HP ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch Compatibility with Cisco-based Networks - White Paper

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ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch Compatibility

with Cisco-based Networks

white paper

Abstract.............................................................................................................................................. 2

Introduction......................................................................................................................................... 2

Terminology........................................................................................................................................ 3

Same technology, different form factor................................................................................................... 3

VLANs and VLAN tagging.................................................................................................................... 4

Spanning tree ..................................................................................................................................... 4

Multi-link trunking ................................................................................................................................ 5

Security.............................................................................................................................................. 6

Management....................................................................................................................................... 6

Port mirroring...................................................................................................................................... 7

Multicast traffic.................................................................................................................................... 7

Network time ...................................................................................................................................... 7

Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................... 7

For more information............................................................................................................................ 8

Summary of content (8 pages)

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ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch Compatibility with Cisco-based Networks white paper Abstract.............................................................................................................................................. 2 Introduction......................................................................................................................................... 2 Terminology .................................................................................................
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Abstract This white paper describes the interoperability of the ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch with Cisco-based Ethernet networks consisting of Catalyst switches. This document is not intended to be a guide for deploying a GbE2 Interconnect Switch within a Cisco-based network. For this information, see the Deploying the ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch into a Cisco-based Network white paper1.
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Terminology Terminology used in this document that differs between Cisco Catalyst switches and the GbE2 Interconnect Switch is identified in Table 1. Table 1. Network terminology cross reference HP ProLiant GbE2 Interconnect Switch Cisco Catalyst switches VLAN tagging, 802.1Q tagging trunking, VLAN or 802.
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The access switches and connections have been moved inside the BL p-Class server blade enclosure. The GbE2 Interconnect Switches become the access switch layer that is in turn connected to the core switch layer. The same network technology is used and the tiered network configuration remains unchanged. Because the interconnect switch is an industry-standard managed layer 2 switch, it is compatible with other industry-standard switches including Catalyst switches from Cisco.
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The GbE2 Interconnect Switch further provides interoperability with Cisco’s Per-VLAN Spanning Tree Plus (PVST+) 801.Q tagging proprietary protocol via the use of spanning tree groups (STG). In the GbE2 implementation, an administrator creates an STG and then assigns a VLAN to it. This differs from the Cisco implementation where an administrator creates a VLAN, and then a spanning tree instance (i.e. STG) is automatically created and assigned to the VALN.
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devices. To determine the load balancing decisions, varying methods are used. Catalyst switches may use the packet’s source MAC (SMAC) address, destination MAC (DMAC) address, source IP (SIP) address, destination IP (DIP) address, or a combination of these methods. The GbE2 Interconnect Switch uses a combination of SMAC and DMAC addresses to make the load balancing decision.
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The GbE2 Interconnect Switch provides other familiar management capabilities consistent with Catalyst switches. These include a local console port with XModem support, access through Telnet and secure shell (SSH), and deployment, back-up, and restore capabilities using trivial file transfer protocol (TFTP) and secure copy protocol (SCP).
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For more information For additional information, refer to the resources detailed below. Resource description Web address ProLiant BL p-Class system home page http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/proliant-bl/pclass/index.html ProLiant BL p-Class GbE2 Interconnect Switch home page http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/proliant-bl/p-class/bl-pinterconnect-switch2.html ProLiant BL p-Class Networking Overview white paper http://h18004.www1.hp.