CH A P T E R 23

EtherChannels

• Prerequisites for EtherChannels, page 23-1

• Restrictions for EtherChannels, page 23-2
• Information About EtherChannels, page 23-3
• Default Settings for EtherChannels, page 23-7
• How to Configure EtherChannels, page 23-7

Note • For complete syntax and usage information for the commands used in this chapter, see these
publications:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps11846/prod_command_reference_list.html
• Cisco IOS Release 15.4SY supports only Ethernet interfaces. Cisco IOS Release 15.4SY does not
support any WAN features or commands.

Tip For additional information about Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switches (including configuration examples
and troubleshooting information), see the documents listed on this page:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/switches/ps708/tsd_products_support_series_home.html
Participate in the Technical Documentation Ideas forum

Prerequisites for EtherChannels

None.

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Restrictions for EtherChannels

Restrictions for EtherChannels

• LACP EtherChannels and the 802.1ad provider-bridge mode are mutually exclusive. LACP
EtherChannels cannot transmit traffic when the 802.1ad provider-bridge mode is enabled.
• LACP does not support half-duplex links. Half-duplex links in an LACP EtherChannel are put in the
suspended state.

Caution Serious traffic problems can result from mixing manual mode with LACP mode, or by connecting an
EtherChannel member port to a port not configured as part of the EtherChannel. For example, if a port
configured in on mode is connected to another port configured in desirable mode, or to a port not
configured as a member of the EtherChannel, a bridge loop is created and a broadcast storm can occur.
If one end uses the on mode, the other end must also.

• When EtherChannel interfaces are configured improperly, they are disabled automatically to avoid
network loops and other problems.
• Frames with SAP/SNAP encapsulation are load-balanced as Layer 2 traffic.
• The commands in this chapter can be used on all Layer 2 Ethernet ports, including the ports on the
supervisor engine and a redundant supervisor engine.
• All Layer 2 Ethernet ports on all modules, including those on a redundant supervisor engine, support
EtherChannels (maximum of eight LAN ports) with no requirement that the LAN ports be physically
contiguous or on the same module.
• Configure all LAN ports in an EtherChannel to use the same EtherChannel protocol; you cannot run
two EtherChannel protocols in one EtherChannel.
• Configure all LAN ports in an EtherChannel to operate at the same speed and in the same duplex
mode.
• Enable all LAN ports in an EtherChannel. If you shut down a LAN port in an EtherChannel, it is
treated as a link failure and its traffic is transferred to one of the remaining ports in the
EtherChannel.
• An EtherChannel will not form if any of the LAN ports is a Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN)
destination port.
• For Layer 3 EtherChannels, assign Layer 3 addresses to the port channel logical interface, not to the
LAN ports in the channel.
• For Layer 2 EtherChannels:
– Assign all LAN ports in the EtherChannel to the same VLAN or configure them as trunks.
– If you configure an EtherChannel from trunking LAN ports, verify that the trunking mode is the
same on all the trunks. LAN ports in an EtherChannel with different trunk modes can operate
unpredictably.
– An EtherChannel supports the same allowed range of VLANs on all the LAN ports in a trunking
Layer 2 EtherChannel. If the allowed range of VLANs is not the same, the LAN ports do not
form an EtherChannel.
– LAN ports with different STP port path costs can form an EtherChannel as long they are
compatibly configured with each other. If you set different STP port path costs, the LAN ports
are not incompatible for the formation of an EtherChannel.
– An EtherChannel will not form if protocol filtering is set differently on the LAN ports.

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Information About EtherChannels

– Configure static MAC addresses on the EtherChannel only and not on physical member ports
of the EtherChannel.
• After you configure an EtherChannel, the configuration that you apply to the port channel interface
affects the EtherChannel. The configuration that you apply to the LAN ports affects only the LAN
port where you apply the configuration.
• Cisco IOS Release 15.4SY does not support ISL trunk encapsulation. If a non-trunking Layer 2
EtherChannel includes member ports that that are not capable of ISL trunk encapsulation, the
switchport trunk encapsulation dot1q command is added to the port-channel interface. The
command has no affect when the switchport mode is “access” (CSCta45114).
• When QoS is enabled, enter the no platform qos channel-consistency port-channel interface
command to support EtherChannels that have ports with and without strict-priority queues.

Information About EtherChannels

• EtherChannel Feature Overview, page 23-3
• Information about EtherChannel Configuration, page 23-3
• Information about Port Channel Interfaces, page 23-7
• Information about LACP 1:1 Redundancy, page 23-6
• Information about Load Balancing, page 23-7

EtherChannel Feature Overview

An EtherChannel bundles individual Ethernet links into a single logical link that provides the aggregate
bandwidth of up to eight physical links.
Cisco IOS Release 15.4SY supports a maximum of 512 EtherChannels. You can form an EtherChannel
with up to eight compatibly configured LAN ports on any switching module. All LAN ports in each
EtherChannel must be the same speed and must all be configured as either Layer 2 or Layer 3 LAN ports.

Note The network device to which a switch is connected may impose its own limits on the number of ports in
an EtherChannel.

If a segment within an EtherChannel fails, traffic previously carried over the failed link switches to the
remaining segments within the EtherChannel. When a failure occurs, the EtherChannel feature sends a
trap that identifies the switch, the EtherChannel, and the failed link. Inbound broadcast and multicast
packets on one segment in an EtherChannel are blocked from returning on any other segment of the
EtherChannel.

Information about EtherChannel Configuration

• EtherChannel Configuration Overview, page 23-4
• Information about Manual EtherChannel Configuration, page 23-5
• Information about PAgP EtherChannel Configuration, page 23-5
• Information about IEEE 802.3ad LACP EtherChannel Configuration, page 23-5

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Information About EtherChannels

EtherChannel Configuration Overview

You can configure EtherChannels manually or you can use the Port Aggregation Control Protocol
(PAgP) or the Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) to form EtherChannels. The EtherChannel
protocols allow ports with similar characteristics to form an EtherChannel through dynamic negotiation
with connected network devices. PAgP is a Cisco-proprietary protocol and LACP is defined in IEEE
802.3ad.
PAgP and LACP do not interoperate with each other. Ports configured to use PAgP cannot form
EtherChannels with ports configured to use LACP. Ports configured to use LACP cannot form
EtherChannels with ports configured to use PAgP. Neither interoperates with ports configured manually.
Table 23-1 lists the user-configurable EtherChannel modes.
Table 23-2 lists the EtherChannel member port states.

Table 23-1 EtherChannel Modes

Mode Description
on Mode that forces the LAN port to channel unconditionally. In the on mode, a usable
EtherChannel exists only when a LAN port group in the on mode is connected to another
LAN port group in the on mode. Because ports configured in the on mode do not negotiate,
there is no negotiation traffic between the ports. You cannot configure the on mode with
an EtherChannel protocol. If one end uses the on mode, the other end must also.
auto PAgP mode that places a LAN port into a passive negotiating state, in which the port
responds to PAgP packets it receives but does not initiate PAgP negotiation. (Default)
desirable PAgP mode that places a LAN port into an active negotiating state, in which the port
initiates negotiations with other LAN ports by sending PAgP packets.
passive LACP mode that places a port into a passive negotiating state, in which the port responds
to LACP packets it receives but does not initiate LACP negotiation. (Default)
active LACP mode that places a port into an active negotiating state, in which the port initiates
negotiations with other ports by sending LACP packets.

Table 23-2 EtherChannel Member Port States

Port States Description

bundled The port is part of an EtherChannel and can send and receive BPDUs and data traffic.
suspended The port is not part of an EtherChannel. The port can receive BPDUs but cannot send
them. Data traffic is blocked.
standalone The port is not bundled in an EtherChannel. The port functions as a standalone data port.
The port can send and receive BPDUs and data traffic.
Note When one end of an EtherChannel has more members than the other, the
unmatched ports enter the standalone state. In a topology that is not protected
from Layer 2 loops by the spanning tree protocol (STP), a port in the standalone
state can cause significant network errors. You can enter the port-channel
standalone-disable interface configuration mode command to put ports into the
suspended state instead of the standalone state. See the “Configuring LACP
Port-Channel Standalone Disable” section on page 23-16.

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Information About EtherChannels

Information about Manual EtherChannel Configuration

Manually configured EtherChannel ports do not exchange EtherChannel protocol packets. A manually
configured EtherChannel forms only when you configure all ports in the EtherChannel compatibly.

Information about PAgP EtherChannel Configuration

PAgP supports the automatic creation of EtherChannels by exchanging PAgP packets between LAN
ports. PAgP packets are exchanged only between ports in auto and desirable modes.
The protocol learns the capabilities of LAN port groups dynamically and informs the other LAN ports.
Once PAgP identifies correctly matched Ethernet links, it facilitates grouping the links into an
EtherChannel. The EtherChannel is then added to the spanning tree as a single bridge port.
Both the auto and desirable modes allow PAgP to negotiate between LAN ports to determine if they can
form an EtherChannel, based on criteria such as port speed and trunking state. Layer 2 EtherChannels
also use VLAN numbers.
LAN ports can form an EtherChannel when they are in different PAgP modes if the modes are
compatible. For example:
• A LAN port in desirable mode can form an EtherChannel successfully with another LAN port that
is in desirable mode.
• A LAN port in desirable mode can form an EtherChannel with another LAN port in auto mode.
• A LAN port in auto mode cannot form an EtherChannel with another LAN port that is also in auto
mode, because neither port will initiate negotiation.

Information about IEEE 802.3ad LACP EtherChannel Configuration

LACP supports the automatic creation of EtherChannels by exchanging LACP packets between LAN
ports. LACP packets are exchanged only between ports in passive and active modes.
The protocol learns the capabilities of LAN port groups dynamically and informs the other LAN ports.
Once LACP identifies correctly matched Ethernet links, it facilitates grouping the links into an
EtherChannel. The EtherChannel is then added to the spanning tree as a single bridge port.
Both the passive and active modes allow LACP to negotiate between LAN ports to determine if they can
form an EtherChannel, based on criteria such as port speed and trunking state. Layer 2 EtherChannels
also use VLAN numbers.
LAN ports can form an EtherChannel when they are in different LACP modes as long as the modes are
compatible. For example:
• A LAN port in active mode can form an EtherChannel successfully with another LAN port that is
in active mode.
• A LAN port in active mode can form an EtherChannel with another LAN port in passive mode.
• A LAN port in passive mode cannot form an EtherChannel with another LAN port that is also in
passive mode, because neither port will initiate negotiation.

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Information About EtherChannels

LACP uses the following parameters:

• LACP system priority—You must configure an LACP system priority on each switch running LACP.
The system priority can be configured automatically or through the CLI (see the “Configuring the
LACP System Priority and System ID” section on page 23-11). LACP uses the system priority with
the switch MAC address to form the system ID and also during negotiation with other systems.

Note The LACP system ID is the combination of the LACP system priority value and the MAC
address of the switch.

• LACP port priority—You must configure an LACP port priority on each port configured to use
LACP. The port priority can be configured automatically or through the CLI (see the “Configuring
Channel Groups” section on page 23-9). LACP uses the port priority with the port number to form
the port identifier. LACP uses the port priority to decide which ports should be put in standby mode
when there is a hardware limitation that prevents all compatible ports from aggregating.
• LACP administrative key—LACP automatically configures an administrative key value equal to the
channel group identification number on each port configured to use LACP. The administrative key
defines the ability of a port to aggregate with other ports. A port’s ability to aggregate with other
ports is determined by these factors:
– Port physical characteristics, such as data rate, duplex capability, and point-to-point or shared
medium
– Configuration restrictions that you establish
On ports configured to use LACP, LACP tries to configure the maximum number of compatible ports in
an EtherChannel, up to the maximum allowed by the hardware (eight ports). If LACP cannot aggregate
all the ports that are compatible (for example, the remote system might have more restrictive hardware
limitations), then all the ports that cannot be actively included in the channel are put in hot standby state
and are used only if one of the channeled ports fails. You can configure an additional 8 standby ports
(total of 16 ports associated with the EtherChannel).

Information about LACP 1:1 Redundancy

The LACP 1:1 redundancy feature supports an EtherChannel configuration with one active link and fast
switchover to a hot standby link. The link connected to the port with the lower port priority number (and
therefore a higher priority) will be the active link, and the other link will be in a hot standby state. If the
active link goes down, LACP performs fast switchover to the hot standby link to keep the EtherChannel
up. When the failed link becomes operational again, LACP performs another fast switchover to revert to
the original active link.
To allow the higher priority port to stabilize when it becomes active again after a higher-priority to
lower-priority switchover, the LACP 1:1 hot standby dampening feature configures a timer that delays
switchover back to the higher priority port after it becomes active.
See the “Configuring LACP 1:1 Redundancy” section on page 23-14.

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Default Settings for EtherChannels

Information about Port Channel Interfaces

Each EtherChannel has a numbered port channel interface. You can configure a maximum of 128
port-channel interfaces, numbered from 1 to 256. The configuration that you apply to the port channel
interface affects all LAN ports assigned to the port channel interface.
After you configure an EtherChannel, the configuration that you apply to the port channel interface
affects the EtherChannel; the configuration that you apply to the LAN ports affects only the LAN port
where you apply the configuration. To change the parameters of all ports in an EtherChannel, apply the
configuration commands to the port channel interface, for example, Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)
commands or commands to configure a Layer 2 EtherChannel as a trunk.

Information about Load Balancing

An EtherChannel balances the traffic load across the links in an EtherChannel by reducing part of the
binary pattern formed from the addresses in the frame to a numerical value that selects one of the links
in the channel.
EtherChannel load balancing can use MAC addresses or IP addresses. EtherChannel load balancing can
also use Layer 4 port numbers. EtherChannel load balancing can use either source or destination or both
source and destination addresses or ports. The selected mode applies to all EtherChannels configured on
the switch. EtherChannel load balancing can use MPLS Layer 2 information.
Use the option that provides the balance criteria with the greatest variety in your configuration. For
example, if the traffic on an EtherChannel is going only to a single MAC address and you use the
destination MAC address as the basis of EtherChannel load balancing, the EtherChannel always chooses
the same link in the EtherChannel; using source addresses or IP addresses might result in better load
balancing.

Default Settings for EtherChannels

None.

How to Configure EtherChannels

• Configuring Port Channel Logical Interfaces, page 23-8
• Configuring Channel Groups, page 23-9
• Configuring the LACP System Priority and System ID, page 23-11
• Configuring EtherChannel Load Balancing, page 23-11
• Configuring the EtherChannel Hash-Distribution Algorithm, page 23-12
• Configuring the EtherChannel Min-Links Feature, page 23-13
• Configuring LACP 1:1 Redundancy, page 23-14

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• Configuring Auto Interleaved Port Priority For LACP Port Channels, page 23-15
• Configuring LACP Port-Channel Standalone Disable, page 23-16

Note Make sure that the LAN ports are configured correctly (see the “Restrictions for EtherChannels” section
on page 23-2).

Configuring Port Channel Logical Interfaces

Note To move an IP address from a Layer 3 LAN port to an EtherChannel, you must delete the IP address from
the Layer 3 LAN port before configuring it on the port channel logical interface.

To create a port channel interface for a Layer 3 EtherChannel, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel group_number Creates the port channel interface.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# ip address ip_address mask Assigns an IP address and subnet mask to the
EtherChannel.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.

The group_number can be 1 through 256, up to a maximum of 256 port-channel interfaces in standalone
mode. In VSS-mode the group number can be through 1 through 512, up to a maximum of 512 port
channel-interfaces. This example shows how to create port channel interface 1:
Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# interface port-channel 1
Router(config-if)# ip address 172.32.52.10 255.255.255.0
Router(config-if)# end

This example shows how to verify the configuration of port channel interface 1:
Router# show running-config interface port-channel 1
Building configuration...

Current configuration:
!
interface Port-channel1
ip address 172.32.52.10 255.255.255.0
no ip directed-broadcast
end
Router#

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Configuring Channel Groups

Note For Cisco IOS to create port channel interfaces for Layer 2 EtherChannels, the Layer 2 LAN ports must
be connected and functioning.

To configure channel groups, perform this task for each LAN port:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface type slot/port Selects a LAN port to configure.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# no ip address Ensures that there is no IP address assigned to the LAN
port.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# channel-protocol (lacp | pagp} (Optional) On the selected LAN port, restricts the
channel-group command to the EtherChannel protocol
configured with the channel-protocol command.
Step 4 Router(config-if)# channel-group group_number Configures the LAN port in a port channel and specifies
mode {active | auto | desirable | on | passive} the mode (see Table 23-1 on page 23-4). PAgP supports
only the auto and desirable modes. LACP supports only
the active and passive modes.
Step 5 Router(config-if)# lacp port-priority (Optional for LACP) Valid values are 1 through 65535.
priority_value Higher numbers have lower priority. The default is 32768.
Step 6 Router(config-if)# do show interface port-channel (Optional) Displays the interface configuration
group_number information of the specified port channel.
Note: The output of this command shows that the newly
created port channel interface will be in shutdown state.
Step 7 Router(config-if)# no shutdown Brings the port channel and its members up and all the
configuration changes that you apply to the port channel
is applied to every member interface of that port channel.
Step 8 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.

This example shows how to configure Gigabit Ethernet ports 5/6 and 5/7 into port channel 2 with PAgP
mode desirable:
Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# interface range gigabitethernet 5/6 -7
Router(config-if)# channel-group 2 mode desirable
Router(config-if)# no shutdown
Router(config-if)# end

Note See the “How to Configure a Range of Interfaces” section on page 10-2 for information about the range
keyword.

This example shows how to verify the configuration of port channel interface 2:
Router# show running-config interface port-channel 2
Building configuration...

Current configuration:
!
interface Port-channel2

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no ip address
switchport
switchport access vlan 10
switchport mode access
end
Router#

This example shows how to verify the configuration of Gigabit Ethernet port 5/6:
Router# show running-config interface gigabitethernet 5/6
Building configuration...

Current configuration:
!
interface GigabitEthernet5/6
no ip address
switchport
switchport access vlan 10
switchport mode access
channel-group 2 mode desirable
end
Router# show interfaces gigabitethernet 5/6 etherchannel
Port state = Down Not-in-Bndl
Channel group = 12 Mode = Desirable-Sl Gcchange = 0
Port-channel = null GC = 0x00000000 Pseudo port-channel = Po1
2
Port index = 0 Load = 0x00 Protocol = PAgP

Flags: S - Device is sending Slow hello. C - Device is in Consistent state.

A - Device is in Auto mode. P - Device learns on physical port.
d - PAgP is down.
Timers: H - Hello timer is running. Q - Quit timer is running.
S - Switching timer is running. I - Interface timer is running.

Local information:
Hello Partner PAgP Learning Group
Port Flags State Timers Interval Count Priority Method Ifindex
Gi5/2 d U1/S1 1s 0 128 Any 0

Age of the port in the current state: 04d:18h:57m:19s

This example shows how to verify the configuration of port channel interface 2 after the LAN ports have
been configured:
Router# show etherchannel 12 port-channel
Port-channels in the group:
----------------------

Port-channel: Po12
------------

Age of the Port-channel = 04d:18h:58m:50s

Logical slot/port = 14/1 Number of ports = 0
GC = 0x00000000 HotStandBy port = null
Port state = Port-channel Ag-Not-Inuse
Protocol = PAgP

Router#

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Configuring the LACP System Priority and System ID

The LACP system ID is the combination of the LACP system priority value and the MAC address of the
switch.
To configure the LACP system priority and system ID, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# lacp system-priority value (Optional for LACP) Valid values are 1 through 65535. Higher
numbers have lower priority. The default is 32768.
Step 2 Router(config)# end Exits configuration mode.

This example shows how to configure the LACP system priority:

Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# lacp system-priority 23456
Router(config)# end
Router(config)#

This example shows how to verify the configuration:

Router# show lacp sys-id
23456,0050.3e8d.6400
Router#

The system priority is displayed first, followed by the MAC address of the switch.

Configuring EtherChannel Load Balancing

To configure EtherChannel load balancing, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# port-channel per-module (Optional) Enables the ability to specify the
load-balance load-balancing method on a per-module basis.
Step 2 Router(config)# port-channel load-balance Configures the EtherChannel load-balancing method. The
[all | fex fex_number] method [module slot] method is globally applied to all port channels.
Optionally, you can configure the load-balancing method
for a specific module. The default method is src-dst-ip.
A configurable load balancing method is only applicable
for unicast traffic. For multicast traffic the load balancing
method used is always src-dst-ip.
Note
• If you configure EtherChannel load balancing on a
switch that is not in VSS mode, traffic is disrupted
while the EtherChannel member ports transition
through the shutdown and then no shutdown states.
• There is no disruption on switches in VSS mode.
Step 3 Router(config)# end Exits configuration mode.

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The load-balancing method keywords indicate the following information:

• dst-ip—Destination IP addresses
• dst-mac—Destination MAC addresses
• dst-mixed-ip-port—Destination IP address and TCP/UDP port
• dst-port—Destination Layer 4 port
• mpls—Load balancing for MPLS packets
• src-dst-ip—(Default) Source and destination IP addresses
• src-dst-mac—Source and destination MAC addresses
• src-dst-mixed-ip-port—Source and destination IP address and TCP/UDP port
• src-dst-port—Source and destination Layer 4 port
• src-ip—Source IP addresses
• src-mac—Source MAC addresses
• src-mixed-ip-port—Source IP address and TCP/UDP port
• src-port—Source Layer 4 port
• vlan-dst-ip—VLAN number and destination IP address
• vlan-dst-mixed-ip-port—VLAN number and destination IP address and TCP/UDP port
• vlan-src-dst-ip—VLAN number and source and destination IP address
• vlan-src-dst-mixed-ip-port—VLAN number and source and destination IP address and TCP/UDP port
• vlan-src-ip—VLAN number and source IP address
• vlan-src-mixed-ip-port—VLAN number and source IP address and TCP/UDP port
The optional module keyword allows you to specify the load-balancing method for a specific module.
This capability is supported only on DFC-equipped switching modules. You must enable per-module
load balancing globally before configuring the feature on a module.
This example shows how to configure EtherChannel to use source and destination IP addresses:
Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# port-channel load-balance src-dst-ip
Router(config)# end
Router(config)#

This example shows how to verify the configuration:

Router# show etherchannel load-balance
Source XOR Destination IP address

Configuring the EtherChannel Hash-Distribution Algorithm

When you add a port to an EtherChannel or delete a port from an EtherChannel, the fixed algorithm
updates the port ASIC for each port in the EtherChannel, which causes a short outage on each port.
The default adaptive algorithm does not need to update the port ASIC for existing member ports. You
can configure a global value for the adaptive algorithm. You can also specify the algorithm for individual
port channels.

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When you change the algorithm, the change is applied at the next member link event (link down, link
up, addition, deletion, no shutdown, and shutdown). When you enter the command to change the
algorithm, the command console issues a warning that the command does not take effect until the next
member link event.

Note • Some external devices require the fixed algorithm. For example, the service control engine (SCE)
requires incoming and outgoing packets to use the same port.
• If you change the load-balancing method, EtherChannel ports on DFC-equipped switching modules
or on an active supervisor engine in a dual supervisor engine configuration will flap.

Configuring the Hash-Distribution Algorithm Globally

To configure the load-sharing algorithm globally, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# port-channel hash-distribution Sets the hash distribution algorithm to adaptive or
{adaptive | fixed} fixed.
Step 2 Router(config)# end Exits configuration mode.

This example shows how to globally set the hash distribution to adaptive:
Router(config)# port-channel hash-distribution adaptive

Configuring the Hash-Distribution Algorithm for a Port Channel

To configure the hash-distribution algorithm for a specific port channel, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel Enters interface configuration mode for the port channel.
channel-num
Step 2 Router(config-if)# port-channel port Sets the hash distribution algorithm for this interface
hash-distribution {adaptive | fixed}
Step 3 Router(config-if)# end Exits interface configuration mode.

This example shows how to set the hash distribution algorithm to adaptive on port channel 10:
Router (config)# interface port-channel 10
Router (config-if)# port-channel port hash-distribution adaptive

Configuring the EtherChannel Min-Links Feature

The EtherChannel min-links feature is supported on LACP EtherChannels. This feature allows you to
configure the minimum number of member ports that must be in the link-up state and bundled in the
EtherChannel for the port channel interface to transition to the link-up state. You can use the
EtherChannel min-links feature to prevent low-bandwidth LACP EtherChannels from becoming active.
This feature also causes LACP EtherChannels to become inactive if they have too few active member

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ports to supply your required minimum bandwidth. In addition, when LACP max-bundle values are
specified in conjunction with min-links, the configuration is verified and an error message is returned if
the min-links value is not compatible with (equal to or less than) the max-bundle value.
To configure the EtherChannel min-links feature, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel group_number Selects an LACP port channel interface.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# port-channel min-links number Configures the minimum number of member ports that
must be in the link-up state and bundled in the
EtherChannel for the port channel interface to
transition to the link-up state.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.

Note Although the EtherChannel min-links feature works correctly when configured only on one end of an
EtherChannel, for best results, configure the same number of minimum links on both ends of the
EtherChannel.

This example shows how to configure port channel interface 1 to be inactive if fewer than two member
ports are active in the EtherChannel:
Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# interface port-channel 1
Router(config-if)# port-channel min-links 2
Router(config-if)# end

Configuring LACP 1:1 Redundancy

To configure the LACP 1:1 redundancy feature, perform this task:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel group_number Selects an LACP port channel interface.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# lacp fast-switchover Enables the LACP 1:1 redundancy feature on the
EtherChannel.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# lacp max-bundle 1 Sets the maximum number of active member ports
to be one. The only value supported with LACP 1:1
redundancy is “1”.
Step 4 Router(config-if)# lacp fast-switchover dampening (Optional) Enables the LACP 1:1 hot standby
seconds dampening feature for this EtherChannel. The
range for the time parameter is 35 through 180
seconds.
Step 5 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.

Note LACP 1:1 redundancy must be enabled at both ends of the LACP EtherChannel.

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This example shows how to configure an LACP EtherChannel with 1:1 redundancy. Because Gigabit
Ethernet port 5/6 is configured with a higher port priority number (and therefore a lower priority) than
the default of 32768, it will be the standby port.
Router# configure terminal
Router(config)# lacp system-priority 33000
Router(config)# interface range gigabitethernet 5/6 -7
Router(config-if)# channel-protocol lacp
Router(config-if)# channel-group 1 mode active
Router(config)# interface gigabitethernet 5/6
Router(config-if)# lacp port-priority 33000
Router(config)# interface port-channel 1
Router(config-if)# lacp fast-switchover
Router(config-if)# lacp max-bundle 1
Router(config-if)# lacp fast-switchover dampening 30
Router(config-if)# end

Configuring Auto Interleaved Port Priority For LACP Port Channels

To configure auto interleaved port priority for LACP on a port channel, perform this task on the port
channel interface:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel Selects a port channel interface to configure.
channel-group
Step 2 Router(config-if)# lacp active-port distribution Configures the port channel to use interleaved port
automatic priority.

Note You need to perform a shutdown and no shutdown

for interleaved port priority to be enabled.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# shutdown Disables the interface.
Step 4 Router(config-if)# no shutdown Enables the interface.
Step 5 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.
Step 6 Router# show etherchannel channel-group Verifies the configuration.
port-channel
Router# show etherchannel channel-group summary

This example shows how to configure auto interleaved port priority on a port channel:
Router(config)# interface port-channel23
Router(config-if)# lacp active-port distribution automatic
Please shut/no shut the port-channel for configuration to take effect immediately.
Router(config-if)# shutdown
Router(config-if)# no shutdown

Router(config-if)# end

This example shows how to verify the configuration of port channel interface 23:
Router# show running interfaces port-channel23
Building configuration...

Current configuration : 81 bytes

!

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interface Port-channel23
no switchport
no ip address
lacp max-bundle 4
lacp active-port distribution automatic
end

This example shows how to verify the configuration of EtherChannel 23:

Router# show etherchannel 23 summary

Flags: D - down P - bundled in port-channel

I - stand-alone s - suspended
H - Hot-standby (LACP only)
R - Layer3 S - Layer2
U - in use N - not in use, no aggregation
f - failed to allocate aggregator

M - not in use, no aggregation due to minimum links not met

m - not in use, port not aggregated due to minimum links not met
u - unsuitable for bundling
d - default port

w - waiting to be aggregated
Number of channel-groups in use: 9
Number of aggregators: 9

Group Port-channel Protocol Ports

------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------------
23 Po23(RU) LACP Gi1/1/21(P) Gi1/1/22(P) Gi1/1/23(H)
Gi1/1/24(H) Gi2/1/17(P) Gi2/1/18(P)
Gi2/1/19(H) Gi2/1/20(H)

Last applied Hash Distribution Algorithm: Fixed

Note The above example shows that the four bundled ports are distributed 2 per chassis and slot.

Configuring LACP Port-Channel Standalone Disable

To disable the standalone EtherChannel member port state on a port channel (see Table 23-2 on
page 23-4), perform this task on the port channel interface:

Command Purpose
Step 1 Router(config)# interface port-channel channel-group Selects a port channel interface to configure.
Step 2 Router(config-if)# port-channel standalone-disable Disables the standalone mode on the port-channel
interface.
Step 3 Router(config-if)# end Exits configuration mode.
Step 4 Router# show etherchannel channel-group port-channel Verifies the configuration.
Router# show etherchannel channel-group detail

This example shows how to disable the standalone EtherChannel member port state on port channel 42:
Router(config)# interface port-channel channel-group
Router(config-if)# port-channel standalone-disable

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This example shows how to verify the configuration:

Router# show etherchannel 42 port-channel | include Standalone
Standalone Disable = enabled
Router# show etherchannel 42 detail | include Standalone
Standalone Disable = enabled

Tip For additional information about Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switches (including configuration examples
and troubleshooting information), see the documents listed on this page:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/switches/ps708/tsd_products_support_series_home.html
Participate in the Technical Documentation Ideas forum

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