Configuring Ethernet Port Groups

The Ethernet Groups table lets you configure Ethernet Groups. An Ethernet Group represents a physical Ethernet port(s) on the device. You can assign an Ethernet Group with one, two, or no ports (members). When two ports are assigned to an Ethernet Group, 1+1 Ethernet port redundancy can be implemented in your network. In such a configuration, one port can be active while the other standby or both ports can be active, depending on the ports' transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) settings. This provides port redundancy within the Ethernet Group, whereby if a port is disconnected the device switches over to the other port in the Ethernet Group. If you configure an Ethernet Group with only one port, the Ethernet Group operates as a single port (no redundancy).

The Ethernet Groups table lets you configure the transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) settings of the Ethernet ports per Ethernet Group. The Tx/Rx setting is applicable only to Ethernet Groups that contain two ports. This setting determines if both ports or only one of the ports can receive and transmit traffic.

The maximum number of Ethernet Groups that you can configure is the same as the number of Ethernet ports provided by the device. Thus, the device supports up to eight Ethernet Groups. You can assign one or two ports to an Ethernet Group. By default, each Ethernet Group is assigned twoports (Ethernet Group 2 which is assigned only port 0/3); the other Ethernet Groups are empty. For default port assignment to Ethernet Groups, see Configuring Physical Ethernet Ports.

You can assign Ethernet ports to IP network interfaces. This is done by first configuring an Ethernet Device with the required Ethernet Group containing the port or ports (see Configuring Underlying Ethernet Devices). Then by assigning the Ethernet Device to the IP network interface in the IP Interfaces table (see Configuring IP Network Interfaces). This enables physical separation of network interfaces, providing a higher level of segregation of sub-networks. Equipment connected to different physical ports is not accessible to one another; the only connection between them can be established by cross connecting them with media streams (VoIP calls).

The port names (strings) displayed in the Ethernet Groups table represent the physical ports on the device. For the mapping of these strings to the physical ports, see Configuring Physical Ethernet Ports.

● If you want to assign a port to a different Ethernet Group, you must first remove the port from its current Ethernet Group. To remove the port, configure the 'Member' field so that no port is selected or select a different port.
● Two different MAC addresses are assigned to the Ethernet ports: one to ports GE 1-4 (upper ports) and another to ports GE 5-8 (lower ports).
● If you configure an Ethernet Group with two port members, the ports must belong to the same MAC address (see note above - – both GE 1-4 or both GE 5-8). For example, you can configure an Ethernet Group with ports 1 and 3, but not with ports 1 and 5.
● Ports with the same MAC address (e.g., GE 1-4 ports) must each be connected to a different Layer-2 switch.
● When implementing 1+1 Ethernet port redundancy, each port in the Ethernet Group (port pair) must be connected to a different switch (but in the same subnet).

The following procedure describes how to configure Ethernet Groups through the Web interface. You can also configure it through ini file [EtherGroupTable] or CLI (configure network > ether-group).

➢ To configure Ethernet Groups:
1. Open the Ethernet Groups table (Setup menu > IP Network tab > Core Entities folder > Ethernet Groups).
2. Select the Ethernet Group that you want to configure, and then click Edit; the following dialog box appears:

3. Configure the Ethernet Group according to the parameters described in the table below.
4. Click Apply, and then restart the device with a save-to-flash for your settings to take effect.

Ethernet Groups Table Parameter Descriptions

Parameter

Description

'Index'

(Read-only) Displays the index number for the table row.

'Name'

group

[EtherGroupTable_Group]

(Read-only) Displays the Ethernet Group number.

'Mode'

mode

[EtherGroupTable_Mode]

Defines the mode of operation of the ports in the Ethernet Group. This applies only to Ethernet Groups containing two ports.

■ [0] NONE = Select this option to remove all ports from the Ethernet Group.
■ [1] SINGLE = Select this option if the Ethernet Group contains only one port.
■ [2] REDUN_1RX_1TX = (Default) At any given time, only one of the ports in the Ethernet Group transmits and receives packets. If a link exists on both ports, the active one is either the first to have a link up or the lower-numbered port if both have the same link up from start.
■ [3] REDUN_2RX_1TX = Both ports in the Ethernet Group can receive packets, but only one port can transmit. The transmitting port is determined arbitrarily by the device. If the selected port fails at a later stage, a switchover to the redundant port is done, which begins to transmit and receive.
■ [4] REDUN_2RX_2TX = Both ports in the Ethernet Group can receive and transmit packets.

Note:

'Member 1'

member1

[EtherGroupTable_Member1]

Assigns the first port to the Ethernet Group. To assign no port, set this field to NONE.

Note: Before you can re-assign a port to a different Ethernet Group, you must first remove the port from its current Ethernet Group. To remove the port, either set this field to NONE or to a different port.

'Member 2'

member2

[EtherGroupTable_Member2]

Assigns the second port to the Ethernet Group. To assign no port, set this field to NONE.

Note: Before you can re-assign a port to a different Ethernet Group, you must first remove the port from its current Ethernet Group. To remove the port, either set this field to NONE or to a different port.

'Active Port'

(Read-only) Displays the currently active port of the Ethernet Group.

If the 'Mode' is SINGLE or REDUN_1RX_1TX, the field displays the name of the active port. If the 'Mode' is REDUN_2RX_1TX or REDUN_2RX_2TX, the field displays
"Both". If there are no port members in the Ethernet Group, the field displays "None".

'Monitor Threshold'

monitor-threshold

[EtherGroupTable_MonitorThreshold]

 

Defines the minimum number of failed ("Not Reachable") rows of monitored destinations in the Ethernet Port Group Network Monitor table (see Monitoring IP Entities for Ethernet Port Redundancy) that are required to trigger a port switchover to the other port member in the Ethernet Group.

The reachability status of a row's monitored destinations is displayed in the 'Entry Reachability Status' field in the Ethernet Port Group Network Monitor table.

The valid value is 0 to 10. The default is 0, meaning that the monitoring feature is disabled for this Ethernet Group.