Q: What is the ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A)?
A: The J8988A module is a single port 10-GbE transceiver module intended to support the existing SR, LR, and ER transceivers for uplink connectivity. Expected throughput is between 2.5 and 7Gbps depending on packet size. However, traffic from a single source MAC address to a single destination MAC address will be limited to a maximum of 1 Gbps throughput. That makes this module ideal for switch-to-switch connections.
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Q: What is the recommended customer solution for throughput requirements higher than 1Gbps?
A: Depending on network topology, the following solutions are recommended for throughput needs higher than 1 Gigabit
- For 10G throughput requirements
- 5400zl with 10G module (for chassis-based deployment) or
- 3500yl/2900 (for stackable deployments)
- For throughput needs greater than 1 Gbps, up to 4 Gbps on a ProCurve 5300xl
- trunk together four 1Gbps links to achieve 4 Gbps throughput
- For throughput greater than 4Gbps or for topologies which are fiber constrained
- use ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A)
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Q: Which transceivers are recommended for use with the ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A)?
A: The following optic transceivers are recommended for use with the ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module
- ProCurve 10GbE X2-SC SR Optic (J8436A)
- ProCurve 10GbE X2-SC LR Optic (J8437A)
- ProCurve 10GbE X2-SC ER Optic (J8438A)
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Q: How many ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Modules are supported in a single 5300xl chassis?
A: Up for four J8988A modules are supported in each chassis.
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Q: Can the ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A) be trunked (used as aggregated links)?
A: Yes; up to two J8988A modules may be configured in a trunk to allow for greater throughput. The trunk may only contain 10-GbE connections; mixed throughput links are not supported in a trunk configuration with this module.
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Q: Is the ProCurve Switch xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module recommended for switch to server connections?
A: No. For high density 10-GbE switch-to-server connectivity, the ProCurve Switch 5400zl family of switches is an ideal chassis-based solution.
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Q: What is the minimum ProCurve 5300xl software revision required for support of the xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A)?
A: E.11.02 is the minimum required software revision.
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Q: Are all ProCurve Switch 5300xl software features supported by the new xl 1-Port 10-GbE X2 Module (J8988A)?
A: No. The Guaranteed Minimum Bandwidth feature is not supported. All other ProCurve Switch 5300xl software features, such as meshing, are supported.
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Q: Is 10/100Mbps auto-negotiation the same as Plug-n-Play?
No. The following configuration will cause severe network problems:
The hub, switch, or router will correctly sense (not auto-negotiate) the 10Mbps or 100Mbps speed. Since the end node was configured for a specific speed and duplex state and therefore does not negotiate, the hub, switch, or router will choose the communication mode specified by the 802.3u standard, namely half-duplex.
With one device running at half-duplex and the device on the other end of the connection at full-duplex, the connection will work reasonably well at low levels of traffic. At high levels of traffic the full-duplex device (end node, in this case) will experience an abnormally high level of CRC or alignment errors. The end users usually describe this situation as, "Performance seems to be approximately 1Mbps!" Often, end nodes will drop connections to their servers.
In this same situation, the half-duplex device will experience an abnormally high level of late collisions.
The network administrator must take care to verify the configuration of each network device during installation. Also, check the operational mode of each network device. That is, check both how you configured it and also that it comes up as you expect, for example, at 10Mbps/half-duplex.
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Q: Is Gigabit Ethernet auto-negotiation the same as Plug-n-Play?
No. By the time the IEEE issued the 802.3z specification, they knew about the 10/100Mbps auto-negotiation problem (see the FAQ "Is 10/100Mbps auto-negotiation the same as Plug-n-Play?"). To prevent it, 802.3z auto-negotiation requires that, if one side of a connection is configured to auto-negotiate, the other side must also auto-negotiate if the connection is to come up. In other words, if a switch is configured to auto-negotiate and its attached end node is configured to, say, 1000Mbps/full-duplex, the 803.2z spec requires that the switch NOT allow the link to come up.
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Q: How does the HP Auto-MDIX feature work? What ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series products support this feature?
HP Auto-MDIX is a feature on all 10/100-TX and 100/1000-T ports of the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series. When configured in the default configuration "AUTO", the switch automatically detects the signaling on the cable from the connected device and operates as either an MDI or MDIX port. As a result, a "straight-through" twisted-pair cable can be used; you no longer have to use "crossover" cables, although "crossover" cables can also be used for any of the connections. The following products support the HP Auto-MDIX feature:
- ProCurve Switch XL 10/100-TX Module (J4820A/J4820B)
- ProCurve Switch XL 100/1000-T Module (J4821A/J4821B)
- ProCurve Switch XL Mini-GBIC Module (J4878A/J4878B)
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Q: Why does my ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series not automatically reboot after I TFTP new software to the switch?
For greater control and flexibility, the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series will not automatically reboot when you TFTP new software to either the primary or secondary flash. Use the CLI command boot system flash <primary/secondary> to boot the switch up with the new switch software.
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Q: Why does my ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series boot into the primary flash image after I lose power to the switch?
Primary flash is the default storage location for the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series. Following a switch reset (button on front brow) or loss of power, the switch will boot from this default storage location.
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Q: Why can't I TFTP or XMODEM software into the secondary flash image using the menu interface on the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series?
As the default user interface on the switch, the Command Line Interface (CLI) provides access to all configurable features on the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series. The menu interface supports TFTP and XMODEM to primary flash only.
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Q: How do I know what version of software I am currently running on my ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series? How do I get information about the contents of the flash images?
To determine version information about the software the switch is currently running, use the show version command from the CLI. To get information about the contents of flash and current boot image, use the show flash command from the CLI.
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What is ECMP?
ECMP is a load balancing protocol under OSPF that allows the 5300 to load share up to 4 equal cost next hops.
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Will ECMP equally distribute traffic among multiple equal cost next hops for clients on the same subnet?
No. ECMP, as it is implemented in the 5300, will only load balance traffic bound for separate subnets among the multiple equal cost next hops. See below:
If you consider Router A in the diagram you can see that there are 3 equal cost next hops to reach any of the networks on the right hand side. For destination network 10.1, 10.2, and 10.3, traffic will be shared through router B, C, and D. The implementation of ECMP does not load balance based on destination host address, but only on destination network. All traffic destined for the 10.1 network, for example, would all be routed through one of the routers B, C, or D.
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Q: Can I add my new ProCurve 300xl Series products to my ProCurve Switch 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m mesh environment?
Yes, meshing on the ProCurve 5300xl Series products will interoperate with the ProCurve 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches. Here are some operating rules when using meshing:
- A meshed switch can have some ports in the meshed domain and others outside the meshed domain. That is, ports within the meshed domain must be configured for meshing, while ports outside the meshed domain must not be configured for meshing.
- Meshed links must be point-to-point switch links.
- Within any meshed switch, all ports belong to the same meshed domain.
- A switch can have up to 24 meshed ports.
- A mesh domain can include up to 12 switches.
- A hub linking meshed switch ports is not allowed.
- Features such as VLANs, STP, and IGMP must be configured consistently across all switches in the mesh.
- If a ProCurve 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switch detects a duplicate MAC address on multiple switches while in a mesh with a ProCurve 5300xl Series product, the mesh will not function properly.
- If a duplicate MAC address already exists through separate switches in a mesh and you try to add ProCurve 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches, the ProCurve 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches will not join the mesh. These ports will be in a "blocked" state.
Click here to view supported and unsupported mesh topology examples.
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Q: What is a Secure Management VLAN and how would I use it in my network? Could enabling Spanning Tree affect my Secure Management VLAN?
This feature allows a user to set up an isolated network (VLAN) to manage network devices. Access to this Secure Management VLAN, and to the switch's management functions (Menu, CLI, and web browser interface), is available only through ports configured as members of the Secure Management VLAN.
- Multiple ports on the switch can belong to the Secure Management VLAN. This allows connections for multiple management stations you want to have access to the Secure Management VLAN, while at the same time allowing Secure Management VLAN links between switches configured for the same Secure Management VLAN.
- Only traffic from the Secure Management VLAN can manage the switch, which means that only the workstations and PCs connected to ports belonging to the Secure Management VLAN can manage and reconfigure the switch.
- Enabling Spanning Tree may cause loss of connectivity if the port that the Secure Management VLAN is on becomes blocked.
Refer to the ProCurve Series 5300xl Switches Management and Configuration Guide for more information on Secure Management VLAN.
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Q: Can I add the ProCurve 5300xl Series product to my ProCurve 4100gl Series IP Management stack?
No. IP Stack Management is not supported on the ProCurve 5300xl Series products.
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Q: Can I use GVRP across a mixed mesh of ProCurve 5300xl Series products and ProCurve Switch 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m?
Since GVRP is not supported on the ProCurve Switch 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches, GVRP is not supported on a mixed mesh that consists of both the ProCurve Switch 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches and the Switch 5300xl. Although the user is not prohibited from configuring GVRP in a mixed mesh, VLANs will not be dynamically learned on the ProCurve Switch 4000m, 8000m, 1600m, 2400m and 2424m switches across the mesh.
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Q: Can I use ProCurve Switch 4100gl modules in a ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series and vice versa?
Although GL and XL modules may look alike, they are specifically designed to operate in their respective chassis. An XL module will not operate in a GL chassis and a GL module will not operate in an XL chassis. Inserting a module in the incorrect chassis will not damage the module or chassis and the module will not be powered up.
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Q: What ProCurve Mini-GBICs are supported in the ProCurve Switch XL Mini-GBIC Module used with the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series?
- ProCurve Gigabit-SX-LC Mini-GBIC (J4858A)
- ProCurve Gigabit-LX-LC Mini-GBIC (J4859A)
- ProCurve Gigabit-LH-LC Mini-GBIC (J4860A) (note: requires software version E.06.01 or greater)
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Q: How are MAC addresses allocated on the ProCurve 5300xl Series product?
The ProCurve 5300xl Series assigns MAC addresses in these areas:
- For management functions, one Base MAC address is assigned to the default VLAN (VID = 1). (All VLANs on the switch use the same MAC address.)
- For internal switch operations: One MAC address is assigned per port.
- MAC addresses are assigned at the factory. The switch automatically implements these addresses for VLANs and ports as they are added to the switch.
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Q: What are the differences between the ProCurve Switch 5308xl (J4819A), the ProCurve Switch 5304xl (J4850A), ProCurve Switch 5372xl (J4848A) and the ProCurve Switch 5348xl (J4849A)?
The ProCurve Switch 5308xl (J4819A) is an unpopulated 8 slot chassis and the ProCurve Switch 5304xl (J4850A) is an unpopulated 4 slot chassis. The ProCurve Switch 5372xl (J4848A) is a bundle of the ProCurve Switch 5308xl (J4819A) and three ProCurve Switch XL 10/100-TX modules (J4820A/J4820B). The ProCurve Switch 5348xl (J4849A) is a bundle of the ProCurve Switch 5304xl (J4850A) and two ProCurve Switch XL 10/100-TX modules (J4820A/J4820B).
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Q: What are the differences between the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series and the ProCurve Switch 4100gl Series?
The ProCurve Switch 5300xl series are Layer 3 switches, and the ProCurve Switch 4100gl series are Layer 2 switches. The 5300xl series consists of an 8-slot chassis that supports up to a maximum of 192 10/100Base-T RJ-45 ports or up to a maximum of 32 100/1000-T ports, and a 4-slot chassis that supports up to a maximum of 96 10/100Base-T RJ-45 ports or up to a maximum of 16 100/1000-T ports. The 4100gl series consists of an 8-slot chassis that supports up to a maximum of 192 10/100Base-T RJ-45 ports or up to a maximum of 48 100/1000-T ports, and a 4-slot chassis that supports up to a maximum of 96 10/100Base-T RJ-45 ports or up to a maximum of 24 100/1000-T ports. The ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series supports Gigabit-SX and Gigabit-LX connectivity. The ProCurve Switch 4100gl supports Gigabit-SX, Gigabit-LX, 100-FX SC and Gigabit stacking connectivity.
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Q: What modules are supported on the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series? Are the supported modules "hot-swappable"?
The following modules are supported in the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series:
- ProCurve Switch XL 10/100-TX module (J4820A/J4820B)
- ProCurve Switch XL 100/1000-T module (J4821A/J4821B)
- ProCurve Switch XL Mini-GBIC module (J4878A/J4878B)
Modules can be inserted into the switch while the unit is powered on. Inserting a module into a previously unused slot or replacing a module with another of the same type does not require a reboot. Replacing a module with another of a different type requires a reboot of the switch.
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Q: Is redundant power supported on the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series? Is the Redundant Power Supply "hot-swappable"?
The ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series supports the "hot-swappable" ProCurve Switch Redundant Power Supply (J4839A).
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Q: When I start a console session on my new ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series, I get the prompt "HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl#". How do I access the menu interface?
The default interface for the ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series is the Command Line Interface (CLI). The CLI is a full-featured interface that can be used to get status information (show commands) and perform configuration changes (configuration context). To access the menu interface, issue the command "menu" from the CLI. Also, using the "setup" command from the CLI or menu interface allows you to configure most of the basic options on the switch such as IP addressing and passwords.
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Q: What are the compatible OS, Browser, and Java versions for the 5300xl series switch web agents?
The ProCurve web browser interface supports the following combinations of OSs, browsers, and Java virtual machines for switch software version E.08.01 and greater: |
