Technical data

272 FastIron Ethernet Switch Administration Guide
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sFlow
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sFlow version 5
sFlow version 5 enhances and modifies the format of the data sent to the sFlow collector. sFlow
version 5 introduces several new sFlow features and also defines a new datagram syntax used by
the sFlow agent to report flow samples and interface counters to the sFlow collector.
sFlow version 5 adds support for the following:
• sFlow version 5 datagrams
• Sub-agent support
• Configurable sFlow export packet size
• Support for the new data field and sample type length in flow samples
• Configurable interval for exporting Brocade-specific data structure
sFlow version 5 is backward-compatible with sFlow version 2. By default, the sFlow agent exports
sFlow version 5 flow samples by default, but you can configure the device to export the data in
sFlow version 2 format. You can switch between sFlow version 2 and sFlow version 5 formats. The
sFlow collector automatically parses each incoming sample and decodes it based on the version
number.
The configuration procedures for sFlow version 5 are the same as for sFlow version 2, except where
explicitly noted. Configuration procedures for sFlow are in the section “Configuring and enabling
sFlow” on page 275. The features and CLI commands that are specific to sFlow version 5 are
described in the section “sFlow version 5 feature configuration” on page 282.
sFlow support for IPv6 packets
The Brocade implementation of sFlow features support IPv6 packets. This support includes
extended router information and extended gateway information in the sampled packet. Note that
sFlow support for IPv6 packets exists only on devices running software that supports IPv6.
The configuration procedures for this feature are the same as for IPv4, except where the collector is
a link-local address on a Layer 3 switch. For details refer to “Specifying the collector” on page 275.
Extended router information
IPv6 sFlow sampled packets include the following extended router information:
• IP address of the next hop router
• Outgoing VLAN ID
• Source IP address prefix length
• Destination IP address prefix length
Note that in IPv6 devices, the prefix lengths of the source and destination IP addresses are
collected if BGP is configured and the route lookup is completed. In IPv4 devices, this information is
collected only if BGP is configured on the devices.
Extended gateway information
If BGP is enabled, extended gateway information is included in IPv6 sFlow sampled packets,
including the following BGP information about a packet destination route:
• The Autonomous System number for the router