Users Guide
Table Of Contents
- 1 Introduction
- 2 SmartFabric Services for PowerEdge MX: An overview
- 3 SmartFabric mode requirements, guidelines, and restrictions
- 3.1 Create multi-chassis management group
- 3.2 Upstream network requirements
- 3.3 VLAN scaling guidelines
- 3.4 Configuring port speed and breakout
- 3.5 Switch slot placement for SmartFabric mode
- 3.6 Switch-to-Switch cabling
- 3.7 NIC teaming guidelines
- 3.8 Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) behavior
- 3.9 Other restrictions and guidelines
- 4 Creating a SmartFabric
- 4.1 Physically cable MX chassis and upstream switches
- 4.2 Define VLANs
- 4.3 Create the SmartFabric
- 4.4 Configure uplink port speed or breakout, if needed
- 4.5 Create Ethernet uplink
- 4.6 Configure Fibre Channel universal ports
- 4.7 Create Fibre Channel uplinks
- 4.8 Configuring the upstream switch and connect uplink cables
- 5 Deploying a server
- 6 SmartFabric operations
- 7 Switch operations
- 8 Validating the SmartFabric deployment
- 9 SmartFabric troubleshooting
- 9.1 Troubleshooting errors encountered for port group breakout
- 9.2 Troubleshooting Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)
- 9.3 Verify VLT/vPC configuration on upstream switches
- 9.4 Discovery of FEM and compute sleds
- 9.5 Troubleshooting uplink errors
- 9.6 Troubleshooting FC/FCoE
- 9.7 SmartFabric Services – Troubleshooting commands
- 10 Uplink configuration scenarios
- 10.1 Scenario 1 - SmartFabric deployment with Dell EMC PowerSwitch Z9100-ON upstream switches
- 10.2 Scenario 2 - SmartFabric connected to Cisco Nexus 3232C switches
- 10.3 Scenario 3: Connect MX9116n FSE to Fibre Channel storage - NPIV Proxy Gateway mode
- 10.4 Scenario 4: Connect MX9116n FSE to Fibre Channel storage - FC Direct Attach
- 10.5 Scenario 5: Connect MX5108n to Fibre Channel storage - FSB
- 10.6 Scenario 6: Configure Boot from SAN
- A Hardware used in this document
- B Dell EMC Unity information
- C Additional information
- D Validated components
- E Technical resources
- F Support and feedback
77 Dell EMC PowerEdge MX SmartFabric Configuration and Troubleshooting Guide
9.2 Troubleshooting Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) prevent loops in the network. Loops can occur when multiple redundant parts
are available between the switches. To prevent the network from going down due to loops, various flavors of
STP are available. Initial introduction of STP evolved into various types. It is essential to ensure that network
loops are prevented by using appropriate type of STP on the upstream switches as well as the MX9116n
FSEswitches that are part of the MX SmartFabric.
9.2.1 Verify if STP is enabled on upstream switches
STP is required when connecting a SmartFabric to the upstream network. Turning off Spanning Tree in the
upstream switches will result in network loops and may cause downtime. Enable the appropriate STP type on
the upstream switches.
9.2.2 Verify if type of STP is the same on MX and upstream switches
Check the upstream switch if STP is enabled and verify that the type of STP matches the type of STP running
on the MX switches. By default, the MX switches run RPVST+ as shown below:
OS10# show spanning-tree brief
Spanning tree enabled protocol rapid-pvst
VLAN 1
Executing IEEE compatible Spanning Tree Protocol
---- OUTPUT TRUNCATED -----
• The following example shows the STP on the upstream switches, Cisco Nexus 3232C, is configured
to run MST:
Nexus-3232C-Leaf1(config)# do show spanning-tree summary
Switch is in mst mode (IEEE Standard)
Root bridge for: MST0000
Port Type Default is disable
---- OUTPUT TRUNCATED -----
• The recommended course of action is to change the STP type to RPVST+ on the upstream Cisco
Nexus switches.
Nexus-3232C-Leaf1(config)# spanning-tree mode rapid-pvst
Nexus-3232C-Leaf1(config)# do show spanning-tree summary
Switch is in rapid-pvst mode
--- OUTPUT TRUNCATED -----
• Another course of action in the above case can be to change the spanning tree type on the MX
switches operating in SmartFabric mode to match the STP type on the upstream switches. This can
be done using the SmartFabric OS10 CLI. The options available on the type of STP are as follows:
OS10(config)# spanning-tree mode ?
<rstp/mst/rapid-pvst> STP Protocol type