Sample configuration of EtherChannel / Link aggregation with ESXi/ESX and Cisco/HP switches

Transcription

1 Page 1 of 7 Sample configuration of EtherChannel / Link aggregation with ESXi/ESX and Cisco/HP switches Purpose This article describes the concepts, limitations, and some sample configurations of link aggregation, NIC Teaming, LACP, and EtherChannel connectivity between ESXi/ESX and Physical Network Switches, particularly for Cisco and HP. Resolution Note:There are a number of requirements which need to be considered before implementing any form of link aggregation. For more/related information on these requirements, see ESX/ESXi host requirements for link aggregation ( )(search.do? cmd=displaykc&doctype=kc&doctypeid=dt_kb_1_1&externalid= ). The following explains link aggregation concepts: EtherChannel: This is a link aggregation (port trunking) method used to provide fault-tolerance and high-speed links between switches, routers, and servers by grouping two to eight physical Ethernet links to create a logical Ethernet link with additional failover links. For additional information on Cisco EtherChannel, see the EtherChannel Introduction ( by Cisco. LACP or IEEE 802.3ad: The Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) is included in IEEE specification as a method to control the bundling of several physical ports together to form a single logical channel. LACP allows a network device to negotiate an automatic bundling of links by sending LACP packets to the peer (directly connected device that also implements LACP). EtherChannel vs. 802.ad: EtherChannel and IEEE 802.3ad standards are very similar and accomplish the same goal. There are a few differences between the two, other than EtherChannel is Cisco proprietary and 802.3ad is an open standard. For additional information on EtherChannel implementation, see the Understanding EtherChannel Load Balancing and Redundancy on Catalyst Switches ( article from Cisco. The following are EtherChannel supported scenarios:

2 Page 2 of 7 One IP to many IP connections. (Host A making two connection sessions to Host B and C) Many IP to many IP connections. (Host A and B multiple connection sessions to Host C, D and etc) Note: One IP to one IP connections over multiple NICs is not supported. (Host A one connection session to Host B uses only one NIC). Compatible with all ESXi/ESX VLAN configuration modes: VST, EST, and VGT. For more information on these modes, see VLAN Configuration on Virtual Switch, Physical Switch, and Virtual Machines ( )(search.do?cmd=displayKC&docType=kc&docTypeID=DT_KB_1_1&externalId= ). Supported Cisco configuration: EtherChannel Mode ON ( Enable EtherChannel only) Supported HP configuration: Trunk Mode Supported switch Aggregation algorithm: IP-SRC-DST (short for IP-Source-Destination) Supported Virtual Switch NIC Teaming mode: IP HASH Note: The only load balancing option for vswitches or vdistributed Switches that can be used with EtherChannel is IP HASH. Do not use beacon probing with IP HASH load balancing. Do not configure standby or unused uplinks with IP HASH load balancing. We only support one EtherChannel per vswitch or vnetwork Distributed Switch (vds). Lower model Cisco switches may have MAC-SRC-DST set by default, and may require additional configuration. For more information, see the Understanding EtherChannel Load Balancing and Redundancy on Catalyst Switches ( article from Cisco. This is a Cisco EtherChannel sample configuration: interface Port-channel1 switchport switchport access vlan 100 switchport mode access no ip address! interface GigabitEthernet1/1 switchport switchport access vlan 100 switchport mode access no ip address channel-group 1 mode on! ESX Server and Cisco switch sample topology and configuration:

3 Page 3 of 7 Run this command to verify EtherChannel load balancing mode configuration: Switch# show etherchannel load-balance EtherChannel Load-Balancing Configuration: src-dst-ip mpls label-ip EtherChannel Load-Balancing Addresses Used Per-Protocol: Non-IP: Source XOR Destination MAC address IPv4: Source XOR Destination IP address IPv6: Source XOR Destination IP address MPLS: Label or IP Switch# show etherchannel summary Flags: D - down P - bundled in port-channel I - stand-alone s - suspended H - Hot-standby (LACP only) R - Layer3 S - Layer2 U - in use f - failed to allocate aggregator M - not in use, minimum links not met u - unsuitable for bundling w - waiting to be aggregated Number of channel-groups in use: 2 Number of aggregators: 2 Group Port-channel Protocol Ports Po1(SU) - Gi1/15(P) Gi1/16(P) 2 Po2(SU) - Gi1/1(P) Gi1/2(P)

4 Page 4 of 7 Switch# show etherchannel protocol Channel-group listing: Group: Protocol: - (Mode ON) Group: Protocol: - (Mode ON) HP switch sample configuration This configuration is specific to HP switches: HP switches support only two modes of LACP, ACTIVE and PASSIVE, while ESXi/ESX does not support either LACP mode currently. Set the HP switch port mode to TRUNK to accomplish static link aggregation with ESXi/ESX. TRUNK Mode of HP switch ports is the only supported aggregation method compatible with ESXi/ESX NIC teaming mode IP hash. To configure a static portchannel in an HP switch using ports 10,11,12, and 13, run this command: conf trunk Trk1 Trunk To verify your portchannel, run this command: ProCurve# show trunk Load Balancing Port Name Type Group Type /1000T Trk1 Trunk /1000T Trk1 Trunk /1000T Trk1 Trunk /1000T Trk1 Trunk Configuring load balancing within the vsphere/vmware Infrastructure Client To configure vswitch properties for load balancing: 1. Click the ESXi/ESX host. 2. Click the Configurationtab. 3. Click the Networkinglink. 4. Click Properties. 5. Click the virtual switch in the Portstab and click Edit. 6. Click the NIC Teamingtab. 7. From the Load Balancingdropdown, choose Route based on ip hash. 8. Verify that there are two or more network adapters listed under Active Adapters.

5 Page 5 of 7 Note: The only load balancing option for vswitches or vdistributed Switches that can be used with EtherChannel is IP HASH. Do not use beacon probing with IP HASH load balancing. Do not configure standby or unused uplinks with IP HASH load balancing. VMware supports only one EtherChannel per vswitch or vnetwork Distributed Switch (vds). Additional Information For more information, see NIC teaming using EtherChannel leads to intermittent network connectivity in ESXi ( ) (search.do?cmd=displaykc&doctype=kc&doctypeid=dt_kb_1_1&externalid= ). LACP is supported on vsphere ESXi 5.1 on VMware vdistributed Switches only. For more information, see Enabling or disabling LACP on an Uplink Port Group using the vsphere Web Client ( ) (search.do?cmd=displaykc&doctype=kc&doctypeid=dt_kb_1_1&externalid= ) and the What's New in VMware vsphere Networking ( Technical-Whitepaper.pdf) white paper. For translated versions of this article, see: Español: Configuración de muestra de EtherChannel/agregación de enlaces con ESX/ESXi y conmutadores Cisco/HP ( ) (search.do? cmd=displaykc&doctype=kc&doctypeid=dt_kb_1_1&externalid= ) Tags

6 Page 6 of 7 no-access-to-external-network no-load-balancing See Also ESX/ESXi host requirements for link aggregation (javascript:opendocumentlink(' ','')) VLAN Configuration on Virtual Switch, Physical Switch, and Virtual Machines (javascript:opendocumentlink(' ','')) NIC teaming using EtherChannel leads to intermittent network connectivity in ESXi (javascript:opendocumentlink(' ','')) Enabling or disabling LACP on an Uplink Port Group using the vsphere Web Client (javascript:opendocumentlink(' ','')) Configuración de muestra de EtherChannel/agregación de enlaces con ESX/ESXi y conmutadores Cisco/HP (javascript:opendocumentlink(' ','')) Request a Product Feature To request a new product feature or to provide feedback on a VMware product, please visit the Request a Product Feature ( page. Permalink to: Sample configuration of EtherChannel / Link aggregation with ESXi/ESX and Cisco/HP switches ( Read our blog( Watch KBTV ( Follow us ( Request New Content( 1 (javascript:void( rate(1,this) )) 2 (javascript:void( rate(2,this) )) 3 (javascript:void( rate(3,this) )) 4 (javascript:void( rate(4,this) )) 5 (javascript:void( rate(5,this) )) 140 Ratings Actions Bookmark Document (javascript:addbookmark(actionboxutil.docurl, actionboxutil.doctitle);) Copy URL (javascript:clipboard()) Document(javascript: Doc(actionBoxUtil.extId, actionboxutil.sliceid, actionboxutil.doctitle, actionboxutil.cpplayer, actionboxutil.bbid)) Print Document (javascript:window.print()) Subscribe to Document (/selfservice/microsites/microsite.do? cmd=displaykc&doctype=kc&doctypeid=dt_kb_1_1&externalid= &format=rss) KB: Updated: Sep 14, 2012 Categories: How to Informational (

7 Page 7 of 7 Product(s): VMware ESX VMware ESXi Product Version(s): VMware ESX 3.0.x VMware ESX 3.5.x VMware ESX 4.0.x VMware ESX 4.1.x VMware ESXi 3.5.x Embedded VMware ESXi 3.5.x Installable VMware ESXi 4.0.x Embedded VMware ESXi 4.0.x Installable VMware ESXi 4.1.x Embedded VMware ESXi 4.1.x Installable VMware ESXi 5.0.x VMware ESXi 5.1.x