Selecting a Management Interface

Advantages of Using the Menu Interface

Advantages of Using the Menu InterfaceFigure 1-1. Example of the Console Interface Display

Provides quick, easy management access to a menu-driven subset of switch configuration and performance features:

IP addressing

System information

VLANs and GVRP

Passwords

Port Security

SNMP communities

Port and Static Trunk Group • Time protocols

Spanning Tree

The menu interface also provides access for:

Setup screen

Event Log display

Switch and port status displays

Switch and port statistic and counter displays

Reboots

Software downloads

Offers out-of-band access (through the RS-232 connection) to the switch, so network bottlenecks, crashes, lack of configured or correct IP address, and network downtime do not slow or prevent access

Enables Telnet (in-band) access to the menu functionality.

Allows faster navigation, avoiding delays that occur with slower display of graphical objects over a web browser interface.

Provides more security; configuration information and passwords are not seen on the network.

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