Link Aggregation

Link Aggregation

Link Aggregation is a method of grouping multiple physical ports on a network device into one logical link according to the IEEE 802.3ad‐2002 standard. Because Link Aggregation is standards based, it allows for automatic configuration with manual overrides (if applicable), and can operate on 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, or 1000 Mbps Ethernet full duplex ports. Thus the network administrator can combine a group of five 100 Mbps ports into a logical link (trunk) that functions as a single 500 Mbps port. As long as the DFE modules agree on which ports are in the trunk, there are no problems with looping, and the Spanning Tree can treat this trunk as a single port.

In normal usage (and typical implementations) there is no need to enable/disable ports for Link Aggregation. The default values will result in the maximum number of aggregations possible. If the switch is placed in a configuration with its peers not running the protocol, no aggregations will be formed and the DFE modules will function normally (that is, Spanning Tree will block redundant paths).

For details about the commands involved with configuring the Link Aggregation function, refer to the Enterasys Matrix DFE‐Platinum Series Configuration Guide.

10BASE-T Network

When connecting a 10BASE‐T segment to any of the RJ45 fixed front‐panel ports of the 7G4285‐49 or 7G4205‐72, ensure that the network meets the Ethernet network requirements of the IEEE 802.3‐2002 standard for 10BASE‐T and 802.3af‐2003 standard for Power over Ethernet (PoE) power sourcing applications over Ethernet cabling. For more information about PoE, refer to Appendix C.

Note: If a port is to operate at 100 or 1000 Mbps, Category 5 cabling must be used. Category 3 cabling does not meet 100 Mbps specifications. For 10 Mbps operation only, Category 3 or Category 5 cabling can be used. Refer to the 100BASE-TX Network” on page 2-3 for information about 100BASE-TX networks and cabling.

2-2 Network Requirements

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Enterasys Networks 7G4205-72, 7G4285-49 manual Link Aggregation, 10BASE-T Network