NETGEAR M7100, M4100 manual Stack Master and Stack Members

ProSafe M4100 and M7100 Managed Switches

The Stack Master and Stack Members

A switch stack is a set of up to 8 switches connected through their stacking ports. The switch that controls the operation of the stack is the stack master. The stack master and the other switches in the stack are stack members. Stack members use stacking technology to behave and work together as a unified system. Layer 2 and Layer 3 protocols present the entire switch stack as a single entity to the network.The following figure shows an example of switches that are interconnected to form a stack.

Connecting AX742 modules with stacking cable

Figure 37. Stacked switches

Stack Master

The stack master is the single point of stack-wide management. From the stack master, you configure:

•System-level (global) features that apply to all stack members.

•Interface-level features for all interfaces on any stack member.

A switch stack is identified in the network by its network IP address. The network IP address is assigned according to the MAC address of the stack master. Every stack member is uniquely identified by its own stack member number.

The stack master contains the saved and running configuration files for the switch stack. The configuration files include the system-level settings for the switch stack and the interface-level settings for all stack members. Each stack member retains a copy of the saved file for backup purposes. If the master is removed from the stack, another member is elected master, and then runs from that saved configuration.

All stack members are eligible stack masters. If the stack master becomes unavailable, the remaining stack members participate in electing a new stack master. A set of factors determine which switch is elected the stack master. The stack master is elected or re-elected based on one of these factors and in the order listed:

350 Chapter 19. Switch Stacks