Cisco Systems 3550 Assigning the Switch IP Address and Default Gateway

CHAPTER
4-1
Catalyst 3550 Multilayer Switch Software Configuration Guide
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4
Assigning the Switch IP Address and Default
Gateway
This chapter describes how to create the initial switch configuration (for example, assign the switch IP
address and default gateway information) by using a vari ety of aut om atic and m an ual met hod s. It a lso
describes how to modify the switch startup configuration.
Note For complete syntax and usage information for the commands used in this chapter, refer to the
Catalyst 3550 Multilayer Switch Command Reference for this release.
This chapter consists of these sections:
•Understanding the Boot Process, page 4-1
•Assigning Switch Information, page 4-2
•Checking and Saving the Running Configuration, page 4-10
•Modifying the Startup Configuration, page 4-12
•Scheduling a Reload of the Software Image, page 4-17
Understanding the Boot Process
Before you can assign switch information (IP address, subnet mask, de faul t g atew ay, secret and Telnet
passwords, and so forth), you need to install and power on t he sw itc h as des cr ibed in the ha rdw are
installation guide that shipped with your switch.
The normal boot process involves the operation of the boot load er so ftw are, whic h perfo rm s the se
activities:
•Performs low-level CPU initialization. It initializes the CPU registers, which control where physical
memory is mapped, its quantity, its speed, and so forth.
•Performs power-on self-test (POST) for the CPU subsystem. It tests the CPU DRAM and the portion
of the Flash device that makes up the Flash file system.
•Initializes the Flash file system on the system board.
•Loads a default operating system software image into memory and boots the switch.