3.1 Product description

The new Nortel Networks Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber GbE Switch Modules for IBM Eserver BladeCenter serve as a switching and routing fabric for the BladeCenter server chassis. In addition to the Layer 2 switching capabilities, these switches introduce the expanded capabilities of Layer 3 routing. Up to four copper or fiber Gb Ethernet modules can reside in the I/O module bays of the BladeCenter chassis. The modules can be hot-plugged into an IBM Eserver BladeCenter without disrupting normal operations.

The Nortel Networks L2/3 GbESM connects to the server blades via the 14 internal GbE interfaces (server ports) over the BladeCenter midplane. It supplies six external copper or multimode fiber GbE interfaces for outside communication (shown in Figure 3-1). The switch is managed via two internal 100 Mbps ports for communication to the BladeCenter management module. A RS232 serial console management interface is also available.

Figure 3-1 Nortel Networks L2/3 GbESM connections

Full Layer 2 switching and Layer 3 routing provide flexible in-chassis traffic management and security. The Nortel Networks Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber GbE Switch Modules for

IBM Eserver BladeCenter provides full Layer 2 switching with availability capabilities such as advanced spanning tree protocols, Link Aggregation Control, Cisco Etherchannel, and 802.1Q VLANs, application delivery and performance features such as granular QOS (Differentiated Service Code Point 802.1p), Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) snooping, and multicast.

In particular, the switch modules support up to 16,384 MAC addresses, 4,096 address resolution protocol (ARP) entries, and up to 2,048 dynamic route entries to ensure a high

16Nortel Networks L2/3 Ethernet Switch Module for IBM Eserver BladeCenter

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IBM manual Product description, Nortel Networks L2/3 GbESM connections