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Cisco MDS 9000 Family NX-OS Interfaces Configuration Guide
OL-29284-01, Release 6.x
Chapter 6 Configuring PortChannels
Information About PortChannels
Figure 6-5 SID1, DID1, and Exchange-Based Load Balancing
For more information on configuring load balancing and in-order delivery features, see the Cisco MDS
9000 Family NX-OS Fabric Configuration Guide.
PortChannel Modes
You can configure each PortChannel with a channel group mode parameter to determine the PortChannel
protocol behavior for all member ports in this channel group. The possible values for a channel group
mode are as follows:
ON (default)—The member ports only operate as part of a PortChannel or remain inactive. In this
mode, the PortChannel protocol is not initiated. However, if a PortChannel protocol frame is
received from a peer port, the software indicates its nonnegotiable status. This mode is backward
compatible with the existing implementation of PortChannels in releases prior to Release 2.0(1b),
where the channel group mode is implicitly assumed to be ON. In Cisco MDS SAN-OS Releases
1.3 and earlier, the only available PortChannel mode was the ON mode. PortChannels configured in
the ON mode require you to explicitly enable and disable the PortChannel member ports at either
end if you add or remove ports from the PortChannel configuration. You must physically verify that
the local and remote ports are connected to each other.
ACTIVE—The member ports initiate PortChannel protocol negotiation with the peer port(s)
regardless of the channel group mode of the peer port. If the peer port, while configured in a channel
group, does not support the PortChannel protocol, or responds with a nonnegotiable status, it will
default to the ON mode behavior. The ACTIVE PortChannel mode allows automatic recovery
without explicitly enabling and disabling the PortChannel member ports at either end.
Frame 1
Frame 2
Frame 3
Frame 1
Frame 2
Frame 3
Frame n
Frame n
SID1, DID1,
Exchange 1
SID1, DID1,
Exchange 2
Link 1
Link 2
Link 1
Link 2
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