ProCurve Series 2300 and 2500 Switches Release Notes

123

Enhancements in Release F.04.08

Configuring Port-Based Priority for Incoming Packets

When network congestion occurs, it is important to move traffic on the basis of relative importance.

However, without prioritization:

■ Traffic from less important sources can consume bandwidth and slow down or halt delivery

of more important traffic.

■ Most traffic from all ports is forwarded as normal priority, and competes for bandwidth with

all other normal-priority traffic, regardless of its relative importance.

Traffic received in tagged VLAN packets carries a specific 802.1p priority level (0 - 7) that the switch

recognizes and uses to assign packet priority at the outbound port. With the default port-based

priority, the switch handles traffic received in untagged packets as "Normal" (priority level = 0).

You can assign a priority level to inbound, untagged VLAN packets. (The switch does not alter the

priority level of 802.1p tagged VLAN packets it receives.) Thus, for example, high-priority tagged

VLAN traffic received on a port retains its priority in the switch. However, you have the option of

configuring the port to assign a priority level to untagged VLAN traffic the port receives.

The Role of 802.1Q VLAN Tagging

An 802.1Q-tagged VLAN packet carries the packet’s VLAN assignment and the 802.1p priority setting

(0 - 7). (By contrast, an untagged packet does not have a tag and does not carry a priority setting.)

Generally, the switch preserves and uses a packet’s priority setting to determine which outbound

queue the packet belongs in on the outbound port. If the outbound port is a tagged member of the

VLAN, the packet carries its original priority to the next, downstream device. If the outbound port is

not configured as a tagged member of the VLAN, then the tag is stripped from the packet, which then

exits from the switch without a priority setting.

Feature Default Menu CLI Web

Assigning a priority level to traffic on the basis

of incoming port

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