Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switch CLI Software Configuration Guide (OL-16597-01, July 2009)

CHAPTER 9

Configuring EtherChannels

This chapter describes how to configure EtherChannels and to apply and configure the Link Aggregation

Control Protocol (LACP) for more efficient use of EtherChannels in Cisco NX-OS. It contains the following

sections:

• Information About EtherChannels, page 111

• Configuring EtherChannels, page 117

• Verifying EtherChannel Configuration, page 122

Information About EtherChannels

An EtherChannel bundles up to 16 individual interfaces into a group to provide increased bandwidth and

redundancy. Port channeling also load balances traffic across these physical interfaces. The EtherChannel

stays operational as long as at least one physical interface within the EtherChannel is operational.

You create an EtherChannel by bundling compatible interfaces. You can configure and run either static

EtherChannels or EtherChannels running the Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP).

Any configuration changes that you apply to the EtherChannel are applied to each member interface of that

EtherChannel. For example, if you configure Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) parameters on the EtherChannel,

the Cisco NX-OS applies those parameters to each interface in the EtherChannel.

You can use static EtherChannels, with no associated protocol, for a simplified configuration. For more

efficient use of the EtherChannel, you can use the Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP), which is

defined in IEEE 802.3ad. When you use LACP, the link passes protocol packets.