the BFD peers in a three-way handshake.
This configuration overrides the global session parameters for the configured interface.

113
Configuring BFD on a Port Channel
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface int-if Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ? keyword to
display the supported interfaces.
Step 3 switch(config)# bfd interval Configures the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on
mintx min_rx msec multiplier the device. This command overrides these values by configuring
value the BFD session parameters on an interface. The mintx and msec
Note Even if the value of the mintx argument is configured
as 15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-modulecommand is
not enabled on the session, the configuration is not
applied and the session functions at the default timer
value, which is 50 ms.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# bfd (Optional)
authentication keyed-sha1 Configures SHA-1 authentication for all BFD sessions on the
keyid id key ascii_key interface. The ascii_key string is a secret key shared among BFD
peers. The id value, a number between 0 and 255, is assigned to
this particular ascii_key. BFD packets specify the key by id,
allowing the use of multiple active keys.
To disable SHA-1 authentication on the interface, use the no
form of the command.

running-config bfd Displays the BFD running configuration.
Step 6 switch(config-if)#copy (Optional)


You can configure the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on a port channel. If per-link mode is
used for Layer 3 port channels, BFD creates a session for each link in the port channel and provides an
aggregate result to client protocols. For example, if the BFD session for one link on a port channel is up, BFD
informs client protocols, such as OSPF, that the port channel is up. The BFD session parameters are negotiated
between the BFD peers in a three-way handshake.

114
This configuration overrides the global session parameters for the configured port channel. The member ports
of the port channel inherit the port channel BFD session parameters, unless you configure subinterface-level
BFD parameters on a member port. In that case, the member port subinterface uses the subinterface BFD
configuration if subinterface optimization is not enabled. See the “Optimizing BFD on Subinterfaces” section
for more information.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you enable LACP on the port channel before you enable BFD.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Enters port channel configuration mode. Use the ? keyword to
port-channel number display the supported number range.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd per-link Configures the BFD sessions for each link in the port channel.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# bfd interval Configures the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions
mintx min_rx msec multiplier on the device. This command overrides these values by
value configuring the BFD session parameters on an interface. The
mintx and msec range is from 15 to 999 milliseconds and the
default is 50. The multiplier range is from 1 to 50. The
multiplier default is 3.
as 15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-module command is
Step 5 switch(config-if)# bfd (Optional)
authentication keyed-sha1 Configures SHA-1 authentication for all BFD sessions on the
keyid id key ascii_key interface. The ascii_key string is a secret key shared among
BFD peers. The id value, a number between 0 and 255, is
assigned to this particular ascii_key. BFD packets specify the
key by id, allowing the use of multiple active keys.
To disable SHA-1 authentication on the interface, use the no
form of the command.



115
Configuring BFD Echo Function
Configuring BFD Echo Function

You can configure the BFD echo function on one or both ends of a BFD-monitored link. The echo function
slows down the required minimum receive interval, based on the configured slow timer. The
RequiredMinEchoRx BFD session parameter is set to zero if the echo function is disabled. The slow timer
becomes the required minimum receive interval if the echo function is enabled.
Before You Begin

• Configure the BFD session parameters.
• Ensure that Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) redirect messages are disabled on BFD-enabled
interfaces. Use the no ip redirects command on the interface.
• Ensure that the IP packet verification check for identical IP source and destination addresses is disabled.
Use the no hardware ip verify address identical command in the default VDC. See the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for more information about this command.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# bfd slow-timer Configures the slow timer used in the echo function. This
echo-interval value determines how fast BFD starts up a new session and
is used to slow down the asynchronous sessions when the
BFD echo function is enabled. This value overwrites the
required minimum receive interval when the echo function
is enabled. The range is from 1000 to 30000 milliseconds.
The default is 2000.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# bfd echo Enables the echo function. The default is enabled.


configuration.

116
Optimizing BFD on Subinterfaces
Optimizing BFD on Subinterfaces

You can optimize BFD on subinterfaces. BFD creates sessions for all configured subinterfaces. BFD sets the
subinterface with the lowest configured VLAN ID as the master subinterface and that subinterface uses the
BFD session parameters of the parent interface. The remaining subinterfaces use the slow timer. If the optimized
subinterface session detects an error, BFD marks all subinterfaces on that physical interface as down.
Note If the hardware offload feature is enabled, then configure the bfd optimize subinterface command only
if the number of sub-interfaces is less than 750, otherwise BFD sessions will not come up.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that these subinterfaces connect to another Cisco NX-OS device. This feature is supported on
Cisco NX-OS only.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface int-if Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ?
keyword to display the supported interfaces.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd optimize Optimizes subinterfaces on a BFD-enabled

subinterface interface. The default is disabled.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# show running-config (Optional)

bfd Displays the BFD running configuration.
Step 5 switch(config-if)#copy running-config (Optional)

configuration.
Configuring BFD for IPv6
Configuring Global BFD Parameters for IPv6

You can specify either the IPv4 or the IPv6 address family when you configure BFD parameters.

117
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# bfd [ipv4 | ipv6] interval Configures the BFD session parameters, in
[interval min_rx interval multiplier milliseconds, for all BFD session on the device.
interval-multiplier
Configuring Per Interface BFD Parameters for IPv6

Before You Begin
BFD must be enabled on the device.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface type number Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ?
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd [ipv4 | ipv6] interval Configures the BFD session parameters, in
[interval min_rx interval multiplier milliseconds, for all BFD session on the device.
interval-multiplier
Step 4 switch(config-if)# bfd [ipv4 | ipv6] (Optional)
authentication keyed-sha1 keyid id key Configures Secure Hash Algorithm 1 (SHA-1)
ascii_key authentication for all BFD sessions on the specified
address family.
Configuring BFD on IPv6 Static Routes

You can configure BFD for all IPv6 static routes on an interface.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that BFD is enabled on the devices at each end of the static route.

118
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vrf context vrf-name Enters VRF configuration mode to configure BFD on
an IPv6 static route.
• Specify the VRF in which the route is to BFD
tracked.
Step 3 switch(config-vrf)# ipv6 route route Creates an IPv6 static route.

interface {nh-address | nh-prefix}
• Specify the IPv6 address for the route argument.
• Use the ? keyword to display the supported
interfaces.
• Specify the next hop (nh) address or prefix for this
static route.
Step 4 switch(config-vrf)# ipv6 route static Enables BFD for all IPv6 static routes on this interface
bfd network-interface {nh-address | and next hop combination.
nh-prefix}
• Use the ? keyword to display the supported
interfaces.
• Specify the next hop (nh) address or prefix for this
static route.
Step 5 switch(config-vrf)# show bfd (Optional)

neighbors Displays information about BFD neighbors.
Step 6 switch(config-vrf)# show ipv6 route (Optional)

static Displays static routes.
Step 7 switch(config-vrf)# copy (Optional)

configuration.
This example shows how to configure BFD on an IPv6 static route between two BFD neighbors:
switch(config)# vrf context red
switch(config-vrf)# ipv6 route 1::5/64 ethernet 3/1 2::2
switch(config-vrf)# ipv6 route static bfd ethernet 3/1 2::2 <===Enables BFD on static
routes for the interface/next hop combination.
Configuring BFD Echo Mode for IPv6

The BFD echo function is not supported on devices with IPv6 link-local addresses. The echo function is
enabled by default. You can disable it for IPv4, IPv6, or all address families.

119
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface int-if Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ? keyword
to display the supported interfaces.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd [ipv4 | ipv6] Enables the echo function for the specified address. The
echo default is enabled.
To disable the echo function for the specified address
family, use the no form of the command.
Configuring a BFD Echo Interface for IPv6

Perform this task to configure the loopback interface as the source address for all echo frames.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface loopback number Creates a loopback interface and enters
interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# ip address ip-address mask Configures the IP address for the interface.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# ipv6 address {ipv6-address Configures the IPv6 address as the source
/ prefix-length | prefix-name sub-bits / address for all echo frames.
prefix-length}
Configuring BFD Slow Timer for IPv6

Echo mode is enabled by default. You can configure the slow-timer value and disable or enable echo mode
for an address family.
Procedure


120
Configuring BFD Support for Routing Protocols

Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd [ipv4 | ipv6] Configures the slow timer, in milliseconds, used in
slow-timer [interval] the echo function for the specified address family.
Configuring BFD on BGP

You can configure BFD for the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP).
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router bgp as-number Enables BGP and assigns the AS number to the local
BGP speaker. The AS number can be a 16-bit integer
or a 32-bit integer in the form of a higher 16-bit
decimal number and a lower 16-bit decimal number
in xx.xx format.
Step 3 switch(config-router)# neighbor Configures the IPv4 or IPv6 address and AS number
{ip-address | ipv6-address} remote-as for a remote BGP peer. The ip-address format is
as-number x.x.x.x. The ipv6-address format is A:B::C:D.
Step 4 switch(config-router-neighbor)# bfd Enables BFD for this BGP peer.
Step 5 switch(config-router-neighbor)# show (Optional)

Step 6 switch(config-router-neighbor)# copy (Optional)

configuration.

121
Configuring BFD on EIGRP

You can configure BFD for the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP).
Before You Begin

• Enable the EIGRP feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router eigrp Creates a new EIGRP process with the configured instance
instance-tag tag. The instance tag can be any case-sensitive, alphanumeric
string up to 20 characters.
If you configure an instance-tag that does not qualify as an
AS number, you must use the autonomous-system command
to configure the AS number explicitly or this EIGRP
instance will remain in the shutdown state.
Step 3 switch(config-router-neighbor)# (Optional)

bfd Enables BFD for all EIGRP interfaces.
Step 4 switch(config-router-neighbor)# Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ? keyword to

interface int-if display the supported interfaces.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# ip eigrp (Optional)

instance-tag bfd Enables or disables BFD on an EIGRP interface. The
instance tag can be any case-sensitive, alphanumeric string
up to 20 characters.
The default is disabled.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# show ip eigrp (Optional)

[vrf vrf-name] [interfaces if] Displays information about EIGRP. The vrf-name can be
any case-sensitive, alphanumeric string up to 32 characters.

configuration.

122
Configuring BFD on OSPF

You can configure BFD for the Open Shortest Path First version 2 (OSPFv2).
Before You Begin

• Enable the OSPF feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router ospf Creates a new OSPFv2 instance with the configured
instance-tag instance tag. The instance tag can be any case-sensitive,
alphanumeric string up to 20 characters.
Step 3 switch(config-router)# bfd (Optional)

Enables BFD for all OSPFv2 interfaces.
Step 4 switch(config-router)# interface int-if Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ? keyword
to display the supported interfaces.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# ip ospf bfd (Optional)

Enables or disables BFD on an OSPFv2 interface. The
default is disabled.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# show ip ospf [vrf (Optional)

vrf-name] [interfaces if] Displays information about OSPF. The vrf-name can
be any case-sensitive, alphanumeric string up to 32
characters.

configuration.
Configuring BFD on OSPFv3

BFD supports Open Shortest Path First version 3 (OSPFv3), which is a link-state routing protocol for IPv6
networks.
There are two methods for enabling BFD support for OSPFv3:

123
• You can enable BFD for all of the interfaces for which OSPFv3 is routing by entering the bfd command
in router configuration mode. You can disable BFD support on individual interfaces by entering the
ospfv3 bfd disable command in interface configuration mode.
• You can enable BFD for a subset of the interfaces for which OSPFv3 is routing by entering the ospfv3
bfd command in interface configuration mode.
Note OSPF will only initiate BFD sessions for OSPF neighbors that are in the FULL state.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ? keyword to display
int-if the supported interfaces.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd Configures the BFD session parameters for all BFD sessions on
interval mintx min_rx msec the device. This command overrides these values by configuring
multiplier value the BFD session parameters on an interface. The mintx and msec
Note Even if the value of the mintx argument is configured as
15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-module command is not
enabled on the session, the configuration is not applied
and the session functions at the default timer value, which
is 50 ms.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# end Exits interface configuration mode and returns to global
configuration mode.
Configuring BFD for OSPFv3 for All Interfaces
Before You Begin

OSPFv3 must be running on all participating devices. The baseline parameters for BFD sessions on the
interfaces over which you want to run BFD sessions to BFD neighbors must be configured.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router ospfv3 Configures an OSFPv3 routing process.

process-id

124

Step 3 switch(config-router)# bfd Enables BFD for all interfaces participating in the
routing process.
Step 4 switch(config-router)# exit Enter this command twice to return to EXEC mode.
Step 5 switch# show bfd neighbors [details] Displays a line-by-line listing of existing BFD
adjacencies.
Step 6 switch# show ospfv3 [process-id] Displays general information about OSPFv3
routing processes.
Configuring BFD for OSPFv3 on One or More Interfaces
Before You Begin

OSPFv3 must be running on all participating devices. The baseline parameters for BFD sessions on the
interfaces over which you want to run BFD sessions to BFD neighbors must be configured.
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# ospfv3 bfd Enables BFD on a per-interface basis for one or more
[disable] interfaces associated with the OSPFv3 routing process.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Enter this command twice to return to EXEC mode.
Step 5 switch# show bfd neighbors [details] Displays a line-by-line listing of existing BFD
adjacencies.
Step 6 switch# show ospfv3 [process-id] Displays general information about OSPFv3 routing
processes.
Configuring BFD on IS-IS

You can configure BFD for the Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System (IS-IS) protocol.
Before You Begin


125

• Enable the IS-IS feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router isis Creates a new IS-IS instance with the configured
instance-tag instance tag.
Step 3 switch(config-router)# bfd (Optional)

Enables BFD for all IS-IS interfaces.
Step 4 switch(config-router)# interface int-if Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ?
Step 5 switch(config-if)# isis bfd (Optional)

Enables or disables BFD on an IS-IS interface. The
Step 6 switch(config-if)# show isis [vrf (Optional)

vrf-name] [interfaces if] Displays information about IS-IS. The vrf-name can
be any case-sensitive, alphanumeric string up to 32
characters.

configuration.
Configuring BFD on IS-ISv6

When BFD support is configured with IS-IS as a registered protocol with BFD, IS-IS receives forwarding
path detection failure messages from BFD. BFD support for IS-IS can be configured in either router
address-family configuration mode or interface configuration mode. IS-IS IPv6 runs in single-topology mode.
IS-IS BFD supports both IPv4 and IPv6 on the same adjacency for single-topology mode. If BFD is enabled
for both IPv4 and IPv6, IS-IS sends two BFD session creation requests to BFD. For single-topology mode,
the IS-IS adjacency state can only be up if both BFD sessions are up. If either of the BFD sessions is down,
the associated IS-IS adjacency state is also down.
When IS-IS BFD IPv6 is disabled on an interface, IS-IS removes related BFD sessions for IPv6 from the
adjacent device. When the IS-IS adjacency entry is deleted, all BFD sessions are also deleted. IS-IS requests
BFD to remove each BFD session that it has requested when any of the following events occur:
• The IS-IS instance is deleted or un-configured.
• The IS-IS adjacency entry is deleted.

126
• IS-IS BFD is disabled on the next hop interface for an address-family.
Configuring IS-IS IPv6 Client Support on an Interface

IS-IS requests a BFD session for the interface and the IPv6 address of the neighboring device when all of the
following conditions are met:
• An IS-IS adjacency entry exists.
• The Address Family Identifier (AFI) specific peer interface address is known.
• IS-IS BFD is enabled for that AFI on an interface.
• IS-IS is enabled for that AFI on the local interface.
• If the neighboring device supports RFC 6213, BFD must be enabled for the specified Network Layer
Protocol Identifier (NLPID).
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# isis ipv6 bfd Enables IPv6 BFD on a specific interface that is
configured for IS-IS.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# end Exits interface configuration mode and returns to

global configuration mode.
Step 5 switch(config)# show isis interface (Optional) Displays interface information about
type number IS-IS.
Configuring IS-IS IPv6 Client Support for BFD on All Interfaces
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# router isis process-id Enables the IS-IS routing protocol and enters router
configuration mode.

127

Step 3 switch(config-router)# metric-style (Optional)
transition Configures a device that is running IS-IS so that it
generates and accepts only new style, type, length, value
objects (TLVs).
Step 4 switch(config-router)# Enters address family configuration mode for

address-family ipv6 unicast configuring IS-IS routing session that use standard IPv6
address prefixes.
Step 5 switch(config-router-af)# bfd Enables BFD for all interfaces that are participating in
the routing process.
Step 6 switch(config-router-af)# end Exits address family configuration mode and returns to
global configuration mode.
Step 7 switch(config)# show isis (Optional)

[process-id] Displays interface information about IS-IS.
Configuring FabricPath BFD on a Specific Interface
Before You Begin

• The ISIS feature is enabled by default when entering the feature-set fabricpath command.
•
•
Procedure

Step 1 switch# configure terminal Enters global configuration mode.
Step 2 switch(config)# [no] bfd Enables the user to choose an encapsulation mode for the
fabricpath encap-ce L2BFD frames on a per-session basis. On enabling the
command, it sends out the frames without Fabricpath
encapsulation. The default mode is to send frames with
Fabricpath encapsulation.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# fabricpath isis Enables the FabricPath BFD on the interface.
bfd

128
This example shows how to configure FabricPath BFD on a specific interface:

switch(config)# [no] bfd fabricpath encap-ce
switch(config-if)# fabricpath isis bfd
Configuring FabricPath BFD on All IS-IS Interfaces
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you are in the correct VRF.
• The ISIS feature is enabled by default when entering the feature-set fabricpath command.
•
•
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# fabricpath domain Enters the global FabricPath Layer 2 Intermediate
default System, to Intermediate System (IS-IS)
configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-fabricpath-isis)# bfd Enables FabricPath BFD on all IS-IS interfaces.
This example show how to configure FabricPath BFD on all IS-IS interfaces:
switch(config)# fabricpath domain default
switch(config-fabricpath-isis)# bfd
Configuring BFD on HSRP

You can configure BFD for the Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP). The active and standby HSRP routers
track each other through BFD. If BFD on the standby HSRP router detects that the active HSRP router is
down, the standby HSRP router treats this event as an active time expiry and takes over as the active HSRP
router.
Use the show hsrp bfd-sessions command to display the HSRP BFD session information for all the interfaces.
Before You Begin


129
• Enable the HSRP feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# hsrp bfd all-interfaces (Optional)

Enables or disables BFD on all HSRP interfaces. The
Step 4 switch(config-if)# hsrp bfd (Optional)

Enables or disables BFD on an HSRP interface. The

running-config hsrp Displays the HSRP running configuration.

configuration.
Configuring BFD on VRRP

You can configure BFD for the Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP). The active and standby VRRP
routers track each other through BFD. If BFD on the standby VRRP router detects that the active VRRP router
is down, the standby VRRP router treats this event as an active time rexpiry and takes over as the active VRRP
router.
The show vrrp detail will show this event as BFD@Act-down or BFD@Sby-down.
Before You Begin

• Enable the VRRP feature.

130
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# vrrp group-no Specifies the VRRP group number.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# vrrp bfd address Enables or disables BFD on an VRRP interface.
The default is disabled.

vrrp Displays the VRRP running configuration.

configuration.
Configuring BFD on PIM

You can configure BFD for the Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) protocol.
Before You Begin

• Enable the PIM feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# ip pim bfd Enables BFD for PIM.
Step 3 switch(config)# interface int-if (Optional)

Enters interface configuration mode. Use the ?
Step 4 switch(config-if)# ip pim bfd-instance Enables or disables BFD on a PIM interface. The
[disable] default is disabled.

131

pim Displays the PIM running configuration.

configuration.
Configuring BFD on Static Routes

You can configure BFD for static routes on an interface. You can optionally configure BFD on a static route
within a virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vrf context vrf-name (Optional)

Enters VRF configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-vrf)# ip route route interface Creates a static route Use the ? keyword to
{nh-address | nh-prefix} display the supported interfaces.
Step 4 switch(config-vrf)# ip route static bfd Enables BFD for all static routes on an interface.
interface {nh-address | nh-prefix} Use the ? keyword to display the supported
interfaces.
Step 5 switch(config-vrf)# show ip route static [vrf (Optional)

vrf-name] Displays the static routes.
Step 6 switch(config-vrf)# copy running-config (Optional)

configuration.

132
Configuring BFD on Unnumbered Interfaces
Configuring BFD on MPLS TE Fast Reroute

MPLS Traffic Engineering (TE) uses BFD accelerate the detection of node failures and to provide fast
forwarding path failure detection times. BFD for MPLS TE fast reroute is configured automatically when you
enable the fast reroute on a tunnel. See the “Configuring MPLS TE Fast Reroute Link and Node Protection”
chapter in the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS MPLS Configuration Guide for more information.
Disabling BFD on an Interface

You can selectively disable BFD on an interface for a routing protocol that has BFD enabled at the global or
VRF level.
To disable BFD on an interface, use one of the following commands in interface configuration mode:
Table 23: Disabling BFD on an Interface
Command Purpose
ip eigrp instance-tag bfd disable Disables BFD on an EIGRP interface. The instance
tag can be any case-sensitive, alphanumeric string up
to 20 characters.
ip ospf bfd disable Disables BFD on an OSPFv2 interface.
isis bfd disable Disables BFD on an IS-IS interface.

The following are some basic switch configurations to set up BFD over unnumbered interfaces:
1 Configure the ethernet interface that is unnumbered.
2 Configure the loopback interface from which the IP address is derived for the unnumbered interface.
3 Configure ISIS or OSPF with VRF on the router.
Procedure
Step 1 The following are the steps to configure ISIS on the Ethernet interface that is unnumbered:
a) Enter the global configuration mode:
b) Enter the interface config mode:
switch(config)# interface ethernet slot / port
c) Configure the interface medium as point to point:
switch(config-if)# medium p2p
d) Enable IP processing on loopback interface:

133
switch(config-if)# ip unnumbered instance

e) Configure the ISIS metric to calculate the cost of routing at different levels:
switch(config-if)# isis metric {metric-value | maximum} [level-1 | level-2]
f) Configure the type of adjacency:
switch(config-if)# isis circuit-type [level-1 | level-1-2 | level-2-only]
g) Configure an IS-IS routing process for the IP on the configured interface and attach an area designator to
the routing process:
switch(config-if)#ip router isis area-tag
h) Enable BFD
switch(config-if)#isis bfd instance
i) Exit the config mode:
switch(config-if)#end
Step 2 The following are the steps to configure the loopback interface from which the IP address for the unnumbered
interface is derived:
a) Create a loopback interface and enter the interface config mode:
switch(config)# interface loopback instance
b) Configure an IP address for this loopback interface:
switch(config-if)#ip address address
c) Configure an IS-IS routing process for the IP on the configured interface and attach an area designator to
the routing process:
switch(config-if)#ip router isis area-tag
This example shows how to configure BFD on unnumbered ethernet interface with ISIS protocol:
interface Ethernet1/2
medium p2p
ip unnumbered loopback1
isis metric 10 level-1
isis circuit-type level-1
ip router isis 100
isis bfd
no shutdown
router isis 100
net 49.0001.0000.0000.000a.00
is-type level-1
address-family ipv6 unicast
This example shows how to configure BFD over unnumbered interface with OSPF and VRF:
vrf context vrf3
medium p2p
vrf member vrf3
ip unnumbered loopback1
ip router ospf 10 area 0.0.0.0
no shutdown
interface loopback1
vrf member vrf3
ip address 10.1.1.2/32
line vty
router ospf 10
bfd

134
Configuring BFD Interoperability
vrf vrf3
bfd
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in a Point-to-Point Link
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# ip ospf bfd Enables BFD on an OSPFv2 interface. The default is disabled.
You can enable BFD of any of the supported protocols.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# no ip Prevents the device from sending redirects.

redirect
default is 50. The multiplier range is from 1 to 50. The multiplier
default is 3.
as 15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-module command is
Step 6 switch(config-if)# exit Exits interface configuration mode and returns to EXEC mode.
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in a Switch Virtual Interface

BFD is supported on switched virtual interfaces configured on L3 switches. The ports connecting two such
switches can be connected in the following modes:
• Trunk– The ports of two such devices can be connected using classic Ethernet and configured in the
trunk mode.
• Fabric– The ports of two such devices can be connected using a fabric path core and configured in the
fabricpath mode.

135
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface int-if Creates a dynamic Switch Virtual Interface (SVI).
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bfd interval Configures the BFD session parameters for all BFD
mintx min_rx msec multiplier value sessions on the device. This command overrides these
values by configuring the BFD session parameters on an
interface. The mintx and msec range is from 15 to 999
milliseconds and the default is 50. The multiplier range
is from 1 to 50. The multiplier default is 3.
Note Even if the value of the mintx argument is
configured as 15 ms, if the bfd
hw-offload-module command is not enabled on
the session, the configuration is not applied and
the session functions at the default timer value,
which is 50 ms.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# no ip redirect Prevents the device from sending redirects.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# ip address Configures an IP address for this interface.

ip-address/length
Step 6 switch(config-if)# ip ospf bfd Enables BFD on an OSPFv2 interface. The default is
disabled.
Step 7 switch(config-if)# exit Exits interface configuration mode and returns to EXEC
mode.
Step 8 switch(config)# interface int-if Configures the port connected to another switch
configured as described in the steps above.
Step 9 Do one of the following: The interface is configured as a classic ethernet trunk port
or a fabric path port.
• switch(config-if)# switchport
mode trunk
• switch(config-if)# switchport
mode fabricpath
Step 10 switch(config-if)# end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

136
Configuring BFD Interoperability in Cisco NX-OS Devices in Logical Mode
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface type Enters port channel configuration mode. Use the ? keyword
number.subinterface-id to display the supported number range.
default is 50. The multiplier range is from 1 to 50. The
multiplier default is 3.
as 15 ms, if the bfd hw-offload-module command
is not enabled on the session, the configuration is not
Step 4 switch(config-if)# no ip redirect Prevents the device from sending redirects.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# ip ospf bfd Enables BFD on an OSPFv2 interface. The default is disabled.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# exit Exits interface configuration mode and returns to EXEC mode.
Verifying BFD Interoperability in a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Device

Table 24: Verifying BFD Interoperability in a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Device
Command Purpose
show bfd neighbors [details] Displays a line-by-line listing of existing BFD

adjacencies.
These examples show how to verify BFD interoperability in a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device:
switch# show bfd neighbors details
OurAddr NeighAddr LD/RD RH/RS Holdown(mult) State Int
Vrf
10.1.1.1 10.1.1.2 1140850707/2147418093 Up 6393(4) Up Vlan2121
default

137

Registered protocols: ospf
Hosting LC: 10, Down reason: None, Reason not-hosted: None

OurAddr NeighAddr LD/RD RH/RS Holdown(mult) State Int
Vrf
10.0.2.1 10.0.2.2 1140850695/131083 Up 270(3) Up Po14.121
default
Session state is Up and not using echo function
Registered protocols: ospf
Hosting LC: 8, Down reason: None, Reason not-hosted: None
Verifying BFD ACP Offload on F3 and M3 Modules

To display BFD configuration information, use one of the following commands:
Table 25: Verifying BFD ACP Offload on F3 and M3 Modules
Command Purpose
show running-config bfd Displays the running BFD configuration.
show startup-config bfd Displays the BFD configuration that will be applied
on the next system startup.
show bfd neighbors Displays information about BFD neighbors.
show bfd neighbors neighbors Displays information about BFD neighbor details.
This example shows how to verify BFD ACP Offload on F3 and M3 line cards feature. The output contains
an asterisk (‘*’) symbol displayed beside the offloaded sessions.
switch# show bfd neighbors
OurAddr NeighAddr LD/RD RH/RS Holdown(mult) State Int Vrf

*10.2.2.2 10.2.2.1 1124073477/1 Up N/A(3) Up Eth1/45 default

138
Configuring Micro BFD Sessions
10.1.1.2 10.1.1.1 1124073478/1 Down N/A(3) Down Eth1/46 default
*10.3.3.2 10.3.3.1 1124073479/1 Up N/A(3) Up Eth1/47 default
10.4.4.2 10.4.4.1 1124073480/1 Down N/A(3) Down Eth1/48 default
This example shows how to verify BFD ACP Offload on a F3 and M3 line cards. The output has a field
indicating that a particular session is offloaded.

*10.2.2.1 10.2.2.2 1107296257/1124073474 Up 4880(3) Up Eth1/2 default

Registered protocols: hsrp_engine
Hosting LC: 1, Down reason: None, Reason not-hosted: None, Offloaded: Yes
Configuring Micro BFD Sessions
Configuring Port Channel Interface

Before You Begin
• Enable the BFD feature. For more information, see "Enabling BFD, on page 111"
Procedure
Step 1 Configure interface port-channel:

switch(config)# interface port-channel port-number
Enters port channel configuration mode. Use the ? keyword to display the supported number range.
Step 2 Configure interface as Layer 3 port-channel:

switch(config)# no switchport

139
Related Documents
(Optional) Configuring BFD Start Timer
Procedure
Configure BFD start timer for a port-channel:

switch(config)# interface port-channel port-number
Note The default value is infinite (that is no timer is running). For start timer to work, configure start timer
value before completing the port-channel BFD configurations (that is before port-channel bfd
track-member-link and port-channel bfd destination are configured for Layer 3 port-channel interface
with active members).
Enabling IETF Per-Link BFD
Procedure
Enable IETF BFD on port-channel interface:

switch(config-if)# port-channel bfd track-member-link
Configuring BFD Destination Address
Procedure
Configure an IPv4 address to be used for BFD sessions on member links:

switch(config-if)# port-channel bfd destination ip-address
Related Documents
Related Topic

140
Verifying the BFD Configuration
Related Topic
RFCs
Table 27: RFCs
RFCs Title
RFC 5880 Configuring Bidirectional Forwarding Detection
RFC 5881 Configuring Bidirectional Forwarding Detection
Verifying the BFD Configuration

To verify BFD configuration, use one of the folowing commands:
Table 28: Verifying the BFD Configuration
Command Purpose
show running-config bfd Displays the running BFD configuration.
show startup-config bfd Displays the BFD configuration that will be applied
on the next system startup.
To verify micro BFD session configurations, use one of the following commands:
Table 29: Verifying Micro BFD Session Configurations
Command Purpose

141
Monitoring BFD
show port-channel summary Display the port-channel and port-channel member

operational state.
show bfd neighbors Display micro-BFD sessions on port-channel

members.
show bfd neighbors detail Display BFD session for a port channel interface, and
the associated micro-BFD sessions on members.
show tech-support bfd Display technical support information for BFD.
show tech-support lacp all Display the technical support information for Ethernet
Port Manager, Ethernet Port-channel Manager and
LACP.
show running-config interface port-channel Display running configuration information of the

port-channel-number port-channel interface.
Monitoring BFD
To display BFD monitoring, use the following commands :
Table 30: Monitoring BFD
Command Purpose
show bfd neighbors [application name] [details] Displays information about BFD for a supported
application, such as BGP or OSPFv2.
show bfd neighbors [interface int-if] [details] Displays information about BGP sessions on an
interface.
show bfd neighbors [dest-ip ip-address] [src-ip Displays information about the specified BGP session
ip-address][details] on an interface.
show bfd neighbors [vrf vrf-name] [details] Displays information about BFD for a VRF.

142
Configuration Examples for BFD

This example shows how to configure BFD for OSPFv2 on Ethernet 2/1, using the default BFD session
parameters:
The fields shown below are self-explanatory.
feature bfd
feature ospf
router ospf Test1
interface ethernet 2/1
ip ospf bfd
no shutdown
This example shows how to configure BFD for all EIGRP interfaces, using the default BFD session parameters:
feature bfd
feature eigrp
bfd interval 100 min_rx 100 multiplier 4
router eigrp Test2
bfd
The following example shows how to configure micro BFD sessions :
The following topology is used in the example that follows:
Figure 8: Configuring a Micro BFD Session
This example shows how to configure a micro BFD session on switch 1

feature bfd
configure terminal
interface port-channel 10
port-channel bfd track-member-link
port-channel bfd destination 10.1.1.2
port-channel bfd start 60
This example shows how to configure a micro BFD session on switch 2

feature bfd

143
configure terminal
port-channel bfd track-member-link
port-channel bfd destination 10.1.1.1
port-channel bfd start 60
This example displays the show output of the show port-channel summary command.
switch(config-if-range)# show port-channel summary
Flags: D - Down P - Up in port-channel (members)

I - Individual H - Hot-standby (LACP only)
s - Suspended r - Module-removed
b - BFD Session Wait
S - Switched R - Routed
U - Up (port-channel)
M - Not in use. Min-links not met
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Group Port- Type Protocol Member Ports
Channel
--------------------------------------------------------------------
10 Po10(RD) Eth NONE Eth7/26(b) Eth7/27(b) Eth7/28(b)
This example displays the show output of the show bfd neighbors detail command.
switch(config-if-range)# show bfd neighbors detail

10.1.1.1 10.1.1.2 1107296277/0 Down N/A(3) Down Po10 default
Session state is Down and not using echo function
Registered protocols: eth_port_channel
Downtime: 0 days 0 hrs 0 mins 4 secs
State bit: AdminDown - Demand bit: 0
Hosting LC: 0, Down reason: Control Detection Time Expired, Reason not-hosted: SUCCESS,
Offloaded: No
Parent session, please check port channel config for member info

144
CHAPTER 7
Configuring Port Channels
• Feature History for Configuring Port Channels, page 145
• Licensing Requirements for Port Channels, page 146
• Prerequisites for Port Channeling, page 147
• Guidelines and Limitations for Port Channels, page 147
• Default Settings, page 148
• Information About Port Channels, page 149
• Configuring Port Channels, page 163
• Configuring Random Load Balance , page 187
• Verifying Port-Channel Configurations, page 189
• Monitoring the Port-Channel Interface Configuration, page 190
• Configuration Examples for Port Channels, page 191

Feature History for Configuring Port Channels


145
Licensing Requirements for Port Channels

Port Channels Hash 8.(0)1 Added support for port channels hash
Distribution distribution on M3 modules.
GPRS Tunneling Protocol 7.3(0)DX(1) Improved port-channel and ECMP load

(GTP) Load Balance Support balancing for GTP traffic with M3 modules.
on M3-Series Modules
Random Load Balance (Port 7.3(0)D1(1) Added support for Random Load Balancing
Channel) on port channels. Added the random keyword
to port-channel load-balance command to
improve load balancing across port channels.
DisplayPpolicy Errors on 6.2(2) Added the show interface status error policy
Interfaces and VLANs command.
Prevent Traffic-Drop During 6.2(2) Added the asymmetric keyword to

Bi-Directional Flow on F2 or port-channel load-balance command to
F2e Modules improve load balancing across port channels.
Result Bundle Hash Load 6.1(3) Support for the RBH modulo mode to
Balancing improve load balancing across port channels.
Minimum Links for FEX 6.1(3) This feature was introduced.

Fabric Port Channel
Port Channels Hash 6.1(1) Support for port channel hash distribution
Distribution fixed and adaptive mode.
Load-Balancing Supports F2 6.0(1) Added support for F2 modules on

Modules load-balancing across port channels.
Port Channels 5.2(1) Support increased to 528 port channels.
Minimum Links and 5.1(1) This feature was introduced.

Maxbundle for LACP
Port Channels 4.2(1) Support increased to 256 port channels.
Port Channels 4.0(1) This feature was introduced.
Licensing Requirements for Port Channels


146
Prerequisites for Port Channeling
Prerequisites for Port Channeling

Port channeling has the following prerequisites:
• You must be logged onto the device.
• If necessary, install the Advanced Services license and enter the desired VDC.
• All ports in the channel group must be in the same VDC.
• All ports for a single port channel must be either Layer 2 or Layer 3 ports.
• All ports for a single port channel must meet the compatibility requirements. See the “Compatibility
Requirements” section for more information about the compatibility requirements.
• You must configure load balancing from the default VDC.
Guidelines and Limitations for Port Channels

Port channeling has the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• The LACP port-channel minimum links and maxbundle feature is not supported for host interface port
channels.
• You must enable LACP before you can use that feature.
• You can configure multiple port channels on a device.
• Do not put shared and dedicated ports into the same port channel. (See “Configuring Basic Interface
Parameters,” for information about shared and dedicated ports.)
• For Layer 2 port channels, ports with different STP port path costs can form a port channel if they are
compatibly configured with each other. See the “Compatibility Requirements” section for more information
about the compatibility requirements.
• In STP, the port-channel cost is based on the aggregated bandwidth of the port members.
• After you configure a port channel, the configuration that you apply to the port-channel interface affects
the port-channel member ports. The configuration that you apply to the member ports affects only the
member port where you apply the configuration.
• LACP does not support half-duplex mode. Half-duplex ports in LACP port channels are put in the
suspended state.
• You must remove the port-security information from a port before you can add that port to a port channel.
Similarly, you cannot apply the port-security configuration to a port that is a member of a channel group.
• Do not configure ports that belong to a port-channel group as private VLAN ports. While a port is part
of the private VLAN configuration, the port-channel configuration becomes inactive.
• Channel member ports cannot be a source or destination SPAN port.

147
Default Settings
• You cannot configure the ports from an F1- and an M1-series module in the same port channel because
the ports will fail to meet the compatibility requirements.
• You cannot configure the ports from an M1- and M2-series module in the same port channel.
• You cannot configure the ports from an F2e- and an F3-series module in the same port channel because
the ports will fail to meet the compatibility requirements.
• From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can bundle up to 16 active links into a port channel on the F1-series
module.
• F1-series modules do not support load balancing of non-IP traffic based on a MAC address. If ports on
an F1-series module are used in a port channel and non-IP traffic is sent over the port channel, Layer 2
traffic might get out of order.
• Only F series and the XL type of M-series modules support the RBH modulo mode.
• Random load balance on port channel is supported only on F3-series modules. Ensure both sides of the
port channel are F3 modules only.
Default Settings
Table 31: Default Port-Channel Parameters
Parameter Default
Port channel Admin up
Load-balancing method for Layer 3 interfaces Source and destination IP address
Load-balancing method for Layer 2 interfaces Source and destination MAC address
Load balancing per module Disabled
RBH modulo mode Disabled
LACP Disabled
Channel mode on
LACP system priority 32768
LACP port priority 32768
Minimum links for LACP 1
Maxbundle 16
Minimum links for FEX fabric port channel 1
Random load balancing (port channels) Disabled

148
Information About Port Channels

A port channel is an aggregation of multiple physical interfaces that creates a logical interface. You can bundle
up to 8 individual active links into a port channel to provide increased bandwidth and redundancy. If a member
port within a port channel fails, the traffic previously carried over the failed link switches to the remaining
member ports within the port channel. Port channeling also load balances traffic on the M series module and
across these physical interfaces. The port channel stays operational as long as at least one physical interface
within the port channel is operational.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can bundle up to 16 active links into a port channel on the F-series
module.
You cannot configure a shared interface to be part of a port channel. See the Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration
Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 and Cisco MDS 9000 for more information about shared interfaces.
You can bundle up to 8 ports into a static port channel without using any aggregation protocol. On the M-series
module, you can bundle up to 8 active and 8 standby on the M-series module and up to 16 ports on the F
Series module.
However, you can enable the LACP to use port channels more flexibly. Configuring port channels with LACP
and static port channels require a slightly different procedure.
Note This device does not support Port Aggregation Protocol (PAgP) for port channels.
Each port can be in only one port channel. All the ports in a port channel must be compatible; they must use
the same speed and duplex mode (see the “Compatibility Requirements” section). When you run static port
channels with no aggregation protocol, the physical links are all in the on channel mode; you cannot change
this mode without enabling LACP (see the “Port-Channel Modes” section).
You can create port channels directly by creating the port-channel interface, or you can create a channel group
that acts to aggregate individual ports into a bundle. When you associate an interface with a channel group,
the software creates a matching port channel automatically if the port channel does not already exist. In this
instance, the port channel assumes the Layer 2 or Layer 3 configuration of the first interface. You can also
create the port channel first. In this instance, the Cisco NX-OS software creates an empty channel group with
the same channel number as the port channel and takes the default Layer 2 or Layer 3 configuration, as well
as the compatibility configuration (see the “Compatibility Requirements” section). See “Configuring Layer 2
Interfaces,” for more information about creating and deleting port-channel subinterfaces.
Note The port channel is operationally up when at least one of the member ports is up and that port’s status is
channeling. The port channel is operationally down when all member ports are operationally down.
You can create a Layer 2 port channel by bundling compatible Layer 2 interfaces, or you can create Layer 3
port channels by bundling compatible Layer 3 interfaces. After you create a Layer 3 port channel, you can
add an IP address to the port-channel interface and create subinterfaces on the Layer 3 port channel. You
cannot combine Layer 2 and Layer 3 interfaces in the same port channel.

149
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, you can apply port security to port channels. See the Cisco Nexus 7000
Series NX-OS Security Configuration Guide for information about port security. All ports in the port channel
must be in the same virtual device context (VDC); you cannot configure port channels across VDCs.
You can also change the port channel from Layer 3 to Layer 2. See “Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces,” for
information about creating Layer 2 interfaces.
Any configuration changes that you apply to the port channel are applied to each member interface of that
port channel. For example, if you configure Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) parameters on the port channel,
the Cisco NX-OS software applies those parameters to each interface in the port channel.
Note After a Layer 2 port becomes part of a port channel, all switchport configurations must be done on the
port channel; you can no longer apply switchport configurations to individual port-channel members. You
cannot apply Layer 3 configurations to an individual port-channel member either; you must apply the
configuration to the entire port channel.
You can create subinterfaces on a Layer 3 port channel, even though a subinterface is part of the logical
port-channel interface. See the “Subinterfaces” section for more information about port-channel subinterfaces.
You can use static port channels, with no associated aggregation protocol, for a simplified configuration. For
more flexibility, you can use the Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP), which is defined in IEEE
802.3ad. When you use LACP, the link passes protocol packets. You cannot configure LACP on shared
interfaces.
See the “LACP” section for information about LACP.

150
Port-Channel Interfaces
Port-Channel Interfaces
The figure below shows port-channel interfaces.
Figure 9: Port-Channel Interfaces
You can classify port-channel interfaces as Layer 2 or Layer 3 interfaces. In addition, you can configure Layer
2 port channels in either access or trunk mode. Layer 3 port-channel interfaces have routed ports as channel
members and might have subinterfaces.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1), you can configure a Layer 3 port channel with a static MAC address. If
you do not configure this value, the Layer 3 port channel uses the router MAC of the first channel member
to come up. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for information
about configuring static MAC addresses on Layer 3 port channels.
See “Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces,” for information about configuring Layer 2 ports in access or trunk mode
and “Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces,” for information about configuring Layer 3 interfaces and subinterfaces
.
Basic Settings
You can configure the following basic settings for a port-channel interface:
• Bandwidth—Use this setting for informational purposes only; this setting is to be used by higher-level
protocols.
• Delay—Use this setting for informational purposes only; this setting is to be used by higher-level
protocols.

151
Compatibility Requirements
• Interface Description—Use this setting to provide a unique name for each interface so that you can
quickly identify the interface when you are looking at a listing of multiple interfaces.
• Duplex—By default, each interface autonegotiates its duplex mode with the other interface, but you can
change these settings. If you change the settings, be sure to use the same duplex mode setting on both
• Flow control—Use this setting to allow flow control to work between two ports. You must set the
corresponding receive and send flow control parameters for both ports as enabled or desired.
• IP addresses—Both IPv4 and IPv6
• Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU)—Use this setting to specify the maximum frame size that an
Ethernet port can process.
• Shutdown—Use this setting to bring down or up an interface.
• Speed—By default, each interface autonegotiates its speed mode with the other interface, but you can
change these settings. If you change the settings, be sure to use the same speed mode setting on both
When you add an interface to a channel group, the software checks certain interface attributes to ensure that
the interface is compatible with the channel group. For example, you cannot add a Layer 3 interface to a Layer
2 channel group. The Cisco NX-OS software also checks a number of operational attributes for an interface
before allowing that interface to participate in the port-channel aggregation.
The compatibility check includes the following operational attributes:
• (Link) speed capability
• Access VLAN
• Allowed VLAN list
• Check rate mode
• Duplex capability
• Duplex configuration
• Flow-control capability
• Flow-control configuration
• Layer 3 ports—(Cannot have subinterfaces)
• MTU size
• Media type, either copper or fiber
• Module Type
• Network layer
• Port mode
• SPAN—(Cannot be a SPAN source or a destination port)

152
• Speed configuration
• Storm control
• Tagged or untagged
• Trunk native VLAN
Use the show port-channel compatibility-parameters command to see the full list of compatibility checks
that the Cisco NX-OS uses.
You can only add interfaces configured with the channel mode set to on to static port channels, and you can
only add interfaces configured with the channel mode as active or passive to port channels that are running
LACP. You can configure these attributes on an individual member port. If you configure a member port with
an incompatible attribute, the software suspends that port in the port channel.
Alternatively, you can force ports with incompatible parameters to join the port channel if the following
parameters are the same:
• (Link) Speed capability
• Speed configuration
• Duplex capability
• Duplex configuration
• Flow-control capability
• Flow-control configuration
When the interface joins a port channel, some of its individual parameters are removed and replaced with the
values on the port channel as follows:
• Bandwidth
• Delay
• Extended Authentication Protocol over UDP
• VRF
• IP address (v4 and v6)
• MAC address
• Spanning Tree Protocol
• NAC
• Service policy
• Access control lists (ACLs)
Many interface parameters remain unaffected when the interface joins or leaves a port channel as follows:
• Beacon
• Description
• CDP
• LACP port priority

153
Load Balancing Using Port Channels
• Debounce
• UDLD
• MDIX
• Rate mode
• Shutdown
• SNMP trap
If you configure subinterfaces for the port-channel interface and remove a member port from the port channel,
the configuration of the port-channel subinterface does not propagate to the member ports.
Note When you delete the port channel, the software sets all member interfaces as if they were removed from
the port channel.
See the “LACP Marker Responders” section for information about port-channel modes.
Load Balancing Using Port Channels

The Cisco NX-OS software load balances traffic across all operational interfaces in a port channel by hashing
the addresses in the frame to a numerical value that selects one of the links in the channel. Port channels
provide load balancing by default. Port-channel load balancing uses MAC addresses, IP addresses, or Layer
4 port numbers to select the link. Port-channel load balancing uses either source or destination addresses or
ports, or both source and destination addresses or ports.
You can configure the load-balancing mode to apply to all port channels that are configured on the entire
device or on specified modules. The per-module configuration takes precedence over the load-balancing
configuration for the entire device. You can configure one load-balancing mode for the entire device, a different
mode for specified modules, and another mode for the other specified modules. You cannot configure the
load-balancing method per port channel.
You can configure the type of load-balancing algorithm used. You can choose the load-balancing algorithm
that determines which member port to select for egress traffic by looking at the fields in the frame.
Note The default load-balancing mode for Layer 3 interfaces is the source and destination IP address, and the
default load-balancing mode for non-IP traffic is the source and destination MAC address. Use the
port-channel load-balance command to set the load-balancing method among the interfaces in the
channel-group bundle. The default method for Layer 2 packets is src-dst-mac. The default method for
Layer 3 packets is src-dst-ip. For additional information about this command, see the Cisco Nexus 7000
Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference.
F1-series modules do not support load balancing of non-IP traffic based on a MAC address. If ports on
an F1-series module are used in a port channel and non-IP traffic is sent over the port channel, Layer 2
traffic might get out of order. From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.0(1), load balancing supports F2 modules.
You can configure the device to use one of the following methods to load balance across the port channel:
• Destination MAC address

154
Symmetric Hashing
• Source MAC address

• Source and destination MAC address
• Destination IP address
• Source IP address
• Source and destination IP address
• Source TCP/UDP port number
• Destination TCP/UDP port number
• Source and destination TCP/UDP port number
Non-IP and Layer 3 port channels both follow the configured load-balancing method, using the source,
destination, or source and destination parameters. For example, when you configure load balancing to use the
source IP address, all non-IP traffic uses the source MAC address to load balance the traffic while the Layer
3 traffic load balances the traffic using the source IP address. Similarly, when you configure the destination
MAC address as the load-balancing method, all Layer 3 traffic uses the destination IP address while the non-IP
traffic load balances using the destination MAC address.
Note You cannot configure load balancing using port channels per virtual device context (VDC). You must be
in the default VDC to configure this feature; if you attempt to configure this feature from another VDC,
the system displays an error.
You can configure load balancing either by the entire system or by specific modules, regardless of the VDC.
The port-channel load balancing is a global setting across all VDCs.
If the ingress traffic is Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) traffic, the software looks under the labels for
the IP address on the packet.
Multicast traffic inherits the same port-channel load balancing configuration as unicast traffic. This is applicable
for both system-wide and module-specific load balancing configurations.
Note Devices that run Cisco IOS can optimize the behavior of the member ports of ASICs if a failure of a single
member occurred if you enter the port-channel hash-distribution command. The Cisco Nexus 7000
Series device performs this optimization by default and does not require or support this command. Cisco
NX-OS does support the customization of the load-balancing criteria on port channels through the
port-channel load-balance command either for the entire device or on a per-module basis. See the Cisco
Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for information about this command.
Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1(3) supports a new Result Bundle Hash (RBH) mode to improve load balancing on
port-channel members on Cisco Nexus 7000 M Series I/O XL modules and on F Series modules. With the
new RBH modulo mode, the RBH result is based on the actual count of port-channel members.
Symmetric Hashing
To effectively monitor traffic on a port channel, it is essential that each interface connected to a port channel
receives both forward and reverse traffic flows. Normally, there is no guarantee that the forward and reverse
traffic flows will use the same physical interface. However, when you enable symmetric hashing on the port

155
Random Load Balancing (Port Channel)
channel, bidirectional traffic is forced to use the same physical interface and each physical interface in the
port channel is effectively mapped to a set of flows.
When symmetric hashing is enabled, the parameters used for hashing, such as the source and destination IP
address, are normalized before they are entered into the hashing algorithm. This process ensures that when
the parameters are reversed (the source on the forward traffic becomes the destination on the reverse traffic),
the hash output is the same. Therefore, the same interface is chosen.
Only the following load-balancing algorithms support symmetric hashing:
• src ip
• dst ip rotate
• dst ip
• src ip rotate
• src-dst ip
• src ip-l4port
• dst ip-l4port rotate
• dst ip-l4port
• src ip-l4port rotate
• src-dst ip-l4port-vlan
• dst ip-vlan
• src ip-vlan rotate
• src-dst ip-vlan
• src l4port
• dst l4port rotate
• dst l4port
• src l4port rotate
• src-dst l4port
• src mac
• dst mac rotate
• dst mac
• src mac rotate
• src-dst mac
Random Load Balancing (Port Channel)

Random load balancing on port channels is a software solution that enables better port-link bandwidth utilization
for GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP) over IP-UDP packets. The existing M1, M2, F1, F2 and F2e line card
hardware does not have the capability to perform random load balancing and hence, this software solution

156
LACP
helps in load balancing and optimizing the port channels bandwidth. Random load balancing is supported
only on F3 series line cards. Random load balancing is applicable on all types of traffic and is effective on
egress ports of Layer 3 traffic. The Cisco NX-OS software does random load balancing of all traffic across
all interfaces in a port channel by using polynomial scheme.
LACP
LACP allows you to configure up to 16 interfaces into a port channel. A maximum of 8 interfaces can be
active, and a maximum of 8 interfaces can be placed in a standby state on the M-series modules.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can bundle up to 16 active links into a port channel on the F-Series
module.
Note You must enable LACP before you can use LACP. By default, LACP is disabled.
See the “Enabling LACP” section for information about enabling LACP.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, the system automatically takes a checkpoint before disabling the feature,
and you can roll back to this checkpoint. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System Management
Configuration Guide for information about rollbacks and checkpoints.
The figure below shows how individual links can be combined into LACP port channels and channel groups
as well as function as individual links.
Figure 10: Individual Links Combined into a Port Channel
With LACP, you can bundle up to 16 interfaces in a channel group. If the channel group has more than 8
interfaces, the remaining interfaces are in hot standby for the port channel associated with this channel group
on the M-series modules.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can bundle up to 16 active links into a port channel on the F-series
module.

157
LACP
Note When you delete the port channel, the software automatically deletes the associated channel group. All
member interfaces revert to their original configuration.
You cannot disable LACP while any LACP configurations are present.
Port-Channel Modes
Individual interfaces in port channels are configured with channel modes. When you run static port channels
with no aggregation protocol, the channel mode is always set to on.
After you enable LACP globally on the device, you enable LACP for each channel by setting the channel
mode for each interface to active or passive. You can configure either channel mode for individual links in
the LACP channel group when you are adding the links to the channel group.
Note You must enable LACP globally before you can configure an interface in either the active or passive
channel mode.
Table 32: Port-Channel Modes
Channel Mode Description

passive LACP mode that places a port into a passive negotiating state in which the
port responds to LACP packets that it receives but does not initiate LACP
negotiation.
active LACP mode that places a port into an active negotiating state in which the
port initiates negotiations with other ports by sending LACP packets.
on All static port channels (that are not running LACP) remain in this mode.
If you attempt to change the channel mode to active or passive before
enabling LACP, the device displays an error message.
You enable LACP on each channel by configuring the interface in that
channel for the channel mode as either active or passive. When an LACP
attempts to negotiate with an interface in the on state, it does not receive
any LACP packets and becomes an individual link with that interface; it
does not join the LACP channel group.
The default port-channel mode is on.
Both the passive and active modes allow LACP to negotiate between ports to determine if they can form a
port channel based on criteria such as the port speed and the trunking state. The passive mode is useful when
you do not know whether the remote system, or partner, supports LACP.
Ports can form an LACP port channel when they are in different LACP modes if the modes are compatible
as seen in these examples:
• A port in active mode can form a port channel successfully with another port that is in active mode.

158
LACP
• A port in active mode can form a port channel with another port in passive mode.
• A port in passive mode cannot form a port channel with another port that is also in passive mode, because
neither port will initiate negotiation.
• A port in on mode is not running LACP and cannot form a port channel with another port that is in active
or passive mode.
LACP ID Parameters
LACP System Priority

Each system that runs LACP has an LACP system priority value. You can accept the default value of 32768
for this parameter, or you can configure a value between 1 and 65535. LACP uses the system priority with
the MAC address to form the system ID and also uses the system priority during negotiation with other devices.
A higher system priority value means a lower priority.
The system ID is different for each VDC.
Note The LACP system ID is the combination of the LACP system priority value and the MAC address.
LACP Port Priority

Each port that is configured to use LACP has an LACP port priority. You can accept the default value of
32768 for the LACP port priority, or you can configure a value between 1 and 65535. LACP uses the port
priority with the port number to form the port identifier.
LACP uses the port priority to decide which ports should be put in standby mode when there is a limitation
that prevents all compatible ports from aggregating and which ports should be put into active mode. A higher
port priority value means a lower priority for LACP. You can configure the port priority so that specified
ports have a lower priority for LACP and are most likely to be chosen as active links, rather than hot-standby
links.
LACP Administrative Key

LACP automatically configures an administrative key value equal to the channel-group number on each port
configured to use LACP. The administrative key defines the ability of a port to aggregate with other ports. A
port’s ability to aggregate with other ports is determined by these factors:
• Port physical characteristics, such as the data rate and the duplex capability
• Configuration restrictions that you establish
LACP Marker Responders

You can dynamically redistribute the data traffic by using port channels. This redistribution might result from
a removed or added link or a change in the load-balancing scheme. Traffic redistribution that occurs in the
middle of a traffic flow can cause misordered frames.

159
LACP
LACP uses the Marker Protocol to ensure that frames are not duplicated or reordered due to this redistribution.
The Marker Protocol detects when all the frames of a given traffic flow are successfully received at the remote
end. LACP sends Marker PDUs on each of the port-channel links. The remote system responds to the Marker
PDU once it receives all the frames received on this link prior to the Marker PDU. The remote system then
sends a Marker Responder. Once the Marker Responders are received by the local system on all member links
of the port channel, the local system can redistribute the frames in the traffic flow with no chance of misordering.
The software supports only Marker Responders.
Differences Between LACP-Enabled Port Channels and Static Port Channels

The table below summarizes the major differences between port channels with LACP enabled and static port
channels.
Table 33: Differences Between LACP-Enabled Port Channels and Static Port Channels
Configuration Port Channels with LACP Enabled Static Port Channels

Protocol applied Enable globally Not applicable
Channel mode of links Can be either: Can only be On

• Active
• Passive
Maximum number of links in 16 8

channel
LACP Compatibility Enhancements

Several new commands have been added in Release 4.2(3) to address interoperability issues and to assist with
faster LACP protocol convergence.
When a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device is connected to a non-Nexus peer, its graceful failover defaults may
delay the time taken for a disabled port to be brought down or cause traffic from the peer to be lost. To address
these conditions, the lacp graceful-convergence command was added.
By default, LACP sets a port to the suspended state if it does not receive an LACP PDU from the peer. In
some cases, although this feature helps in preventing loops created due to misconfigurations, it can cause
servers to fail to boot up because they require LACP to logically bring up the port. You can put a port into an
individual state by using the lacp suspend-individual command.
LACP Port-Channel Minimum Links and MaxBundle

A port channel aggregates similar ports to provide increased bandwidth in a single manageable interface.
With the Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, the introduction of the minimum links and maxbundle feature further
refines LACP port-channel operation and provides increased bandwidth in one manageable interface.
The LACP port-channel minimum links feature does the following:

160
Minimum Number of Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel
• Configures the minimum number of ports that must be linked up and bundled in the LACP port channel.
• Prevents the low-bandwidth LACP port channel from becoming active.
• Causes the LACP port channel to become inactive if there are few active members ports to supply the
required minimum bandwidth.
The LACP MaxBundle defines the maximum number of bundled ports allowed in a LACP port channel.
The LACP MaxBundle feature does the following:
• Defines an upper limit on the number of bundled ports in an LACP port channel.
• Allows hot-standby ports with fewer bundled ports. (For example, in an LACP port channel with five
ports, you can designate two of those ports as hot-standby ports.)
Note The minimum links and maxbundle feature works only with LACP port channels. However, the device
allows you to configure this feature in non-LACP port channels, but the feature is not operational.
LACP Offload to Fabric Extenders

To reduce the load on the control plane of the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device, Cisco NX-OS provides the
ability to offload link-level protocol processing to the Fabric Extender CPU. This feature is supported by
LACP by default as soon as there is at least one LACP port channel configured on a Fabric Extender.
LACP Fast Timers

You can change the LACP timer rate to modify the duration of the LACP timeout. Use the lacp rate command
to set the rate at which LACP control packets are sent to an LACP-supported interface. You can change the
timeout rate from the default rate (30 seconds) to the fast rate (1 second). This command is supported only
on LACP-enabled interfaces. To configure the LACP fast time rate, see the “Configuring the LACP Fast Timer
Rate” section.
ISSU and stateful switchover cannot be guaranteed with LACP fast timers.
Minimum Number of Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel

In a network configuration of dual-homed hosts (active/standby), you can configure the Cisco Nexus 2000
Series Fabric Extender (FEX) to support a minimum number of links for fabric port channels.
When the number of fabric port-channel links falls below the specified threshold, the host-facing FEX interfaces
are brought down, which allows for a NIC switchover on the connection between the host and the FEX. The
automatic recovery of the FEX interfaces to the standby FEX is triggered when the number of fabric
port-channel links reaches the specified threshold.

161
You must configure the member ports and other port-channel related configuration from the virtual device
context (VDC) that contains the port channel and member ports. You can use the numbers from 1 to 4096 in
each VDC to number the port channels and you can reuse these port-channel numbers in different VDCs. For
example, you can configure port channel 100 in VDC1 and also configure a different port channel 100 in
VDC2.
However, the LACP system ID is different for each VDC. For more information about LACP, see the “LACP”
section.
Note See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guidefor complete
information about VDCs and assigning resources.
All ports in one port channel must be in the same VDC. When you are using LACP, all possible 8 active ports
and all possible 8 standby ports must be in the same VDC. The port channels can originate in one VDC (with
all ports in that channel in the same VDC) and partner with a port channel in another VDC (again, all ports
in that channel must be in that VDC).
Note The port-channeling load-balancing mode works either for a single module or across the entire device.
You must configure load balancing using port channels in the default VDC. You cannot configure load
balancing using port channels within specified VDCs. See the “Load Balancing Using Port Channels”
section for more information about load balancing.
High Availability
Port channels provide high availability by load balancing traffic across multiple ports. If a physical port fails,
the port channel is still operational if there is an active member in the port channel. You can bundle ports
from different modules and create a port channel that remains operational even if a module fails because the
settings are common across the module.
Port channels support stateful and stateless restarts. A stateful restart occurs on a supervisor switchover. After
the switchover, the Cisco NX-OS software applies the runtime configuration after the switchover.
The port channel goes down if the operational ports fall below the configured minimum links number.
Note See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS High Availability and Redundancy Guide for complete information
about high-availability features.

162

Creating a Port Channel
You can create a port channel before you create a channel group. The software automatically creates the
associated channel group.
Before You Begin

• Enable LACP if you want LACP-based port channels.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the port-channel interface to configure, and enters
port-channel channel-number the interface configuration mode. The range is from 1 to
4096. The Cisco NX-OS software automatically creates the
channel group if it does not already exist.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# show Displays information about the port channel.

port-channel summary
status error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce an error


Use the no interface port-channel command to remove the port channel and delete the associated channel
group.

163
Adding a Layer 2 Port to a Port Channel
Command Purpose
no interface port-channel channel-number Removes the port channel and deletes the associated
channel group.
This example shows how to create a port channel:

switch (config)# interface port-channel 1
See the “Compatibility Requirements” section for details on how the interface configuration changes when
you delete the port channel.

You can add a Layer 2 port to a new channel group or to a channel group that already contains Layer 2 ports.
The software creates the port channel associated with this channel group if the port channel does not already
exist.
Before You Begin

• All Layer 2 member ports must run in full-duplex mode and at the same speed.
Procedure

port-channel channel-number the interface configuration mode. The range is from 1 to 4096.
The Cisco NX-OS software automatically creates the channel
group if it does not already exist.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 2 access port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport (Optional)

mode trunk Configures the interface as a Layer 2 trunk port.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# switchport (Optional)

trunk {allowed vlan vlan-id | Configures necessary parameters for a Layer 2 trunk port.
native vlan-id}
Step 6 switch(config-if)# channel-group Configures the port in a channel group and sets the mode. The
channel-number [force] [mode channel-number range is from 1 to 4096. This command
{on | active | passive}] creates the port channel associated with this channel group if
the port channel does not already exist. All static port-channel
interfaces are set to mode on. You must set all LACP-enabled

164

port-channel interfaces to active or passive. The default mode
is on.
Forces an interface with some incompatible configurations to
join the channel. The forced interface must have the same
speed, duplex, and flow control settings as the channel group.
Note The force option fails if the port has a QoS policy
mismatch with the other members of the port channel.
type slot/port Displays interface information.



Use the no channel-group command to remove the port from the channel group.
Table 34: Removing a Port From the Channel Group
Command Purpose
no channel-group Removes the port from the channel group.
This example shows how to add a Layer 2 Ethernet interface 1/4 to channel group 5:
switch (config)# interface ethernet 1/4
switch(config-if)# channel-group 5

165

You can add a Layer 3 port to a new channel group or to a channel group that is already configured with Layer
3 ports. The software creates the port channel associated with this channel group if the port channel does not
already exist.
If the Layer 3 port that you are adding has a configured IP address, the system removes that IP address before
adding the port to the port channel. After you create a Layer 3 port channel, you can assign an IP address to
the port-channel interface. You can also add subinterfaces to an existing Layer 3 port channel.
Before You Begin

• Remove any IP addresses configured on the Layer 3 interface.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the port-channel interface to configure, and enters the
port-channel channel-number interface configuration mode. The range is from 1 to 4096. The
Cisco NX-OS software automatically creates the channel group
if it does not already exist.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# no switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 2 access port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# Configures the port in a channel group and sets the mode. The
channel-group channel-number channel-number range is from 1 to 4096. This command creates
[force] [mode {on | active | the port channel associated with this channel group if the port
passive}] channel does not already exist. All static port-channel interfaces
are set to mode on. You must set all LACP-enabled port-channel
interfaces to active or passive. The default mode is on.
Forces an interface with some incompatible configurations to
join the channel. The forced interface must have the same speed,
duplex, and flow control settings as the channel group.

interface type slot/port Displays interface information.
Step 6 switch(config-if) show interface (Optional)

status error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce an error during
hardware policies.

166
Configuring the Bandwidth and Delay for Informational Purposes

Step 7 switch(config-if) no shutdown (Optional)
policy state.
Step 8 switch(config-if) copy (Optional)

Use the no channel-group command to remove the port from the channel group.
Table 35: Removing a Port From the Channel Group
Command Purpose
no channel-group Removes the port from the channel group.
This example shows how to add a Layer 3 Ethernet interface 1/5 to channel group 6 in on mode:
switch (config)# interface ethernet 1/5
switch(config-if)# channel-group 6
This example shows how to create a Layer 3 port-channel interface and assign the IP address:
switch(config)# interface port-channel 4
Configuring the Bandwidth and Delay for Informational Purposes

The bandwidth of the port channel is determined by the number of total active links in the channel.
You configure the bandwidth and delay on port-channel interfaces for informational purposes.
Procedure

port-channel channel-number the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# bandwidth value Specifies the bandwidth, which is used for informational
purposes. The range is from 1 to 80,000,000 kbs. The

167
Shutting Down and Restarting the Port-Channel Interface

default value depends on the total active interfaces in the
channel group.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# delay value Specifies the throughput delay, which is used for
informational purposes. The range is from 1 to 16,777,215
tens of microseconds. The default value is 10
microseconds.
Note Prior to Cisco Release 4.2(1), the default delay
value was 100 microseconds.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode and returns to the configuration
mode.

port-channel channel-number Displays interface information for the specified port
channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the informational parameters of the bandwidth and delay for port
channel 5:
switch(config-if)# bandwidth 60000000
switch(config-if)# delay 10000
switch(config-if)#
Shutting Down and Restarting the Port-Channel Interface

You can shut down and restart the port-channel interface. When you shut down a port-channel interface, no
traffic passes and the interface is administratively down.
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# shutdown | no Shuts down the interface. No traffic passes and the interface
shutdown displays as administratively down. The default is no shutdown.
The no shutdown command opens the interface. The interface
displays as administratively up. If there are no operational
problems, traffic passes. The default is no shutdown.

168
Configuring a Port-Channel Description

Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode and returns to the configuration mode.
Step 5 switch# show interface Displays interface information for the specified port channel.
port-channel channel-number
error policy [detail] Displays the interfaces and VLANs that produce an error


This example shows how to bring up the interface for port channel 2:
Configuring a Port-Channel Description

You can configure a description for a port channel.
Procedure

port-channel channel-number the interface configuration mode. The range is from 1 to
4096. The Cisco NX-OS software automatically creates
the channel group if it does not already exist.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# description Allows you to add a description to the port-channel

interface. You can use up to 80 characters in the
description. By default, the description does not display;
you must configure this parameter before the description
displays in the output.

169
Configuring the Speed and Duplex Settings for a Port-Channel Interface

Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode and returns to the configuration
mode.

port-channel channel-number Displays interface information for the specified port
channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to add a description to port channel 2:

switch(config-if)# description engineering
Configuring the Speed and Duplex Settings for a Port-Channel Interface

You can configure the speed and duplex settings for a port-channel interface.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface port-channel Specifies the port-channel interface to configure,

channel-number and enters the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# speed {10 | 100 | 1000 Sets the speed for the port-channel interface. The
| auto} default is auto for autonegotiation.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# duplex {auto | full | Sets the duplex for the port-channel interface. The
half} default is auto for autonegotiation.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode and returns to the
configuration mode.
Step 6 switch# show interface port-channel (Optional)

channel-number Displays interface information for the specified port
channel.

configuration.

170
This example shows how to set port channel 2 to 100 Mb/s:

switch(config-if)# speed 100

You can enable or disable the capability of the port-channel interfaces that run at 1 Gb or higher to send or
receive flow-control pause packets. For port-channel interfaces that run at lower speeds, you can enable or
disable only the capability of the port-channel interfaces to receive pause packets.
Note The settings have to match at both the local and remote ends of the link so that flow control can work
properly.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface port-channel Specifies the port-channel interface to configure, and
channel-number enters the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# flowcontrol {receive Sets the flow control parameters for sending and
| send} {desired | off | on} receiving the pause packets for the port-channel
interface. The default is desired.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface mode and returns to the
configuration mode.
Step 5 switch# show interface port-channel (Optional)

channel-number Displays interface information for the specified port
channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the port-channel interface for port channel group 2 to send and receive
pause packets:
switch(config-if)# flowcontrol receive on
switch(config-if)# flowcontrol send on

171
Configuring Load Balancing Using Port Channels

You can configure the load-balancing algorithm for port channels that applies to the entire device or to only
one module regardless of the VDC association. Module-based load balancing takes precedence over
device-based load balancing.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# [no] Specifies the load-balancing algorithm for the device or module. The
port-channel load-balance range depends on the device. The default for Layer 3 is src-dst ip
method {dst ip | dst for both IPv4 and IPv6, and the default for non-IP is src-dst mac.
ip-l4port-vlan | dst ip-vlan | dst Note The asymmetric keyword is valid with the src-dst ip
mac | dst l4port | dst ip-l4port command and F2 or F2e modules only. As F2 or F2e
| src-dst ip | src-dst mac | modules are symmetric by default, the asymmetric keyword
src-dst l4port | src-dst prevents a traffic-drop occurring during bi-directional flow.
ip-l4port | src-dst ip-vlan | A warning message prompts you that an F2 or F2e module
src-dst ip-l4port-vlan | src ip | needs to be enabled. This improves load-balancing and
src ip-l4port-vlan | src avoids any disruption to the system.
ip-l4port | src ip-vlan | src mac Use the no port-channel load-balance src-dst mac asymmetric
| src l4port | hash-modulo command to revert back to the default system settings (symmetrical).
[force]} [gtp-teid] [module
module-number | fex {fex-range Note If a module-based configuration already exists, it takes
| all}] [asymmetric] [rotate precedence over the default system settings.
rotate] Use the no port-channel load-balance src-dst mac asymmetric
module command at module level to revert back to system level
settings (symmetrical).
Note The module, asymmetric, and rotate keywords are invalid
with the hash-modulo command.
When the gtp-teid keyword is specified in a packet that includes a
GTP header field, the port-channel member selected depends not
only on the already specified packet header fields such as MAC
address, IP address, and L4 ports, but also on the 32-bit Tunnel
Endpoint Identifier (TEID) header field. The packet must enter a port
on an M3 module for the TEID header field to be used in the
port-channel load-balancing.
When the gtp-teid keyword is specified in a packet, the packet's
TEID header field is used in port-channel member selection only if
the packet contains an IPv4 or IPv6 header field followed by a UDP
header field with the destination port 2152 and a GTP version 1

172

header field with the Protocol Type 1. All the other GTP header fields
are considered GTP control messages. To avoid reordering of the
GTP control messages in the network between GTP endpoints,
NX-OS does not include the TEID header fields of the GTP control
messages in its channel member selection.
Note The gtp-teid keyword is supported only on M3 modules
and does not affect the behavior of the other modules.
Step 3 show port-channel (Optional)
load-balance Displays the port-channel load-balancing algorithm.

Use the no port-channel load-balance to restore the default load-balancing algorithm of src-dst mac for
non-IP traffic and src-dst ip for IP traffic.
Command Purpose
no port-channel load-balance Restores the default load-balancing algorithm.
This example shows how to configure source IP load balancing for port channels on module 5:
switch(config)# port-channel load-balance src-ip-l4port module 5
This example shows how to configure different combinations for symmetric port channel load balancing for
a port channel connected to switch1 and switch2. Use the same rotate rotate-value as listed in the following
configuration combinations.
! Configure port-channel hash distribution at the global level!
switch1(config)# port-channel hash-distribution fixed

Switch2(config)# port-channel hash-distribution fixed
! Configure symmetric port-channel load balancing combinations on both

switch1 and switch2 of a port channel.!
!Combination 1!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip rotate 4
!Combination 2!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip rotate 4
!Combination 3!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-l4port

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-l4port rotate 6
!Combination 4!

173
Enabling LACP
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-l4port

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-l4port rotate 6
!Combination 5!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-l4port vlan

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-l4port rotate 8
!Combination 6!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-l4port vlan

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-l4port rotate 8
!Combination 7!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-vlan

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-vlan rotate 8
!Combination 8!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst ip-vlan

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src ip-vlan rotate 8
!Combination 9!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src l4port

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst l4port rotate 2
!Combination 10!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst l4port

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src l4port rotate 2
!Combination 11!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance src mac

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance dst mac rotate 6
!Combination 12!
switch1(config)# port-channel load-balance dst mac

Switch2(config)# port-channel load-balance src mac rotate 6
Enabling LACP
LACP is disabled by default; you must enable LACP before you begin LACP configuration. You cannot
disable LACP while any LACP configuration is present.
LACP learns the capabilities of LAN port groups dynamically and informs the other LAN ports. Once LACP
identifies correctly matched Ethernet links, it group the links into a port channel. The port channel is then
added to the spanning tree as a single bridge port.
To configure LACP, you must do the following:
• Enable LACP globally by using the feature lacp command.
• You can use different modes for different interfaces within the same LACP-enabled port channel.
• You can change the mode between active and passive for an interface only if it is the only interface that
is designated to the specified channel group.

174
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Port Modes
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature lacp Enables LACP on the device.

configuration.
This example shows how to enable LACP:

switch(config)# feature lacp
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Port Modes

After you enable LACP, you can configure the channel mode for each individual link in the LACP port channel
as active or passive. This channel configuration mode allows the link to operate with LACP.
When you configure port channels with no associated aggregation protocol, all interfaces on both sides of the
link remain in the on channel mode.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the port-channel interface to configure, and

port-channel channel-number enters the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# channel-group Specifies the port mode for the link in a port channel.
number mode {active | on | passive} After LACP is enabled, you configure each link or the
entire channel as active or passive.
When you run port channels with no associated
aggregation protocol, the port-channel mode is always
on.
The default port-channel mode is on.

175
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Minimum Links

Step 4 switch(config-if)# show port-channel (Optional)
summary Displays summary information about the port channels.

configuration.
This example shows how to set the LACP-enabled interface to the active port-channel mode for Ethernet
interface 1/4 in channel group 5:
switch(config-if)# channel-group 5 mode active
Configuring LACP Port-Channel Minimum Links

From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can configure the LACP minimum links feature. Although minimum
links and maxbundles work only in LACP, you can enter the commands for these features for non-LACP port
channels, but these commands are nonoperational.
Before You Begin

Ensure that you are in the correct port-channel interface.
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# lacp min-links Specifies the port-channel interface to configure the
number number of minimum links and enters the interface
configuration mode. The range is from 1 to 16.

interface port-channel number Displays the port-channel minimum links
configuration.
Use the no lacp min-links command to restore the default port-channel minimum links configuration.

176
Configuring the LACP Port-Channel MaxBundle
Table 36: Restoring the Default Port-Channel Minimum Links Configuration
Command Purpose
no lacp min-links Restores the default port-channel minimum links
configuration.
This example shows how to configure the minimum number of port-channel interfaces on module 3:
switch(config)# lacp min-links 3
Configuring the LACP Port-Channel MaxBundle

From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1, you can configure the LACP maxbundle feature. Although minimum links
and maxbundles work only in LACP, you can enter the commands for these features for non-LACP port
channels, but these commands are nonoperational.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-if)# lacp Specifies the port-channel interface to configure max-bundle,

max-bundle number and enters the interface configuration mode.
The default value for the port-channel max-bundle is 16.
The allowed range is from 1 to 16.
Note Even if the default value is 16, the number of active
members in a port channel is the minimum of the
pc_max_links_config and pc_max_active_members
that is allowed in the port channel.
running-config interface Displays the port-channel minimum links configuration.
port-channel number
Use the no lacp max-bundle command to restore the default port-channel max-bundle configuration.

177
Configuring the LACP Fast Timer Rate
Table 37: Restoring the Default Port-Channel Max-Bundle Configuration
Command Purpose
no lacp max-bundle Restores the default port-channel max-bundle
configuration.
This example shows how to configure the port channel interface max-bundle on module 3:
switch(config)# lacp max-bundle 3
Configuring the LACP Fast Timer Rate

You can change the LACP timer rate to modify the duration of the LACP timeout. Use the lacp rate command
to set the rate at which LACP control packets are sent to an LACP-supported interface. You can change the
timeout rate from the default rate (30 seconds) to the fast rate (1 second). This command is supported only
on LACP-enabled interfaces.
Note We do not recommend changing the LACP timer rate. In-service software upgrade (ISSU) and stateful
switchover (SSO) are not supported with the LACP fast rate timer.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you have enabled the LACP feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the port-channel interface to configure, and

port-channel channel-number enters the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# lacp rate fast Configures the fast rate (one second) at which LACP
control packets are sent to an LACP-supported interface.
To reset the timeout rate to its default, use the no form
of the command.
This example shows how to configure the LACP fast rate on Ethernet interface 1/4:
switch(config-if)# lacp rate fast

178
Configuring the LACP System Priority
This example shows how to restore the LACP default rate (30 seconds) on Ethernet interface 1/4:
switch(config-if)# no lacp rate fast
Configuring the LACP System Priority

The LACP system ID is the combination of the LACP system priority value and the MAC address.
You can reuse the same configuration for the system priority values in more than one VDC.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# lacp system-priority Configures the system priority for use with LACP. Valid
priority values are from 1 through 65535, and higher numbers
have a lower priority. The default value is 32768.
Note Each VDC has a different LACP system ID
because the software adds the MAC address to
this configured value.
Step 3 switch(config)# show lacp (Optional)
system-identifier Displays the LACP system identifier.
Step 4 switch(config)# show running-config (Optional)

interface port-channel number Displays the port-channel minimum links configuration.
This example shows how to set the LACP system priority to 2500:
switch(config)# lacp system-priority 2500
Configuring the LACP Port Priority

When you enable LACP, you can configure each link in the LACP port channel for the port priority.
Procedure


179
Disabling LACP Graceful Convergence

Step 3 switch(config-if)# lacp port-priority Configures the port priority for use with LACP. Valid
priority values are from1 through 65535, and higher numbers
have a lower priority. The default value is 32768.

interface port-channel number Displays the port-channel minimum links
configuration.
This example shows how to set the LACP port priority for Ethernet interface 1/4 to 40000:

switch(config-if)# lacp port-priority 40000
Disabling LACP Graceful Convergence

By default, LACP graceful convergence is enabled. In situations where you need to support LACP
interoperability with devices where the graceful failover defaults may delay the time taken for a disabled port
to be brought down or cause traffic from the peer to be lost, you can disable convergence. If the downstream
access switch is not a Cisco Nexus device, disable the LACP graceful convergence option.
Note The port channel has to be in the administratively down state before the command can be run.
Before You Begin

• Enable LACP.
Procedure


Step 3 switch(config-if)# shutdown Administratively shuts down the port channel.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# no lacp Disables LACP graceful convergence on the port

graceful-convergence channel.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# no shutdown Brings the port channel administratively up.

180
Disabling LACP Port

configuration.
This example shows how to disable LACP graceful convergence on a port channel:
switch(config-if)# no lacp graceful-convergence
Re-Enabling LACP Graceful Convergence

If the default LACP graceful convergence is once again required, you can re-enable convergence.
Procedure


Step 4 switch(config-if)# lacp Enables LACP graceful convergence on the port

graceful-convergence channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to enable LACP graceful convergence on a port channel:
switch(config-if)# lacp graceful-convergence
Disabling LACP Port

LACP sets a port to the suspended state if it does not receive an LACP PDU from the peer. This process can
cause some servers to fail to boot up as they require LACP to logically bring up the port.

181
Disabling LACP Port
Note You should only enter the lacp suspend-individual command on edge ports. The port channel has to be
in the administratively down state before you can use this command.
Before You Begin

• Enable LACP.
Procedure


Step 4 switch(config-if)# no lacp Disables LACP individual port suspension

suspend-individual behavior on the port channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to disable LACP individual port suspension on a port channel:
switch(config-if)# no lacp suspend-individual
Re-Enabling LACP Port

You can re-enable the default LACP individual port suspension.
Procedure


182
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution

Step 4 switch(config-if)# lacp Enables LACP individual port suspension behavior

suspend-individual on the port channel.

configuration.
This example shows how to re-enable the LACP individual port suspension on a port channel:
switch(config-if)# lacp suspend-individual

From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1(1), the adaptive and fixed hash distribution configuration is supported at both
global and port-channel levels. This option minimizes traffic disruption by minimizing Result Bundle Hash
(RBH) distribution changes when members come up or go down so that flows that are mapped to unchange
RBH values continue to flow through the same links. The port-channel level configuration overrules the global
configuration. The default configuration is adaptive globally, and there is no configuration for each port
channel, so there is no change during an ISSU. No ports are flapped when the command is applied, and the
configuration takes effect at the next member link change event. Both modes work with RBH module or
non-module schemes.
During an ISSD to a lower version that does not support this feature, you must disable this feature if the fixed
mode command is being used globally or if there is a port-channel level configuration.
From Cisco Nexus Release 8.(0)1, symmetric hashing is supported on M3 modules.
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution at the Global Level
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# port-channel Specifies the port-channel hash distribution at the global level.
hash-distribution {adaptive |
fixed}

183

• adaptive—This is the default mode. RBH values are
asymmetric.
• fixed—Peer port connections must be in an ascending order.
RBH values are distributed symmetrically as per the
ascending order of the port. The number of buckets in each
port is equal.
While configuring this command, the following warning is

displayed:
This global command does not take effect until the next member
link event (link down/up/no shutdown/shutdown). Do you still
want to continue(y/n)? [yes]

This example shows how to configure adaptive hash distribution at the global level:
configure terminal
port-channel hash-distribution adaptive
show port-channel rbh-distribution
ChanId Member port RBH values Num of buckets
-------- ------------- ----------------- ----------------
3022 Eth15/5 0 1
3022 Eth15/21 4 1
3022 Eth15/6 1 1
3022 Eth15/13 2 1
3022 Eth15/14 3 1
Configuring Port-Channel Hash Distribution at the Port-Channel Level
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Specifies the interface to configure, and enters the interface
port-channel {channel-number | configuration mode.
range}
Step 3 switch(config-if)# [no] Specifies the port-channel hash distribution at the global level.
port-channel hash-distribution
{adaptive | fixed} • adaptive—This is the default mode. RBH values are
asymmetric.
• fixed—Peer port connections must be in an ascending
order. RBH values are distributed symmetrically as per
the ascending order of the port. The number of buckets
in each port is equal.

184
Configuring RBH Modulo Mode

While configuring this command, the following warning is
displayed:
The command does not take effect until the next member link
event (link down/up/no shutdown/shutdown). Do you still
want to continue(y/n)? [yes]

This example shows how to configure fixed hash distribution at the port channel level:
configure terminal
port-channel hash-distribution fixed
show port-channel rbh-distribution interface port-channel 3021
ChanId Member port RBH values Num of buckets
-------- ------------- ----------------- ----------------
3021 Eth15/23 0 1
3021 Eth15/24 1 1
3021 Eth15/25 2 1
3021 Eth15/26 3 1
Configuring RBH Modulo Mode

Enabling RBH modulo mode flaps all port channels.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# port-channel Enables the RBH modulo mode. This command reinitializes
load-balance hash-modulo all port channels so there is an option to continue or not
continue.
Note This command is rejected if the current system-wide
module types include the M1-Series module. To
remove the M1-Series module type from the
system-wide configuration, enter the system
module-type f1, f2, m1xl, m2xl command.
This example shows how to enable the RBH modulo mode:

switch(config)# port-channel load-balance hash-modulo

185
Configuring Minimum Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel
Configuring Minimum Links on the FEX Fabric Port Channel

From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1(3), you can configure a minimum number of links for the FEX fabric port
channel so that when a certain number of FEX fabric port-channel member ports go down, the host-facing
interfaces of the FEX are suspended.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface port-channel Specifies the interface to configure and enters the
number interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 2 access port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport mode Sets the port channel to support an external Fabric
fex-fabric Extender.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# [no] port-channel Configures the minimum number of links on the
min-links number FEX fabric port channel. The range is from 1 to
16.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# show port-channel (Optional)

summary Displays summary information about the port
channels.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure the minimum number of links for the FEX fabric port channel:
switch(config-if)# switchport mode fex-fabric
switch(config-if)# port-channel min-links 3
switch(config-if)# show port-channel summary
Flags: D - Down P - Up in port-channel (members) I - Individual
H - Hot-standby (LACP only) s - Suspended r - Module-removed
S - Switched R - Routed U - Up (port-channel)
M - Not in use. Min-links not met
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Group Port- Type Protocol Member Ports Channel
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
101 Po101(SM) Eth NONE Eth10/46(P) Eth10/47(P) Eth10/48(P)

186
Configuring Random Load Balance
Configuring Random Load Balance

Configuring Random Load Balance on a Port Channel
Procedure
Step 1 Enter global configuration mode:

Step 2 Configure interface port-channel.

switch(config)# interface port-channel port-channel-number
Step 3 Configure random load balance for the port-channel interface. Use the no form of the following command to
disable the random load balance feature.
switch(config-if)# egress port-channel load-balance random
Note This will override the default system or module-wide port-channel load balance settings. To configure
random load balancing for ingress traffic, configure the egress port-channel load-balance random
command on an switch virtual interface (SVI) on Layer 3.
Configuring Random Load Balance on an Interface

Procedure

Step 2 Configure a port-channel interface:

switch(config)# interface interface-name
Step 3 Configure random load balance for the interface. Use the no form of the following command to disable the
random load balance feature.
Note The ingress Layer 3 interface or a port-channel interface performs random load balance on the Layer
2 or Layer 3 egress interface and port-channel interface.
Configuring random load balance on a single physical interface is useful in scenarios where traffic
comes in from an ingress Layer 3 interface and goes out of a port-channel interface.

187
Configuring Random Load Balance for a VLAN
Configuring Random Load Balance for a VLAN

Procedure

Step 2 Configure a VLAN:

switch(config)# vlan vlan-id
Step 3 Enter VLAN configuration mode:

switch(config-vlan)# vlan configuration vlan-id
Step 4 Configure random load balance for the VLAN. Use the no form of the following command to disable the
random load balance feature.
Note Random load balance is applied on all the Layer 2 ingress interfaces under the VLAN. The ingress
interfaces perform random load balance on all the Layer 2 or Layer 3 port-channel egress interfaces.
Configuring Random Load Balance for an SVI

Procedure

Step 2 Configure a switch virtual interface (SVI):

switch(config)# vlan vlan-range
Step 3 Enter VLAN configuration mode:

switch(config)# vlan configuration vlan-range
Step 4 Configure random load balance for the SVI for ingress traffic. Use the no form of the following command to
disable the random load balance feature.
switch(config-vlan-config)# egress port-channel load-balance random
Example: Configuring Random Load Balance

This example shows how to configure random load balance on a port-channel interface:
configure terminal
egress port-channel load-balance random

188
Verifying Port-Channel Configurations
This example shows how to configure random load balance on a physical interface:
configure terminal
This example shows how to configure random load balance on a VLAN:

configure terminal
vlan 100
vlan configuration 100
This example shows how to configure random load balance on a switch virtual interface (SVI) for ingress
traffic:
configure terminal
vlan 2-10
vlan configuration 2-10
Verifying Port-Channel Configurations

Use the following commands to verify port-channel configurations:
Table 38: Verifying Port-Channel Configurations
Command Purpose
show interface port-channel channel-number Displays the status of a port-channel interface.
show feature Displays enabled features.
show port-channel compatibility-parameters Displays the parameters that must be the same among
the member ports in order to join a port channel.
show port-channel database [interface Displays the aggregation state for one or more
port-channel channel-number] port-channel interfaces.
show port-channel load-balance Displays the type of load balancing in use for port
channels.
show port-channel rbh distribution Displays the distribution of RBH values across
port-channel interfaces.
show port-channel summary Displays a summary for the port-channel interfaces.
show port-channel traffic Displays the traffic statistics for port channels.
show port-channel usage Displays the range of used and unused channel
numbers.

189
Monitoring the Port-Channel Interface Configuration
Command Purpose
show lacp {counters [interface port-channel Displays information about LACP.
channel-number] | [interface type/slot] | neighbor
[interface port-channel channel-number] |
port-channel [interface port-channel
channel-number] | system-identifier]]}
show running-config interface port-channel Displays information about the running configuration
channel-number of the port-channel.
For more information about these commands, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command
Reference.
Monitoring the Port-Channel Interface Configuration

Use the following commands to display port-channel interface configurations:
Table 39: Monitoring the Port-Channel Interface Configuration
Command Purpose
clear counters interface port-channel Clears the counters.
channel-number
clear lacp counters [interface port-channel Clears the LACP counters.

channel-number]
show interface counters [module module] Displays input and output octets unicast packets,
multicast packets, and broadcast packets.
show interface counters detailed [all] Displays input packets, bytes, and multicast and
output packets and bytes.
show interface counters errors [module module] Displays information about the number of error
packets.
show lacp counters Displays statistics for LACP.

190
Configuration Examples for Port Channels
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for information about these
commands.
Configuration Examples for Port Channels

This example shows how to create an LACP port channel and add two Layer 2 interfaces to that port channel:
switch(config-if)# lacp port priority 40000
switch(config-if)# channel-group 5 mode
This example shows how to add two Layer 3 interfaces to a channel group. The Cisco NX-OS software
automatically creates the port channel.
switch(config-if)# no ip address
switch(config-if)# no ip address
Related Documents
Related Topic

191
Standards
Related Topic
Standards
Table 41: Standards
Standards Title
IEEE 802.3ad —
MIBs
Table 42: MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

To locate and download MIBs, go to:
• IEEE8023-LAG-CAPABILITY
http://www.cisco.com/public/sw-center/netmgmt/cmtk/
• CISCO-LAG-MIB mibs.shtml

192
CHAPTER 8
Configuring vPCs
This chapter describes how to configure virtual port channels (vPCs) on Cisco NX-OS devices.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1(1), vPCs have been enhanced to interoperate with FabricPath. To configure
vPCs with FabricPath networks, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Configuration Guide.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1(1), you can use any of the 10-Gigabit Ethernet (10GE) interfaces, or higher,
on the F-series modules or the 10-Gigabit Ethernet interfaces, or higher, on the M-series modules for the
vPC peer link on an individual switch, but you cannot combine member ports on an F module with ports on
an M module into a single port channel on a single switch. The port-channel compatibility parameters must
be the same for all the port channel members on the physical switch.
You cannot configure shared interfaces to be part of a vPC. See the Cisco NX-OS FCoE Configuration Guide
for Cisco Nexus 7000 and Cisco MDS 9000 for more information about shared interfaces.
The port-channel compatibility parameters must also be the same for all vPC member ports on both peers
and therefore you must use the same type of module in each chassis.

• Feature History for Configuring vPCs, page 194
• Licensing Requirements for vPCs, page 196
• Guidelines and Limitations for vPCs, page 196
• Information About vPCs, page 199
• Hitless vPC Role Change, page 236
• vPC Configuration Synchronization, page 236
• Configuring vPCs, page 238
• Upgrading Line Card Modules for vPC, page 270
• Verifying the vPC Configuration, page 279
• Monitoring vPCs, page 282
• Configuration Examples for vPCs, page 282

193
Configuring vPCs

Feature History for Configuring vPCs

Table 43: Feature History for Configuring vPCs

vPC support on M3 modules 7.3(0)DX(1) Added support for vPCs on M3 modules.
Hitless vPC Role Change 7.3(0)D1(1) Added support for switching vPC roles
without impacting traffic flows.
vPC Shutdown 7.2(0)D1(1) Added the shutdown command that shuts

down the peer to isolate it for debugging,
reloading, or physically removing it from the
vPC complex, and enables the peer vPC
switch to take over as the primary peer.
Physical Port vPC on F3 7.2(0)D1(1) Added support for physical port vPCs for F3.
1500 host vPC for FEX 7.2(0)D1(1) Added support for 1500 host vPC for FEX
(Physical Port vPC on FEX) (Physical Port vPC on FEX).
vPC Configuration 7.2(0)D1(1) vPC Configuration Synchronization feature

Synchronization synchronizes the configurations of one switch
automatically to other similar switches.
Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and 7.2(0)D1(1) Added support for this feature.
F3 modules
Physical Port vPC on F2 6.2(6) Added support for physical port vPCs for F2.
LAN shutdown 6.2(6) Added the shutdown lan command to support

this feature.
FCoE over physical port vPCs 6.2(6) Added support for this feature.
Physical port vPCs 6.2(6) Added support for physical port vPCs on the
physical interface of vPC peer devices.

194
Configuring vPCs
Feature History for Configuring vPCs

vPCs 6.2(2) Added the mode auto command to enable
certain commands for vPCs simultaneously.
vPCs 6.1(3) Added the multicast load-balance command

that allows two peers to be partially
designated forwarders when both vPC paths
are up.
vPCs 5.2(1) Support increased to 528 vPCs.
vPCs 5.2(1) Added the vpc orphan-ports suspend

command to suspend orphan ports on the vPC
secondary device when the vPC fails.
vPCs 5.2(1) Added the auto-recovery command to

improve speed and reliability of vPC recovery
after an outage. The reload restore command
is deprecated.
vPCs 5.2(1) Added per-VLAN consistency checking so

that only those VLANs with inconsistent
configuration are suspended.
vPCs 5.2(1) Added the graceful consistency-check

command to enable the vPC primary device
to forward traffic when inconsistent
configuration is detected between the peers.
vPCs 5.0(2) Added the peer-switch command to enable

the vPC switch pair to appear as a single STP
root in the Layer 2 topology.
vPCs 5.0(2) Added the reload restore command to

configure the vPC switch to assume its peer
is not functional and to bring up the vPC.
vPCs 4.2(1) Added the delay restore command to delay

the bringup of the vPC secondary device after
reload until the routing table can converge.
vPCs 4.2(1) Added the dual-active exclude

interface-vlan command to ensure that
VLAN interfaces remain up if the vPC peer
link fails.
vPCs 4.2(1) Added the peer-gateway command to ensure

that all packets use the gateway MAC address
of the device.

195
Configuring vPCs
Licensing Requirements for vPCs

vPCs 4.1(2) These features were introduced.
Licensing Requirements for vPCs

Guidelines and Limitations for vPCs

vPCs have the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• IPv6 multicast on a vPC is not supported.
• Routing over vPC is supported only on F2E and F3 modules.
• vPC peers can operate dissimilar versions of NX-OS software only during the upgrade or downgrade
process.
• vPC peers that run different versions out of the upgrade or downgrade period are not supported.
• All ports for a given vPC must be in the same VDC.
• Enable vPCs before you configure them.
• Configure the peer-keepalive link and messages before the system can form the vPC peer link.
• Only Layer 2 port channels can be in vPCs.
• Configure both vPC peer devices; the configuration is not sent from one device to the other.
• Assign a unique vPC domain ID for each respective vPC to configure multilayer (back-to-back) vPCs.
• Check that the necessary configuration parameters are compatible on both sides of the vPC peer link.
See the “Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section for information about compatibility
recommendations.
• You might experience minimal traffic disruption while configuring vPCs.
• The software does not support BIDR PIM or SSM on vPCs.
• The software does not support DHCP snooping, DAI, or IPSG in a vPC environment.
• DHCP Relay is supported.

196
Configuring vPCs
• The software does not support CFS regions.

• Port security is not supported on port channels.
• We recommend that you configure all the port channels in the vPC using LACP with the interfaces in
active mode.
• Configure a separate Layer 3 link for routing from the vPC peer devices, rather than using a VLAN
network interface for this purpose.
• Back-to-back, multilayer vPC topologies require unique domain IDs on each respective vPC.
• When using vPCs, we recommend that you use default timers for FHRP (HSRP, VRRP, GLBP), and
PIM configurations. There is no advantage in convergence times when using aggressive timers in vPC
configurations.
• Configure vpc orphan-ports suspend command on all non-vPC-interfaces (port channel or ethernet)
that carry vPC peer-link VLAN traffic. During vPC shutdown, vPC manager brings down vPC interfaces,
vPC interface VLANs and non-vPC interfaces with vpc orphan-ports suspend configuration.
• If you configure open shortest path first (OSPF) in a vPC environment, use the following timer commands
in router configuration mode on the core switch to ensure fast OSPF convergence when a vPC peer link
is shut down:
switch(config-router)# timers throttle spf 1 50 50
switch(config-router)# timers lsa-arrival 10
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for further details about
OSPF.
• BFD for HSRP is not supported in a vPC environment.
• The STP port cost is fixed to 200 in a vPC environment.
• A single vPC domain between two VDCs on the same physical Cisco Nexus 7000 device is not supported.
• Jumbo frames are enabled by default on the vPC peer link.
• Routing protocol adjacency over a fabric path VLAN is not supported.
Auto recovery has the following limitations and guidelines:

• In Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2) and later releases, auto recovery is enabled by default. If you already
enabled auto recovery in an earlier release and you upgrade to Release 6.2(2) or a later release, auto
recovery will remain enabled after the upgrade. If you want to disable auto recovery in Release 6.2(2)
or a later release, you must use the auto-recovery disable command to explicitly disable auto recovery.
• From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2.(2), for auto recovery to occur during the initial boot, the logical peer
link must be down and no peer keepalive messages must be received. In releases earlier than 6.2.2, if
peer keepalive messages were not received and the physical peer link was set to UP status, auto recovery
did not occur.
Physical port vPCs have the following guidelines and limitations:

• Physical port vPCs are supported only on Nexus F2, F2e, and F3 Series modules.
• Physical port vPC is not supported with VDCs containing M3 modules.
• Physical port vPC is supported with vPC+ only on Nexus F2, F2e, and F3 Series modules.
• Physical port vPC is supported on a Fabric Extender (FEX) interface.

197
Configuring vPCs
• Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) cannot be enabled on a physical port without vPC.
• Same vPC configuration cannot be applied to multiple physical ports.
FCoE over physical port vPC has the following guidelines and limitations:
• FCoE is supported only on trunk ports.
• FCoE is supported only for shared interfaces.
• FCoE is not supported on port channel vPCs.
• FCoE over a physical port vPC is supported in storage VDCs of type F2 only.
• FCoE over a physical port vPC is not supported in storage VDCs because Layer 2 multipathing over
physical port vPCs are supported only for LAN.
• FCoE over a VPC+ is not supported.
• The shutdown LAN configuration is supported on shared interfaces only.
• The Link Layer Discovery Protocol (LLDP) must be enabled in the Ethernet VDC for shutdown LAN.
Hitless vPC role change feature has the following guidelines and limitations:
• vPC STP hitless role change feature is supported only from Cisco Nexus 7.3(0)D1(1) release onwards.
• vPC role change can be performed from either of the peer devices.
• If the original secondary device has higher role priority value than the original primary device, role
swapping cannot be performed. Change the role priority on either vPC device so that the value of the
original secondary device is lower than the original primary one. To view the existing role of a device,
use the show vpc role command on local and peer switch.
• On vPC+, enable the fabricpath multi path load-balance command before configuring the vPC hitless
role change feature. The Forwarding Tag (FTag) scheme is used in vPC+ to seamlessly configure the
role change. To ensure FTag scheme is used, you need to enable the no port channel limit command
on vPC+ as it has dependencies on the fabricpath multi path load-balance command.
• Enable the no port channel limit command on vPC+ before configuring the vPC hitless role change
feature. If this command is not enabled, vPC hitless role change cannot be configured and an error
message is displayed. Configure this command on both the vPC devices.
Note Always check the existing configured role priority before configuring vPC hitless role
change feature.
• In a vPC domain, enable the peer-switch command, where both vPC peers have same STP priorities,
and ensure it is operational before issuing a role change. If you do not enable the peer-switch command,
it can lead to convergence issues.
• vPC hitless role change cannot be performed if there are any Type 1 inconsistencies on the peer devices.

198
Configuring vPCs
Information About vPCs
Information About vPCs

A virtual port channel (vPC) allows links that are physically connected to two different Cisco Nexus 7000
Series devices to appear as a single port channel by a third device. The third device can be a switch, server,
or any other networking device that supports port channels. A vPC can provide Layer 2 multipathing, which
allows you to create redundancy and increase the bisectional bandwidth by enabling multiple parallel paths
between nodes and allowing load balancing traffic.
vPC+
A virtual port channel+ (vPC+) is an extension to virtual port channels (vPCs) that run CE only. A vPC+
domain allows a classical Ethernet (CE) vPC domain and a Cisco FabricPath cloud to interoperate and also
provides a First Hop Routing Protocol (FHRP) active-active capability at the FabricPath to Layer 3 boundary.
A vPC+ domain enables Cisco Nexus 7000 Series enabled with FabricPath devices to form a single vPC+,
which is a unique virtual switch to the rest of the FabricPath network. For more detailed information on vPC+
see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Configuration Guide.
Note You cannot configure a vPC+ domain and a vPC domain in the same VDC.
Figure 11: vPC Architecture
You can use only Layer 2 port channels in the vPC. A vPC domain is associated to a single Virtual Device
Context (VDC), so all vPC interfaces belonging to a given vPC domain must be defined in the same VDC.
You must have a separate vPC peer link and peer-keepalive link infrastructure for each VDC deployed.
Consolidating a vPC pair (two vPC peer devices of the same domain) in two VDCs of the same physical
device is not supported. The vPC peer link must use at least 10-Gigabit Ethernet ports for both ends of the
link or the link will not form.
You configure the port channels by using one of the following:
• No protocol
• Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP)

199
Configuring vPCs
vPC+
When you configure the port channels in a vPC—including the vPC peer link channel—without using LACP,
the F-series line cards can have 16 active links and M-series line cards can have 8 active links in a single port
channel. When you configure the port channels in a vPC—including the vPC peer link channels—using LACP,
F-series card each device can have eight active links and eight standby links in a single port channel. (See the
“vPC Interactions with Other Features” section for more information on using LACP and vPCs.)
You can use the lacp graceful-convergence command to configure port channel Link Aggregation Control
Protocol (LACP) graceful convergence. You can use this command only on a port-channel interface that is
in an administratively down state. You cannot configure (or disable) LACP graceful convergence on a port
channel that is in an administratively up state.
You can use the lacp suspend-individual command to enable LACP port suspension on a port channel. LACP
sets a port to the suspended state if it does not receive an LACP bridge protocol data unit (BPDU) from the
peer ports in a port channel. This can cause some servers to fail to boot up as they require LACP to logically
bring up the port.
Note You must enable the vPC feature before you can configure or run the vPC functionality.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, the system automatically takes a checkpoint prior to disabling the feature,
and you can roll back to this checkpoint. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System Management
Configuration Guide for information about rollbacks and checkpoints.
After you enable the vPC functionality, you create the peer-keepalive link, which sends heartbeat messages
between the two vPC peer devices.
You can create a vPC peer link by configuring a port channel on one Cisco Nexus 7000 Series chassis by
using two or more 10-Gigabit Ethernet ports in dedicated port mode. To ensure that you have the correct
hardware to enable and run a vPC from Cisco NX-OS Release 4.1(5), enter the show hardware feature-capability
command. If you see an X across from the vPC in your command output, your hardware cannot enable the
vPC feature.
We recommend that you configure the vPC peer link Layer 2 port channels as trunks. On another Cisco Nexus
7000 Series chassis, you configure another port channel again using two or more 10-Gigabit Ethernet ports
in the dedicated port mode. Connecting these two port channels creates a vPC peer link in which the two
linked Cisco Nexus devices appear as one device to a third device. The third device, or downstream device,
can be a switch, server, or any other networking device that uses a regular port channel to connect to the vPC.
If you are not using the correct module, the system displays an error message.
Note We recommend that you configure the vPC peer links on dedicated ports of different modules to reduce
the possibility of a failure. For the best resiliency scenario, use at least two modules.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, if you must configure all the vPC peer links and core-facing interfaces on a
single module, you should configure a track object that is associated with the Layer 3 link to the core and on
all the links on the vPC peer link on both vPC peer devices. Once you configure this feature and if the primary
vPC peer device fails, the system automatically suspends all the vPC links on the primary vPC peer device.
This action forces all the vPC traffic to the secondary vPC peer device until the system stabilizes.
You can create a track object and apply that object to all links on the primary vPC peer device that connect
to the core and to the vPC peer link. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide for information about the track interface command.

200
Configuring vPCs
vPC Terminology
The vPC domain includes both vPC peer devices, the vPC peer-keepalive link, the vPC peer link, and all of
the port channels in the vPC domain connected to the downstream device. You can have only one vPC domain
ID on each device.
In this version, you can connect each downstream device to a single vPC domain ID using a single port channel.
Note Always attach all vPC devices using port channels to both vPC peer devices.
vPC Terminology
The terminology used in vPCs is as follows:
• vPC—The combined port channel between the vPC peer devices and the downstream device.
• vPC peer device—One of a pair of devices that are connected with the special port channel known as
the vPC peer link.
• vPC peer link—The link used to synchronize states between the vPC peer devices. Both ends must be
on 10-Gigabit Ethernet interfaces.
• vPC member port—An interface that belongs to a vPC.
• Host vPC port—A Fabric Extender host interfaces that belongs to a vPC.
• vPC domain—This domain includes both vPC peer devices, the vPC peer-keepalive link, and all of the
port channels in the vPC connected to the downstream devices. It is also associated to the configuration
mode that you must use to assign vPC global parameters.
• vPC peer-keepalive link—The peer-keepalive link monitors the vitality of a vPC peer Cisco Nexus 7000
Series device. The peer-keepalive link sends configurable, periodic keepalive messages between vPC
peer devices.
We recommend that you associate a peer-keepalive link to a separate virtual routing and forwarding (VRF)
instance that is mapped to a Layer 3 interface in each vPC peer device. If you do not configure a separate
VRF, the system uses the management VRF by default. However, if you use the management interfaces for

201
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Links
the peer-keepalive link, you must put a management switch connected to both the active and standby
management ports on each vPC peer device (see the figure below).
Figure 12: Separate Switch Required to Connect Management Ports for vPC Peer-Keepalive Link
No data or synchronization traffic moves over the vPC peer-keepalive link; the only traffic on this link is a
message that indicates that the originating switch is operating and running a vPC.
• vPC member port—Interfaces that belong to the vPCs.
• Dual-active— Both vPC peers act as primary. This situation occurs when the peer-keepalive and peer-link
go down when both the peers are still active. In this case, the secondary vPC assumes that the primary
vPC is inactive and acts as the primary vPC.
• Recovery—When the peer-keepalive and the peer-link come up, one switch becomes the secondary
vPC. On the switch that becomes the secondary vPC, the vPC links go down and come back up.
vPC Peer Links

A vPC peer link is the link that is used to synchronize the states between the vPC peer devices. Both ends of
the link must be on 10-Gigabit Ethernet interfaces.
• Keeps both vPC peer switches synchronized for control plane information (such as the vPC state,
consistency parameters, and MAC addresses).
• Forwards data packets to the vPC peer switch, when the local vPC is down.
• A single vPC domain between two VDCs on the same physical Cisco Nexus 7000 device is not supported.

202
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Links
Note You must configure the peer-keepalive link before you configure the vPC peer link or the peer link does
not come up. (See the “Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages” section for information about the vPC
peer-keepalive link and messages.)
You can configure a vPC peer link to configure two devices as vPCs peers. You must use the module in order
to configure a vPC peer link.
We recommend that you use the dedicated port mode when you configure a vPC peer link. For information
about the dedicated port mode, see “Configuring Basic Interface Parameters.”
vPC Peer Link and I/O Modules Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2
You can configure F2e VDCs. The VDC type for two vPC peer devices must match when the F2 Series module
and the F2e Series module are used in the same VDC or system. For an F2 Series module and an F2e Series
module in the same topology, the features related to the F2 Series module will only apply.
After ISSU to Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), F2 VDCs will automatically change to F2 F2e VDCs, regardless
of the existence of an F2e Series module.
The table below displays the I/O modules that are supported on both sides of a vPC peer link in Cisco NX-OS
Release 6.2.
Table 44: I/O Module Combinations Supported on Both Sides of a vPC Peer Link, Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2 and Later
vPC Primary vPC Secondary

M1 I/O module M1 I/O module
F2 I/O module F2 I/O module
F2 I/O module F2e I/O module
F2e I/O module F2e I/O module
F2e I/O module F2 I/O module
F3 I/O module F3 I/O module
vPC Peer Link and I/O Modules Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1 and Earlier Releases
In Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1 and earlier releases, only identical I/O modules on either side of a vPC peer link
are supported. Using different I/O modules on either side of a vPC peer link is not supported. Mixing I/O
modules on the same side of a port channel is also not supported. The table above displays the I/O modules
that are supported on both sides of a vPC peer link.

203
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Links
While using port channels, we recommended that you use identical line cards on both sides.
vPC Peer Link Overview

You can have only two devices as vPC peers; each device can serve as a vPC peer to only one other vPC peer.
The vPC peer devices can also have non-vPC links to other devices.
The figure below for invalid vPC peer configurations.
Figure 13: vPC Peer Configurations That Are Not Allowed
To make a valid configuration, you first configure a port channel on each device and then configure the vPC
domain. You assign the port channel on each device as a peer link, using the same vPC domain ID. For
redundancy, we recommend that you should configure at least two of the dedicated ports into the port channel
because if one of the interfaces in the vPC peer link fails, the device automatically falls back to use another
interface in the peer link.
Note We recommend that you configure the Layer 2 port channels in trunk mode.
Many operational parameters and configuration parameters must be the same in each device connected by a
vPC peer link (see the “Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section). Because each device is completely
independent on the management plane, you must ensure that the devices are compatible on the critical
parameters. vPC peer devices have separate control planes. After configuring the vPC peer link, you should
display the configuration on each vPC peer device to ensure that the configurations are compatible.
You must ensure that the two devices connected by the vPC peer link have certain identical operational and
configuration parameters. For more information on required configuration consistency, see the “Compatibility
Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section.
When you configure the vPC peer link, the vPC peer devices negotiate that one of the connected devices is
the primary device and the other connected device is the secondary device (see the “Configuring vPCs” section).
The Cisco NX-OS software uses the lowest MAC address to elect the primary device. The software takes
different actions on each device—that is, the primary and secondary—only in certain failover conditions. If
the primary device fails, the secondary device becomes the new primary device when the system recovers,
and the previously primary device is now the secondary device.
You can also configure which of the vPC devices is the primary device. Changing the priority of the vPC peer
devices can cause the interfaces in your network to go up and down. If you want to configure the role priority
again to make one vPC device the primary device, configure the role priority on both the primary vPC device
with a lower priority value and the secondary vPC device with the higher value. Then, shut down the port

204
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Links
channel that is the vPC peer link on both devices by entering the shutdown command, and finally reenable
the port channel on both devices by entering the no shutdown command.
We recommend that you use two different modules for redundancy on each vPC peer device on each vPC
peer link.
The software keeps all traffic that forwards across the vPC peer devices as local traffic. A packet that ingresses
the port channel uses one of the local links rather than moving across the vPC peer link. Unknown unicast,
multicast, and broadcast traffic (including STP BPDUs) are flooded across the vPC peer link. The software
keeps the multicast forwarding state synchronized on both of the vPC peer devices.
You can configure any of the standard load-balancing schemes on both the vPC peer link devices and the
downstream device (see Chapter 6, “Configuring Port Channels” for information about load balancing).
Configuration information flows across the vPC peer links using the Cisco Fabric Services over Ethernet
(CFSoE) protocol. (See the “Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet” section on page 7-30 for more information
about CFSoE.)
All MAC addresses for those VLANs configured on both devices are synchronized between vPC peer devices.
The software uses CFSoE for this synchronization. (See the “Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet” section on
page 7-30 for information about CFSoE.)
If the vPC peer link fails, the software checks the status of the remote vPC peer device using the peer-keepalive
link, which is a link between vPC peer devices that ensures that both devices are up. If the vPC peer device
is up, the secondary vPC device disables all vPC ports on its device, to prevent loops and disappearing or
flooding traffic. The data then forwards down the remaining active links of the port channel.
We recommend that you create and configure a separate VRF and configure a Layer 3 port on each vPC peer
device in that VRF for the vPC peer-keepalive link. The default ports and VRF for the peer-keepalive are the
management ports and VRF.
The software learns of a vPC peer device failure when the keepalive messages are not returned over the
peer-keepalive link.
Use a separate link (vPC peer-keepalive link) to send configurable keepalive messages between the vPC peer
devices. The keepalive messages on the vPC peer-keepalive link determines whether a failure is on the vPC
peer link only or on the vPC peer device. The keepalive messages are used only when all the links in the peer
link fail. See the “Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages” section for information about the keepalive message.
Features That You Must Manually Configure on the Primary and Secondary Devices
You must manually configure the following features to conform to the primary/secondary mapping of each
of the vPC peer devices:
• STP root—Configure the primary vPC peer device as the STP primary root device and configure the
vPC secondary device to be the STP secondary root device. See the “vPC Peer Links and STP” section
for more information about vPCs and STP.
◦When the port-channel is designated as the vPC peer link, the spanning-tree port type network
command is added and so the port-channel becomes the bridge assurance port.
◦We recommend that you configure Rapid per VLAN Spanning Tree plus (PVST+) so that the
primary device is the root for all VLANs and configure Multiple Spanning Tree (MST) so that the
primary device is the root for all instances.
• Layer 3 VLAN network interface—Configure Layer 3 connectivity from each vPC peer device by
configuring a VLAN network interface for the same VLAN from both devices.

205
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Links
• HSRP active—If you want to use Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) and VLAN interfaces on the
vPC peer devices, configure the primary vPC peer device with the HSRP active highest priority. Configure
the secondary device to be the HSRP standby and ensure that you have VLAN interfaces on each vPC
device that are in the same administrative and operational mode. (See the “vPC Peer Links and Routing”
section for more information on vPC and HSRP.)
While you configure Unidirectional Link Detection (UDLD), note the following recommendations:
• If LACP is used as port-channel aggregation protocol, UDLD is not required in a vPC domain.
• If LACP is not used as the port-channel aggregation protocol (static port-channel), use UDLD in normal
mode on vPC member ports.
• If STP is used without Bridge Assurance and if LACP is not used, use UDLD in normal mode on vPC
orphan ports.
See the “Configuring UDLD Mode” section for information about configuring UDLD.
Configuring Layer 3 Backup Routes on a vPC Peer Link

You can use VLAN network interfaces on the vPC peer devices for such applications as HSRP and PIM. You
can use a VLAN network interface for routing from the vPC peer devices.
Note Ensure that you have a VLAN network interface configured on each peer device and that the interface is
connected to the same VLAN on each device. Also, each VLAN interface must be in the same administrative
and operational mode. For more information about configuring VLAN network interfaces, see “Configuring
Layer 2 Interfaces.”
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), if the vPC peer link is on an F2e-Series module in a mixed chassis with
an M-Series module and an F2e-Series module, do not use the Layer 3 backup routing path over the vPC peer
link; instead deploy a dedicated Layer 3 backup routing path using an additional inter-switch port channel.
If a failover occurs on the vPC peer link, the VLAN interfaces on the vPC peer devices are also affected. If
a vPC peer link fails, the system brings down associated VLAN interfaces on the secondary vPC peer device.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1), you can ensure that specified VLAN interfaces do not go down on the
vPC secondary device when the vPC peer link fails.
Use the dual-active exclude interface-vlan command to configure this feature.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1), when you attach a Layer 3 device to a vPC domain, the peering
of routing protocols using a VLAN also carried on the vPC peer link is not supported. If routing protocol
adjacencies are needed between vPC peer devices and a generic Layer 3 device, you must use physical
routed interfaces for the interconnection. Use of the vPC peer-gateway feature does not change this
requirement.

206
Configuring vPCs
Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages
Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages

The Cisco NX-OS software uses the peer-keepalive link between the vPC peers to transmit periodic,
configurable keepalive messages. You must have Layer 3 connectivity between the peer devices to transmit
these messages; the system cannot bring up the vPC peer link unless the peer-keepalive link is already up and
running.
We recommend that you associate the vPC peer-keepalive link to a separate VRF mapped to a Layer 3 interface
in each vPC peer device. If you do not configure a separate VRF, the system uses the management VRF and
management ports by default. Do not use the peer link itself to send and receive vPC peer-keepalive messages.
For more information about configuring VRFs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing
If one of the vPC peer devices fails, the vPC peer device on the other side of the vPC peer link senses the
failure by not receiving any peer-keepalive messages. You can configure a hold-timeout and a timeout value
simultaneously.
Hold-timeout value—The hold-timeout value range is between 3 to 10 seconds, with a default value of 3
seconds. This timer starts when the vPC peer link goes down. The purpose of the hold-timeout period is to
prevent false-positive cases.
If you configure a hold-timeout value that is lower than the timeout value, then the vPC system ignores vPC
peer-keepalive messages for the hold-timeout period and considers messages for the reminder of the timeout
period. If no keepalive message is received for this period, the vPC secondary device takes over the role of
the primary device. For example, if the hold-timeout value is 3 seconds and the timeout value is 5 seconds,
for the first 3 seconds vPC keepalive messages are ignored (such as, when accommodating a supervisor failure
for a few seconds after peer link failure) and keepalive messages are considered for the remaining timeout
period of 2 seconds. After this period, the vPC secondary device takes over as the primary device, in case
there is no keep alive message.
Timeout value—The timeout value range is between 3 to 20 seconds, with a default value of 5 seconds. This
timer starts at the end of the hold-timeout interval. If you configure a timeout value that is lower than or equal
to the hold-timeout value, then the timeout duration is initiated after the hold-timeout period. For example, if
the timeout value is 3 seconds and the hold-timeout value is 5 seconds, the timeout period starts after 5 seconds
Note Ensure that both the source and destination IP addresses used for the peer-keepalive messages are unique
in your network and these IP addresses are reachable from the VRF associated with the vPC peer-keepalive
link.
Use the CLI to configure the interfaces you are using the vPC peer-keepalive messages as trusted ports. Leave
the precedence at the default (6) or configure it higher.
This is an example of configuring an interface as a trusted port:
(config)# class-map type qos match-all trust-map
(config-cmap-qos)# match cos 4-7
(config)# policy-map type qos ingresspolicy

(config-pmap-qos)# class trust-map
(config)# interface Ethernet8/11

(config-if)# service-policy type qos input ingresspolicy
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Quality of Service Configuration Guide for complete information
about configuring trusted ports and precedence.

207
Configuring vPCs
vPC Peer Gateway
vPC Peer Gateway

From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1), you can configure vPC peer devices to act as the gateway even for packets
that are destined to the vPC peer device’s MAC address.
Use the peer-gateway command to configure this feature.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you can use the mode auto command to automatically enable this
feature. See the “Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically” section for more information about
using this command.
Some network-attached storage (NAS) devices or load balancers might have features that help to optimize
the performances of particular applications. These features enable the device to avoid a routing-table lookup
when responding to a request that originated from a host that is not locally attached to the same subnet. Such
devices might reply to traffic using the MAC address of the sender Cisco Nexus 7000 Series and Cisco Nexus
7700 Series devices rather than the common HSRP gateway. This behavior is noncompliant with some basic
Ethernet RFC standards. Packets that reach a vPC device for the nonlocal router MAC address are sent across
the peer link and could be dropped by the built in vPC loop avoidance mechanism if the final destination is
behind another vPC.
The vPC peer-gateway capability allows a vPC switch to act as the active gateway for packets that are addressed
to the router MAC address of the vPC peer. This feature enables local forwarding of packets without the need
to cross the vPC peer link. In this scenario, the feature optimizes use of the peer link and avoids potential
traffic loss.
Configuring the peer-gateway feature must be done on both primary and secondary vPC peers and is
nondisruptive to the operations of the device or to the vPC traffic. The vPC peer-gateway feature can be
configured globally under the vPC domain submode.
When you enable this feature, Cisco NX-OS automatically disables IP redirects on all interface VLANs
mapped over a vPC VLAN to avoid generation of IP redirect messages for packets switched through the peer
gateway router.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1(3) and above, when a VLAN interface is used for Layer 3 backup routing
on the vPC peer devices and an F1 line card is used as the peer link, the VLAN must be excluded from
the peer-gateway feature, if enabled, by running the peer-gateway exclude-vlan vlan-number command.
For more information about backup routes, see the “Configuring Layer 3 Backup Routes on a vPC Peer
Link” section.
Packets that arrive at the peer-gateway vPC device have their Time to Live (TTL) decremented, so that packets
carrying a TTL of 1 might get dropped in transit due to TTL expiration. You should take this situation into
account when the peer-gateway feature is enabled and particular network protocols that source packets with
a TTL of 1 operate on a vPC VLAN.
Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules

This section describes Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules feature and how to configure it. From Cisco
NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1), a Layer 3 device can form peering adjacency between both the vPC peers in a

208
Configuring vPCs
Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules
vPC complex. vPC peers must have identical VLANs. The TTL of the traffic sent over a peer link does not
decrement. The peer-gateway feature should be enabled before configuring the Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and
F3 Modules feature. The peer-gateway feature allows the vPC peer (SVI X) (refer the figure below) to forward
packets on behalf of other peer (SVI-Y). This feature saves bandwidth by avoiding traffic over the peer link.
You can set up peer adjacency between Layer 3 device and vPC peer without separate Layer 3 links. Both
bridged and routed traffic can flow over the same link.
Routing adjacency between Layer 3 device and vPC peer is formed without a non-vPC VLAN. Adjacency is
formed on the vPC VLAN. Routing adjacency between a Layer 3 device and a vPC peer is formed without
Layer 3 inter-switch links between the vPC peers. Adjacency is formed on the vPC peer-link. There is faster
convergence when a link or device fails for all traffic. vPC loop avoidance mechanism is available for all
traffic.
Figure 14: Layer 3 Over vPC Solution

209
Configuring vPCs
Layer 3 over VPC Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1)

The following are figures illustrates the Layer 3 over VPC Support in Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1):
Figure 15: Supported: Peering Over a vPC Interconnection Where the Router Peers with Both the vPC Peers.
Figure 16: Supported: Peering Over an STP Interconnection Using a vPC VLAN Where the Router Peers with Both the vPC
Peers.

210
Configuring vPCs
Figure 17: Supported: Peering Over an Orphan Device with Both the vPC Peers.
Figure 18: Supported: Peering Over a vPC Interconnection Where Each Nexus Device Peers with Two vPC Peers.
Figure 19: Supported: Peering with vPC Peers Over FEX vPC Host Interfaces

211
Configuring vPCs

212
Configuring vPCs
The FEX is connected to Nexus in straight-through topology. The router peers with both Nexus boxes over
satellite ports. Layer 3 over vPC in FEX Active-Active mode vPC is not supported.
Figure 20: Unsupported: Peering Across vPC Interfaces with Unequal Layer 3 Metrics
Figure 21: Unsupported: Peering Over vPC+ Interfaces in Cisco NX-OS 7.2(0)D1(1)

213
Configuring vPCs
Peering with vPC peers over vPC+ interfaces is unsupported.
Figure 22: Unsupported: Peering with vPC+ Peers an STP Interconnection Using a vPC+ VLAN
Figure 23: Unsupported: Route Peering with Orphan Device with Both the vPC+ Peers
Figure 24: Unsupported: Peering Over PC Interconnection and Over vPC+ Peer Link Using vPC VLAN

214
Configuring vPCs
vPC Domain
vPC Domain
You can use the vPC domain ID to identify the vPC peer links and the ports that are connected to the vPC
downstream devices.
The vPC domain is also a configuration mode that you use to configure the keepalive messages and other
vPC peer link parameters rather than accept the default values. See the “Configuring vPCs” section for more
information about configuring these parameters.
To create a vPC domain, you must first create a vPC domain ID on each vPC peer device using a number
from 1 to 1000. You can have only one vPC domain per VDC.
You must explicitly configure the port channel that you want to act as the peer link on each device. You
associate the port channel that you made a peer link on each device with the same vPC domain ID to form a
single vPC domain. Within this domain, the system provides a loop-free topology and Layer 2 multipathing.
You can only configure these port channels and vPC peer links statically. All ports in the vPC on each of the
vPC peer devices must be in the same VDC. You can configure the port channels and vPC peer links either
using LACP or no protocol. We recommend that you use LACP with the interfaces in active mode to configure
port channels in each vPC, which ensures an optimized, graceful recovery in a port-channel failover scenario
and provides configuration checks against configuration mismatches among the port channels themselves.
The vPC peer devices use the vPC domain ID that you configure to automatically assign a unique vPC system
MAC address. Each vPC domain has a unique MAC address that is used as a unique identifier for the specific
vPC-related operations, although the devices use the vPC system MAC addresses only for link-scope operations,
such as LACP. We recommend that you create each vPC domain within the contiguous Layer 2 network with
a unique domain ID. You can also configure a specific MAC address for the vPC domain, rather than having
the Cisco NX-OS software assign the address.
See the “Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet” section for more information about displaying the vPC MAC
table. After you create a vPC domain, the Cisco NX-OS software creates a system priority for the vPC domain.
You can also configure a specific system priority for the vPC domain.
Note When manually configuring the system priority, you must ensure that you assign the same priority value
on both vPC peer devices. If the vPC peer devices have different system priority values, vPC does not
come up.

215
Configuring vPCs
vPC Topology
vPC Topology
The figure below shows a basic configuration in which the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device ports are directly
connected to another switch or host and are configured as part of a port channel that becomes part of a vPC.
Figure 25: Switch vPC Topology
In the figure, vPC 20 is configured on port channel 20, which has Eth1/10 on the first device and Eth2/1 on
the second as member ports.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), you can configure a vPC from the peer devices through Fabric Extenders
(FEXs), as shown in the figure below.
Figure 26: FEX Straight-Through Topology (Host vPC)

216
Configuring vPCs
Physical Port vPCs
In the figure, each FEX is single-homed (straight-through FEX topology) with a Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
device. The host interfaces on this FEX are configured as port channels and those port channels are configured
as vPCs. Eth100/1/1 and Eth102/1/5 are configured as members of PO200, and PO200 is configured for vPC
200.
In both topologies, port channels P020 and P0200 must be configured identically on the peer switches and
configuration synchronization is used to synchronize the configurations of the vPC switches. See Cisco Nexus
2000 Series Fabric Extender Software Configuration Guide for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches, Release
8.x for more information about configuring FEX ports.
Physical Port vPCs

Physical port vPCs are vPCs configured on the physical interface of a vPC peer devices. Physical port vPCs
can optionally run Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) to the downstream device. Physical port vPCs
are supported on F2 and F2E modules. The vPC configuration is applied directly on the member port. You
can also enable LACP protocol on the physical interface configured with vPC. From Cisco NX-OS Release
7.2(0)D1(1), physical port vPCs are supported on F3 and FEX modules as well.
Physical Port vPCs for F2, F3, and FEX

This section describes Physical Port VPC for F2, F3, and FEX modules.
The Physical Port VPC for F2, F3, and FEX feature provides the following benefits:
• Enables simple configuration as the user does not create a port-channel to enable the vPC configuration.
The vPC configuration is applied directly on the member port.
• Supports vPC setup that has only one 10 Gigabit Ethernet, 40 Gigabit Ethernet, or 100 Gigabit Ethernet
port in each leg of the vPC. Creation of port-channel for a vPC setup in such case is not optimal. This
feature is best suited for port-channel vPC with only one interface.
• Enhances scalability enabling future support for more physical ports.
• Provides accounting logs and system logs for the physical port, rather than the port-channel.
• Supports large FEX setups. This feature is best suited for port-channel vPC with only one interface.
• Expands the limits of vPC by decoupling the configuration and deployment from the port-channel
constructs.
• Enables additional enhancement to extend FCOE support on physical port on the vPC, thus enabling
multipathing for the Ethernet traffic while preserving existing constructs for FCOE support.

217
Configuring vPCs
Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces
Note The fabricpath multicast load-balance command must be enabled before configuring
Physical Port vPC+. This requirement applies to regular front panel and FEX ports.
Figure 27: Physical Port vPC Topology

Many configuration and operational parameters must be identical on all interfaces in the vPC. We recommend
that you configure the Layer 2 port channels that you use for the vPC peer link in trunk mode.
After you enable the vPC feature and configure the peer link on both vPC peer devices, Cisco Fabric Services
(CFS) messages provide a copy of the configuration on the local vPC peer device configuration to the remote
vPC peer device. The system then determines whether any of the crucial configuration parameters differ on
the two devices. (See the “Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet” section for more information about CFS.)
Note Enter the show vpc consistency-parameters command to display the configured values on all interfaces
in the vPC. The displayed configurations are only those configurations that would limit the vPC peer link
and vPC from coming up.
The compatibility check process for vPCs differs from the compatibility check for regular port channels. See
“Configuring Port Channels” for information about regular port channels.
Configuration Parameters That Must Be Identical

The configuration parameters in this section must be configured identically on both devices of the vPC peer
link; otherwise, the vPC moves fully or partially into a suspended mode.
Note You must ensure that all interfaces in the vPC have the identical operational and configuration parameters
listed in this section.

218
Configuring vPCs
Note Enter the show vpc consistency-parameters command to display the configured values on all interfaces
in the vPC. The displayed configurations are only those configurations that would limit the vPC peer link
and vPC from coming up.
The devices automatically check for compatibility for some of these parameters on the vPC interfaces. The
per-interface parameters must be consistent per interface, and the global parameters must be consistent globally:
• Port-channel mode: on, off, or active (port-channel mode can, however, be active/passive on each side
of the vPC peer)
• Link speed per channel
• Duplex mode per channel
• Trunk mode per channel:
◦Native VLAN
◦VLANs allowed on trunk
◦Tagging of native VLAN traffic
• Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) mode

• STP region configuration for Multiple Spanning Tree
• Enable/disable state per VLAN
• STP global settings:
◦Bridge Assurance setting
◦Port type setting
◦Loop Guard settings
• STP interface settings:

◦Loop Guard
◦Root Guard
• Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU)
The following parameters were added in Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(6) for physical port vPCs:
• Native VLAN
• Port mode
• Interface type
• VLAN xLT mapping
• vPC card type
• Shared mode

219
Configuring vPCs
If any of these parameters are not enabled or defined on either device, the vPC consistency check ignores
those parameters.
Note To ensure that none of the vPC interfaces are in the suspend mode, enter the show vpc brief and show
vpc consistency-parameters commands and check the syslog messages.
Configuration Parameters That Should Be Identical

When any of the following parameters are not configured identically on both vPC peer devices, a
misconfiguration might cause undesirable behavior in the traffic flow:
• MAC aging timers
• Static MAC entries
• VLAN interface
• All ACL configurations and parameters
• Quality of Service (QoS) configuration and parameters
◦BPDU Filter
◦BPDU Guard
◦Cost
◦Link type
◦Priority
◦VLANs (Rapid PVST+)
• Port security
• Cisco Trusted Security (CTS)
• Port security
• Cisco Trusted Security (CTS)
• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) snooping
• Network Access Control (NAC)
• Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI)
• IP source guard (IPSG)
• Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) snooping
• Hot Standby Routing Protocol (HSRP)
• Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM)
• Gateway Load-Balancing Protocol (GLBP)

220
Configuring vPCs
vPC Number
• All routing protocol configurations
To ensure that all the configuration parameters are compatible, we recommend that you display the
configurations for each vPC peer device once you configure the vPC.
Consequences of Parameter Mismatches

In releases earlier than Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), when a consistency check detects a mismatch in a
parameter from the list of parameters that must be identical, the vPC peer link and vPC are prevented from
coming up. If a parameter mismatch is configured after the vPC is already established, the vPC moves into
suspend mode and no traffic flows on the vPC.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), you can configure the graceful consistency check feature, which suspends
only the links on the secondary peer device when a mismatch is introduced in a working vPC. This feature is
configurable only in the CLI and is enabled by default.
Use the graceful consistency-check command to configure this feature.
As part of the consistency check of all parameters from the list of parameters that must be identical, the system
checks the consistency of all VLANs. In releases earlier than Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), if the configuration
of any enabled VLAN is inconsistent across the peer devices, the vPC is prevented from establishing or moves
into a suspended mode.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), the vPC remains operational, and only the inconsistent VLANs are brought
down. This per-VLAN consistency check feature cannot be disabled and does not apply to Multiple Spanning
Tree (MST) VLANs.
vPC Number
Once you have created the vPC domain ID and the vPC peer link, you create port channels to attach the
downstream device to each vPC peer device. That is, you create one port channel to the downstream device
from the primary vPC peer device and you create another port channel to the downstream device from the
secondary peer device.
Note We recommend that you configure the ports on the downstream devices that connect to a host or a network
device that is not functioning as a switch or a bridge as STP edge ports. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information about STP port types.
On each vPC peer device, you assign a vPC number to the port channel that connects to the downstream
device. You will experience minimal traffic disruption when you are creating vPCs. To simplify the
configuration, you can assign the vPC ID number to every port channel to be the same as the port channel
itself (that is, vPC ID 10 for port channel 10).
Note The vPC number that you assign to the port channel that connects to the downstream device from the vPC
peer device must be identical on both vPC peer devices.

221
Configuring vPCs
vPC Shutdown
vPC Shutdown
The vPC Shutdown feature enables a user to isolate a switch from a vPC complex before it is debugged,
reloaded, or even removed physically, so that the vPC traffic passing through the peer vPC switch in the vPC
complex is not affected.
When the user executes the shutdown command, the MCEC module (MCECM) stops sending out-of-band
(OOB) keep-alive messages and also brings down all the vPC ports, SVIs, and the peer-link. On detection of
the peer-link going down and the non-availability of the keep-alive messages, the peer vPC switch takes over
as the primary peer. As the keep-alive messages are not received, the peer vPC switch does not bring up the
vPC peer-link even after a flap. The isolated vPC switch keeps all the vPCs down as the peer-link is down.
The vPC orphan port suspends configured orphan ports.
When the user executes the no form of this command, the switch is brought back into the vPC complex with
minimal disruption of the network traffic. Executing the no form of this command, starts the keepalives, brings
up the peer links, and consecutively brings up all the vPCs.
When executed on the primary switch, the shutdown command dual-active status is established.
Orphan ports lose connectivity when the vPC shutdown command is executed.
Cisco NX-OS services saves the shutdown command in the persistent storage service (PSS). The command
is restored when the switch reloads. The shutdown command is saved as vPC configuration. The shutdown
command executed again along with the vPC configuration, if it has been copied to the startup configuration.
The shutdown command is restored when the switch reloads
Version Compatibility Among vPC Switches After vPC shutdown Command

It is possible that the vPC operating version of an isolated vPC peer switch that comes up after debugging or
after an ISSU, is different from that the peer switch. When the no shutdown command is applied, the vPC
peer-link comes up with both the switches having as their versions the lower of the two versions.
Role of STP in vPC Shutdown

The STP synchronizes the port states to the vPC peer causing the new primary vPC peer to take over from
the current state, when the role switchover happens. If the MCECM take more than 6 seconds to detect the
role change and notify the STP, then the STP bridge protocol data units (BPDUs) that are sent on the vPC are
timed out. To avoid this, it is recommended to configure STP peer switch feature so that both vPC switches
send BPDUs over the vPC ports.
vPC shutdown Command for a Switch in FEX Active-Active Mode

If you configure the shutdown command on the switch to which a dual-homed FEX is connected in a vPC,
the FEX goes offline on that switch. An ISSU of the isolated switch does not update the software image on
the FEX. You cannot use the vPC shutdown command to perform ISSU by isolating and upgrading each
switch for FEX Active-Active.
Consider the following FEX Active-Active scenario where peers Peer 1 and Peer 2 are involved:
• The inactive peer, that is Peer 2, is offline because of reasons such as the VPC shutdown command

222
Configuring vPCs
Role of the Layer 2 MCECM in vPC Shutdown
• An ISSU has been performed on the active peer, that is Peer 1, for upgrading from one software image
version to a higher version
All line cards and the remote line cards, including FEX Active-Active, upgrade to higher version of the
software image. This happens because the FEX Active-Active is offline on the inactive peer.
Consecutively, when the inactive peer becomes online due to the VPC no shutdown command, this peer will
still run the lower version of the software image. In such as case, the status of FEX Active-Active toggles
between AA version mismatch and Offline in this peer. This is because both the peers run different versions
of the software image. To avoid this situation, the user should not bring up the Peer 2, or execute the VPC
shutdown command on it, until the Peer 2 is also upgraded to higher version software image.
Role of the Layer 2 MCECM in vPC Shutdown

When you execute the shutdown command, the Multichassis EtherChannel Module (MCECM) stops the
keep-alive messages and brings down the peer-link. If the vPC peer switch does not receive keep-alive messages
in 5 seconds, it assumes the primary role.
Moving Other Port Channels into a vPC
Note You must attach a downstream device using a port channel to both vPC peer devices.
To connect to the downstream device, you create a port channel to the downstream device from the primary
vPC peer device and you create another port channel to the downstream device from the secondary peer device.
device. You will experience minimal traffic disruption when you are creating vPCs.
Configuring vPC Peer Links and Links to the Core on a Single Module
Note We recommend that you configure the vPC peer links on dedicated ports of different modules to reduce
the possibility of a failure. For the best resiliency scenario, use at least two modules.
single module, you should configure, using the command-line interface, a track object and a track list that is
associated with the Layer 3 link to the core and on all vPC peer links on both vPC peer devices. You use this
configuration to avoid dropping traffic if that particular module goes down because when all the tracked
objects on the track list go down, the system does the following:
• Stops the vPC primary peer device sending peer-keepalive messages, which forces the vPC secondary
peer device to take over.
• Brings down all the downstream vPCs on that vPC peer device, which forces all the traffic to be rerouted
in the access switch toward the other vPC peer device.
Once you configure this feature and if the module fails, the system automatically suspends all the vPC links
on the primary vPC peer device and stops the peer-keepalive messages. This action forces the vPC secondary

223
Configuring vPCs
Configuring vPC Peer Links and Links to the Core on a Single Module
device to take over the primary role and all the vPC traffic to go to this new vPC primary device until the
system stabilizes.
You should create a track list that contains all the links to the core and all the vPC peer links as its object.
Enable tracking for the specified vPC domain for this track list. Apply this same configuration to the other
vPC peer device. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information
about configuring object tracking and track lists.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information about
configuring object tracking.
Note This example uses Boolean OR in the track list and forces all traffic to the vPC peer device only for a
complete module failure. If you want to trigger a switchover when any core interface or peer link goes
down, use a Boolean AND in the track list below.
A vPC deployment with a single Cisco Nexus 7000 Series M132XP-12 module or M108XP-12 module, where
the L3 core uplinks and vPC peer-link interfaces are localized on the same module, is vulnerable to access
layer isolation if the 10-Gbps module fails on the primary vPC (vPC member ports are defined on both 1-Gbps
line cards and on 10-Gbps line card).
To configure a track list to switch over a vPC to the remote peer when all related interfaces on a single module
fail, follow these steps:
1 Configure track objects on an interface (Layer 3 to core) and on a port channel (vPC peer link).
switch(config-if)# track 35 interface ethernet 8/35 line-protocol
switch(config-track)# track 23 interface ethernet 8/33 line-protocol
switch(config)# track 55 interface port-channel 100 line-protocol
2 Create a track list that contains all the interfaces in the track list using the Boolean OR to trigger when all
objects fail.
switch(config)# track 44 list boolean OR
switch(config-track)# object 23
switch(config-track)# end
3 Add this track object to the vPC domain:

switch(config)# vpc domain 1
switch(config-vpc-domain)# track 44
4 Display the track object:

switch# show vpc brief
Legend:
(*) - local vPC is down, forwarding via vPC peer-link
vPC domain id : 1
Peer status : peer adjacency formed ok
vPC keep-alive status : peer is alive
Configuration consistency status : success
vPC role : secondary
Number of vPCs configured : 52
Track object : 44
vPC Peer-link status
---------------------------------------------------------------------
id Port Status Active vlans
-- ---- ------ --------------------------------------------------
1 Po100 up 1-5,140
vPC status
----------------------------------------------------------------------
id Port Status Consistency Reason Active vlans

224
Configuring vPCs
vPC Interactions with Other Features
-- ---- ------ ----------- -------------------------- ------------

1 Po1 up success success 1-5,140
This example shows how to display information about the track objects:
switch# show track brief
Track Type Instance Parameter State Last
Change
23 Interface Ethernet8/33 Line Protocol UP 00:03:05
35 Interface Ethernet8/35 Line Protocol UP 00:03:15
44 List ----- Boolean
or UP 00:01:19
55 Interface port-channel100 Line Protocol UP 00:00:34
vPC and LACP

LACP uses the system MAC address of the vPC domain to form the LACP Aggregation Group (LAG) ID
for the vPC. (See Chapter 6, “Configuring Port Channels” for information about LAG-ID and LACP.)
You can use LACP on all the vPC port channels, including those channels from the downstream device. We
recommend that you configure LACP with active mode on the interfaces on each port channel on the vPC
peer devices. This configuration allows you to more easily detect compatibility between devices, unidirectional
links, and multihop connection, and provides dynamic reaction to run-time changes and link failures.
With M Series modules and LACP, a vPC peer link supports 16 LACP interfaces: 8 active links and 8 hot
standby links. You can configure 16 LACP links on the downstream vPC channel: 8 active links and 8 hot
standby links. If you configure the port channels without using LACP, you can have only 8 links in each
channel. With F-Series line cards, a vPC peer link and downstream vPC channels support up to 16 active
LACP links. You can have 16 links in each channel even if the port channels are not configured using LACP.
We recommend that you manually configure the system priority on the vPC peer link devices to ensure that
the vPC peer link devices have a higher LACP priority than the downstream connected devices. A lower
numerical value system priority means a higher LACP priority.
Note When manually configuring the system priority, you must ensure that you assign the same priority value
on both vPC peer devices. If the vPC peer devices have different system priority values, vPC does not
come up.
vPC Peer Links and STP

Although vPCs provide a loop-free Layer 2 topology, STP is still required to provide a fail-safe mechanism
to protect against any incorrect or defective cabling or possible misconfiguration. When you first bring up a
vPC, STP reconverges. STP treats the vPC peer link as a special link and always includes the vPC peer link
in the STP active topology.
When the port-channel is designated as the vPC peer link, the spanning-tree port type network command is
added and so the port-channel becomes the bridge assurance port. We recommend that you do not enable any
of the STP enhancement features on vPC peer links. If the STP enhancements are already configured, they
do not cause any problems for the vPC peer links.

225
Configuring vPCs
When you are running both MST and Rapid PVST+, ensure that the PVST simulation feature is correctly
configured.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for information about STP
enhancement features and PVST simulation.
You must configure a list of parameters to be identical on the vPC peer devices on both sides of the vPC peer
link. See the “Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section for information about these required
matched settings.
STP is distributed; that is, the protocol continues running on both vPC peer devices. However, the configuration
on the vPC peer device elected as the primary device controls the STP process for the vPC interfaces on the
secondary vPC peer device.
The primary vPC device synchronizes the STP state on the vPC secondary peer device using Cisco Fabric
Services over Ethernet (CFSoE). See the “Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet” section for information about
CFSoE.
The STP process for vPC also relies on the periodic keepalive messages to determine when one of the connected
devices on the peer link fails. See the “Peer-Keepalive Link and Messages” section for information about these
messages.
The vPC manager performs a proposal/handshake agreement between the vPC peer devices that set the primary
and secondary devices and coordinates the two devices for STP. The primary vPC peer device then controls
the STP protocol on both the primary and secondary devices. We recommend that you configure the primary
vPC peer device as the STP primary root device and configure the secondary VPC device to be the STP
secondary root device.
If the primary vPC peer device fails over to the secondary vPC peer device, there is no change in the STP
topology.
The BPDUs uses the MAC address set for the vPC for the STP bridge ID in the designated bridge ID field.
The vPC primary device sends these BPDUs on the vPC interfaces.
You must configure both ends of vPC peer link with the identical STP configuration for the following
parameters:
• STP global settings:
◦STP mode
◦STP region configuration for MST
◦Enable/disable state per VLAN
◦Bridge Assurance setting
◦Loop Guard settings

◦Loop Guard
◦Root Guard

226
Configuring vPCs
Note If any of these parameters are misconfigured, the Cisco NX-OS software suspends all interfaces in the
vPC. Check the syslog and enter the show vpc brief command to see if the vPC interfaces are suspended.
Ensure that the following STP interface configurations are identical on both sides of the vPC peer links or
you may see unpredictable behavior in the traffic flow:
• BPDU Filter
• BPDU Guard
• Cost
• Link type
• Priority
• VLANs (PVRST+)
Note Display the configuration on both sides of the vPC peer link to ensure that the settings are identical.
You can use the show spanning-tree command to display information about the vPC when that feature is
enabled. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for an example.
We recommend that you configure the ports on the downstream devices as STP edge ports. You should
configure all host ports connected to a switch as STP edge ports. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for more information about STP port types.
Note If you bridge two VLANs on a Nexus 7000 peer-switch, with an Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) in
a transparent mode, the switch puts one of the VLAN in a STP dispute. To avoid this, disable peer-switch
or STP on the ports.
vPC Peer Switch

The vPC peer switch feature is enabled on Cisco NX-OS Release 5.0(2) to address performance concerns
around STP convergence. This feature allows a pair of Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices to appear as a single
STP root in the Layer 2 topology. This feature eliminates the need to pin the STP root to the vPC primary
switch and improves vPC convergence if the vPC primary switch fails.
To avoid loops, the vPC peer link is excluded from the STP computation. In vPC peer switch mode, STP
BPDUs are sent from both the vPC peer devices to avoid issues related to STP BPDU timeout on the
downstream switches, which can cause traffic disruption.
This feature can be used with the vPC topology (non-hybrid), in which all the devices belong to the vPC
topology.

227
Configuring vPCs
Note The Peer-switch feature on networks that use vPC and STP-based redundancy is not supported. If the vPC
peer-link fails in a hybrid peer-switch configuration, you can lose traffic. In this scenario, the vPC peers
use the same STP root ID as well as the same bridge ID. The access switch traffic is split in two with half
traffic going to the first vPC peer and the other half traffic to the second vPC peer. With peer link failure,
there is no impact to the north/south traffic but the east/west traffic is lost.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide for information about STP
enhancement features and Rapid PVST+.
vPC Peer Link's Designated Forwarder

From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.0, Cisco NX-OS provides a way to control two peers to be partially designated
forwarders when both vPC paths are up. When this control is enabled, each peer can be the designated forwarder
for multi-destination southbound packets for a disjoint set of RBHs/FTAGs (depending on the hardware).
The designated forwarder is negotiated on a per-vPC basis. This control is enabled with the fabricpath
multicast load-balance command which is configured under vPC domain mode, for example:

switch(config-vpc-domain)# fabricpath multicast load-balance
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), this feature is automatically enabled when the mode auto command is
used. See the “Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically” section for more information about using
this command.
Note Only an F2-series module supports multicast load balancing. On an F1-series module, the configuration
is supported, but load balancing does not occur.
Note The fabricpath multicast load-balance command is required for configuring vPC+ with FEX ports.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS FabricPath Configuration Guide for more detailed information on
enabling designated forwarders on vPCs.
vPC and ARP or ND

A feature was added in the Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(6) to address table synchronization across vPC peers
using the reliable transport mechanism of the Cisco Fabric Service over Ethernet (CFSoE) protocol. You must
enable the ip arp synchronize and ipv6 nd synchronize commands to support faster convergence of address
tables between the vPC peers. This convergence overcomes the delay that occurs in ARP table restoration for
IPv4 or ND table restoration for IPv6 when the peer link port channel flaps or when a vPC peer comes back
online.

228
Configuring vPCs
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you can use the mode auto command to automatically enable this
feature. See the “Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically” section for information about using
this command.
vPC Multicast—PIM, IGMP, and IGMP Snooping
Note The Cisco NX-OS software for the Nexus 7000 Series devices does not support Product Independent
Multicast (PIM), Source-Specific Multicast(SSM) or Bidirectional (BIDR) on a vPC. The Cisco NX-OS
software fully supports PIM Any Source Multicast (ASM) on a vPC.
The software keeps the multicast forwarding state synchronized on both of the vPC peer devices. The IGMP
snooping process on a vPC peer device shares the learned group information with the other vPC peer device
through the vPC peer link; the multicast states are always synchronized on both vPC peer devices. The PIM
process in vPC mode ensures that only one of the vPC peer devices forwards the multicast traffic to the
receivers.
Each vPC peer is a Layer 2 or Layer 3 device. Multicast traffic flows from only one of the vPC peer devices.
You might see duplicate packets in the following scenarios:
• Orphan hosts
• When the source and receivers are in the Layer 2 vPC cloud in different VLANs with multicast routing
enabled and a vPC member link goes down.
You might see negligible traffic loss in the following scenarios:

• When you reload the vPC peer device that is forwarding the traffic.
• When you restart PIM on the vPC peer device that is forwarding the traffic.
Ensure that you dual-attach all Layer 3 devices to both vPC peer devices. If one vPC peer device goes down,
the other vPC peer device continues to forward all multicast traffic normally.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference for information about commands
that display information on a vPC and multicast.
The following outlines vPC PIM and vPC IGMP/IGMP snooping:
• vPC PIM—The PIM process in vPC mode ensures that only one vPC peer device forwards multicast
traffic. The PIM process in vPC mode synchronizes the source state with both vPC peer devices and
elects which vPC peer device forwards the traffic.
• vPC IGMP/IGMP snooping—The IGMP process in vPC mode synchronizes the designated router (DR)
information on both vPC peer devices. Dual DRs are available for IGMP when you are in vPC mode.
Dual DRs are not available when you are not in vPC mode, because both vPC peer devices maintain the
multicast group information between the peers.

229
Configuring vPCs
Note A PIM neighbor relationship between a vPC VLAN (a VLAN that is carried on a vPC peer link) and a
downstream vPC-attached Layer 3 device is not supported, which can result in dropped multicast packets.
If a PIM neighbor relationship is required with a downstream Layer 3 device, a physical Layer 3 interface
must be used instead of a vPC interface.
You should enable or disable IGMP snooping identically on both vPC peer devices, and all the feature
configurations should be identical. IGMP snooping is on by default.
Note The following commands are not supported in vPC mode:

• ip pim spt-threshold infinity
• ip pim use-shared-tree-only
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Multicast Routing Configuration Guide for more information
about multicasting.
Multicast PIM Dual DR (Proxy DR )

By default, a multicast router sends PIM joins upstream only if it has interested receivers. These interested
receivers can either be IGMP hosts (they communicate through IGMP reports) or other multicast routers (they
communicate through PIM joins).
In the Cisco NX-OS vPC implementation (in non-F2 mode), PIM works in dual designated router (DR) mode.
That is, if a vPC device is a DR on a vPC SVI outgoing interface (OIF), its peer automatically assumes the
proxy DR role. IGMP adds an OIF (the report is learned on that OIF) to the forwarding if the OIF is a DR.
With dual DRs, both vPC devices have an identical (*,G) entry with respect to the vPC SVI OIFs as shown
in this example:
VPC Device1:
------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
VPC Device2:
------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
IP PIM PRE-BUILD SPT

When the multicast source is in a Layer 3 cloud (outside the vPC domain), one vPC peer is elected as the
forwarder for the source. This forwarder election is based on the metrics to reach the source. If there is a tie,
the vPC primary is chosen as the forwarder. Only the forwarder has the vPC OIFs in its associated (S,G) and
the nonforwarder (S,G) has 0 OIFs. Therefore, only the forwarder sends PIM (S,G) joins toward the source
as shown in this example:
VPC Device1 (say this is Forwarder for Source 'S'):
------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)

230
Configuring vPCs
(S,G)
oif1 (mrib)
VPC Device2:
------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
(S,G)
NULL
In the case of a failure (for example, a Layer 3 Reverse Path Forwarding(RPF) link on the forwarder becomes
inoperational or the forwarder gets reloaded), if the current nonforwarder ends up becoming the forwarder,
it has to start sending PIM joins for (S,G) toward the source to pull the traffic. Depending upon the number
of hops to reach the source, this operation might take some time (PIM is a hop-by-hop protocol).
To eliminate this issue and get better convergence, use the ip pim pre-build-spt command. This command
enables PIM send joins even if the multicast route has 0 OIFs. In a vPC device, the nonforwarder sends PIM
(S,G) joins upstream toward the source. The downside is that the link bandwidth upstream from the
nonforwarder gets used for the traffic that is ultimately dropped by it. The benefits that result with better
convergence far outweigh the link bandwidth usage. Therefore, we recommend that you use this command
if you use vPCs.
PIM DUAL DR and IP PIM PRE-BUILD SPT with VPC Peer Link on F2 Modules
In the vPC implementation in F2-mode, because of a hardware limitation, the PIM dual DR mode is disabled.
As a result, only the PIM DR adds the OIF, and the states are shown in this example:
Case 1: One OIF
===============
VPC Device1 (say this is PIM DR on oif1):
----------------------------------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
VPC Device2:
------------
(*,G) will not be created.
When the source traffic is received, only vPC Device 1 adds the (S,G) route.
----------------------------------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
(S,G)
oif1 (mrib)
VPC Device2:
------------
(*, G) will not be created.
(S, G) will not be created.
In this case (with F2 mode), even if you enter the ip pim pre-build-spt command, no value is added because
the corresponding (S,G) route is not created in the first place.
Case 2: Two OIFs
================
----------------------------------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)

----------------------------------------

231
Configuring vPCs
(*,G)
oif2 (igmp)
When the source traffic is received, associated OIFs are inherited by the (S,G) routes as shown in this example:
----------------------------------------
(*,G)
oif1 (igmp)
(S,G)
oif1 (mrib)

----------------------------------------
(*,G)
oif2 (igmp)
(S,G)
oif2 (mrib)
In the case of a vPC peer link with F2 modules, you do not need to enter the ip pim pre-build-spt command
because PIM sends (S,G) joins upstream because associated routes have a non-NULL oiflist.
Note Do not enter the ip pim pre-build-spt command if the vPC feature is enabled in F2 mode.
vPC Peer Links and Routing

The First Hop Routing Protocols (FHRPs) interoperate with vPCs. The Hot Standby Routing Protocol (HSRP),
Gateway Load Balancing Protocol (GLBP), and Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP) all interoperate
with vPCs. We recommend that you dual-attach all Layer 3 devices to both vPC peer devices.
The primary FHRP device responds to ARP requests, even though the secondary vPC device forwards the
data traffic.
To simplify initial configuration verification and vPC/HSRP troubleshooting, you can configure the primary
vPC peer device with the FHRP active router highest priority.
In addition, you can use the priority command in the if-hsrp configuration mode to configure failover thresholds
for when a group state enabled on a vPC peer link is in standby or in listen state. You can configure lower
and upper thresholds to prevent the interface from going up and down.
VRRP acts similarly to HSRP when running on vPC peer devices. You should configure VRRP the same way
that you configure HSRP. For GLBP, the forwarders on both vPC peer devices forward traffic.
When the primary vPC peer device fails over to the secondary vPC peer device, the FHRP traffic continues
to flow seamlessly.
We recommend that you configure routing adjacency between the two vPC peer devices to act as a backup
routing path. If one vPC peer device loses Layer 3 uplinks, the vPC can redirect the routed traffic to the other
vPC peer device and leverage its active Layer 3 uplinks.
You can configure the inter-switch link for a backup routing path in the following ways:
• Create a Layer 3 link between the two vPC peer devices.
• Use the non-VPC VLAN trunk with a dedicated VLAN interface.
• Use a vPC peer link with a dedicated VLAN interface.

232
Configuring vPCs
We do not recommend that you configure the burnt-in MAC address option (use-bia) for HSRP or manually
configure virtual MAC addresses for any FHRP protocol in a vPC environment because these configurations
can adversely affect vPC load balancing. The HSRP use-bia option is not supported on vPCs. When you are
configuring custom MAC addresses, you must configure the same MAC address on both vPC peer devices.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1), you can use the delay restore command to configure a restore timer that
delays the vPC coming back up until after the peer adjacency forms and the VLAN interfaces are back up.
This feature enables you to avoid packet drops when the routing tables might not be converged before the
vPC is once again passing traffic. Use the delay restore command to configure this feature.
To delay the VLAN interfaces on the restored vPC peer device from coming up, use the interfaces-vlan option
to the delay restore command.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for more information about
FHRPs and routing.
Cisco Fabric Services Over Ethernet

The Cisco Fabric Services over Ethernet (FSoE) is a reliable state transport mechanism that is used to
synchronize the actions of the vPC peer devices. Cisco FSoE carries messages and packets for many features
linked with vPC, such as STP and IGMP. Information is carried in Cisco Fabric Service or Cisco FSoE protocol
data units (PDUs).
When you enable the vPC feature, the device automatically enables Cisco FSoE, and you do not have to
configure anything. Cisco FSoE distributions for vPCs do not need the capabilities to distribute over IP or the
FS regions. You do not need to configure anything for the Cisco FSoE feature to work correctly on vPCs.
The Cisco FSoE transport is local to each VDC.
You can use the show mac address-table command to display the MAC addresses that Cisco FSoE
synchronizes for the vPC peer link.
Note Do not enter the no cfs eth distribute or the no cfs distribute command. You must enable Cisco FSoE
for vPC functionality. If you do enter either of these commands with vPC enabled, the system displays
an error message.
When you enter the show cfs application command, the output displays “Physical-eth,” which shows the
applications that are using Cisco FSoE.
Cisco Fabric Service also transports data over TCP/IP. See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System
Management Configuration Guide for more information about Cisco Fabric Service over IP.
Note The software does not support Cisco Fabric Service regions.
vPC and Orphan Ports

When a device that is not vPC-capable connects to each peer, the connected ports are known as orphan ports
because they are not members of a vPC. The device’s link to one peer will be active (forwarding) and the
other link will be standby (blocking) due to STP.

233
Configuring vPCs
vPC Recovery After an Outage
If a peer link failure or restoration occurs, an orphan port’s connectivity might be bound to the vPC failure or
restoration process. For example, if a device’s active orphan port connects to the secondary vPC peer, the
device loses any connections through the primary peer if a peer link failure occurs and the vPC ports are
suspended by the secondary peer. If the secondary peer were to also suspend the active orphan port, the device’s
standby port becomes active, provides a connection to the primary peer, and restores connectivity. From Cisco
NX-OS Release 5.2(1), you can configure in the CLI that specific orphan ports are suspended by the secondary
peer when it suspends its vPC ports and are restored when the vPC is restored.
Fibre Channel over Ethernet over Physical Port vPCs

The Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) over Physical Port Virtual Port Channels (vPCs) feature extends the
shared model for physical Ethernet interfaces to vPC interfaces.
Each Ethernet interface that forms a vPC leg is shared between the storage virtual device context (VDC) and
the Ethernet VDC. The shared Ethernet interface carries both FCoE and LAN traffic. Mutually exclusive
FCoE and LAN VLANs are allocated to carry the traffic on the vPC leg; FCoE traffic is carried by the FCoE
VLAN and LAN traffic is carried by the LAN VLAN.
Shutdown LAN
Certain configuration and network parameters must be consistent across peer switches in order for physical
port vDCs to work. If an inconsistency impacting the network (Type 1) is detected, the secondary vPC leg
(the physical link between the access switch and the host) is brought down. With FCoE over physical port
vPC, vPC legs carry both FCoE and LAN traffic so that the FCoE and LAN link are both brought down. The
shutdown LAN feature enables you to shut down or bring up only the LAN VLANs on an Ethernet interface.
vPC Recovery After an Outage

In a data center outage, both of the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices that include a vPC get reloaded.
Occasionally only one peer can be restored. With no functioning peer-keepalive or peer link, the vPC cannot
function normally, but depending on your Cisco NX-OS release, a method might be available to allow vPC
services to use only the local ports of the functional peer.
Restore on Reload
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), the reload restore command and method is deprecated. We recommend
that you use the auto-recovery command and method.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.0(2), you can configure the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device to restore vPC
services when its peer fails to come online by using the reload restore command. You must save this setting
in the startup configuration. On reload, the Cisco NX-OS software starts a user-configurable timer (the default
is 240 seconds). If the peer link port comes up physically or if the peer-keepalive is functional, the timer is
stopped and the device waits for the peer adjacency to form.
If at timer expiration no peer-keepalive or peer link up packets were received, the Cisco NX-OS software
assumes the primary STP role and the primary LACP role. The software reinitializes the vPCs, bringing up
its local ports. Because there are no peers, the consistency check is bypassed for the local vPC ports. The

234
Configuring vPCs
High Availability
device elects itself to be STP primary regardless of its role priority and also acts as the master for LACP port
roles.
Autorecovery
services when its peer fails to come online by using the auto-recovery command. You must save this setting
in the startup configuration. On reload, if the peer link is down and three consecutive peer-keepalive messages
are lost, the secondary device assumes the primary STP role and the primary LACP role. The software
reinitialize the vPCs, bringing up its local ports. Because there are no peers, the consistency check is bypassed
for the local vPC ports. The device elects itself to be the STP primary regardless of its role priority and also
acts as the master for LACP port roles.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you can use the mode auto command to automatically enable this feature.
See the “Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically” section for information about using this command.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1), the secondary device assumes primary role, if the primary peer is
down and 15 keep-alives messages are lost.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1), to enable the secondary peer to take over as the primary peer if the
secondary peer misses 15 keep-alives from primary peer, you can configure auto-recovery command. When
the switch reloads, the auto-recovery timer starts, and the switch takes on the primary STP role if the peer
switch does not respond to it.
When vPC shutdown command is configured, auto-recovery is blocked.
From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2.(2), for auto recovery to occur during the initial boot, the logical peer link
must be down, and no peer keepalive messages must be received. In earlier releases, auto recovery did not
occur if peer kepalive messages were not received and the physical peer link was set to Up status.
vPC Peer Roles After a Recovery

When the other peer device completes its reload and adjacency forms, the following process occurs:
1 The first vPC peer maintains its current role to avoid any transition reset to other protocols. The peer
accepts the other available role.
2 When an adjacency forms, consistency checks are performed and appropriate actions are taken.
High Availability
During an In-Service Software Upgrade (ISSU), the software reload process on the first vPC device locks its
vPC peer device by using CFS messaging over the vPC communications channel. Only one device at a time
is upgraded. When the first device completes its upgrade, it unlocks its peer device. The second device then
performs the upgrade process, locking the first device as it does so. During the upgrade, the two vPC devices
temporarily run different releases of Cisco NX-OS, however the system functions correctly because of its
backward compatibility support.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS High Availability and Redundancy Guide for complete information
about high-availability features.

235
Configuring vPCs
Hitless vPC Role Change
Hitless vPC Role Change

The vPC hitless role change feature provides a framework to switch vPC roles between vPC peers without
impacting traffic flows. The vPC role swapping is done based on the role priority value of the device under
the vPC domain. A vPC peer device with lower role priority is selected as the primary vPC device when the
vpc role preempt command is executed.
Use Case Scenario for Hitless vPC Role Change

The hitless vPC role change feature can be used in the following scenarios:
• Role change request—When you want to change the roles of the peer devices in a vPC domain.
• Primary switch reload—When the devices comes up after a reload and roles are defined, you can use
the hitless vPC role change feature to restore the roles. For example, after a reload if the primary device
takes the role of operational secondary and the secondary device takes the role of primary operational,
you can change the vPC peer roles to their original defined roles using the vpc role preempt command.
Note Always check the existing device role priority before configuring the vpc role preempt
command. Configure no port-channel limit under the vpc domain command before
configuring the vpc role preempt command.
• Dual-active recovery—In a dual-active recovery scenario, the vPC primary switch continues to be
(operational) primary, but the vPC secondary switch becomes the targeted primary switch and keeps its
vPC member ports up. You can use the vPC hitless feature and restore the device roles. After the
Dual-active recovery, if one side is operational primary and the other side operational secondary, then
you can use the the vpc role preempt command to restore the device roles to be primary and secondary.
vPC Configuration Synchronization

Virtual port channels (vPC) topologies require identical configurations on peer switches. As a result, you must
repeat configurations on both peer switches. This process, which can cause errors due to misconfigurations
or omissions, can result in additional service disruptions because of mismatched configurations. Configuration
synchronization eliminates these problems by allowing you to configure one switch and automatically
synchronize the configuration on the peer switch.
In a vPC topology, each Cisco Nexus 7000 Series switch must have some matching parameters. You can use
a vPC consistency check to verify that both Cisco Nexus 7000 Series switches have the same configuration
(Type 1 or Type 2). If they do not match, depending on whether it is a global (for example, spanning-tree port
mode), a port-level (for example, speed, duplex, or channel-group type), or even a port-channel interface, the
vPC can go into a suspended state or a VLAN can go into a blocking state on both peer switches. As a result,
you must ensure that the configuration from one switch is copied identically to the peer switch.
Configuration synchronization allows you to synchronize the configuration between a pair of switches in a
network. Configuration synchronization and vPCs are two independent features and configuration
synchronization does not eliminate vPC consistency checks. The checks will continue. If there is a configuration
mismatch, the vPC can still go into a suspended state.

236
Configuring vPCs
Benefits of vPC Configuration Synchronization
In a FEX Active-Active setup:

• All the Host Interfaces (HIFs) ports are mapped to the internal vPC.
• The vPC Config-Sync feature listens to the internal vPC creation notification and triggers a merge of
the HIF port configuration.
• All the future HIF configuration are synchronized with the peer switch, if the merge is successful.
• The status of HIF is marked as "peer out of synchronization" and the configuration of the interface is
not synchronized, if the merge fails.
• We recommend that you disable vpc-config-sync command before starting ASCII configuration. After
the ASCII configuration is completed, enable config-sync command for regular operation.
Note • vPC peer-link should be configured and up state.

• You cannot chose which commands are synchronized.
Benefits of vPC Configuration Synchronization

Configuration synchronization benefits are as follows:
• Provides a mechanism to synchronize configuration from one switch to another switch.
• Merges configurations when connectivity is established between peers.
• Provides mutual exclusion for commands.
• Supports existing session and port profile functionality.
• Provides minimal user intervention.
• Minimizes the possibility of user error.
Supported Commands for vPC Configuration Synchronization

The following types of commands are enabled for configuration synchronization:
Note The show vpc config-sync cli syntax command lists all the commands that are enabled for configuration
synchronization. You cannot choose which commands are synchronized. For more information, see the
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Command Reference.
• Type-1 configurations:
◦Global configurations
◦vPC member port-channel configurations

237
Configuring vPCs
Configuring vPCs
• vPC configurations.
Note The configurations can be given on either of the vPC peer switches.
Configuring vPCs
Enabling vPCs
Before You Begin
• You must enable the vPC functionality before you can configure and use vPCs.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature vpc Enables vPCs on the device.
Step 4 switch# show feature (Optional)

Displays which features are enabled on the device.

configuration.
This example shows how to enable the vPC feature:

switch(config)# feature vpc
Disabling vPCs
Note When you disable the vPC functionality, the device clears all the vPC configurations.

238
Configuring vPCs
Creating a vPC Domain and Entering vpc-domain Mode
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# no feature vpc Disables vPCs on the device.
Step 4 switch# show feature (Optional)

Displays which features are enabled on the device.

configuration.
This example shows how to disable the vPC feature:

switch(config)# no feature vpc
Creating a vPC Domain and Entering vpc-domain Mode

You can create a vPC domain and put the vPC peer link port channels into the identical vPC domain on both
vPC peer devices. Use a unique vPC domain number throughout a single VDC. This domain ID is used to
automatically to form the vPC system MAC address.
You can also use this command to enter vpc-domain command mode.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you are in the correct VDC (if you are not in the correct VDC, use the switchto vdc
command).
• Ensure that you have enabled the vPC feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vpc domain Creates a vPC domain on the device, and enters
domain-id vpc-domain configuration mode for configuration

239
Configuring vPCs
Configuring a vPC Keepalive Link and Messages

purposes. There is no default; the range is from 1 to
1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# exit Exits vpc-domain configuration mode.
Step 4 switch# show vpc brief (Optional)

Displays brief information about each vPC domain.

configuration.
This example shows how to create a vPC domain:

switch(config-vpc-domain)# exit
This example shows how to enter the vpc-domain command mode to configure an existing vPC domain:
Configuring a vPC Keepalive Link and Messages
Note You must configure the vPC peer-keepalive link before the system can form the vPC peer link.
You can configure the destination IP for the peer-keepalive link that carries the keepalive messages. Optionally,
you can configure other parameters for the keepalive messages.
Note We recommend that you configure a separate VRF instance and put a Layer 3 port from each vPC peer
device into that VRF for the vPC peer-keepalive link. Do not use the peer link itself to send vPC
peer-keepalive messages. For information about creating and configuring VRFs, see the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide. Ensure that both the source and destination
IP addresses use for the peer-keepalive message are unique in your network.
The management port and management VRF are the defaults for these keepalive messages.
Before You Begin


240
Configuring vPCs
Creating a vPC Peer Link
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vpc domain domain-id Creates a vPC domain on the device, and enters
vpc-domain configuration mode for configuration
1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-keepalive Configures the IPv4 address for the remote end of the
destination ip address [hold-timeout secs vPC peer-keepalive link.
| interval msecs {timeout secs} | Note The system does not form the vPC peer link
{precedence {prec-value | network | until you configure a vPC peer-keepalive
internet | critical | flash-override | flash | link.
immediate | priority | routine}} | {tos The management ports and VRF are the defaults.
{tos-value | max-reliability |
max-throughput | min-delay | Note We recommend that you configure a separate
min-monetary-cost | normal}} | tos-byte VRF and use a Layer 3 port from each vPC
tos-byte-value} | source ipaddress | peer device in that VRF for the vPC
udp-port number | vrf {name | peer-keepalive link. For more information
management | vpc-keepalive}] about creating and configuring VRFs, see
the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast
Routing Configuration Guide.
Step 5 switch# show vpc statistics (Optional)

Displays information about the configuration for the
keepalive messages.

configuration.
For more information about configuring VRFs, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing
This example shows how to configure the destination and source IP address and VRF for the vPC-peer-keepalive
link:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-keepalive destination 172.168.1.2 source 172.168.1.1 vrf
vpc-keepalive

You create the vPC peer link by designating the port channel that you want on each device as the peer link
for the specified vPC domain. We recommend that you configure the Layer 2 port channels that you are

241
Configuring vPCs
designating as the vPC peer link in trunk mode and that you use two ports on separate modules on each vPC
peer device for redundancy.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you are using a Layer 2 port channel.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface Selects the port channel that you want to use as the vPC
port-channel channel-number peer link for this device, and enters interface
configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport mode (Optional)

trunk Configures this interface in trunk mode.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport trunk (Optional)

allowed vlan vlan-list Configures the permitted VLAN list.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# vpc peer-link Configures the selected port channel as the vPC peer
link, and enters vpc-domain configuration mode.
Note When the port-channel is designated as the vPC
peer link, the spanning-tree port type network
command is added, so the port-channel becomes
the bridge assurance port.

Displays information about each vPC, including
information about the vPC peer link.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure a vPC peer link:

switch(config-if)# switchport mode
switch(config-if)# switchport trunk allowed vlan 1-120,201-3967
switch(config-if)# vpc peer-link

242
Configuring vPCs
Configuring Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX
Configuring Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface name Specifies the interface that you want to add to a physical
number port, and enters the interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Configures the interface as a Layer 2 switching port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# vpc number Configures the selected physical interface into the vPC to
connect to the downstream device, and enters interface
vPC configuration mode. You can use any module in the
device for the physical interface. The range is from 1 and
4096.
Note The vPC number that you assign to the physical
interface connecting to the downstream device
from the vPC peer device must be identical on
both vPC peer devices.
Step 5 switch(config-if-vpc)# lacp mode Enables LACP on the physical port.
active Note Static mode can also be
used.
Step 6 switch(config-if-vpc)# exit Exits the interface vPC configuration mode.
Step 7 switch(config-if)# exit Exits the interface configuration mode.
Step 8 switch(config)# exit Exits the global configuration mode.

interface name number Displays information about the interface.
This example shows how to configure Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX modules:
switch(config-if)# vpc 10
switch(config-if-vpc)# lacp mode active
switch(config-if-vpc)# exit
switch# show running-config interface
This example shows how to verify the LACP mode:

switch# show running-config interface
Interface Ethernet1/1
no shutdown
Switchport

243
Configuring vPCs
Creating VLAN on vPC
vpc 1
lacp mode active
Creating VLAN on vPC

vPC VLAN is a VLAN that is allowed on vPC member port and vPC peer-link. When configuring large
number of VLANs in a vPC environment, it is recommended to configure the VLANs simultaneously by
specifying the range of VLANs, instead of configuring one VLAN at a time.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vlan 200-299 Configures VLANs in the range 200 to 299 and
enters the VLAN configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-vlan)# exit Exits the VLAN configuration mode.
This example shows how to configure 100 VLANs and name each of them:
switch(config)# vlan 200-299
switch(config-vlan)# exit
switch(config)# vlan 201
switch(config-vlan)# name finance
Configuring Layer 3 over vPC for F2E and F3 Modules

Before You Begin
• Ensure that the peer-gateway in enabled and configured on both the peers and both the peers are running
image that supports Layer 3 over vPC feature. If you enter the layer3 peer-router command without
enabling the peer-gateway feature, a syslog message is displayed recommending you to enable the
peer-gateway feature.
• Ensure that the peer link is up

244
Configuring vPCs
Configuring a vPC Peer Gateway
Procedure

1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# layer3 Enables the Layer 3 device to form peering adjacency
peer-router with both peers.
Note Configure this command in both the
peers.

(Optional) Displays brief information about each vPC
domain.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure a Layer 3 over vPC for F2, F2E, and F3 modules:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# layer3 peer-router
This example shows how to verify if the Layer 3 over vPC for F2, F2E, and F3 modules feature is configured:
vPC domain id : 1
Peer status : peer adjacency formed ok
vPC keep-alive status : peer is alive
Configuration consistency status : success
Per-vlan consistency status : failed
Type-2 consistency status : success
Number of vPCs configured : 2
Peer Gateway : Enabled
Peer gateway excluded VLANs : -
Dual-active excluded VLANs : -
Graceful Consistency Check : Enabled
Auto-recovery status : Enabled (timeout = 240 seconds)
Operational Layer3 Peer : Enabled
Configuring a vPC Peer Gateway

From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2(1) and later releases, you can configure vPC peer devices to act as the gateway
for packets that are destined to the vPC peer device's MAC address.

245
Configuring vPCs
Configuring a Graceful Consistency Check
When you attach a Layer 3 device to a vPC domain, the peering of routing protocols using a VLAN also
carried on the vPC peer-link is not supported. If routing protocol adjacencies are needed between vPC peer
devices and a generic Layer 3 device, you must use physical routed interfaces for the interconnection. Use of
the vPC peer-gateway feature does not change this requirement.
Before You Begin

Procedure

purposes. There is no default; the range is from 1 to 1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enables Layer 3 forwarding for packets destined to the

peer-gateway peer's gateway MAC address.
Step 4 switch(config-vpc-domain)# (Optional)

peer-gateway exclude-vlan From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1(3), avoids software
backup-vlan-id switching of transit VLAN traffic in a mixed chassis
mode.
See the “vPC Peer Gateway” section for more
information.

Displays brief information about each vPC, including
information about the vPC peer link..

configuration.
Configuring a Graceful Consistency Check

From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), you can configure the graceful consistency check feature, which is enabled
by default. Unless this feature is enabled, the vPC is completely suspended when a mismatch in a mandatory
compatibility parameter is introduced in a working vPC. When this feature is enabled, only the links on the
secondary peer device are suspended. See the “Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section for
information about consistent configurations on the vPCs.

246
Configuring vPCs
Configuring vPC Shutdown
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Specifies that only the links on the secondary peer device
graceful consistency-check are suspended when a mismatch is detected in a mandatory
compatibility parameter.
Use the no form of this command to disable the feature.

This example shows how to enable the graceful consistency check feature:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# graceful consistency-check
Configuring vPC Shutdown

From Cisco NX-OS Release 7.2(0)D1(1), you can use the shutdown command to isolate a switch from a vPC
complex before it is debugged, reloaded, or even removed physically, so that the vPC traffic passing through
the peer vPC switch in the vPC complex is not affected.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vpc domain Creates a vPC domain on the device, and enters vpc-domain
domain-id configuration mode for configuration purposes. There is no
default; the range is from 1 to 1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Shuts down the peer to isolate it for debugging, reloading,
shutdown or physically removing it from the vPC complex, and
enables the peer vPC switch to take over as the primary
peer.

247
Configuring vPCs
Configuring vPC Config Synchronization

Step 4 switch(config-vpc-domain)# exit Exits vPC-domain configuration mode.
This example shows how to enable the graceful consistency check feature:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# shutdown
Enabling vPC Configuration Synchronization

Before You Begin
• You must create identical vPC domain IDs on both vPC peer switches.
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enables vPC configuration synchronization.
config-sync Note This command must be configured on both the
primary and secondary switch.
The table below shows the process of configuration synchronization on switch 1 and switch 2:
Primary Switch Secondary Switch
switch-1# configure terminal switch-2# configure terminal

switch-1(config)# vpc domain 300 switch-2(config)# vpc domain 300
switch-1(config-vpc-domain)# config-sync switch-2(config-vpc-domain)# config-sync
Configuration synchronization is enabled on both switches in the same vPC domain.
switch-1# configure terminal

switch-1(config)# spanning-tree mode mst

248
Configuring vPCs

The above configuration is applied on the primary switch and is configuration synchronized to the secondary
switch.
The configuration is either successfully applied to both switches or will be failed on both.
switch-1# show running-config switch-2# show running-config

... ...
spanning-tree mode mst spanning-tree mode mst
... ...

switch-2(config)# spanning-tree port type
switch-2 default
The configuration is applied on the secondary switch and is configuration synchronized to the primary
switch.
Note The configuration can be applied to either
switch.
switch-1# show running-config switch-2# show running-config

... ...
spanning-tree port type network default spanning-tree port type network default
... ...
Synchronizing Configuration for a Physical Port vPC

Before You Begin
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface type Specifies the vPC physical port, and enters interface
Step 3 switch(config-if)# vpc vpc-id [sync Moves port channel into a vPC and enters interface vPC
{export | import}] configuration mode. The range is from 1 to 4096.
• sync export enables the primary switch
configuration to be exported to the secondary
switch.
• sync import enables the secondary switch
configuration to be imported to primary switch.

249
Configuring vPCs

running-config interface ethernet Displays the running configuration for the physical port.
slot/port
Asymmetric Mapping
The table below shows the process of enabling configuration synchronization (asymmetric mapping) on the
vPC physical port on the primary and the secondary switch:

switch-1(config)# interface eth1/1
switch-1(config-if)# vpc 100
The physical port (ethernet1/1) is added to the vPC 100 domain on the primary switch.
vPC 100 is not configured on the secondary switch. The configuration will not be synchronized until vPC
100 is added to the secondary switch.

switch-2(config)# interface eth2/3
Following the configuration of vPC 100 to the secondary switch, the physical ports (interface ethernet2/3
on the secondary switch and interface ethernet1/1 on the primary switch) will be configuration synchronized.
Symmetric Mapping
The table below shows the process of enabling configuration synchronization (symmetric mapping) on the
vPC physical port on the primary and the secondary switch:
Primary switch Secondary switch
switch-1# configure terminal switch-2# configure terminal

switch-1(config)# interface eth1/1 switch-2(config)# interface eth1/1
switch-1(config-if)# vpc 100 symmetric
The physical port (ethernet1/1) is added to the vPC 100 domain on the primary switch. The physical port
(ethernet 1/1) is also present on the secondary switch.
The configuration of the physical port on both the primary and secondary switch will be kept in
synchronization.
switch-1# show running-config interface switch-2# show running-config interface

eth1/10 eth1/10
interface ethernet1/1 interface ethernet1/1

switchport switchport
switchport mode trunk switchport mode trunk
vpc 100 vpc 100

250
Configuring vPCs
Synchronizing Configuration of vPC Member Port Channel

Before You Begin
Procedure

port-channel channel-number peer link for this device, and enters interface
configuration mode.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# vpc vpc-id [sync Moves port channel into a vPC and enters interface vPC
{export | import}] configuration mode. The range is from 1 to 4096.
• sync export enables the primary switch
configuration to be exported to the secondary
switch.
• sync import enables the secondary switch
configuration to be imported to primary switch.

running-config interface Displays the running configuration for the port channel.
port-channel channel-number
The table below shows the process of enabling configuration synchronization under port channel 10 on the
primary and the secondary switch:

switch-1(config)# interface port-channel 10
switch-1(config-if)# switchport
The configuration under port-channel 10 is configuration synchronized to the secondary switch.

Note The vpc number command can be given first on either the primary or secondary switch.
switch-2# show running-config interface po10
interface port-channel10
switchport
vpc 10

251
Configuring vPCs

The configuration is applied on the secondary switch and is configuration synchronized to the primary
switch.
Note The configuration can be applied to either
switch.

switch-2(config)# interface port-channel 10
switch-2(config-if)# switchport mode trunk
The show running-config interface port-channel channel-number command shows that the configuration
synchronization for port channel 10 is successful:
switch-1# show running-config interface switch-2# show running-config interface

port-channel 10 port-channel 10
interface port-channel10 interface port-channel10

switchport switchport
switchport mode trunk switchport mode trunk
vpc 10 vpc 10
Verifying vPC Configuration Synchronization

To verify vPC configuration synchronization, perform one of the following tasks:
Command Purpose
show running-config vpc-config-sync Displays whether config-sync is available or not.
show vpc config-sync cli syntax Displays the list of commands that are able to be
configuration synchronized.
show vpc config-sync database Displays the configuration synchronization database.
show vpc config-sync merge status Displays the merge status of the switch and of each
vPC interface.
show vpc config-sync status Displays the status of the last 10 operations of the
vPC configuration synchronization process.
• Displays merge status (success/failure).
• Displays the last action done by the vPC
configuration synchronization process and the
result of that action.

252
Configuring vPCs
Checking Configuration Compatibility on a vPC Peer Link
Checking Configuration Compatibility on a vPC Peer Link

After you have configured the vPC peer link on both vPC peer devices, check that the configurations are
consistent on all vPC interfaces. See the “Compatibility Parameters for vPC Interfaces” section for information
about consistent configurations on the vPCs.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# show vpc (Optional)

consistency-parameters {global | interface Displays the status of those parameters that
port-channel channel-number} must be consistent across all vPC interfaces.
This example shows how to check that the required configurations are compatible across all the vPC interfaces:
switch(config)# show vpc consistency-parameters global
Note Messages regarding the vPC interface configuration compatibility are also logged to the syslog.
Moving Other Port Channels into a vPC
Note We recommend that you attach the vPC domain downstream port channel to two devices for redundancy.
To connect to the downstream device, you create a port channel from the downstream device to the primary
vPC peer device and you create another port channel from the downstream device to the secondary peer device.
device. You will experience minimal traffic disruption when you are creating vPCs.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you are using a Layer 2 port channel.

253
Configuring vPCs
Enabling Certain vPC Commands Automatically
Procedure

port-channel channel-number peer link for this device, and enters interface configuration
mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# vpc number Configures the selected port channel into the vPC to connect
to the downstream device. You can use any module in the
device for these port channels. The range is from 1 and
4096.
Note The vPC number that you assign to the port channel
connecting to the downstream device from the vPC
peer device must be identical on both vPC peer
devices.


configuration.
This example shows how to configure a port channel to connect to the downstream device:

From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2), you can automatically and simultaneously enable the following commands
using the mode auto command: peer-gateway, auto-recovery, fabricpath multicast load-balance, ip arp
synchronize, and ipv6 nd synchronize.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2) and later releases, auto recovery is enabled by default. If you want to
disable auto recovery in Release 6.2(2) and later releases, you must use the no auto-recovery command
to explicitly disable auto recovery.
Before You Begin


254
Configuring vPCs
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature vpc Enables vPCs on the device.
Step 4 switch(config-vpc-domain)# [no] Enables the following commands simultaneously:

mode auto peer-gateway, auto-recovery, fabricpath multicast
load-balance, ip arp synchronize, and ipv6 nd
synchronize.
Step 7 switch# show running-config vpc (Optional)

Displays information about the vPC, including the
commands that are enabled.

configuration.
This example shows how to simultaneously enable the following commands: peer-gateway, auto-recovery,
fabricpath multicast load-balance, ip arp synchronize, and ipv6 nd synchronize.

switch# feature vpc
switch(config-vpc-domain)# mode auto
The following commands are executed:

peer-gateway ;
auto-recovery ;
ip arp synchronize ;
ipv6 nd synchronize ;
fabricpath multicast load-balance ;
Warning:
Enables restoring of vPCs in a peer-detached state after reload, will wait for 240 seconds
to determine if peer is un-reachable
switch# show running-config vpc
!Command: show running-config vpc

!Time: Thu Feb 18 12:31:42 2013

255
Configuring vPCs
Manually Configuring a vPC Domain MAC Address
version 6.2(2)
feature vpc
vpc domain 1
peer-gateway
auto-recovery
fabricpath multicast load-balance
ip arp synchronize
ipv6 nd synchronize
Manually Configuring a vPC Domain MAC Address

When you create a vPC domain, the Cisco NX-OS software automatically creates a vPC system MAC address,
which is used for operations that are confined to the link-scope, such as LACP. However, you might choose
to configure the vPC domain MAC address manually.
Before You Begin

Procedure

1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enters the MAC address that you want for the specified
system-mac mac-address vPC domain in the following format: aaaa.bbbb.cccc.
Step 5 switch# show vpc role (Optional)

Displays the vPC system MAC address.

configuration.
This example shows how to manually configure a vPC domain MAC address:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# system-mac 13gb.4ab5.4c4e

256
Configuring vPCs
Manually Configuring System Priority
Manually Configuring System Priority

When you create a vPC domain, the system automatically creates a vPC system priority. However, you can
also manually configure a system priority for the vPC domain.
Note We recommend that you manually configure the vPC system priority when you are running LACP to
ensure that the vPC peer devices are the primary devices on LACP. When you manually configure the
system priority, ensure that you configure the same priority value on both vPC peer devices. If these values
do not match, vPC does not come up.
Before You Begin

Procedure

1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enters the system priority that you want for the
system-priority priority specified vPC domain. The range of values is from 1
to 65535. The default value is 32667.

Displays the vPC system MAC address.

configuration.
This example shows how to manually configure the vPC domain system priority:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# system-priority 4000

257
Configuring vPCs
Manually Configuring the vPC Peer Device Role
Manually Configuring the vPC Peer Device Role

By default, the Cisco NX-OS software elects a primary and secondary vPC peer device after you configure
the vPC domain and both sides of the vPC peer link. However, you might want to elect a specific vPC peer
device as the primary device for the vPC. Then, you would manually configure the role value for the vPC
peer device that you want as the primary device to be lower than the other vPC peer device.
vPCs do not support role preemption. If the primary vPC peer device fails, the secondary vPC peer device
takes over to become operationally the vPC primary device. However, the original operational roles are not
restored if the formerly primary vPC comes up again.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# role Enters the role priority that you want for the vPC system
priority priority priority.The range of values is from 1 to 65636, and the
default value is 32667. A lower value means that this
switch has a better chance of being the primary vPC.

Displays the vPC system priority.

configuration.
This example shows how to manually configure the role priority of the vPC peer device:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# role priority 4

258
Configuring vPCs
Configuring the Tracking Feature on a Single-Module vPC
Configuring the Tracking Feature on a Single-Module vPC

single module, you should configure a track object and a track list that is associated with the Layer 3 link to
the core and on all the links on the vPC peer link on both primary vPC peer devices. Once you configure this
feature and if the primary vPC peer device fails, the system automatically suspends all the vPC links on the
primary vPC peer device. This action forces all the vPC traffic to the secondary vPC peer device until the
system stabilizes.
You must put this configuration on both vPC peer devices. Additionally, you should put the identical
configuration on both vPC peer devices because either device can become the operationally primary vPC peer
device.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you have configured the track object and the track list. Ensue that you assign all interfaces
that connect to the core and to the vPC peer link to the track-list object on both vPC peer devices.
Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# track Adds the previously configured track-list object with its
track-object-id associated interfaces to the vPC domain. See the Cisco
Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration
Guide for information about configuring object tracking
and track lists.

Displays information about the tracked objects.

configuration.
This example shows how to put the previously configured track-list object into the vPC domain on the vPC
peer device:

259
Configuring vPCs
Configuring for Recovery After an Outage

switch(config-vpc-domain)# track object 5

If an outage occurs, the vPC waits for a peer adjacency to form on a switch reload. This situation can result
in an unacceptably long service disruption. You can configure the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device to restore
vPC services when its peer fails to come on line.
Configuring Reload Restore
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), the reload restore command and procedure described in this section
is deprecated. We recommend that you use the auto-recovery command and procedure described in the
“Configuring an Autorecovery” section.
services when its peer fails to come online by using the reload restore command.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# reload Configures the vPC to assume its peer is not functional
restore [delay time-out] and to bring up the vPC. The default delay is 240
seconds. You can configure a time-out delay from 240
to 3600 seconds.
Use the no form of the command to reset the vPC to its
default settings.

Displays information about the vPC, specifically the
reload status.

260
Configuring vPCs

Step 6 switch# show vpc (Optional)
consistency-parameters interface Displays information about the vPC consistency
port-channel number parameters for the specified interface.

configuration.
This example shows how to set the vPC reload restore feature and save it in the switch startup configuration:

Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
switch(config-vpc-domain)# reload restore
Warning:
Enables restoring of vPCs in a peer-detached state after reload, will wait for 240
seconds (by default) to determine if peer is un-reachable
switch# copy running-config startup-config
switch# show running-config vpc
!Command: show running-config vpc
!Time: Wed Mar 24 18:43:54 2010
version 5.0(2)
feature vpc
logging level vpc 6

vpc domain 5
reload restore
This example shows how to examine the consistency parameters:
switch# show vpc consistency-parameters interface port-channel 1
Legend:
Type 1 : vPC will be suspended in case of mismatch
Name Type Local Value Peer Value
------------- ---- ----------- ---------------
STP Port Type 1 Default -
STP Port Guard 1 None -
STP MST Simulate PVST 1 Default -
mode 1 on -
Speed 1 1000 Mb/s -
Duplex 1 full -
Port Mode 1 trunk -
Native Vlan 1 1 -
MTU 1 1500 -
Allowed VLANs - 1-3967,4048-4093
Local suspended VLANs - - -
Configuring an Autorecovery
services when its peer fails to come online by using the auto-recovery command.

261
Configuring vPCs
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(2) and later releases, auto recovery is enabled by default. If you want to
disable auto recovery in Release 6.2(2) or a later release, you must use the no auto-recovery command
to explicitly disable auto recovery.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Configures the vPC to assume its peer is not functional
auto-recovery [reload-delay time] and to bring up the vPC, and specifies the time to wait
after a reload to restore the vPC. The default delay is 240
seconds. You can configure a delay from 240 to 3600
seconds.
Use the no form of the command to reset the vPC to its
default settings.

Displays information about the vPC, specifically the
reload status.
Step 6 switch# show vpc (Optional)

consistency-parameters interface Displays information about the vPC consistency
port-channel number parameters for the specified interface.

configuration.
This example shows how to set the vPC autorecovery feature and save it in the switch startup configuration:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# auto-recovery
Warning:
Enables restoring of vPCs in a peer-detached state after reload, will wait for 240

262
Configuring vPCs
Configuring the Suspension of Orphan Ports
seconds to determine if peer is un-reachable

switch# copy running-config startup-config
Configuring the Suspension of Orphan Ports

When a device that is not vPC-capable connects to each peer, the connected ports are known as orphan ports
because they are not members of a vPC. From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.2(1), you can explicitly declare physical
interfaces as orphan ports to be suspended (shut down) by the secondary peer when it suspends its vPC ports
in response to a peer link or peer-keepalive failure. The orphan ports are restored when the vPC is restored.
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2 and earlier, configure the vPC orphan-port command on all the member
ports and bundle them into the port channel. For later releases, configure the command directly on the
port-channel interfaces.
Before You Begin

Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# show vpc (Optional)

orphan-ports Displays a list of the orphan ports.
Step 3 switch(config)# interface port-channel Selects the port channel that you want to use as the
channel-number vPC peer link for this device, and enters interface
configuration mode.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# vpc orphan-ports Configures the selected interface as a vPC orphan
suspend port to be suspended by the secondary peer in the
case of a vPC failure.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# exit Exits interface configuration mode.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure an interface as a vPC orphan port to be suspended by the secondary
peer in the case of a vPC failure:

263
Configuring vPCs
Configuring the vPC Peer Switch

switch(config-if)# vpc orphan-ports suspend

You can configure the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series device to make a pair of vPC devices appear as a single STP
root in the Layer 2 topology. This section includes the following topics:
Configuring a Pure vPC Peer Switch Topology

You can configure a pure vPC peer switch topology by using the peer-switch command and then setting the
best possible (lowest) spanning tree bridge priority value.
Note When using a non-VPC dedicated trunk link between the VPC peers, the non-VPC VLANs should have
a different global priority on the peers to prevent STP from blocking the VLANs.
Before You Begin

Procedure

1000.
Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enables the vPC switch pair to appear as a single STP
peer-switch root in the Layer 2 topology.
Use the no form of the command to disable the peer
switch vPC topology.
Step 4 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Configures the bridge priority of the VLAN. Valid

spanning-tree vlan vlan-range values are multiples of 4096. The default value is 32768.
priority value
Step 6 switch# show spanning-tree (Optional)

summary Displays a summary of the spanning tree port states
including the vPC peer switch.

264
Configuring vPCs

configuration.
This example shows how to configure a pure vPC peer switch topology:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-switch
2010 Apr 28 14:44:44 switch %STP-2-VPC_PEERSWITCH_CONFIG_ENABLED: vPC peer-switch
configuration is enabled. Please make sure to configure spanning tree "bridge" priority as
per recommended guidelines to make vPC peer-switch operational.
switch(config-vpc-domain)# spanning-tree vlan 1 priority 8192
Configuring a Hybrid vPC Peer Switch Topology

You can configure a hybrid vPC and non-vPC peer switch topology by using the spanning-tree
pseudo-information command (for more information, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Layer 2
Switching Command Reference) to change the designated bridge ID so that it meets the STP VLAN-based
load-balancing criteria and then change the root bridge ID priority to a value that is better than the best bridge
priority. You then enable the peer switch.
Note When using a non-VPC dedicated trunk link between the VPC peers, the non-VPC VLANs should have
a different pseudo root priority on the peers to prevent STP from blocking the VLANs.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you are in the correct VDC (if you are not in the correct VDC, use the switchto vdc
command).
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# spanning-tree Configures the spanning tree pseudo information.

pseudo-information
Step 3 switch(config-pseudo)# vlan Configures the designated bridge priority of the VLAN.
vlan-range designated priority value Valid values are multiples of 4096 from 0 to 61440.

265
Configuring vPCs

Step 4 switch(config-pseudo)# vlan Configures the root bridge priority of the VLAN. Valid
vlan-range root priority value values are multiples of 4096 from 0 to 61440.
1000.
Step 6 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enables the vPC switch pair to appear as a single STP
peer-switch root in the Layer 2 topology.
Use the no form of the command to disable the peer
switch vPC topology.
Step 8 switch# show spanning-tree (Optional)

summary Displays a summary of the spanning tree port states
including the vPC peer switch.

configuration.
This example shows how to configure a hybrid vPC peer switch topology:
switch(config)# spanning-tree pseudo-information
switch(config-pseudo)# vlan 1 designated priority 8192
switch(config-pseudo)# vlan 1 root priority 4096
switch(config-pseudo)# vpc domain 5
switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-switch
Enabling Distribution for vPC
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# vpc domain Creates a vPC domain on the device, and enters vpc-domain
domain-id configuration mode for configuration purposes. There is no
default; the range is from 1 to 1000.

266
Configuring vPCs

Step 3 switch(config-vpc-domain)# Enables the vPC config-sync on the switch and registers with
config-sync the CFS for physical-ethernet (CFSoE).
Note Repeat the configuration of the config-sync
command on the other vPC peer as well.
Step 4 switch(config-vpc-domain)# exit Exits vPC-domain configuration mode.
Step 5 switch(config-vpc-domain)# vpc (Optional) Triggers the merging of configuration with the
config-sync re-emerge [ sync { peer switch if the current merge has failed.
export|import}] Note You can use the sync export option to apply the
local switch configuration to the peer switch. You
can use the sync import option to apply the remote
switch configuration to the local switch.
Step 6 switch(config-vpc-domain)# vpc (Optional) Triggers the merging of interface port-channel
config-sync re-emerge interface configuration with the peer switch if the current merge has
port-channel channel-name [ sync failed.
{ export|import}] Note You can use the sync export option to apply the
local interface port-channel channel-number
command configuration with the peer switch. You
can use the sync import option to apply the remote
interface port-channel channel-number command
configuration to the local switch.
Step 7 switch(config-vpc-domain)# vpc (Optional) Triggers the merging of interface ethernet with
config-sync re-emerge interface the peer switch if the current merge has failed.
type slot/port[ sync { Note You can use the sync export option to apply the
export|import}] local interface ethernet slot/port command
configuration with the peer switch. You can use the
sync import option to apply the remote interface
ethernet slot/port command configuration to the
local switch.
Step 8 switch(config-vpc-domain)# exit Exits vPC domain configuration mode.
Step 10 switch(config)# show vpc Displays the status of the configuration merge with the peer
config-sync merge status switch.

switch(config-vpc-domain)# config-sync
switch(config-vpc-domain)# vpc config-sync re-merge sync export
switch(config)# vpc config-sync re-merge interface port-channel 1 sync export
switch(config)# vpc config-sync re-merge interface ethernet 1/1 sync export import
switch(config)# show vpc config-sync merge status

267
Configuring vPCs
Configuring FCoE Over a Physical Port vPC
Configuring FCoE Over a Physical Port vPC
Configure Physical Port vPC Interfaces

Perform the following task to configure a physical port vPC interface in the Ethernet VDC. Repeat this task
to configure the peer VDC.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you have configured the per link port channel and port channel members.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an Ethernet interface and enters interface
slot/port-list configuration mode.
The range is from 1 to 253 for the slot and from 1 to 128
for the port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport mode Specifies the trunking VLAN interface in Layer 2.
trunk A trunk port can carry traffic in one or more VLANs
(based on the trunk allowed VLAN list configuration)
on the same physical link.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# switchport trunk Configures a list of allowed VLANs on the trunking
allowed vlan vlan-list interface.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# spanning-tree Configures the interface that connects to a Layer 2 switch
port type network as a network spanning tree port.
Step 7 switch(config-if)# vpc number Moves port channels into a vPC and enters interface vPC
configuration mode.
The range of the number argument is from 1 to 4096.
Step 8 switch(config-if-vpc)# lapc mode Enables LAPC on the peer link member interfaces on
active which you configured the channel group mode active
command.
Step 9 switch(config-if-vpc)# no shutdown Brings the port administratively up.

268
Configuring vPCs
Configuring Hitless vPC Role Change
These examples show how to configure a physical port vPC in an Ethernet VDC:
switch-eth(config)# feature vpc
switch-eth(config)# interface port-channel 1
switch-eth(config-if)# switchport
switch-eth(config-if)# switchport mode trunk
switch-eth(config-if)# switchport trunk allowed vlan 10-20
switch-eth(config-if)# spanning-tree port type network
switch-eth(config-if)# vpc peer-link
switch-eth(config)# interface Ethernet3/21
switch-eth(config-if)# channel group 1 mode active
switch-eth(config-if)# no shutdown
switch-eth(config-if)# vpc 10
switch-eth(config-if-vpc)# lacp mode active
switch-eth(config-if-vpc)# no shutdown
These examples show how to configure a physical port vPC in the peer VDC:
switch-eth(config)# feature vpc
switch-eth(config)# interface port-channel 1
switch-eth(config-if)# spanning-tree port type network
switch-eth(config-if)# vpc peer-link
switch-eth(config-if)# channel group 1 mode active
switch-eth(config-if)# no shutdown
switch-eth(config-if)# vpc 10
switch-eth(config-if-vpc)# lacp mode active
switch-eth(config-if-vpc)# no shutdown

Before You Begin
• Enable the vPC feature
• Ensure vPC peer link is up
• Verify the role priority of devices
Procedure
Step 1 Enable hitless vPC role change feature.

switch# vpc role preempt

269
Configuring vPCs
Upgrading Line Card Modules for vPC
Step 2 (Optional) Verify hitless vPC role change feature.

switch# show vpc role

This example on how to configure hitless vPC role change:
! The following is an output from the show vpc role command before the
vPC hitless feature is configured !
vPC Role status

----------------------------------------------------
vPC system-mac : 00:23:04:ee:be:01
vPC system-priority : 32667
vPC local system-mac : 8c:60:4f:03:84:41
vPC local role-priority : 32668
vPC peer system-mac : 8c:60:4f:03:84:43
vPC peer role-priority : 32667
! Configure vPC hitless role change on the device!
switch# vpc role preempt
! The following is an output from the show vpc role command after the
vPC hitless feature is configured !
vPC Role status

----------------------------------------------------
vPC role : primary
vPC system-mac : 00:00:00:00:00:00
vPC system-priority : 32667
vPC local system-mac : 8c:60:4f:03:84:41
vPC local role-priority : 32666
vPC peer system-mac : 8c:60:4f:03:84:43
vPC peer role-priority : 32667
Upgrading Line Card Modules for vPC

To upgrade to a new line card module for a virtual port channel (vPC), use one of the following methods:
• Upgrade line card modules using the ISSU method.
• Upgrade line card modules using the reload method.
Upgrading a Line Card Module Using the ISSU Method

In this task, the primary switch is Switch A, and the secondary switch is Switch B.

270
Configuring vPCs
Note • Traffic outage might occur on orphan ports when a vPC peer is isolated.
• Multicast receivers behind the vPC might experience traffic outages.
• Ensure that there are alternate paths from core routes to each vPC peer.
• Ensure that the new line card module has the same slot ID and number as the old line card module.
Before You Begin

Before you upgrade a line card module, refer to the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes document,
to see the supported Cisco NX-OS release version for a line card module.
Procedure
Step 1 Perform an ISSU upgrade to a supported Cisco NX-OS release version for a new line card module on both
the switches. Perform this task one at a time on both the switches. For information on supported release version
for a line card module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes document. For information
on how to perform an ISSU upgrade, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Software Upgrade and
Downgrade Guide.
Step 2 On both the switches, move the peer-keepalive link out of the existing module, and use the management
interface for the peer-keepalive link.
Example:
switch(config)# vpc domain <domain-id>
switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-keepalive destination <peer-switch management-ip>
Step 3 Enable the hidden commands on both the switches, one at a time.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# bypass module-check
Step 4 Copy the running configuration to the startup configuration on both the switches.
Example:
switch# copy running-config startup-config vdc-all
Step 5 On the secondary switch (Switch B), shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and wait until
all the traffic is converged. All traffic is now on the primary switch (Switch A).
Example:
switch(config)# interface port-channel <channel-number>
Step 6 On the secondary switch (Switch B), shut down all the ports going to core devices. Perform this action in
batches and wait until all the traffic is converged.
Step 7 On the secondary switch (Switch B), shut down the vPC peer link.
Step 8 On the secondary switch (Switch B), save the running configuration to a file on bootflash.

271
Configuring vPCs
Example:
switch# copy running-config bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchB.txt vdc-all
Step 9 On the secondary switch (Switch B), edit the saved configuration file to change the Virtual Device Context
(VDC) type from an existing module to a new module.
For more information on Cisco NX-OS release support for a module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
NX-OS Release Notes document.
This example shows that the VDC type has changed from an existing module (F2 or F2e) to a new module
(F3):
Edit { vdc <xyx>
limit-resource module-type “f3” }
Step 10 On the secondary switch (Switch B), replace the old line card with the new line card module.
Step 11 On the secondary switch (Switch B), reconnect the vPC leg ports to the new module. Ensure that all the ports
have the same number as the old line card module.
Step 12 On the secondary switch (Switch B), reconfigure the respective ports on the new module using the saved
configuration file on bootflash. Ensure that vPC leg ports are in shut state.
Example:
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchB.txt running-config
Step 13 On the secondary switch, copy the running configuration to the startup configuration on the admin VDC.
Example:
Step 14 On the secondary switch (Switch B), bring up the vPC peer link. Ensure that the vPC peer link speed is the
same on both the switches.
Ensure that vPC is up and Switch A is the primary switch and Switch B is the secondary switch.
Step 15 On the secondary switch (Switch B), bring up the vPC leg ports. Perform this task in batches and wait for all
the traffic to converge.
Step 16 On the secondary switch (Switch B), bring up all the ports going to the core device. Perform this task in
batches and wait for all the traffic to converge.
Step 17 On the secondary switch (Switch B), clear all the dynamic MAC entries from the MAC address table.
Example:
switch# clear mac address-table dynamic
switch# test l2fm dump smac
Migration to the new module on the secondary switch is completed.
Step 18 On the primary switch (Switch A), shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and wait until all
the traffic is converged.
Example:
All the traffic is now on the secondary switch (Switch B).
Step 19 On the secondary switch (Switch B), change the vPC role priority to match the primary switch.

272
Configuring vPCs
Example:
switch(config)# vpc-domain <domain-id>
switch(config-vpc-domain)# role priority <priority-id>
Step 20 On the primary switch (Switch A), shut down all the ports going to the core devices. Perform this action in
batches and wait until all the traffic is converged. All traffic is now on the secondary switch (Switch B).
Step 21 On the primary switch (Switch A), reconfigure the vPC peer-keepalive link by configuring a dummy IP
address.
Example:
switch(config-if)# vpc domain <domain-id>
switch(config-if)# peer-keepalive destination <dummy-ip>
Step 22 On the primary switch (Switch A), shut down the vPC peer link.
vPC role change takes place without any disruption because of the sticky bit feature on the Switch B.
Step 23 On Switch A, save the running configuration to a file on bootflash.
Example:
switch# copy running-config bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt vdc-all
Step 24 Edit the saved configuration file to change the VDC type from the existing module to the new module.
For information on Cisco NX-OS release support for a module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Release Notes document.
Example:
This example shows that the VDC type is changed from F2 to F3 module.
Edit { vdc <xyx>
Step 25 On the primary switch (Switch A), replace the old line card with the new line card module.
Step 26 On the primary switch (Switch A), reconnect the vPC leg ports to the new module. Ensure that all the ports
have the same number as the old line card module.
Step 27 On the primary switch (Switch A), reconfigure the respective ports on the new module using the saved
configuration file on bootflash.
Example:
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt running-config
Note Ensure that all the vPC leg ports are in shut
state.
Step 28 On the primary switch (Switch A), copy the running configuration to the startup configuration on the Admin
virtual device context (VDC).
Example:
Step 29 On the primary switch (Switch A), bring up the vPC peer-keepalive link by configuring the peer-keepalive
destination address back to the management IP of Switch B.

273
Configuring vPCs
Upgrading Line Card Modules Using the Reload Method
Example:
switch(config-if)# vpc domain <domain-id>
switch(config-if)# peer-keepalive destination <management-ip peer-device
Step 30 On the primary switch (Switch A), bring up the vPC peer link.
Note Ensure that the vPC peer-link speed configuration is same on both the switches.
All the traffic is on the secondary switch (Switch B).
Step 31 On the primary switch (Switch A), bring up the vPC leg ports. Perform this task in batches and wait for all
All the traffic is load balanced on both the switches.
Step 32 On the primary switch (Switch A), bring up all the ports going to the core device. Perform this task in batches
and wait for all the traffic to converge.
Step 33 Disable the hidden commands on both the switches. Perform this step one at a time on both the switches.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# no bypass module-check
Step 34 On both the switches, reconfigure the peer-keepalive link on the new card modules.
Step 35 Copy the running configuration to the startup configuration on the Admin VDC on both the switches.
Example:
Step 36 On the primary switch (Switch A), clear all the dynamic MAC entries from the MAC address table.
Example:
switch# clear mac address-table dynamic
Step 37 On the secondary switch (Switch B), run the test l2fm dump smac command to view any errors.
Example:
Migration to the new module on the primary switch is completed.
Migration from existing line card module to a new module is completed on both the switches.

To upgrade from an existing line card module to a new line card module for vPC using the reload method,
perform the following tasks:
1 Install Cisco NX-OS image on vPC peers
2 Install line card module using the reload method

274
Configuring vPCs
Before you plan to upgrade a line card module, refer the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes
document, to see the supported Cisco NX-OS release version for a line card module.
Installing a Cisco Image on vPC Peers

Perform this task on all the vPC peer devices. Switch A is the primary switch, and Switch B is the secondary
switch in this task.
Note Traffic outage might occur on orphan ports when a vPC peer is isolated. Multicast receivers behind the
vPC might experience traffic outages (30 to 40 seconds).
Before You Begin

• Before you upgrade a line card module, refer to the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes
document to see the supported Cisco NX-OS release version for a line card module.
• Ensure that the feature vPC is enabled on both the primary switch and the secondary switch.
• Ensure that there are alternate paths from core routes to each of the vPC peers.
Procedure
Step 1 Set equal vPC role priority on both the vPC peer devices.
Example:
Step 2 Set the auto-recovery reload-delay value, in seconds, to maximum delay time on both the switches.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# auto-recovery reload-delay 84600
Step 3 Change the system boot parameters to boot the system from the Cisco NX-OS release verison that is supported
on the new module on both the switches.
Example:
This example shows that the Cisco NX-OS 6.2(16) image is used for the Cisco Nexus F3 module:
switch(config)# no boot kickstart
switch(config)# no boot system
switch(config)# boot kickstart bootflash://n7000-s2-kickstart.6.2.16.bin
switch(config)# boot system bootflash://n7000-s2-dk9.6.2.16.bin
For information on the supported release version for a module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS
Release Notes document.
Step 4 On the secondary switch (Switch B), shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and wait until
all the traffic is converged.

275
Configuring vPCs
Example:
All the traffic is now on the primary switch (Switch A).
Step 5 On the secondary switch (Switch B), copy the running configuration to the start up configuration for an Admin
VDC.
Example:
Step 6 On the secondary switch (Switch B), reboot the system with the new Cisco NX-OS image. Wait for the system
to boot up and for the Layer 3 links to come up.
Example:
switch# reload
Step 7 On the secondary switch (Switch B), bring the vPC legs up again. Perform this action in batches and wait
until all the traffic is converged.
Example:
Step 8 On the primary switch (Switch A), shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and wait until all
the traffic is converged.
Example:
Step 9 On the primary switch (Switch A), copy the running configuration to the start up configuration for an Admin
VDC.
Example:
Step 10 On the primary switch (Switch A), reboot the system with the new Cisco NX-OS image. Wait for the system
to boot up and for the Layer 3 links to come up.
Example:
switch# reload
Step 11 On the primary switch (Switch A), bring the vPC legs up again. Perform this action in batches and wait until
all the traffic is converged.
Example:
Traffic is load balanced between the primary switch (Switch A) and the secondary switch (Switch B).
Switch B takes on the role of the operational primary, and Switch A takes on the role of the operational
secondary.

276
Configuring vPCs
Installing a Line Card Module on a vPC Peer Using the Reload Method
Before You Begin
• Ensure that you have installed a compatible Cisco NX-OS release version on the vPC peers. For more
information, on how to install a Cisco NX-OS release version using the reload method, see Installing a
Cisco Image on vPC Peers, on page 275. For more information on the compatible Cisco NX-OS release
version for a line card module type, refer to the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Release Notes document.
• Ensure that the new line card module has the same slot ID and number as the old line card module.
Note In this task, Switch A is the operational secondary, and Switch B is the operational primary switch.
Procedure
Step 1 Set equal vPC role priority on both the switches.
Example:
Step 2 Set the auto-recovery reload-delay value , in seconds, to maximum delay time on both the switches.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# auto-recovery reload-delay 86400
Step 3 Enable the hidden commands on both the switches, one at a time.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# bypass module-check
Example:
Step 5 On the operational secondary (Switch A) switch, shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and
wait until all the traffic is converged.
Example:
All the traffic is on Switch B.
Step 6 Save the running configuration to a file on bootflash and transfer the configuration file outside the switch
(Switch A).

277
Configuring vPCs
Example:
switch# copy running-config bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt vdc-all
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt tftp://server/run-cfg-SwitchA.txt vrf management
Step 7 On the operational secondary switch, edit the saved configuration file to change the VDC type from an existing
module to a new module. Copy the configuration file back to the switch (Switch A).
Example:
This example show that the VDC type is changed from F2 to F3 module:
Edit { vdc <xyx>
switch# copy tftp://server/ run-cfg-SwitchA.txt bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt vrf management
For information on the Cisco NX-OS release support for a module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
Step 8 Power off the operational secondary switch (Switch A) and physically replace the existing module with the
new module on the switch.
Step 9 Power on the switch (Switch A) and wait for the system to go online.
Ensure that the Admin VDC is active. On the Admin VDC, reconfigure the new module ports using the saved
configuration file. Ensure that all the ports have the same number as the old line card module.
Ensure that all the vPC leg ports are in shut state, and the vPC peer link and the Layer 3 links are up.
Example:
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt running-config
Step 10 Bring up the vPC legs on the operational secondary (Switch A). Perform this task in batches and wait for all
Example:
switch# interface port-channel <channel-number>
Switch# no shutdown
Step 11 On the operational primary (Switch B) switch, shut down the vPC legs. Perform this action in batches and
wait until all the traffic is converged.
Example:
All the traffic is on Switch A.
Step 12 Save the running configuration to a file on bootflash and transfer the configuration file outside the switch
(Switch B).
Example:
switch# copy running-config bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchB.txt vdc-all
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchA.txt tftp://server/run-cfg-SwitchB.txt vrf management
Step 13 On the operational primary switch (Switch B), edit the saved configuration file to change the VDC type from
an existing module to a new module. Copy the configuration file back to the switch (Switch B).
Example:

278
Configuring vPCs
Verifying the vPC Configuration
This example shows that the VDC type is changed from F2 to F3 module:
Edit { vdc <xyx>
switch# copy tftp://server/ run-cfg-SwitchB.txt bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchB.txt vrf management
For information on the Cisco NX-OS release support for a module type, see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
Step 14 Power off the operational primary switch (Switch B) and physically replace the existing module with the new
module on the switch.
Step 15 Power on the switch (Switch B) and wait for the system to go online.
Note Ensure that the Admin VDC is active. On the Admin VDC, reconfigure the new module ports using
the saved configuration file. Ensure that all the ports have the same number as the old line card
module.
Ensure that all the vPC leg ports are in shut state, and the vPC peer link and the Layer 3 links are up.
Example:
switch# copy bootflash:run-cfg-SwitchB.txt running-config
Step 16 Bring up the vPC legs on the operational primary (Switch B). Perform this task in batches and wait for all the
traffic to converge.
Switch A resumes the role of a primary switch and Switch B takes on the role of a secondary switch. Traffic
is load balanced between both the switches.
Example:
switch# interface port-channel <channel-number>
Switch# no shutdown
Step 17 Disable the hidden commands on both the switches. Perform this step one at a time on both the switches.
Example:
switch(config-vpc-domain)# no bypass module-check
Example:
Migration from existing line card module to a new module is completed on both the switches.
Verifying the vPC Configuration

Use the information in the following table to verify the vPC configuration:
Table 45: Verifying the vPC Configuration
Command Purpose
show feature Displays whether the vPC is enabled or not.

279
Configuring vPCs
Verifying Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX
Command Purpose
show vpc brief Displays brief information about the vPCs.
show vpc consistency-parameters Displays the status of those parameters that must be
consistent across all vPC interfaces.
show running-config vpc Displays running configuration information for vPCs.
show port-channel capacity Displays how many port channels are configured and
how many are still available on the device.
show vpc statistics Displays statistics about the vPCs.
show vpc peer-keepalive Displays information about the peer-keepalive

messages.
show vpc role Displays the peer status, the role of the local device,
the vPC system MAC address and system priority,
and the MAC address and priority for the local vPC
device.

Use the information in the following table to verify the physical port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX:
Table 46: Verifying Physical Port vPC on F2, F3, and FEX
Command Purpose
show vpc brief Displays brief information about the vPCs.
show lacp port-vpc summary Displays the LACP status for the physical
port VPC, such as the vPC ID, physical
port, and the LACP port state details.
show lacp counters Displays the LACP counters for

port-channels and physical port vPC
interfaces.
show lacp counters interface name number Displays the LACP counters on a physical
interface or port-channel interface
depending on the interface name.

280
Configuring vPCs
Command Purpose
show lacp neighbor Displays LACP neighbor information for
the port.
show lacp neighbor interface name number Displays the neighbors of ports that are
configured on a physical interface.
This example shows how to verify brief information about the vPCs:
vPC status
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
id Port Status Consistency Reason Active vlans
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Ethernet1/1 up success - - - - 200-250, 900-1000
This example shows how to verify LACP status for the physcial port VPC, such as the vPC ID, physical port,
and the LACP port state details:
switch# show lacp port-vpc summary
Flags: D – Down P – up
s - Suspended H – Hot-standby (LACP only)
VPC-Id Member Port

1 Ethernet 1/1(P)
2 Ethernet 1/2(H)
3 Ethernet 1/3(s)
This example shows how to verify LACP counters for port-channel and physical port vPC interfaces:
switch# show lacp counters
LACPDUs Marker Marker Response LACPDUs

Port Sent Recv Sent Recv Sent Recv Pkts Err
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ethernet2/1
Ethernet2/1 1677 1804 0 0 0 0 0
port-channel2
Ethernet2/2 1677 1808 0 0 0 0 0
This example shows how to verify the LACP counters on a physical interface:
switch# show lacp counters interface ethernet 1/1
LACPDUs Marker Marker Response LACPDUs

Port Sent Recv Sent Recv Sent Recv Pkts Err
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Ethernet1/1
Ethernet1/1 17466 17464 0 0 0 0 0
This example shows how to verify the neighbors of ports that are configured both as a vPC and as a port-channel
member:
switch# show lacp neighbor
Flags: S - Device is sending Slow LACPDUs F - Device is sending Fast LACPDUs

A - Device is in Active mode P - Device is in Passive mode
Eth1/1 neighbors

281
Configuring vPCs
Monitoring vPCs
Partner's information
Partner Partner Partner
Port System ID Port Number Age Flags
Eth1/1 32768,2-0-0-0-0-66 0x2402 41595 SA
LACP Partner Partner Partner

Port Priority Oper Key Port State
32768 0x91 0x3d
This example shows how to verify the neighbors of ports that are configured on the physical interface:
switch# show lacp neighbor interface ethernet 1/1
Flags: S - Device is sending Slow LACPDUs F - Device is sending Fast LACPDUs

A - Device is in Active mode P - Device is in Passive mode
Eth1/1 neighbor
Partner's information
Partner Partner Partner
Port System ID Port Number Age Flags
Eth1/1 32768,0-26-98-14-e-c1 0x207 13 SA
LACP Partner Partner Partner

Port Priority Oper Key Port State
32768 0x0 0x3d
Monitoring vPCs
Use the show vpc statistics command to display vPC statistics.
Note This command displays the vPC statistics only for the vPC peer device that you are working on.
Configuration Examples for vPCs

This example shows how to configure vPC on device A as shown in the figure below:
Figure 28: vPC Configuration Example

282
Configuring vPCs
Configuration Examples for vPCs
1 Enable vPC and LACP:

switch(config)# feature vpc
2 (Optional) Configure one of the interfaces that you want to be a peer link in the dedicated port mode:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 7/1, ethernet 7/3, ethernet 7/5. ethernet 7/7
switch(config)#
3 (Optional) Configure the second, redundant interface that you want to be a peer link in the dedicated port
mode:
switch(config)# interface ethernet 7/2, ethernet 7/4, ethernet 7/6. ethernet 7/8
switch(config)#
4 Configure the two interfaces (for redundancy) that you want to be in the peer link to be an active Layer 2
LACP port channel.:

5 Create and enable the VLANs:
switch(config)# vlan 1-50

switch(config-vlan)# no shutdown
6 Create a separate VRF for the vPC peer-keepalive link and add a Layer 3 interface to that VRF:
switch(config)# vrf context pkal

switch(config-vrf)# exit
switch(config-if)# vrf member pkal
7 Create the vPC domain and add the vPC peer-keepalive link:

switch(config-vpc-domain)# peer-keepalive destination 172.23.145.217 source 172.23.145.218
vrf pkal
8 Configure the vPC peer link:


283
Configuring vPCs
Related Documents
switch(config-if)# vpc peer-link

switch(config)#
9 Configure the interface for the port channel to the downstream device of the vPC:

switch(config-if)# allowed vlan 1-50
switch(config-if)# native vlan 20
switch(config)#
10 Save the configuration:
switch(config)# copy running-config startup-config
Note If you configure the port channel first, ensure that it is a Layer 2 port channel.
Related Documents
Related Topic

284
Configuring vPCs
Standards
Standards
Table 48: Standards
Standards Title
IEEE 802.3ad —
MIBs
Table 49: MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

To locate and download MIBs, go to:
• IEEE8023-LAG-CAPABILITY
http://www.cisco.com/public/sw-center/netmgmt/cmtk/
• CISCO-LAG-MIB mibs.shtml

285
Configuring vPCs
MIBs

286
CHAPTER 9
Configuring Interfaces in Breakout Mode
This chapter describes how to configure interfaces in breakout mode.

• Feature History for Breakout, page 287
• Information About Breakout, page 288
• Limitations for Breakout, page 288
• Configuring Breakout in a Port, page 289
• Removing the Breakout Configuration, page 289
• Verifying a Breakout Configuration, page 290

Feature History for Breakout


287
Information About Breakout
Table 50: Feature History for Breakout

Breakout 8.0(1) Added support for the Breakout feature on
the following I/O modules:
• Cisco Nexus 7000 M3-Series 24-port
40-Gigabit Ethernet Module
• Cisco Nexus 7700 M3-Series 24-port
40-Gigabit Ethernet Module
Breakout 6.2(6) Added support for the Breakout feature on

the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches.
6.2(8)
Added support for the Breakout feature on
the Cisco Nexus 7700 Switches.
Information About Breakout

The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches and the Cisco Nexus 7700 Switches support the Breakout feature.
Breakout enables a 40 Gigabit Ethernet port to be split into four independent and logical 10 Gigabit Ethernet
ports. Breakout is supported on an active Twinax (7 to 10 m) cable or a multimode fiber cable (SR4 optic
cable with an MTP connector or an MPO connector).
Note When the Breakout feature is configured, the configuration for the corresponding interface is removed.
The Breakout feature is supported in the following modules:
• Cisco Nexus 7000 F3-Series 12-Port 40 Gigabit Ethernet Module
• Cisco Nexus 7000 M2-Series 6-Port 40 Gigabit Ethernet Module
• Cisco Nexus 7700 F3-Series 24-Port 40 Gigabit Ethernet Module
Starting with Cisco NX-OS Release 8.0(1), the Breakout feature is supported in the following modules::
• Cisco Nexus 7000 M3-Series 24-port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module
• Cisco Nexus 7700 M3-Series 24-port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module
Limitations for Breakout

• In a Cisco Nexus 7700 F3-Series 24-Port 40 Gigabit Ethernet Module, you can break out any 19 ports
of the available 24 ports.
• In a Cisco Nexus 7000 M3-Series 24-port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module, you can break out any port from
1 to 12. You cannot break out any port from 13 to 24.

288
Configuring Breakout in a Port
• In a Cisco Nexus 7700 M3-Series 24-port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module, you can break out any 23 ports
of the available 24 ports.
Configuring Breakout in a Port

Before You Begin
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface breakout Configures the Breakout feature for a port.
module slot port port-range map
10g-4x • slot—Slot number of port depending on the
chassis model.
• port-range—Single port or range of ports on
which breakout is configured.

startup-config Saves the changes by copying the running
configuration to the startup configuration.
This example shows how to break out a 40 Gigabit Ethernet port into four 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports:
switch(configure)# interface breakout module 1 port 1-12 map 10g-4x
switch(configure)# copy running-config startup-config
Removing the Breakout Configuration

Before You Begin
Procedure


289
Verifying a Breakout Configuration

Step 2 switch(config)# no interface Removes the breakout configuration for a port module and
breakout module slot port returns the interface to 40 Gigabit Ethernet mode of operation.
port-range map 10g-4x
• slot—Slot number of module depending on the chassis
model.
Note Enter the same slot module value that you used
for the corresponding port while configuring the
Breakout feature.
• port-range—Single port or range of ports.
Note Enter the same port-range value that you used
for the corresponding port while configuring the
Breakout feature.

running-config startup-config Saves the changes by copying the running configuration to the
This example shows how to remove the breakout configuration in a port and return to the 40 Gigabit Ethernet
mode of operation:
switch(configure)# no interface breakout module 1 port 1-12 map 10g-4x
switch(configure)# copy running-config startup-config

Use the following commands to verify a breakout configuration. You can use the commands in any order.
Procedure
Step 1 show interface eth1/1 capabilities

Displays information about the interface configuration.
Step 2 show interface brief

Displays a brief summary of the interface configuration.
This example shows how to verify a breakout configuration for an interface:

switch# show interface ethernet 1/1 capabilities | i Breakout
Breakout capable: yes

This example shows how to display the summary of an interface configuration:
switch# show interface brief | grep 1/1
Eth1/1/1 -- eth routed down SFP not inserted auto(D) --

290


291

292
CHAPTER 10
Configuring IP Tunnels
This chapter describes how to configure IP tunnels.

• Feature History for Configuring IP Tunnels, page 293
• Information About IP Tunnels, page 294
• Licensing Requirements for IP Tunnels, page 296
• Prerequisites for IP Tunnels, page 296
• Guidelines and Limitations for IP Tunnels, page 296
• Default Settings for IP Tunnels, page 297
• Configuring IP Tunnels, page 297
• Configuration Examples for IP Tunneling, page 301
• Verifying the IP Tunnel Configuration, page 301

Feature History for Configuring IP Tunnels


293
Information About IP Tunnels

GRE tunnels 7.3(0)DX(1) Support for M3 Series modules was added.
GRE tunnels 6.2(10) Support for F3 Series modules was added.
Support for tunnel and its 6.1(1) This feature was introduced.
transport in different VRFs
IP tunnels in VDC and VRF 4.2(1) This feature was introduced.

other than default
IP tunnels 4.0(1) This feature was introduced.
Information About IP Tunnels

IP tunnels can encapsulate a same-layer or higher layer protocol and transport the result over IP through a
tunnel created between two devices.
IP Tunnel Overview
IP tunnels consists of the following three main components:
• Passenger protocol—The protocol that needs to be encapsulated. IPv4 is an example of a passenger
protocol.
• Carrier protocol—The protocol that is used to encapsulate the passenger protocol. Cisco NX-OS supports
GRE as a carrier protocol.
• Transport protocol—The protocol that is used to carry the encapsulated protocol. IPv4 is an example of
a transport protocol.
An IP tunnel takes a passenger protocol, such as IPv4, and encapsulates that protocol within a carrier protocol,
such as GRE. The device then transmits this carrier protocol over a transport protocol, such as IPv4.
You configure a tunnel interface with matching characteristics on each end of the tunnel.
For more information, see the “Configuring IP Tunnels” section.
You must enable the tunnel feature before you can see configure it. From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, the
system automatically takes a checkpoint prior to disabling the feature, and you can roll back to this checkpoint.
See the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS System Management Configuration Guide for information about
rollbacks and checkpoints.

294
GRE Tunnels
GRE Tunnels
Note From Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1(1), the software supports multicasting over GRE tunnels.
You can use generic routing encapsulation (GRE) as the carrier protocol for a variety of passenger protocols.
The figure below shows the IP tunnel components for a GRE tunnel. The original passenger protocol packet
becomes the GRE payload and the device adds a GRE header to the packet. The device then adds the transport
protocol header to the packet and transmits it.
Figure 29: GRE PDU
Path MTU Discovery

Path maximum transmission unit (MTU) discovery (PMTUD) prevents fragmentation in the path between
two endpoints by dynamically determining the lowest MTU along the path from the packet's source to its
destination. PMTUD reduces the send MTU value for the connection if the interface receives information that
the packet would require fragmentation.
When you enable PMTUD, the interface sets the Don't Fragment (DF) bit on all packets that traverse the
tunnel. If a packet that enters the tunnel encounters a link with a smaller MTU than the MTU value for the
packet, the remote link drops the packet and sends an ICMP message back to the sender of the packet. This
message indicates that fragmentation was required (but not permitted) and provides the MTU of the link that
dropped the packet.
Note PMTUD on a tunnel interface requires that the tunnel endpoint can receive ICMP messages generated by
devices in the path of the tunnel. Check that ICMP messages can be received before using PMTUD over
firewall connections. Cisco NX-OS software disables ICMP unreachable messages by default. ICMP
unreachable messages can be enabled in the Cisco NX-OS software using the ip unreachables interface
command.

295
From Cisco NX-OS Release 4.2, you can configure tunnels in a nondefault VDC and a nondefault VRF. A
tunnel configured in one VDC is isolated from a tunnel with the same number configured in another VDC.
For example, Tunnel 0 in VDC 1 is independent of tunnel 0 in VDC 2.
Before Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1(1), a tunnel interface and tunnel transport should be in the same VRF. See
the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Virtual Device Context Configuration Guide for information about
VDCs and see the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide for information
about VRFs.
High Availability
IP tunnels support stateful restarts. A stateful restart occurs on a supervisor switchover. After the switchover,
Cisco NX-OS applies the runtime configuration after the switchover.
Licensing Requirements for IP Tunnels

Prerequisites for IP Tunnels

IP tunnels have the following prerequisites:
• You must be familiar with TCP/IP fundamentals to configure IP tunnels.
• You are logged on to the switch.
• You have installed the Enterprise Services license for Cisco NX-OS.
• You must enable the tunneling feature in a device before you can configure and enable any IP tunnels.
Guidelines and Limitations for IP Tunnels

IP tunnels have the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• Cisco NX-OS supports the GRE header defined in IETF RFC 2784. Cisco NX-OS does not support
tunnel keys and other options from IETF RFC 1701.
• Tunnels are supported only on the M Series cards on Cisco Nexus 7000 Series platforms.
• Cisco NX-OS does not support the Web Cache Control Protocol (WCCP) on tunnel interfaces.

296
Default Settings for IP Tunnels
• Tunnel features are supported only on M series and F3 series modules on Cisco Nexus 7000 Series and
Cisco Nexus 7700 Series platforms.
• Cisco NX-OS does not support GRE tunnel keepalives.
Default Settings for IP Tunnels

Table 51: Default Settings for IP Tunnels
Parameter Default
Path MTU discovery age timer 10 minutes
Path MTU discovery minimum MTU 64
Tunnel feature Disabled
Enabling Tunneling
Before You Begin
You must enable the tunneling feature before you can configure any IP tunnels.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# feature tunnel Allows the creation of a new tunnel interface.
To disable the tunnel interface feature, use the no form
of this command.
Step 3 switch(config)# show feature (Optional)

Displays information about the features enabled on
the device.

configuration.

297
Creating a Tunnel Interface
Creating a Tunnel Interface

Before You Begin
• From Cisco NX-OS Release 6.1 and later releases, you can configure the tunnel source and the tunnel
destination in different VRFs. Ensure that you have enabled the tunneling feature.
• You can create a tunnel interface and then configure this logical interface for your IP tunnel.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)#interface tunnel number Creates a new tunnel interface.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# tunnel source {ip-address Configures the source address for this IP
| interface-name} tunnel.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# tunnel destination Configures the destination address for this IP
{ip-address | host-name} tunnel.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# tunnel use-vrf vrf-name Uses the configured VRF to look up the tunnel
IP destination address.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# show interfaces tunnel (Optional)

number Displays the tunnel interface statistics.

configuration.
Use the no interface tunnel command to remove the tunnel interface and all associated configuration.
Table 52: Removing the Tunnel Interface and its Associated Configuration
Command Purpose
no interface tunnel number Deletes the tunnel interface and the associated
configuration.
You can configure the following optional parameters to tune the tunnel in interface configuration mode:
Table 53: Configuring Optional Parameters
Command Purpose
description string Configures a description for the tunnel.

298
Configuring a GRE Tunnel
Command Purpose
mtu value Sets the MTU of IP packets sent on an interface.
tunnel ttl value Sets the tunnel time-to-live value. The range is from
1 to 255.
This example shows how to create a tunnel interface:

switch(config)# interface tunnel 1
switch(config-if)# tunnel source ethernet 1/2
switch(config-if)# tunnel destination 192.0.2.1
Configuring a GRE Tunnel

You can set a tunnel interface to GRE tunnel mode.
Before You Begin

Ensure that you have enabled the tunneling feature.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface tunnel number Creates a new tunnel interface.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# tunnel mode gre ip Sets this tunnel mode to GRE.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# show interfaces tunnel (Optional)

number Displays the tunnel interface statistics.

configuration.
Enabling Path MTU Discovery

Use the tunnel path-mtu discovery command to enable path MTU discovery on a tunnel.

299
Assigning VRF Membership to a Tunnel Interface
Command Purpose
tunnel path-mtu-discovery [age-timer min] Enables Path MTU Discovery (PMTUD) on a tunnel
[min-mtu bytes] interface. The parameters are as follows:
• mins—Number of minutes. The range is from
10 to 30. The default is 10.
• mtu-bytes—Minimum MTU recognized. The
range is from 92 to 65535. The default is 92.
Assigning VRF Membership to a Tunnel Interface

You can add a tunnel interface to a VRF.
Before You Begin

• Ensure that you have enabled the tunneling feature.
• Assign the IP address for a tunnel interface after you have configured the interface for a VRF.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface tunnel number Enters interface configuration mode.
Step 3 switch(config-if)# vrf member vrf-name Adds this interface to a VRF.
Step 4 switch(config-vrf)# ip address Configures an IP address for this interface. You

ip-prefix/length must do this step after you assign this interface
to a VRF.
Step 5 switch(config-vrf)# show vrf [vrf-name] (Optional)

interface interface-type number Displays VRF information.
Step 6 switch(config-vrf)# copy running-config (Optional)

configuration.
This example shows how to add a tunnel interface to the VRF:

switch(config)# interface tunnel 0
switch(config-if)# vrf member RemoteOfficeVRF

300
Configuration Examples for IP Tunneling

Configuration Examples for IP Tunneling

These examples show a simple GRE tunnel. Ethernet 1/2 is the tunnel source for router A and the tunnel
destination for router B. Ethernet interface 2/1 is the tunnel source for router B and the tunnel destination for
router A.
Router A:
feature tunnel
interface tunnel 0
ip address 209.165.20.2/8
tunnel source ethernet 1/2
tunnel destination 192.0.2.2
tunnel mode gre ip
tunnel path-mtu-discovery 25 1500
interface ethernet1/2
ip address 192.0.2.55/8
Router B:
feature tunnel
interface tunnel 0
ip address 209.165.20.1/8
tunnel source ethernet2/1
tunnel destination 192.0.2.55
tunnel mode gre ip
interface ethernet 2/1
Verifying the IP Tunnel Configuration

Use one of the following commands to verify IP tunnel configuration information:
Table 54: Verifying the IP Tunnel Configuration
Command Purpose
show interface tunnel number Displays the configuration for the tunnel interface
(MTU, protocol, transport, and VRF). Displays input
and output packets, bytes, and packet rates.
show interface brief | include Tunnel Displays the operational status, IP address,
encapsulation type, and MTU of the tunnel interface.
show interface tunnel number description Displays the configured description of the tunnel
interface.
show interface tunnel number status Displays the operational status of the tunnel interface.
show interface tunnel number status err-disabled Displays the error disabled status of the tunnel
interface.

301
Related Documents
Related Documents
Related Topic

302
CHAPTER 11
Configuring Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels
This chapter describes how to configure Q-in-Q VLAN tunnels.

• Feature History for Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling, page 303
• Licensing Requirements for Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels, page 304
• Guidelines and Limitations for Q-in-Q Tunnels, page 304
• Information About Q-in-Q Tunnels, page 305
• Configuring Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling, page 311
• Verifying the Q-in-Q Configuration, page 317
• Configuration Examples for Q-in-Q and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling, page 318

Feature History for Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol

Tunneling

303
Licensing Requirements for Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels
Table 56: Feature History for Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol tunneling

Display policy errors on 6.2(2) Added the show interface status error policy
interfaces and VLANs command.
Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels 5.0(2) This feature was introduced.
L2 Protocol tunneling 5.0(2) This feature was introduced.
Licensing Requirements for Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels

Guidelines and Limitations for Q-in-Q Tunnels

Q-in-Q tunnels and Layer 2 tunneling have the following configuration guidelines and limitations:
• Q-in-Q tunnels are not supported on F1 linecards.
• Switches in the service-provider network must be configured to handle the increase in MTU size due to
Q-in-Q tagging.
• MAC address learning for Q-in-Q tagged packets is based on the outer VLAN (Service Provider VLAN)
tag. Packet forwarding issues might occur in deployments where a single MAC address is used across
multiple inner (customer) VLANs.
• Layer 3 and higher parameters cannot be identified in tunnel traffic (for example, Layer 3 destination
and source addresses). Tunneled traffic cannot be routed.
• Cisco Nexus 7000 Series devices can provide only MAC-layer ACL/QoS for tunnel traffic (VLAN IDs
and src/dest MAC addresses).
• You should use MAC address-based frame distribution.
• Asymmetrical links do not support the Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP) because only one port on the
link is a trunk. You must configure the 802.1Q trunk port on an asymmetrical link to trunk unconditionally.
• You cannot configure the 802.1Q tunneling feature on ports that are configured to support private
VLANs. Private VLAN are not required in these deployments.
• You must disable IGMP snooping on the tunnel VLANs.
• Control Plane Policing (CoPP) is not supported.

304
Information About Q-in-Q Tunnels
• You should enter the vlan dot1Q tag native command to maintain the tagging on the native VLAN and
drop untagged traffic. This command prevents native VLAN misconfigurations.
• You must manually configure the 802.1Q interfaces to be edge ports.
• Dot1x tunneling is not supported.
• You should perform an EPLD upgrade to newer versions in order for EtherType configuration to take
effect on some Cisco Nexus devices.
• You cannot configure Layer 2 protocol features to forward STP BPDU or CDP packets across the tunnel.
Information About Q-in-Q Tunnels

This chapter describes how to configure IEEE 802.1Q-in-Q (Q-in-Q) VLAN tunnels and Layer 2 protocol
tunneling on Cisco NX-OS devices.
A Q-in-Q VLAN tunnel enables a service provider to segregate the traffic of different customers in their
infrastructure, while still giving the customer a full range of VLANs for their internal use by adding a second
802.1Q tag to an already tagged frame.
Q-in-Q Tunneling
Business customers of service providers often have specific requirements for VLAN IDs and the number of
VLANs to be supported. The VLAN ranges required by different customers in the same service-provider
network might overlap, and the traffic of customers through the infrastructure might be mixed. Assigning a
unique range of VLAN IDs to each customer would restrict customer configurations and could easily exceed
the VLAN limit of 4096 of the 802.1Q specification.
Note Q-in-Q is supported on port channels and virtual port channels (vPCs). To configure a port channel as an
asymmetrical link, all ports in the port channel must have the same tunneling configuration.
Using the 802.1Q tunneling feature, service providers can use a single VLAN to support customers who have
multiple VLANs. Customer VLAN IDs are preserved and the traffic from different customers is segregated
within the service-provider infrastructure even when they appear to be on the same VLAN. The 802.1Q
tunneling expands the VLAN space by using a VLAN-in-VLAN hierarchy and tagging the tagged packets.
A port configured to support 802.1Q tunneling is called a tunnel port. When you configure tunneling, you
assign a tunnel port to a VLAN that is dedicated to tunneling. Each customer requires a separate VLAN, but
that VLAN supports all of the customer’s VLANs.
Customer traffic that is tagged in the normal way with appropriate VLAN IDs come from an 802.1Q trunk
port on the customer device and into a tunnel port on the service-provider edge switch. The link between the
customer device and the edge switch is an asymmetric link because one end is configured as an 802.1Q trunk
port and the other end is configured as a tunnel port. You assign the tunnel port interface to an access VLAN
ID that is unique to each customer. See the figure below.

305
Q-in-Q Tunneling
Note Selective Q-in-Q tunneling is not supported. All frames that enter the tunnel port are subject to Q-in-Q
tagging.
Figure 30: 802.1Q-in-Q Tunnel Ports
Packets that enter the tunnel port on the service-provider edge switch, which are already 802.1Q-tagged with
the appropriate VLAN IDs, are encapsulated with another layer of an 802.1Q tag that contains a VLAN ID
that is unique to the customer. The original 802.1Q tag from the customer is preserved in the encapsulated
packet. Therefore, packets that enter the service-provider infrastructure are double-tagged.

306
Native VLAN Hazard
The outer tag contains the customer’s access VLAN ID (as assigned by the service provider), and the inner
VLAN ID is the VLAN of the incoming traffic (as assigned by the customer). This double tagging is called
tag stacking, Double-Q, or Q-in-Q as shown in the figure below.
Figure 31: Untagged, 802.1Q-Tagged, and Double-Tagged Ethernet Frames
By using this method, the VLAN ID space of the outer tag is independent of the VLAN ID space of the inner
tag. A single outer VLAN ID can represent the entire VLAN ID space for an individual customer. This
technique allows the customer’s Layer 2 network to extend across the service provider network, potentially
creating a virtual LAN infrastructure over multiple sites.
Note Hierarchical tagging, or multi-level dot1q tagging Q-in-Q, is not supported.
Native VLAN Hazard

When configuring 802.1Q tunneling on an edge switch, you must use 802.1Q trunk ports for sending out
packets into the service-provider network. However, packets that go through the core of the service-provider
network might be carried through 802.1Q trunks, ISL trunks, or nontrunking links. When 802.1Q trunks are
used in these core switches, the native VLANs of the 802.1Q trunks must not match any native VLAN of the
dot1q-tunnel port on the same switch because traffic on the native VLAN is not tagged on the 802.1Q
transmitting trunk port.
In the figure below, VLAN 40 is configured as the native VLAN for the 802.1Q trunk port from Customer X
at the ingress edge switch in the service-provider network (Switch B). Switch A of Customer X sends a tagged
packet on VLAN 30 to the ingress tunnel port of Switch B in the service-provider network that belongs to
access VLAN 40. Because the access VLAN of the tunnel port (VLAN 40) is the same as the native VLAN
of the edge-switch trunk port (VLAN 40), the 802.1Q tag is not added to tagged packets that are received

307
Information About Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling
from the tunnel port. The packet carries only the VLAN 30 tag through the service-provider network to the
trunk port of the egress-edge switch (Switch C) and is misdirected through the egress switch tunnel port to
Customer Y.
Figure 32: Native VLAN Hazard
These are a couple ways to solve the native VLAN problem:

• Configure the edge switch so that all packets going out an 802.1Q trunk, including the native VLAN,
are tagged by using the vlan dot1q tag native command. If the switch is configured to tag native VLAN
packets on all 802.1Q trunks, the switch accepts untagged packets but sends only tagged packets.
Note The vlan dot1q tag native command is a global command that affects the tagging
behavior on all trunk ports.
• Ensure that the native VLAN ID on the edge switch trunk port is not within the customer VLAN range.
For example, if the trunk port carries traffic of VLANs 100 to 200, assign the native VLAN a number
outside that range.

Customers at different sites connected across a service-provider network need to run various Layer 2 protocols
to scale their topology to include all remote sites, as well as the local sites. The Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)
must run properly, and every VLAN should build a proper spanning tree that includes the local site and all

308
remote sites across the service-provider infrastructure. The Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) must be able to
discover neighboring Cisco devices from local and remote sites, and the VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP)
must provide consistent VLAN configuration throughout all sites in the customer network.
When protocol tunneling is enabled, edge switches on the inbound side of the service-provider infrastructure
encapsulate Layer 2 protocol packets with a special MAC address and send them across the service-provider
network. Core switches in the network do not process these packets, but forward them as normal packets.
Bridge protocol data units (BPDUs) for CDP, STP, or VTP cross the service-provider infrastructure and are
delivered to customer switches on the outbound side of the service-provider network. Identical packets are
received by all customer ports on the same VLANs.
If protocol tunneling is not enabled on 802.1Q tunneling ports, remote switches at the receiving end of the
service-provider network do not receive the BPDUs and cannot properly run STP, CDP, 802.1X, and VTP.
When protocol tunneling is enabled, Layer 2 protocols within each customer’s network are totally separate
from those running within the service-provider network. Customer switches on different sites that send traffic
through the service- provider network with 802.1Q tunneling achieve complete knowledge of the customer’s
VLAN.
Note Layer 2 protocol tunneling works by tunneling BPDUs in the software. A large number of BPDUs that
come into the supervisor will cause the CPU load to go up. You might need to make use of hardware rate
limiters to reduce the load on the supervisor CPU. See the “Configuring the Rate Limit for Layer 2 Protocol
Tunnel Ports” section.

309
For example, in the figure below, Customer X has four switches in the same VLAN that are connected through
the service-provider network. If the network does not tunnel BPDUs, switches on the far ends of the network
cannot properly run the STP, CDP, 802.1X, and VTP protocols.
Figure 33: Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling
In the preceding example, STP for a VLAN on a switch in Customer X, Site 1 will build a spanning tree on
the switches at that site without considering convergence parameters based on Customer X’s switch in Site
2.

310
Configuring Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling
The figure below shows the resulting topology on the customer’s network when BPDU tunneling is not enabled.
Figure 34: Virtual Network Topology Without BPDU Tunneling
Configuring Q-in-Q Tunnels and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling

Creating a 802.1Q Tunnel Port
You create the dot1q-tunnel port using the switchport mode command.
Note You must set the 802.1Q tunnel port to an edge port with the spanning-tree port type edge command.
The VLAN membership of the port is changed using the switchport access vlan vlan-id command.
You should disable IGMP snooping on the access VLAN allocated for the dot1q-tunnel port to allow
multicast packets to traverse the Q-in-Q tunnel.
Before You Begin

You must first configure the interface as a switchport.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# interface ethernet Specifies an interface to configure, and enters interface
Step 3 switch(config-if)# switchport Sets the interface as a Layer 2 switching port.
Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport Creates a 802.1Q tunnel on the port. The port will go down
mode dot1q-tunnel and reinitialize (port flap) when the interface mode is

311
Changing the EtherType for Q-in-Q

changed. BPDU filtering is enabled and CDP is disabled
on tunnel interfaces.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# no switchport (Optional)

mode dot1q-tunnel Disables the 802.1Q tunnel on the port.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# exit Exits configuration mode.
Step 7 switch(config)# show dot1q-tunnel (Optional)

[interface if-range] Displays all ports that are in dot1q-tunnel mode.
Optionally, you can specify an interface or range of
interfaces to display.

during policy programming. This ensures that policies are


configuration.
This example shows how to create an 802.1Q tunnel port:

switch(config-if)# switchport mode dot1q-tunnel
switch# show dot1q-tunnel

You can change the 802.1Q EtherType value to be used for Q-in-Q encapsulation.

312
Note You must set the EtherType only on the egress trunk interface that carries double tagged frames (the trunk
interface that connects the service providers). If you change the EtherType on one side of the trunk, you
must set the same value on the other end of the trunk (symmetrical configuration).
Caution The EtherType value you set affect all the tagged packets that go out on the interface (not just Q-in-Q
packets).
Procedure

Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport dot1q Sets the EtherType for the Q-in-Q tunnel on the port.
ethertype value
Step 5 switch(config-if)# no switchport (Optional)
dot1q ethertype Resets the EtherType on the port to the default value of
0x8100.

during policy programming. This ensures that policies
are consistent with hardware policies.

policies correspond with hardware policies. This
command allows policy programming to continue and
the port to come up. If policies do not correspond, the
errors are placed in an error-disabled policy state.

configuration.
This example shows how to create an 802.1Q tunnel port:


313
Enabling the Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel

switch(config-if)# switchport dot1q ethertype 0x9100
switch# show dot1q-tunnel
Enabling the Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel

You can enable protocol tunneling on the 802.1Q tunnel port.
Procedure

Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport mode Creates a 802.1Q tunnel on the port. The port will go down
dot1q-tunnel and reinitialize (port flap) when the interface mode is
changed. BPDU filtering is enabled and CDP is disabled
on tunnel interfaces.
Step 5 switch(config-if)# l2protocol Enables Layer 2 protocol tunneling. Optionally, you can
tunnel [cdp | stp | vtp] enable CDP, STP, or VTP tunneling.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# no l2protocol (Optional)

tunnel [cdp | stp | vtp] Disables protocol tunneling.



configuration.

314
Configuring Global CoS for L2 Protocol Tunnel Ports
This example shows how to enable protocol tunneling on an 802.1Q tunnel port:
switch(config-if)# l2protocol tunnel stp
Configuring Global CoS for L2 Protocol Tunnel Ports

You can specify a Class of Service (CoS) value globally so that ingress BPDUs on the tunnel ports are
encapsulated with the specified class.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# l2protocol tunnel Specifies a global CoS value on all Layer 2 protocol
cos value tunneling ports. The default cos-value is 5.
Step 3 switch(config)# no l2protocol (Optional)

tunnel cos Sets the global CoS value to default.
Step 4 switch(config)# exit Exits configuration mode.


allows policy programming to continue and the port to come
up. If policies do not correspond, the errors are placed in an

This example shows how to specify a global CoS value for the purpose of Layer 2 protocol tunneling:
switch(config)# l2protocol tunnel cos 6

315
Configuring the Rate Limit for Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel Ports
Configuring the Rate Limit for Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel Ports

You can specify the hardware rate limiter configuration for Layer 2 protocol tunneling. The default is set to
500 packets per second. Depending on the load or the number of VLANs to be tunneled for a customer, you
might need to adjust this value to prevent STP errors on the customer’s network.
Procedure

Step 2 switch(config)# hardware rate-limiter Sets the threshold in packets per second above which
layer-2 l2pt packets-per-sec incoming protocol packets from dot1q-tunnel ports
are dropped in hardware. Valid values are from 0 to
30000.
Step 3 switch(config)# no hardware (Optional)

rate-limiter layer-2 l2pt Resets the threshold values to the default of 500
packets per second.
Configuring Thresholds for Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel Ports

You can specify the port drop and shutdown value for a Layer 2 protocol tunneling port.
Procedure

Step 4 switch(config-if)# switchport mode Creates a 802.1Q tunnel on the port.

dot1q-tunnel
Step 5 switch(config-if)# l2protocol tunnel Specifies the maximum number of packets that can be
drop-threshold [cdp | stp | vtp] processed on an interface before being dropped.
packets-per-sec Optionally, you can specify CDP, STP, or VTP. Valid
values for the packets are from 1 to 4096.
Step 6 switch(config-if)# no l2protocol (Optional)

tunnel drop-threshold [cdp | stp | Resets the threshold values to 0 and disables the drop
vtp] threshold.

316
Verifying the Q-in-Q Configuration

Step 7 switch(config-if)# l2protocol tunnel Specifies the maximum number of packets that can be
shutdown-threshold [cdp | stp | vtp] processed on an interface. When the number of packets
packets-per-sec is exceeded, the port is put in error-disabled state.
Optionally, you can specify CDP, STP, or VTP. Valid
values for the packets is from 1 to 4096.
Step 8 switch(config-if)# l2protocol tunnel (Optional)

shutdown-threshold [cdp | stp | vtp] Resets the threshold values to 0 and disables the
shutdown threshold.

during policy programming. This ensures that policies
are consistent with hardware policies.

policies correspond with hardware policies. This
command allows policy programming to continue and
the port to come up. If policies do not correspond, the
errors are placed in an error-disabled policy state.

configuration.
Verifying the Q-in-Q Configuration

Use the following commands to verify the Q-in-Q configuration:
Table 57: Verifying the Q-in-Q Configuration
Command Purpose
clear l2protocol tunnel counters [interface if-range] Clears all the statistics counters. If no interfaces are
specified, the Layer 2 protocol tunnel statistics are
cleared for all interfaces.
show dot1q-tunnel [interface if-range] Displays a range of interfaces or all interfaces that
are in dot1q-tunnel mode.

317
Configuration Examples for Q-in-Q and Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling
Command Purpose
show l2protocol tunnel [interface if-range | vlan Displays Layer 2 protocol tunnel information for a
vlan-id] range of interfaces, for all dot1q-tunnel interfaces that
are part of a specified VLAN or all interfaces.
show l2protocol tunnel summary Displays a summary of all ports that have Layer 2
protocol tunnel configurations.
show running-config l2pt Displays the current Layer 2 protocol tunnel running
configuration.
Configuration Examples for Q-in-Q and Layer 2 Protocol

Tunneling
This example shows a service provider switch that is configured to process Q-in-Q for traffic coming in on
Ethernet 7/1. A Layer 2 protocol tunnel is enabled for STP BPDUs. The customer is allocated VLAN 10
(outer VLAN tag).
switch(config)# vlan 10
switch(config-vlan)# no shutdown
switch(config-vlan)# no ip igmp snooping
switch(config-if)# spanning-tree port type edge
switch(config-if)# l2protocol tunnel stp
switch#

318
CHAPTER 12
Configuring Ethernet OAM
This chapter describes the configuration of Ethernet Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM).

• Feature History for Ethernet OAM, page 320
• Prerequisites for Ethernet OAM, page 320
• Licensing Requirements for Ethernet OAM, page 321
• Guidelines and Limitations for Ethernet OAM, page 321
• Information About Ethernet OAM, page 321
• Configuring Ethernet OAM, page 322
• Verifying the Ethernet OAM Configuration, page 329
• Configuration Examples for Ethernet OAM, page 333


319
Feature History for Ethernet OAM
Feature History for Ethernet OAM

Table 58: Feature History for Ethernet OAM

Ethernet OAM 8.0(1) Added support for the following modules:
• M3-Series 48-Port 10-Gigabit Ethernet
Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
Switches and Cisco Nexus 7700
Switches
• M3-Series 24-Port 40-Gigabit Ethernet
Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series
Switches and Cisco Nexus 7700
Switches
• M3-Series 100-Gigabit Ethernet Module
for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches
Ethernet OAM 7.3(0)D1(1) This feature was introduced.
Prerequisites for Ethernet OAM

• You must be in a user group associated with a task group that includes proper task IDs. The command
reference guides include the task IDs required for each command. If you suspect that user group
assignment is preventing you from using a command, contact your AAA administrator for assistance.
• You must use one of the following modules on the switch:
◦F3-Series 10-Gigabit Ethernet Series Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches and Cisco
Nexus 7700 Switches
◦F3-Series 24-Port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches and Cisco
Nexus 7700 Switches
◦F3-Series 12-Port 100-Gigabit Ethernet Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches and Cisco
Nexus 7700 Switches
◦M2-Series 10-Gigabit Ethernet Series Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches
◦M2-Series 6-Port 40-Gigabit Ethernet Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches
◦M2-Series 2-Port 100-Gigabit Ethernet Module for Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches

320
Licensing Requirements for Ethernet OAM
Licensing Requirements for Ethernet OAM

Guidelines and Limitations for Ethernet OAM

The following functional areas of Ethernet OAM are not supported on the Cisco NX-OS 7000 Series switches:
• Hello interval configuration
• Remote loopback
• Ethernet Fault Detection (EFD)
Information About Ethernet OAM

Ethernet as a Metro Area Network (MAN) or a Wide Area Network (WAN) technology benefits greatly from
the implementation of Operations, Administration and Maintenance (OAM) features. Ethernet link OAM
features allow Service Providers to monitor the quality of the connections on a MAN or WAN. Service
providers can monitor specific events, take actions on events, and if necessary, put specific interfaces into
loopback mode for troubleshooting. Ethernet link OAM operates on a single, physical link and it can be
configured to monitor either side or both sides of that link.
Ethernet link OAM can be configured in the following ways:
• A Link OAM profile can be configured, and this profile can be used to set the parameters for multiple
interfaces.
• Link OAM can be configured directly on an interface.
When an interface is also using a link OAM profile, specific parameters that are set in the profile can be
overridden by configuring a different value directly on the interface.
An EOAM profile simplifies the process of configuring EOAM features on multiple interfaces. An Ethernet
OAM profile, and all of its features, can be referenced by other interfaces, allowing other interfaces to inherit
the features of that Ethernet OAM profile.
Individual Ethernet link OAM features can be configured on individual interfaces without being part of a
profile. In these cases, the individually configured features always override the features in the profile.
The preferred method of configuring custom EOAM settings is to create an EOAM profile in Ethernet
configuration mode and then attach it to an individual interface or to multiple interfaces.
The following standard Ethernet Link OAM features are supported on the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series switch:
• Neighbor Discovery

321
• Link Monitoring
• Miswiring Detection (Cisco-Proprietary)
Neighbor Discovery
Neighbor discovery enables each end of a link to learn the OAM capabilities of the other end and establish
an OAM peer relationship. Each end also can require that the peer have certain capabilities before it will
establish a session. You can configure certain actions to be taken if there is a capabilities conflict or if a
discovery process times out, using the capabilities-conflict or discovery-timeout commands in the action
configuration submode.
Link Monitoring
Link monitoring enables an OAM peer to monitor faults that cause the quality of a link to deteriorate over
time. When link monitoring is enabled, an OAM peer can be configured to take action when the configured
thresholds are exceeded.
Miswiring Detection (Cisco-Proprietary)

Miswiring Detection is a Cisco-proprietary feature that uses the 32-bit vendor field in every Information
OAMPDU to identify potential miswiring cases.
Configuring an Ethernet OAM Profile

Procedure

Step 1 configure terminal Enters global configuration mode.
Example:
switch(config)#
Step 2 feature ethernet-link-oam Enables the Ethernet Link OAM feature.
Example:
switch(config)# feature
ethernet-link-oam
Step 3 ethernet oam profile profile-name Creates a new Ethernet Operations, Administration and
Maintenance (OAM) profile and enters Ethernet OAM
Example: configuration mode.
switch(config)# ethernet oam
profile Profile_1
switch(config-eoam)#

322

Step 4 link-monitor Enters the Ethernet OAM link monitor configuration mode.
Example:
link-monitor
switch(config-eoam-lm)#
Step 5 symbol-period window window (Optional)

Configures the window size (in milliseconds) for an
Example: Ethernet OAM symbol-period error event.
symbol-period window 60000 The range is 1000 to 60000. The default value is 1000.
Step 6 symbol-period threshold low (Optional)

threshold [high threshold] Configures the thresholds (in symbols) that trigger an
Ethernet OAM symbol-period error event. The high
Example: threshold is optional and is configurable only in conjunction
switch(config-eoam-lm)# with the low threshold.
symbol-period threshold low
10000000 high 60000000 The range is 1 to 60000000. The default low threshold is
1.
Step 7 frame window window (Optional)

Configures the frame window size (in milliseconds) of an
Example: OAM frame error event.
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame
window 60 The range is 1000 to 60000. The default value is 1000.
Step 8 frame threshold low threshold high (Optional)

threshold Configures the thresholds (in frames) that triggers an
Ethernet OAM frame error event. The high threshold is
Example: optional and is configurable only in conjunction with the
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame low threshold.
threshold low 10000000 high
60000000 The range is 1 to 12000000. The default low threshold is
1.
Step 9 frame-period window window (Optional)

Configures the window size (in milliseconds) for an
Example: Ethernet OAM frame-period error event.
frame-period window 60000 The range is 1000 to 60000. The default value is 1000.
Step 10 frame-period threshold low (Optional)

threshold [high threshold] Configures the thresholds (in frames) that trigger an
Ethernet OAM frame-period error event. The high threshold
Example: is optional and is configurable only in conjunction with the
switch(config-eoam-lm)# low threshold.
frame-period threshold low 100
high 1000000 The range is 1 to 1000000. The default low threshold is
60000.
The IEEE 802.3 standard defines threshold crossing events
as number of error frames in a window. To comply with
the standards, the low and high threshold for frame-period

323

events is measured in errors per million frames. Hence, the
calculation to determine the remote low and high threshold
is (configured threshold * frame window in received Bridge
Protocol Data Unit (BPDU))/1000000. For example, if the
received frame window=300, then high threshold is 20000
* 300 / 1000000 = 6.
Step 11 frame-seconds window window (Optional)

Configures the window size (in milliseconds) for the OAM
Example: frame-seconds error event.
frame-seconds window 900000 The range is 10000 to 900000. The default value is 60000.
Step 12 frame-seconds threshold low (Optional)

threshold [high threshold] Configures the thresholds (in seconds) that trigger a
frame-seconds error event. The high threshold value can
Example: be configured only in conjunction with the low threshold
switch(config-eoam-lm)# value.
frame-seconds threshold 3
threshold 900 The range is 1 to 900. The default value is 1.
Step 13 exit Exits to Ethernet OAM mode.
Example:
switch(config-eoam-lm)# exit
Step 14 connection timeout seconds Configures the timeout value (in seconds) for an Ethernet
OAM session.
Example: The range is 2 to 30. The default value is 5.
switch(config-eoam)# connection
timeout 30
Step 15 mode {active | passive} Configures the Ethernet OAM mode. The default is active.
Example:
switch(config-eoam)# mode
passive
Step 16 require-remote Enters the require-remote configuration submode to specify

the features that you have to enable before an Ethernet OAM
Example: session can become active.
require-remote
switch(config-eoam-require)#
Step 17 mode {active | passive} Requires that active mode or passive mode is configured
on the remote end before the Ethernet OAM session
Example: becomes active.
mode active

324

Step 18 link-monitoring Requires that link-monitoring is configured on the remote
end before the Ethernet OAM session becomes active.
Example:
link-monitoring
Step 19 exit Exits the require-remote configuration submode.
Example:
exit
Step 20 action Enters the action configuration submode to configure event

actions.
Example:
switch(config-eoam)# action
switch(config-eoam-action)#
Step 21 capabilities-conflict {disable | efd | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
error-disable-interface} capabilities-conflict event occurs. The default action is to
create a syslog entry.
Example: Note If you change the default, the log keyword option
capabilities-conflict disable is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
configuration mode to override the profile setting
and log the event for the interface when it occurs.
Step 22 critical-event {disable | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
error-disable-interface} critical-event notification is received from the remote
Ethernet OAM peer. The default action is to create a syslog
Example: entry.
critical-event Note If you change the default, the log keyword option
error-disable-interface is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
Step 23 discovery-timeout {disable | efd | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
error-disable-interface} connection timeout occurs. The default action is to create
a syslog entry.
discovery-timeout disable is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
Step 24 dying-gasp {disable | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
error-disable-interface} dying-gasp notification is received from the remote Ethernet
OAM peer. The default action is to create a syslog entry.
dying-gasp is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
error-disable-interface configuration mode to override the profile setting

325

Step 25 high-threshold Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
{error-disable-interface | log} high threshold is exceeded. The default is to take no action
when a high threshold is exceeded.
Example: Note If you change the default, the disable keyword
high-threshold option is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
error-disable-interface configuration mode to override the profile setting
and take no action at the interface when the event
occurs.
Step 26 remote-loopback disable Specifies that no action is taken on an interface when a
remote-loopback event occurs. The default action is to create
Example: a syslog entry.
remote-loopback disable Note If you change the default, the log keyword option
is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
Step 27 session-down {disable | efd | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when an
error-disable-interface} Ethernet OAM session goes down.
Note If you change the default, the log keyword option
Example: is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
session-down configuration mode to override the profile setting
error-disable-interface and log the event for the interface when it occurs.
Step 28 session-up disable Specifies that no action is taken on an interface when an
Ethernet OAM session is established. The default action is
Example: to create a syslog entry.
session-up disable Note If you change the default, the log keyword option
is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
Step 29 uni-directional link-fault {disable | Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
efd | error-disable-interface} link-fault notification is received from the remote Ethernet
OAM peer. The default action is to create a syslog entry.
uni-directional link-fault is available in Interface Ethernet OAM
disable configuration mode to override the profile setting
Step 30 wiring-conflict {disable | efd | log} Specifies the action that is taken on an interface when a
wiring-conflict event occurs. The default is to put the
Example: interface into error-disable state.
wiring-conflict disable Note If you change the default, the
error-disable-interface keyword option is
available in Interface Ethernet OAM configuration
mode to override the profile setting and put the
interface into error-disable state when the event
occurs.

326
Attaching an Ethernet OAM Profile to an Interface

Step 31 end Ends the configuration session and exits to the EXEC mode.
Example:
switch(config-eoam-action)# end
Attaching an Ethernet OAM Profile to an Interface

Procedure

Example:
switch(config)#
Step 2 interface interface Enters interface configuration mode and specifies

the Ethernet interface name and notation
Example: rack/slot/module/port.
switch(config)# interface
GigabitEthernet 0/0/6/11
switch(config-if)#
Step 3 ethernet oam Enables Ethernet OAM and enters Interface

Ethernet OAM configuration mode.
Example:
switch(config-if)# ethernet oam
switch(config-if-eoam)#
Step 4 profile profile-name Attaches the specified Ethernet OAM profile and
all of it's configuration to the interface.
Example:
switch(config-if-eoam)# profile
Profile_1
Step 5 end Ends the configuration session and exits to the

EXEC mode.
Example:
switch(config-if-eoam)# end

327
Configuring Ethernet OAM at an Interface and Overriding the Profile Configuration
Configuring Ethernet OAM at an Interface and Overriding the Profile

Configuration
Using an EOAM profile is an efficient way of configuring multiple interfaces with a common EOAM
configuration. However, if you want to use a profile but also change the behavior of certain functions for a
particular interface, then you can override the profile configuration. To override certain profile settings that
are applied to an interface, you can configure that command in interface Ethernet OAM configuration mode
to change the behavior for that interface.
In some cases, only certain keyword options are available in interface Ethernet OAM configuration due to
the default settings for the command. For example, without any configuration of the action configuration
submode commands, several forms of the command have a default behavior of creating a syslog entry when
a profile is created and applied to an interface. Therefore, the log keyword is not available in Ethernet OAM
configuration for these commands in the profile because it is the default behavior. However, the log keyword
is available in Interface Ethernet OAM configuration if the default is changed in the profile configuration so
you can retain the action of creating a syslog entry for a particular interface.
To configure Ethernet OAM settings at an interface and override the profile configuration, perform the
following steps:
Procedure

Example:
switch(config)#
Step 2 interface interface Enters interface configuration mode and specifies the
Ethernet interface name and notation
Example: rack/slot/module/port.
switch(config)# interface
GigabitEthernet 0/0/6/11
switch(config-if)#
Step 3 ethernet oam Enables Ethernet OAM and enters interface Ethernet
OAM configuration mode.
Example:
switch(config-if-eoam)#
Step 4 interface-Ethernet-OAM-command Configures a setting for an Ethernet OAM

configuration command and overrides the setting for
Example: the profile configuration, where
switch(config-if-eoam)# mode interface-Ethernet-OAM-command is one of the
passive supported commands on the platform in Interface
Ethernet OAM configuration mode.
Step 5 end Ends the configuration session and exits to the EXEC
mode.
Example:
switch(config-if-eoam)# end

328
Clearing Ethernet OAM Statistics on an Interface
Clearing Ethernet OAM Statistics on an Interface

Use the clear ethernet oam statistics command to clear the packet counters on all Ethernet OAM interfaces.
Use the clear ethernet oam statistics interface command to clear the packet counters on a specific Ethernet
OAM interface.
switch# clear ethernet oam statistics interface gigabitethernet 0/1/5/1
Verifying the Ethernet OAM Configuration

Use the show ethernet oam configuration command to display the values for the Ethernet OAM configuration
for a specific interface, or for all interfaces.
Note Some of these settings are not supported on certain platforms, but the defaults are still reported. On the
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series switches, the following areas are unsupported:
• Hello interval configuration
• Remote loopback
• EFD
switch# show ethernet oam configuration interface gigabitethernet 0/0/0/0

GigabitEthernet0/0/0/0:
Hello interval: 1s
Link monitoring enabled: Y
Remote loopback enabled: N
Mib retrieval enabled: N
Uni-directional link-fault detection enabled: N
Configured mode: Active
Connection timeout: 5
Symbol period window: 1000
Symbol period low threshold: 1
Symbol period high threshold: None
Frame window: 1000
Frame low threshold: 1
Frame high threshold: None
Frame period window: 1000
Frame period low threshold: 1
Frame period high threshold: None
Frame seconds window: 60000
Frame seconds low threshold: 1
Frame seconds high threshold: None
High threshold action: None
Link fault action: Log
Dying gasp action: Log
Critical event action: Log
Discovery timeout action: Log
Capabilities conflict action: Log
Wiring conflict action: Error-Disable
Session up action: Log
Session down action: Log
Remote loopback action: Log
Require remote mode: Ignore
Require remote MIB retrieval: N
Require remote loopback support: N
Require remote link monitoring: N

329
Use the show ethernet oam discovery command to display the status of the OAM sessions. If no interface
is specified, details of all interfaces that have OAM configured will be displayed.
switch# show ethernet oam discovery GigabitEthernet0/0/6/11
GigabitEthernet0/0/6/11
Local client
Administrative configuration:
PDU revision: 2
Mode: Active
Unidirectional support: N
Link monitor support: N
Remote loopback support: Y
MIB retrieval support: Y
Maximum PDU size: 1500
Mis-wiring detection key: 20492C
Operational status:
Port status: Operational
Loopback status: None
Interface mis-wired: N
Remote client
MAC address: 0030.96fd.6bfa
Vendor (OUI): 00.00.0C (Cisco)
Administrative configuration:
PDU revision: 5
Mode: Passive
Unidirectional support: N
Link monitor support: Y
Remote loopback support: Y
MIB retrieval support: N
Maximum PDU size: 1500
Use the show ethernet oam statistics command to display statistics for local and remote OAM sessions. If
no interface is specified, statistics of all interfaces that have OAM configured will be displayed.
switch# show ethernet oam statistics
Counters
--------
Information OAMPDU Tx 45
Information OAMPDU Rx 42
Unique Event Notification OAMPDU Tx 0
Unique Event Notification OAMPDU Rx 0
Duplicate Event Notification OAMPDU Tx 0
Duplicate Event Notification OAMPDU Rx 0
Loopback Control OAMPDU Tx 0
Loopback Control OAMPDU Rx 3
Variable Request OAMPDU Tx 0
Variable Request OAMPDU Rx 0
Variable Response OAMPDU Tx 0
Variable Response OAMPDU Rx 0
Organization Specific OAMPDU Tx 0
Organization Specific OAMPDU Rx 0
Unsupported OAMPDU Tx 93
Unsupported OAMPDU Rx 0
Frames Lost due to OAM 12
Local event logs

----------------
Errored Symbol Period records 0
Errored Frame records 0
Errored Frame Period records 0
Errored Frame Second records 0
Remote event logs

-----------------
Errored Symbol Period records 0

330
Errored Frame records 0

Errored Frame Period records 0
Errored Frame Second records 0
Use the show ethernet oam event-log command to display the most recent event logs for interfaces on which
OAM is configured.
switch# show ethernet oam event-log
Wed Jan 23 06:16:46.684 PST
Local Action Taken:
N/A - No action needed EFD - Interface brought down using EFD
None - No action taken Err.D - Interface error-disabled
Logged - System logged
================================================================================
Time Type Loc'n Action Threshold Breaching Value
------------------------- -------------- ------ ------ --------- ---------------
Wed Jan 23 06:13:25 PST Symbol period Local N/A 1 4
Wed Jan 23 06:13:33 PST Frame Local N/A 1 6
Wed Jan 23 06:13:37 PST Frame period Local None 9 12
Wed Jan 23 06:13:45 PST Frame seconds Local N/A 1 10
Wed Jan 23 06:13:57 PST Dying gasp Remote Logged N/A N/A
================================================================================
Time Type Loc'n Action Threshold Breaching Value
------------------------- -------------- ------ ------ --------- ---------------
Wed Jan 23 06:26:14 PST Dying gasp Remote Logged N/A N/A
Wed Jan 23 06:33:25 PST Symbol period Local N/A 1 4
Wed Jan 23 06:43:33 PST Frame period Remote N/A 9 12
Wed Jan 23 06:53:37 PST Critical event Remote Logged N/A N/A
Wed Jan 23 07:13:45 PST Link fault Remote EFD N/A N/A
Wed Jan 23 07:18:23 PST Dying gasp Local Logged N/A N/A
Use the show ethernet oam event-log interface detail command to display detailed event logs for specific
interfaces on which OAM is configured.
switch# show ethernet oam event-log interface detail
Wed Jan 23 06:21:16.392 PST
(Scaled): For remote threshold events "Local High Threshold" is scaled for
comparison with "Breaching Value".
This is to account for different local and remote window sizes.
====================================================================
Event at Wed Jan 23 2013 06:26:14.62 PST:
Type: Dying gasp
Location: Remote
Local Action Taken: System logged
Local Event Running Total: 1
Type: Threshold Event - Symbol period
Location: Local
Local Action Taken: No action needed
Local Window Size: 1000
Local Threshold: 1
Local High Threshold: Not configured
Breaching Value: 4
Local Error Running Total: 8
Type: Threshold Event - Frame period
Location: Remote
Local Action Taken: No action needed
Remote Event Running Total: 1
Remote Window Size: 1000
Remote Threshold: 9
Local High Threshold (Scaled): Not configured
Breaching Value: 12

331
Remote Error Running Total: 24

Type: Critical event
Location: Remote
Type: Link fault
Location: Remote
Local Action Taken: Interface brought down using EFD
Type: Dying gasp
Location: Local
Use the show ethernet oam summary to display a summary of all the active OAM sessions.
switch# show ethernet oam summary
Link OAM System Summary
=======================
Profiles 6
Interfaces 10
Interface states:
Port down 1
Passive wait 1
Active send 1
[Evaluating 0]
[Local accept 0]
[Local reject 0]
Remote reject 1
Operational 6
Loopback mode 1
Miswired connections 1
Events 13
Local 4
Symbol error 0
Frame 2
Frame period 1
Frame seconds 1
Remote 9
Symbol error 3
Frame 4
Frame period 1
Frame seconds 1
Use the show ethernet oam summary detail command to display a summary of all the active OAM sessions
and details about the 10 most recent events across all interfaces.
switch# show ethernet oam summary detail
Link OAM System Summary
=======================
Profiles 6
Interfaces 10
Interface states:
Port down 1
Passive wait 1
Active send 1
[Evaluating 0]
[Local accept 0]
[Local reject 0]
Remote reject 1
Operational 6
Loopback mode 1
Miswired connections 1
Events 13
Local 4
Symbol error 0

332
Configuration Examples for Ethernet OAM
Frame 2
Frame period 1
Frame seconds 1
Remote 9
Symbol error 3
Frame 4
Frame period 1
Frame seconds 1
Recent Event Logs

=================
Interface Time Type Loc'n Action
------------------- ------------------- -------------- ------ ------
Gi0/0/0/0 Jan 23 06:13:25 PST Symbol period Local N/A
Gi0/0/0/0 Jan 23 06:13:33 PST Frame Local N/A
Gi0/0/0/2 Jan 23 06:13:37 PST Frame period Local N/A
Gi0/0/0/1 Jan 23 06:13:45 PST Frame seconds Local EFD
Gi0/0/0/0 Jan 23 06:13:48 PST Dying gasp Remote Err.D
Configuration Examples for Ethernet OAM
Configuration Example for Configuring an Ethernet OAM Profile Globally

switch(config)# feature ethernet-link-oam
switch(config)# ethernet oam profile Profile_1
switch(config-eoam)# link-monitor
switch(config-eoam-lm)# symbol-period window 60000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# symbol-period threshold low 10000000 high 60000000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame window 60
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame threshold low 10000000 high 60000000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame-period window 60000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame-period threshold low 100 high 1000000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame-seconds window 900000
switch(config-eoam-lm)# frame-seconds threshold 3 threshold 900
switch(config-eoam-lm)# exit
switch(config-eoam)# connection timeout 30
switch(config-eoam)# mode passive
switch(config-eoam)# require-remote
switch(config-eoam-require)# mode active
switch(config-eoam-require)# link-monitoring
switch(config-eoam-require)# exit
switch(config-eoam-action)# capabilities-conflict disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# critical-event error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# discovery-timeout disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# dying-gasp error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# high-threshold error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# remote-loopback disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# session-down error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# session-up disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# uni-directional link-fault disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# wiring-conflict disable
Configuration Example for Attaching an Ethernet OAM Profile to a Specific

Interface
switch(config)# interface GigabitEthernet 0/0/6/11
switch(config-if-eoam)# profile Profile_1

333
Configuration Example for Configuring Ethernet OAM Features on a Specific Interface
Configuration Example for Configuring Ethernet OAM Features on a Specific

Interface
switch(config-if-eoam)# link-monitor
switch(config—if-eoam-lm)# symbol-period window 60000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# symbol-period threshold low 10000000 high 60000000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame window 60
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame threshold low 10000000 high 60000000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame-period window 60000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame-period threshold low 100 high 1000000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame-seconds window 900000
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# frame-seconds threshold 3 threshold 900
switch(config-if-eoam-lm)# exit
switch(config-if-eoam)# connection timeout 30
switch(config-if-eoam)# mode passive
switch(config-if-eoam)# require-remote
switch(config-if-eoam-require)# mode active
switch(config-if-eoam-require)# link-monitoring
switch(config-if-eoam-require)# exit
switch(config-if-eoam)# action
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# capabilities-conflict disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# critical-event error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# discovery-timeout disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# dying-gasp error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# high-threshold error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# remote-loopback disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# session-down error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# session-up disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# uni-directional link-fault disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# wiring-conflict disable
Configuration Example for Configuration of Ethernet OAM Features in a Profile

Followed by an Override of that Configuration on an Interface
switch(config)# ethernet oam profile Profile_1
switch(config-eoam)# mode passive
switch(config-eoam-action)# capabilities-conflict disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# critical-event error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# discovery-timeout disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# dying-gasp error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# remote-loopback disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# session-down error-disable-interface
switch(config-eoam-action)# session-up disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# uni-directional link-fault disable
switch(config-eoam-action)# wiring-conflict disable
switch(config-if-eoam)# profile Profile_1
switch(config-if-eoam)# mode active
switch(config-if-eoam)# action
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# capabilities-conflict disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# critical-event error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# discovery-timeout disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# dying-gasp error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# remote-loopback disable
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# session-down error-disable-interface
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# session-up disable

334
Related Documents
switch(config-if-eoam-action)# uni-directional link-fault disable

switch(config-if-eoam-action)# wiring-conflict disable
Related Documents
Related Topic

335
Related Documents

336
CHAPTER 13
Configuring FEC on Optic Modules
This chapter provides information on how to configure FEC on optica modules.
• Feature History for FEC Support on Optic Modules, page 337

• Information About FEC Support on Optic Modules, page 337
• FEC State Links, page 338
• Configuring FEC on a Transceiver Module, page 338
• Additional References, page 339
Feature History for FEC Support on Optic Modules

Table 60: Feature History for FEC Support on Optic Modules

FEC Support on Optic 8.0(1) Added support for the FEC Support on Optic
Modules Modules feature on the Cisco Nexus 7000
Series Switches M3 100 Gigabit Ethernet
module (N77-M312CQ-26L).
Information About FEC Support on Optic Modules

From Cisco NX-OS Release 8.0(1), Forward Error Correction (FEC) support is enabled on the Cisco Nexus
7000 Series Switches M3 Gigabit Ethernet module (N77-M312CQ-26L).
FEC is a digital signal processing technique used to enhance data reliability. It is done by introducing redundant
data, called error correcting code, prior to data transmission or storage.

337
FEC State Links
FEC State Links

The following table list the expected link state when two devices are configured with different operational
FEC configuration values. The following values are applicable only for QSFP-100G-SR4 transceiver modules.
Device 1 (Admin State) Device 2 (Admin State) Link State

FEC AUTO FEC OFF Down
FEC AUTO FEC AUTO UP
FEC OFF FEC OFF UP
FEC cl91 FEC AUTO UP
FEC AUTO FEC AUTO UP
FEC cl91 FEC cl91 UP
Note By default, the FEC admin state is AUTO. Operational state for all optics except QSFP-100G-LR4
transceiver modules will be negotiated to cl90 (ON). For QSFP, by default, the FEC operational state will
negotiate to OFF. In a FEC set up, if one side of the link is set to AUTO and the other side of the FEC
link is set to OFF, it can cause link failure (link down).
Configuring FEC on a Transceiver Module

Procedure
Step 1 Enter global configuration mode.

Step 2 Specify an interface range to configure, and enter interface configuration mode.
switch(config)# interface interface-range
Step 3 Configure the Forward Error Correction feature for the interface range.
switch(config-if-range)# fec {auto | cl91 | off}
• auto—Enables the FEC feature based on the transceiver type.
• cl91—Enables clause 91 for 100 Gigabit interface.
• off—Disables FEC for the interface range.

338
Additional References
Note The default admin mode is auto on all transceiver modules, but on the QSFP-100G-LR4 transceiver
module by default, the admin mode is auto and the operational state of FEC is OFF.
Step 4 (Optional) Copy the running configuration as startup configuration.
Step 5 (Optional) Verify the FEC configurations.

switch(config)# show interface interface-range status
Configuring FEC
This example shows how to configure and verify the FEC feature on a QSFP-100G-LR4 transceiver module:
switch(config)# interface ethernet1/2,Ethernet 18/12
switch(config-if-range)# fec cl91
switch(config-if-range)# exit
switch# show interface Ethernet1/2
Ethernet1/2 is up
admin state is up, Dedicated Interface
Hardware: 40000/100000 Ethernet, address: 00eb.d56e.9fd0 (bia 00eb.d56e.9fd0)
Encapsulation ARPA, medium is broadcast
Port mode is access
full-duplex, 40 Gb/s, media type is 40G
Beacon is turned off
Auto-Negotiation is turned on
Input flow-control is off, output flow-control is off
Rate mode is dedicated
Switchport monitor is off
EtherType is 0x8100
EEE (efficient-ethernet) : n/a
admin fec state is auto, oper fec state is off
.
.
.
Related Documents
Related Topic Document Title

fec command Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces
Command Reference

339

340
APPENDIX A
IETF RFCs Supported by Cisco NX-OS Interfaces
Information about the Internet suite of protocols is contained in documents called Requests for Comments
(RFCs).
Table 61: IETF RFCs Supported by Cisco NX-OS Interfaces
RFC Title
RFC 1981 Path MTU Discovery for IP version 6
RFC 2373 IP Version 6 Addressing Architecture
RFC 2374 An Aggregatable Global Unicast Address Format
RFC 2460 Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification
RFC 2461 Neighbor Discovery for IP Version 6 (IPv6)
RFC 2462 IPv6 Stateless Address Autoconfiguration
RFC 2463 Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMPv6) for the Internet Protocol
Version 6 (IPv6) Specification
RFC 2464 Transmission of IPv6 Packets over Ethernet Networks
RFC 2467 Transmission of IPv6 Packets over FDDI Networks
RFC 2472 IP Version 6 over PPP
RFC 2492 IPv6 over ATM Networks
RFC 2590 Transmission of IPv6 Packets over Frame Relay Networks

Specification
RFC 3021 Using 31-Bit Prefixes on IPv4 Point-to-Point Links
RFC 3152 Delegation of IP6.ARPA

341
IETF RFCs Supported by Cisco NX-OS Interfaces
RFC Title
RFC 3162 RADIUS and IPv6
RFC 3513 Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) Addressing Architecture
RFC 3596 DNS Extensions to Support IP version 6
RFC 4193 Unique Local IPv6 Unicast Addresses

342

Cisco Nexus7000 Interfaces Config Guide 8x

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Cisco Nexus7000 Interfaces Config Guide 8x

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Cisco Nexus7000 Interfaces Config Guide 8x

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

First Published: 2016-12-24

© 2016-2016 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Preface Preface xix

CHAPTER 1 New and Changed Information 1

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Licensing Requirements for Interfaces 6

CHAPTER 3 Configuring Basic Interface Parameters 7

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Dedicating Bandwidth to One Port 24

CHAPTER 4 Configuring Layer 2 Interfaces 51

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Finding Feature Information 51

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Verifying the Interface Configuration 78

CHAPTER 5 Configuring Layer 3 Interfaces 83

CHAPTER 6 Configuring Bidirectional Forwarding Detection 101

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Feature History for BFD 101

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Configuring BFD on EIGRP 122

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 7 Configuring Port Channels 145

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Shutting Down and Restarting the Port-Channel Interface 168

CHAPTER 8 Configuring vPCs 193

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Finding Feature Information 194

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

vPC Interactions with Other Features 225

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Configuring a Graceful Consistency Check 246

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 9 Configuring Interfaces in Breakout Mode 287

CHAPTER 10 Configuring IP Tunnels 293

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 11 Configuring Q-in-Q VLAN Tunnels 303

CHAPTER 12 Configuring Ethernet OAM 319

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 13 Configuring FEC on Optic Modules 337

APPENDIX A IETF RFCs Supported by Cisco NX-OS Interfaces 341

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

• Preface, page xix

Command descriptions use the following conventions:

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

[x] Square brackets enclose an optional element (keyword or argument).

[x | y] Square brackets enclosing keywords or arguments separated by a vertical

{x | y} Braces enclosing keywords or arguments separated by a vertical bar

[x {y | z}] Nested set of square brackets or braces indicate optional or required

Examples use the following conventions:

<> Nonprinting characters, such as passwords, are in angle brackets.

[] Default responses to system prompts are in square brackets.

!, # An exclamation point (!) or a pound sign (#) at the beginning of a line

This document uses the following conventions:

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Obtaining Documentation and Submitting a Service Request

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide