Blade ICE Switch BMD00178 User Manual

BLADEOS  
Release Notes  
1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM BladeCenter  
Version 6.3  
®
Part Number: BMD00178, April 2010  
2350 Mission College Blvd.  
Suite 600  
Santa Clara, CA 95054  
 
Release Notes  
The 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module (GbESM) is one of up to four switch modules that can  
be installed in the IBM BladeCenter chassis.  
These release notes provide the latest information regarding BLADEOS 6.3 for the 1/10Gb Uplink  
Ethernet Switch Module. This supplement modifies information found in the complete  
documentation:  
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide for the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM  
BladeCenter  
BLADEOS 6.3 Command Reference for the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM  
BladeCenter  
BLADEOS 6.3 ISCLI Reference for the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM  
BladeCenter  
BLADEOS 6.3 BBI Quick Guide for the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM  
BladeCenter  
1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM BladeCenter, Installation Guide  
The publications listed above are available from the IBM support website:  
Please keep these release notes with your product manuals.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
3
 
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Hardware Support  
BLADEOS 6.3 software is supported only on the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module for IBM  
BladeCenter. The 1/10Gb Uplink ESM (GbESM) shown in Figure 1 is a high performance Layer  
2-3 embedded network switch that features tight integration with IBM BladeCenter management  
modules.  
Figure 1 1/10Gb Uplink ESM Faceplate  
1
2
SFP+ slots  
10Gb Ethernet  
RS-232  
console port  
3
4
6
7
RJ45 ports  
1Gb Ethernet  
9
The GbESM has the following port capacities:  
Three external 10Gb SFP+ slots  
Six external 1Gb Ethernet ports (RJ45)  
One RS-232 serial console port  
Two 100Mb internal management ports  
Fourteen 1000Mb Ethernet internal ports  
4
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
The GbESM contains three 10 Gigabit Small Form-factor, Pluggable (SFP+) slots. The 10Gb SFP+  
slots can accept 1Gb copper transceivers, 10Gb optical transceivers, or Direct Attach Cables  
(DAC).  
Note – If a DAC is not programmed to meet MSA specifications (including length identifier), the  
switch disables the port and generates a syslog message indicating that the DAC is not approved.  
The GbESM does not disable the SFP+ ports when using MSA-compliant DAC cables. For best  
results, the following cables have been qualified to work with the switch:  
Table 1 Recommended SFP+ transceiver  
Part number  
Description  
BN-SP-CBL-1M SFP+ Copper Direct Attach Cable - 1 meter  
BN-SP-CBL-3M SFP+ Copper Direct Attach Cable - 3 meters  
BN-SP-CBL-7M SFP+ Copper Direct Attach Cable - 7 meters  
BN-SP-CBL-10M SFP+ Copper Direct Attach Cable - 10 meters  
BMD00178, April 2010  
5
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Updating the Switch Software Image  
The switch software image is the executable code running on the GbESM. A version of the image  
ships with the switch, and comes pre-installed on the device. As new versions of the image are  
released, you can upgrade the software running on your switch. To get the latest version of software  
available for your GbESM, go to:  
From the BLADEOS CLI, use the /boot/cur command to determine the current software version.  
The typical upgrade process for the software image consists of the following steps:  
Place the new image onto a FTP or TFTP server on your network, or on a local computer.  
Transfer the new image to your switch.  
Select the new software image to be loaded into switch memory the next time the switch is reset.  
Loading New Software to Your Switch  
The switch can store up to two different software images, called image1 and image2, as well as  
boot software, called boot. When you load new software, you must specify where it should be  
placed: either into image1, image2, or boot.  
For example, if your active image is currently loaded into image1, you would probably load the  
new image software into image2. This lets you test the new software and reload the original active  
image (stored in image1), if needed.  
Caution—When you upgrade the switch software image, always load the new boot image and the  
new software image before you reset the switch. If you do not load a new boot image, your switch  
might not boot properly (To recover, see “Recovering from a Failed Upgrade” on page 10).  
!
To load a new software image to your switch, you will need the following:  
The image and boot software loaded on a FTP or TFTP server on your network. For example:  
Boot file:  
GbESM-1-10U-6.3.1.0_Boot.img  
Image file: GbESM-1-10U-6.3.1.0_OS.img  
Note – Be sure to download both the new boot file and the new image file.  
The hostname or IP address of the FTP or TFTP server  
The name of the new software image or boot file  
Note – The DNS parameters must be configured if specifying hostnames.  
6
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
When the software requirements are met, use one of the following procedures to download the new  
software to your switch. You can use the BLADEOS CLI, the ISCLI, or the BBI to download and  
activate new software.  
Using the BLADEOS CLI  
1. At the Boot Options# prompt, enter:  
Boot Options# gtimg  
2. Enter the name of the switch software to be replaced:  
Enter name of switch software image to be replaced  
["image1"/"image2"/"boot"]: <image>  
3. Enter the hostname or IP address of the FTP or TFTP server.  
Enter hostname or IP address of FTP/TFTP server: <hostname or IP address>  
4. Enter the name of the new software file on the server.  
Enter name of file on FTP/TFTP server: <filename>  
The exact form of the name will vary by server. However, the file location is normally relative to the  
FTP or TFTP directory (usually /tftpboot).  
5. Enter your username for the server, if applicable.  
Enter username for FTP server or hit return for  
TFTP server: {<username>|<Enter>}  
If entering an FTP server username, you will also be prompted for the password.  
6. The system then prompts you to confirm your request.  
Once confirmed, the software will load into the switch.  
7. If software is loaded into a different image than the one most recently booted, the system will  
prompt you whether you wish to run the new image at next boot. Otherwise, you can enter the  
following command at the Boot Options# prompt:  
Boot Options# image  
The system informs you of which software image (image1 or image2) is currently set to be  
loaded at the next reset, and prompts you to enter a new choice:  
Currently set to use switch software "image1" on next reset.  
Specify new image to use on next reset ["image1"/"image2"]:  
Specify the image that contains the newly loaded software.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
7
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Using the ISCLI  
1. In Privileged EXEC mode, enter the following command:  
Router# copy {tftp|ftp} {image1|image2|boot-image}  
2. Enter the hostname or IP address of the FTP or TFTP server.  
Address or name of remote host: <name or IP address>  
3. Enter the name of the new software file on the server.  
Source file name: <filename>  
The exact form of the name will vary by server. However, the file location is normally relative to the  
FTP or TFTP directory (usually tftpboot).  
4. Enter your username and password for the server, if applicable.  
User name: {<username>|<Enter>}  
5. The system prompts you to confirm your request.  
Once confirmed, the software will load into the switch.  
6. When loading is complete, use the following command in Global Configuration mode to select  
which software image (image1 or image2) you want to run in switch memory for the next  
reboot:  
Router(config)# boot image {image1|image2}  
The system will then verify which image is set to be loaded at the next reset:  
Next boot will use switch software image1 instead of image2.  
8
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Using the BBI  
You can use the Browser-Based Interface to load software onto the GbESM. The software image to  
load can reside in one of the following locations:  
FTP server  
TFTP server  
Local computer  
After you log onto the BBI, perform the following steps to load a software image:  
1. Click the Configure context tab in the toolbar.  
2. In the Navigation Window, select System > Config/Image Control.  
The Switch Image and Configuration Management page appears.  
3. If you are loading software from your computer (HTTP client), skip this step and go to the next.  
Otherwise, if you are loading software from a FTP/TFTP server, enter the server’s information in  
the FTP/TFTP Settings section.  
4. In the Image Settings section, select the image version you want to replace (Image for Transfer).  
If you are loading software from a FTP/TFTP server, enter the file name and click Get Image.  
If you are loading software from your computer, click Browse.  
In the File Upload Dialog, select the file and click OK. Then click Download via Browser.  
Once the image has loaded, the page refreshes to show the new software.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
9
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Using the Boot Management Menu  
The Boot Management menu allows you to switch the software image, reset the switch to factory  
defaults, or to recover from a failed software download.  
You can interrupt the boot process and enter the Boot Management menu from the serial console  
port. When the system displays Memory Test, press <Shift B>. The Boot Management menu  
appears.  
Resetting the System ...  
Memory Test ................................  
Boot Management Menu  
1 - Change booting image  
2 - Change configuration block  
3 - Xmodem download  
4 - Exit  
Please choose your menu option: 1  
Current boot image is 1. Enter image to boot: 1 or 2: 2  
Booting from image 2  
The Boot Management menu allows you to perform the following actions:  
To change the booting image, press 1 and follow the screen prompts.  
To change the configuration block, press 2, and follow the screen prompts.  
To perform an Xmodem download, press 3 and follow the screen prompts.  
To exit the Boot Management menu, press 4. The booting process continues.  
Recovering from a Failed Upgrade  
Use the following procedure to recover from a failed software upgrade.  
1. Connect a PC to the serial port of the switch.  
2. Open a terminal emulator program that supports XModem Download (for example, HyperTerminal,  
CRT, PuTTY) and select the following serial port characteristics:  
Speed:  
9600 bps  
Data Bits:  
Stop Bits:  
Parity:  
8
1
None  
Flow Control: None  
10  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
3. Boot the switch and access the Boot Management menu by pressing <Shift B> while the Memory  
Test is in progress and the dots are being displayed.  
4. Select 3 for Xmodem download. When you see the following message, change the Serial Port  
characteristics to 115200 bps:  
## Switch baudrate to 115200 bps and press ENTER ...  
5. Press <Enter> to set the system into download accept mode. When the readiness meter displays (a  
series of “C” characters), start XModem on your terminal emulator.  
6. Select the Boot Image to download. The XModem initiates the file transfer. When the download is  
complete, a message similar to the following is displayed:  
yzModem - CRC mode, 62494(SOH)/0(STX)/0(CAN) packets, 6 retries  
Extracting images ... Do *NOT* power cycle the switch.  
**** VMLINUX ****  
Un-Protected 10 sectors  
Erasing Flash............. done  
Writing to Flash.............done  
Protected 10 sectors  
**** RAMDISK ****  
Un-Protected 44 sectors  
Erasing Flash............................................... done  
Writing to Flash...............................................done  
Protected 44 sectors  
**** BOOT CODE ****  
Un-Protected 8 sectors  
Erasing Flash........... done  
Writing to Flash...........done  
Protected 8 sectors  
BMD00178, April 2010  
11  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
7. When you see the following message, change the Serial Port characteristics to 9600 bps:  
## Switch baudrate to 9600 bps and press ESC ...  
8. Press the Escape key (<Esc>) to re-display the Boot Management menu.  
9. Select 3 to start a new XModem Download. When you see the following message, change the  
Serial Port characteristics to 115200 bps:  
## Switch baudrate to 115200 bps and press ENTER ...  
10. Press <Enter> to continue the download.  
11. Select the OS Image to download. The XModem initiates the file transfer. When the download is  
complete, a message similar to the following is displayed:  
yzModem - CRC mode, 27186(SOH)/0(STX)/0(CAN) packets, 6 retries  
Extracting images ... Do *NOT* power cycle the switch.  
**** Switch OS ****  
Please choose the Switch OS Image to upgrade [1|2|n] :  
12. Select the image number to load the new image (1 or 2). It is recommended that you select 1.  
A message similar to the following is displayed:  
Switch OS Image 1 ...  
Un-Protected 27 sectors  
Erasing Flash.............................. done  
Writing to Flash..............................done  
Protected 27 sectors  
13. When you see the following message, change the Serial Port characteristics to 9600 bps:  
## Switch baudrate to 9600 bps and press ESC ...  
14. Press the Escape key (<Esc>) to re-display the Boot Management menu.  
15. Select 4 to exit and boot the new image.  
12  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
New and Updated Features  
BLADEOS 6.3 for 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module (GbESM) has been updated to include  
new and enhanced features in support of Virtualization and Fibre Channel over Ethernet.  
The list of features below summarizes the updated features. For more detailed information about  
configuring GbESM features and capabilities, refer to the complete BLADEOS 6.3 documentation  
as listed on page 3.  
Stacking  
A stack is a group of up to eight 1/10Gb Uplink ESM switches with BLADEOS that work together  
as a unified system. A stack has the following properties, regardless of the number of switches  
included:  
The network views the stack as a single entity.  
The stack can be accessed and managed as a whole using standard switch IP interfaces.  
Once the stacking links have been established (see below), the number of ports available in a  
stack equals the total number of remaining ports of all the switches that are part of the stack.  
The number of available IP interfaces, VLANs, Trunks, Trunk Links, and other switch  
attributes are not aggregated among the switches in a stack. The totals for the stack as a whole  
are the same as for any single switch configured in stand-alone mode.  
Stacking Requirements  
Before BLADEOS switches can form a stack, they must meet the following requirements:  
All switches must be the same model (1/10Gb Uplink ESM).  
Each switch must be installed with BLADEOS, version 6.3 or later. The same release version is  
not required, as the Master switch will push a firmware image to each differing switch which is  
part of the stack.  
The recommended stacking topology is a bidirectional ring. To achieve this, two external 10Gb  
Ethernet ports on each switch must be reserved for stacking.By default, the first two 10Gb  
Ethernet ports are used.  
The cables used for connecting the switches in a stack carry low-level, inter-switch  
communications as well as cross-stack data traffic critical to shared switching functions.  
Always maintain the stability of stack links in order to avoid internal stack reconfiguration.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
13  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Stacking Limitations  
The GbESM with BLADEOS 6.3 can operate in one of two modes:  
Default mode, which is the regular stand-alone (or non-stacked) mode.  
Stacking mode, in which multiple physical switches aggregate functions as a single switching  
device.  
When in stacking mode, the following stand-alone features are not supported:  
Active Multi-Path Protocol (AMP)  
SFD  
sFlow port monitoring  
Uni-Directional Link Detection (UDLD)  
Port flood blocking  
BCM rate control  
Link Layer Detection Protocol (LLDP)  
Protocol-based VLANs  
RIP  
OSPF and OSPFv3  
IPv6  
Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP)  
Loopback Interfaces  
Router IDs  
Route maps  
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP)  
MAC address notification  
Static MAC address adding  
Static multicast  
MSTP  
IGMP Relay and IGMPv3  
Note – In stacking mode, switch menus and commands for unsupported features may be  
unavailable, or may have no effect on switch operation.  
14  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
VMready  
The switch’s VMready software makes it virtualization aware. Servers that run hypervisor software  
with multiple instances of one or more operating systems can present each as an independent virtual  
machine (VM) with its own applications. With VMready, the GbESM automatically discovers  
virtual machines (VMs), virtual switches, and VM NICs (collectively known as virtual entities or  
VEs), and can distinguish between regular VMs, Service Console Interfaces, and Management  
Interfaces. BLADEOS 6.3 supports up to 1024 VEs.  
VEs may be placed into VM groups on the switch to define communication boundaries: VEs in a  
given VM group are permitted to communicate with each other, while VEs in different groups are  
not. VM groups also allow the configuration of group-level settings, such as virtualization policies  
and ACLs.  
The administrator can pre-provision VEs by adding the MAC addresses of potential VEs to a VM  
group. When a VE with a pre-provisioned MAC address becomes connected to the switch, the  
switch will automatically apply the appropriate group membership configuration.  
The GbESM with VMready detects the migration of VEs across different hypervisors. As VEs  
move, the GbESM NMotionfeature automatically moves the appropriate network configuration  
as well. NMotion gives the switch the ability to maintain assigned group membership and  
associated policies (such as VLAN Maps and VM policy bandwidth control) when a VE moves to a  
different port on the switch.  
VMready also works with VMware’s Virtual Center (vCenter) for advanced VE management. By  
connecting with the vCenter, the switch can obtain information about distant VEs, push VM  
configuration profiles to the VEs in distributed VM groups, and enhance VE migration.  
VMready is configured from the Virtualization menu, available with the following CLI command:  
# /cfg/virt  
BMD00178, April 2010  
15  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
VLAN Maps  
A VLAN map (VMAP) is an Access Control List (ACL) that can be assigned to a VLAN rather  
than to a switch port as with regular ACLs. In a virtualized environment, VMAPs allow you to  
create traffic filtering and metering policies that are associated with a VM group VLAN, allowing  
ACLs to follow VMs as they migrate between hypervisors.  
VMAPs are configured from the ACL menu, available with the following CLI command:  
# /cfg/acl/vmap <1-128>  
BLADEOS 6.3 supports up to 128 VMAPs. Individual VMAP filters are configured in the same  
fashion as regular ACLs, except that VLANs cannot be specified as a filtering criteria since the  
filter is explicitly assigned to a VLAN by nature.  
Once a VMAP filter is created, it can be assigned or removed using the following commands:  
For a regular VLAN:  
/cfg/l2/vlan <VLAN ID>/vmap {add|rem} <VMAP ID> [intports|extports]  
For a VM group:  
/cfg/virt/vmgroup <ID>/vmap {add|rem} <VMAP ID> [intports|extports]  
When the optional intports or extports parameter is specified, the action to add or remove  
the VMAP is applied for only the switch server ports (intports) or uplink ports (extports). If  
omitted, the operation will be applied to all ports in the associated VLAN or VM group.  
Note – VMAPs have a lower priority than port-based ACLs. If both an ACL and a VMAP match a  
particular packet, both filter actions will be applied as long as there is no conflict. In the event of a  
conflict, the port ACL will take priority.  
16  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
OSPFv3  
BLADEOS supports the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) version 2 and version 3 routing protocols.  
The OSPFv3implementation conforms to the OSPF version 2 specifications detailed in Internet  
RFC 1583, and OSPF version 3 specifications in RFC 2328 Appendix G.2 and RFC 2740.  
OSPF version 3 is based on OSPF version 2, but has been modified to support IPv6 addressing. In  
most other ways, OSPFv3 is similar to OSPFv2: They both have the same packet types and  
interfaces, and both use the same mechanisms for neighbor discovery, adjacency formation, LSA  
flooding, aging, and so on. The administrator should be familiar with the OSPFv2 concepts covered  
in the preceding sections of this chapter before implementing the OSPFv3 differences as described  
in the following sections.  
Although OSPFv2 and OSPFv3 are very similar, they represent independent features on the  
GbESM. They are configured separately, and both can run in parallel on the switch with no relation  
to one another, serving different IPv6 and IPv4 traffic, respectively.  
OSPFv3 command paths are located as follows:  
>> # /cfg/l3/ospf3  
>> # /info/l3/ospf3  
>> # /stats/l3/ospf3  
(OSPFv3 config menu)  
(OSPFv3 information menu)  
(OSPFv3 statistics menu)  
OSPFv3 has numerous improvements that increase the protocol efficiency in addition to supporting  
IPv6 addressing. These improvements change some of the behaviors in the OSPFv3 network and  
may affect topology consideration, but have little direct impact on configuration. For example:  
Addressing fields have been removed from Router and Network LSAs.  
Link-local flooding scope has been added, along with a Link LSA. This allows flooding infor-  
mation to relevant local neighbors without forwarded it beyond the local router.  
Flexible treatment of unknown LSA types to make integration of OSPFv3 easier.  
BLADEOS 6.3 does not currently support the following OSPFv3 features:  
Multiple instances of OSPFv3 on one IPv6 link.  
Authentication via IPv6 Security (IPsec)  
BMD00178, April 2010  
17  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Active MultiPath Protocol  
Active MultiPath Protocol (AMP) allows you to connect three switches in a loop topology, and  
load-balance traffic across all uplinks (no blocking). When an AMP link fails, upstream  
communication continues over the remaining AMP link. Once the failed AMP link re-establishes  
connectivity, communication resumes to its original flow pattern.  
Each AMP group contains two aggregator switches and one access switch. Aggregator switches  
support up to 22 AMP groups. Each access switch supports only one AMP group.  
The GbESM can be used as an AMP access switch only.  
Layer 3 routing protocols are not supported on AMP-configured switches.  
Use the following command to access the AMP configuration menu:  
>> # /cfg/l2/amp  
Port Trunk Hashing Enhancements  
Network traffic is statistically distributed among the ports in a trunk group using an enhanced hash  
process. To improve traffic distribution, more bits from more frame attributes are used in the hash.  
The GbESM now supports the following hashing options, which can used in any combination:  
Frame IP and MAC address information (specify one of the following—required):  
Source IP address  
Destination IP address  
Source and destination IP address (the default)  
Source MAC address  
Destination MAC address  
Source and destination MAC address  
Ingress port number (disabled by default)  
Layer 4 (TCP, UDP, etc.) port information (disabled by default)  
Trunk hashing options can be configured using the following command path:  
>> # /cfg/l2/thash  
18  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
SM IPv4 and IPv4 Configuration Extensions  
BLADEOS 6.3 supports EIPAA extensions to the chassis’ Advanced Management Module (AMM)  
that provide more IP address configuration options. The following IP addressing options are now  
available on the AMM:  
Automatic IPv4 address configuration via DHCPv4  
Automatic IPv6 address configuration via DHCPv6 or Stateless Auto-Configuration (SAC)  
Manual IPv4 and IPv6 static address configuration  
IPv4 and IPv6 address change notification  
Management Interface Connection  
The switch management interface (for IPv4 or IPv6) will function only if the AMM has an IP  
address in the same network as the switch.  
Also, use caution when disabling the IPV4 management interface from the AMM. This removes the  
IPv4 routes to the switch, severing communication to the IPv4 management interface on the switch.  
DHCPv6 Behavior  
The DHCPv6 server provides an IPv6 address only. The server does not provide an IPv6 prefix  
length or default gateway in the DHCP offer. Instead, this information is expected from an upstream  
router in a Router Advertisement (RA) packet, and will override the default settings.  
The DHCPv6 IP address assignment process is summarized as follows.  
1. The DCHP server sends an offer with the base IPv6 address.  
2. The switch installs the address using a default prefix length of 64.  
3. An upstream router sends an RA that may specify a different prefix length.  
4. When this RA is received, the switch will modify the IPv6 address to new prefix length.  
5. The switch will also add the source IP address of the RA to the default routers list.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
19  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
IGMP Group Capacity  
BLADEOS 6.3 supports IGMP groups differently than earlier releases:  
The GbESM now supports a maximum of 2048 IGMP entries, on a maximum of 1024 VLANs.  
When the switch is in stacking mode, one IGMP entry is allocated for each unique join request,  
based on the combination of the port, VLAN, and IGMP group address. If multiple ports join the  
same IGMP group, they require separate IGMP entries, even if using the same VLAN.  
In stand-alone (non-stacking) mode, one IGMP entry is allocated for each unique join request,  
based on the VLAN and IGMP group address only (regardless of the port). If multiple ports join the  
same IGMP group using the same VLAN, only a single IGMP entry is used.  
20  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Supplemental Information  
This section provides additional information about configuring and operating the GbESM and  
BLADEOS.  
Management Module  
The “Fast POST=Disabled/Enabled” inside the IBM management module Web interface “I/O  
Module Admin Power/Restart” does not apply to the GbESM.  
Solution: To boot with Fast or Extended POST, go to the “I/O Module Admin/Power/Restart”  
window. Select the GbESM, and then choose “Restart Module and Run Standard Diagnostics”  
or “Restart Module and Run Extended Diagnostics.”  
The following table correlates the Firmware Type listed in the IBM management module’s Web  
interface “Firmware VPD” window to the GbESM software version:  
Table 2 Firmware Type list  
Firmware Type  
Description  
Boot ROM  
GbESM Boot code version  
Main Application 1 Currently running image  
Main Application 2 Backup image  
Within the IBM management module Web interface, the Java applets of “Start Telnet Session”  
and “Start Web Session” do not support changing of default known ports 23 and 80  
respectively.  
Solution: If the Telnet or HTTP port on the GbESM is changed to something other than the  
default port number, the user must use a separate Telnet client or Web browser that supports  
specifying a non-default port to start a session to the GbESM user interface.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
21  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Management Module/GbESM Connectivity  
Currently, the IBM management module is designed to provide one-way control of the GbESM. As  
a result, the GbESM may lose connectivity to the management module via the management port  
under the following conditions:  
If new IP attributes are pushed from the management module to the GbESM while the IP  
Routing table is full, the new attributes will not be applied.  
Solution: Enable “External Management over all ports,” connect to the switch using other  
interface and then clear the routing table. Then push the IP address from the management  
module. If this does not work, use Solution 2 below.  
If you execute the /boot/reset CLI command on the GbESM or the GbESM resets itself, the  
management module might not push the IP attributes to the switch, and connectivity may be  
lost.  
Solution 1: If you should experience any connectivity issues between the switch module and the  
management module, go to the “I/O Module Configuration” window on the management module’s  
Web interface. Under the “New Static IP Configuration” section, click Save to trigger the  
management module to push the stored IP attributes to the switch module.  
Solution 2: If Solution 1 does not resolve your connectivity issue, then go to the “I/O Module  
Admin/Power/Restart” window on the management module’s Web interface. Restart the switch  
module in question.  
Solution 3: If this still does not resolve the issue, enable Preserve new IP configuration on all resets  
setting on the management module and restart the switch module via the “I/O Module  
Admin/Power/Restart” window on the management module’s Web interface.  
Note – As a rule, always use the management module Web interface to change the GbESM  
management IP attributes (IP address, mask and gateway), and then click Save to push the IP  
attributes to the switch module. Use of the command-line interface to change the switch module  
management IP attributes may result in duplicated entries for the management IP Interface in the  
switch route table and/or loss of connectivity via the management module.  
22  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Secure Management Network  
The following GbESM attributes are reserved to provide secure management access to and from the  
IBM management module:  
MGT1 (port 15) and MGT2 (port 16)  
VLAN 4095  
IP interface 128  
Gateway 4  
STG 128  
For more information about remotely managing the GbESM through the external ports, see  
“Accessing the Switch” in the BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide.  
Note – The external uplink ports (EXTx) cannot be members of management VLANs.  
Secure Shell (SSH)  
Because SSH key generation is CPU intensive, the GbESM attempts to avoid unnecessary key  
generation. The process generates three server keys:  
1. One key is generated to replace the current server key, if used.  
2. A second key is generated as a spare, in case the current server key is used and the specified interval  
expires.  
3. A third key is generated for use at the next reboot.  
Therefore, if you never login via SSH, you will only see two key generation events. You may see all  
three events directly following a reboot. If you want to witness the key generation after the specified  
interval has expired, then you must login via SSH at least once during each expiration interval.  
Trunk Group Configuration Tips  
Please be aware of the following information when you configure trunk groups:  
Always configure trunk groups first on both ends, before you physically connect the links.  
Configure all ports in a trunk group to the same speed (you cannot aggregate 1Gb ports with  
10GBASE-SFP+ ports).  
BMD00178, April 2010  
23  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Spanning Tree Configuration Tips  
To ensure proper operation with switches that use Cisco Per VLAN Spanning Tree (PVST+), you  
must do one of the following:  
Create a separate Spanning Tree Group for each VLAN.  
Manually add all associated VLANs into a single Spanning Tree Group.  
When using Layer 2 Trunk Failover, disable Spanning Tree Protocol on external ports.  
Syslog Configuration Tip  
The facility parameter traditionally is used to correlate services (such as IP, CLI, etc.) to messages.  
This is done to distinguish between the different services that are running in the network/device.  
However, for the GbESM, there is a single configured facility value (0-7) used on all messages. By  
configuring a unique facility value for each switch, a single SYSLOG server can distinguish  
between the various GbESMs in the network. Refer to “System Host Log Configuration” in the  
BLADEOS 6.3 Command Reference.  
Internal Port Autonegotiation  
By default, link autonegotiation is turned on for internal ports. This is in contrast to external ports,  
where autonegotiation is off by default. Internal ports use autonegotiation in order to support the  
Wake-Over-LAN (WOL) features of some servers. If an attached server does not support  
autonegotiation or WOL, turn autonegotiation off for the internal port.  
FTP/TFTP Directory Path  
When you use the CLI to perform a FTP/TFTP file transfer, you cannot use a forward slash ( / ) in  
the directory path, unless it is preceded by a back slash ( \ ). This issue occurs only when a full  
command is issued on one line.  
For example, the following is invalid:  
# /boot/gtimg 1 10.10.10.2 image_directory/filename  
The following is correct:  
# /boot/gtimg 1 10.10.10.2 image_directory\/filename  
24  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Command Replacements  
STP Edge and Link  
The following commands have been moved in the CLI:  
Old CLI Path  
New Path  
/cfg/port <#>/stp/edge  
/cfg/l2/stg <#>/port <#>/edge  
/cfg/l2/stg <#>/port <#>/link  
/cfg/l2/mrst/cist/port <#>/edge  
/cfg/l2/mrst/cist/port <#>/link  
/cfg/port <#>/stp/link  
/cfg/port <#>/stp/edge  
/cfg/port <#>/stp/link  
The equivalent ISCLI config-if mode commands (under interface port <#>) have also been  
moved:  
Old ISCLI Path  
New Path  
spanning-tree stp <#> edge  
spanning-tree stp <#> link  
spanning-tree mstp cist edge  
spanning-tree mstp cist link-type  
spanning-tree edge  
spanning-tree link-type  
spanning-tree edge  
spanning-tree link-type  
When the switch boots with BLADEOS 6.3 software, any prior configuration in the active  
configuration block will automatically be updated to use the new command paths.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
25  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
BPDU Guard  
BLADEOS 6.3, BPDU Guard is now configured on a per-port basis, rather than globally. The  
following commands have been moved in the CLI:  
Old CLI Path  
New Path  
/cfg/port <#>/bpduguard {ena|dis}  
/cfg/l2/bpduguard {ena|dis}  
The equivalent ISCLI Global Configuration Mode command has moved to the Interface Port  
Configuration Mode:  
Old ISCLI Path  
New Path  
(config)# spanning-tree bpdu-guard (config)# interface port <x>  
(config-if)# bpdu-guard  
During upgrade to BLADEOS 6.3, any current BPDU Guard configuration will be automatically  
converted. If the prior global BPDU setting was enabled, that setting will be removed, and BPDU  
Guard will be applied to all ports where the port fast-forward feature is enabled. This conversion  
will also be applied when loading configuration scripts from previous releases.  
Note – If you want to apply BPDU Guard to different ports than configured with port fast-forward,  
after any conversion, review the interface port configuration and make any appropriate changes  
manually.  
26  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Known Issues  
This section describes known issues for BLADEOS 6.3 on the 1/10Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch  
Module.  
Software Upgrade Issues  
Some time zones are different compared to release 6.1.2 and prior. After upgrading to release  
6.3 or later, it is recommended that the administrator review the configured time zone and make  
any appropriate changes. (ID:29778)  
The STG port priority value is different compared to release 5.x and prior. In release 5.x and  
prior, the priority value could be set to any integer from 0 to 255. In release 6.3 and later, the  
range is still 0 to 255, but must be specified in increments of 4 (such as 0, 4, 8, 12, and so on).  
If the specified value is not evenly divisible by 4, the value will be automatically rounded down  
to the nearest valid increment whenever manually changing the priority value, when loading a  
configuration from prior to release 6.3, and during the software upgrade process. If using STG  
port priorities, after upgrading to release 6.3 or later, it is recommended that the administrator  
review the configured values and make any appropriate changes. (ID: 38556)  
Access Control Lists  
When an Access Control List (ACL) is installed on two different ports, only one statistics  
counter will be available. The GbESM does not support two different statistics counter for one  
ACL installed on two different ports.  
The ACL filters for TCP/UDP work properly only on packets that do not have IP options.  
When configuring an ACL to set 802.1p priority for in-profile packets, and updating the DSCP  
field using TOS bits for out-of-profile packets, the out-of-profile packets will have also the  
802.1p priority set as defined in the in-profile setting.  
Although the management port can be configured for port filtering option, actual port filtering  
will not occur, because the system filters out the management VLAN.  
IGMP Relay  
When having joins from multiple VLANs, and the multicast data transmitter is on a VLAN that  
did not receive any joins, multicast data is routed only if the flood option is disabled using the  
/cfg/l3/igmp/adv/flood d command.  
If an IGMP v2 joins an IGMP group on the same port where an IGMP v1 join has already been  
issued, the software will default to the IGMP v1 timeout value.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
27  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Interoperability with Older Hubs  
The command-line interface might display link up and link down messages continuously for an  
external port that is connected to certain older hub models configured for 100 Mbps half-duplex.  
The display might show link up erroneously. This behavior has been observed when connecting the  
GbESM with the following devices:  
NETGEAR FE104 100 hub  
SBS 1000Base-T NIC  
3Com Linkbuilder FMS100 Hub 3C250 TX/I  
3Com SuperStack II 100TX 3C250C-TX-24/12  
Nortel Baystack 204 Hub  
If the GbESM is connected to an Alteon Application Switch which requires a link speed of 100  
Mbps half-duplex, then enable auto negotiation on the GbESM port with port speed=any,  
mode=any, fctl=both, and auto=on.  
Link Aggregation Control Protocol  
If a static trunk on a GbESM is connected to another GbESM with LACP configured (but no active  
LACP trunk), the /info/l2/trunk command might erroneously report the static trunk as  
forwarding.  
Since LACP trunks use LACPDU packet to maintain trunking with the partner, there is a possibility  
for those packets to be dropped from an extremely busy trunk. If this happens, some links in the  
LACP trunk might be removed, then aggregated back to the trunk if an LACPDU is received. To  
avoid this unstable LACP trunk link, you can add more links to the trunk to increase the bandwidth,  
or use regular static trunk if there are no more links available.  
Linking at 10/100Mb  
When the link speed for an external connection is forced (i.e. no Auto-Negotiation) to 100 Mbps  
and then changed to 10 Mbps, if the external device is changed first, the external device may  
erroneously report the link as DOWN even after the GbESM is changed to 10 Mbps.  
Solution: At the external device, disconnect and reconnect the cable.  
28  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Static Mrouter  
If a port has a static multicast router (Mrouter) configured, and you move the port to a different  
VLAN, the static Mrouter appears in the /info/l3/igmp/mrouter/dump output for the  
original VLAN.  
Solution: When you move the port to a new VLAN, remove the static Mrouter from the port, and  
add it again.  
QoS Metering  
Traffic may exceed the configured maximum burst size of the ACL meter  
(/cfg/port <x>/aclqos/meter/mbsize) by one packet, with that packet remaining  
In-Profile. Once the ACL meter has been exceeded, additional burst packets fall Out-of-Profile.  
QoS and Trunking  
When you assign an ACL (or ACL Group) to one port in a trunk, BLADEOS does not automatically  
assign the ACL to other ports in the trunk, and it does not prompt you to assign the ACL to other  
ports in the trunk.  
Solution: Manually assign each ACL or ACL Group to all ports in a trunk.  
RADIUS with SSHv2  
With RADIUS turned on, users might see a duplicate login prompt for SSHv2 clients, if the  
RADIUS server is too slow to respond or if the RADIUS server is not available. In this case, users  
must re-type the username and password to login.  
RIP MIBs  
Due to backward-compatibility issues, two Routing Information Protocol (RIP) MIBs are available  
in BLADEOS: ripCfg and rip2Cfg. Use the rip2Cfg MIB to configure RIPv1 and RIPv2  
through SNMP.  
BLADEOS does not support the standard RIPv2 MIB as described in RFC 1724. Use the rip2Cfg  
MIB to configure RIPv1 and RIPv2 through SNMP.  
BMD00178, April 2010  
29  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
Trunk and Link Loop  
When you create a trunk or link loop between the GbESM and another switch, packets might loop  
infinitely at line rate within the related links. When this problem occurs, the GbESM continuously  
displays the following messages at the console:  
WARNING: packet_sent u: 0, dv_active: tx ring full  
packet_sent dcnt=114, public1=110, vcnt=1025  
Solution: Remove the loop to resolve this misconfiguration.  
Trunk Traffic  
Multicast, broadcast and DLF (Destination Lookup Failure, which are unknown destination MAC  
packets) traffic is sent to the lowest numbered port in the trunk. If this port is down, then the traffic  
is sent to the next lowest-numbered port. If the port that was down comes up again, the traffic is not  
re-hashed back to the recovered port.  
Browser Based Interface  
Some versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6.x do not perform HTTP download  
efficiently. If you have one of these versions, HTTP software download might take much  
longer than expected (up to several minutes).  
Web-browsers from different vendors may vary in their support of standard features. If you  
encounter problems using the BBI in a particular browser, a different browser may resolve the  
issue.  
Strong Password Expiration  
If you configure a Strong Password with automatic expiration, the password might not expire if the  
system date and time is not configured first. Use of a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server resolves  
this issue.  
Solution: When you configure a strong password with automatic expiration, first configure the  
system time and date for the switch.  
30  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
vCenter Synchronization  
When applying distributed VM group configuration changes, the switch will attempt to synchronize  
settings with the VMware vCenter for virtualization management. If the vCenter is unavailable, an  
error message will be displayed on the switch. Be sure to evaluate all error message and take the  
appropriate actions to ensure the expected changes are properly applied. If corrective actions are not  
taken, synchronization may remain incomplete when connection with the vCenter is restored.  
Solution: When the switch connection with the vCenter is restored, use the following operational  
command to force synchronization:  
>> # /oper/virt/vmware/scan  
Daylight Saving Time  
For the Asia/Israel time zone, BLADEOS sets the end of Daylight Saving Time (DST) as the last  
week in September. However, because the observed end of DST varies according to the date of the  
Yom Kippur holiday in the Hebrew calendar since 2005, occurring on various Saturdays in  
September or October, the default DST rule may not work as desired.  
For the Asia/Israel time zone, or any other time zone in which the start or end date of DST varies  
from year to year, the administrator should create a custom DST rule for those years in which DST  
is desired, but ends in a different week than the set by default.  
Active MultiPath Protocol  
For proper AMP operation, all access switches should be configured with a higher priority value  
(lower precedence) than the aggregators. Otherwise, unexpected AMP keep-alive packets may be  
forwarded from one aggregator switch to the other, even when its AMP group is disabled.  
(ID: 37310)  
BMD00178, April 2010  
31  
 
BLADEOS 6.3 Application Guide  
32  
BMD00178, April 2010  
 

Belkin Network Router F5D9231 4 User Manual
Black Box Network Card Channel Controller User Manual
Blue Rhino Charcoal Grill GBT702W User Manual
Blue Rhino Outdoor Fireplace WAD1091W User Manual
Bose Speaker 251 BLACK User Manual
Bush Hog Lawn Mower CZ2149 User Manual
Cadco Oven OV 350 User Manual
Campbell Hausfeld Nail Gun IN728001AV User Manual
Casio Digital Camera EX Z680 User Manual
Chamberlain Garage Door Opener PD210D User Manual