Introduction

1-2

1
Description of Software Features
The switch provides a wide range of advanc ed performance enhancing features.
Flow control eliminates the loss of packets due to bottlenecks caused by port
saturation. Broadcast storm suppression prevents broadcast traffic storms f rom
engulfing the network. Port-based and protocol-based VLANs, plus support for
automatic GVRP VLAN registration provide traffic security and efficient use of
network bandwidth. CoS priority queueing ensures the minimum delay for mo ving
real-time multimedia data across the network. While multicast filtering prov ides
support for real-time network applications. Some of the management feat ures are
briefly described below.
Configuration Backup and Restore – You can save the current configuration
settings to a file on a TFTP server, and later download this file to restore the switch
configuration settings.
Authentication – This switch authenticates ma nagement access via the console
port, Telnet or web browser. User names and passwords can be configured loca lly or
can be verified via a remote authentication server (i.e., RADIUS or TACACS+).
Port-based authentication is also supported via the IEEE 802.1x protocol. This
protocol uses the Extensible Authentication Protocol over L ANs (EAPOL) to request
user credentials from the 802.1x client, and then verifies the client’s right to access
the network via an authentication server.
Other authentication options include HTTPS for secure management acces s via the
web, SSH for secure management access over a Telnet-equivalent connection, IP
address filtering for SNMP/web/Telnet management access, and MAC address
filtering for port access.
Access Control Lists – ACLs provide packet filtering for IP frames (based on
address, protocol, TCP/UDP port number or TCP control code) or any frames
(based on MAC address or Ethernet type). ACLs can be used to improve
performance by blocking unnecessary network traffic or to implement secu rity
controls by restricting access to specific network resources or pro tocols.
Port Configuration – You can manually configure the speed, duplex mode, and
flow control used on specific ports, or use auto-negotiation to detect the conne ction
settings used by the attached device. Use the full-duplex mode on ports whenev er
possible to double the throughput of switch connectio ns. Flow control should also be
enabled to control network traffic during periods of congestion and prevent the l oss
of packets when port buffer thresholds are exceeded. The switch supports flow
control based on the IEEE 802.3x standard.
Rate Limiting – This feature controls the maximum rate for traffic transmitted or
received on an interface. Rate limiting is configured on interfaces at the edge of a
network to limit traffic into or out of the network. Traffic that falls within the rate limit is
transmitted, while packets that exceed the acceptable a mount of traffic are dropped.