Unsure of this design

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Hi all!

We have a server rack at the moment with two switches feeding the servers its daily dose of network traffic,
each of the switches is connected to a separate gigabit feed of which both feeds go back to the main Campus network rack (unknown devices in here but looks impressive with patch panels and around four Extreme Switches).

My question.

I would like to connect both of out switches together without creating a storm or loop, I am only doing my ICND1 so unsure what spanning tree is but think its the protocol I am after.

I am planning on replacing both our switches for two Cisco SLM2024. Would connecting these devices to the normal feeds and connecting the switches together be ok? I am just concerned the switches in the network rack may not work, I don't know if all devices on the network need STP or if the two connecting need it only? is it a crossover cable if I do? will it speed the network up or just be redundancy if the link feed goes down on one?

Any advice welcome

 

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

 

The purple line is what I am talking about

 

It will be a crossover cable because the two devices being connected are the same TYPE of device.

If you was to add the purple line as a cable then this would work as a redundant link AS LONG AS SPANNING TREE IS TURNED ON (Default is on).

If it was me, i would change the spanning tree root bridge to be the switch on the right and then the new link would be in a forwarding state and be used all the time. This would make the blue cable top left to be your redundant link if your new one fails. all.

This all depends on what is in the communication rack aswell by the way! if you change the root bridge then it might wreak havoc on the network...... THIS WOULD BE FUNNY for me to read about but would not be funny for you!

I would probably do more than that the above if it was my network (vlans..... rstp per vlan... play with root bridges on each vlan etc...), as i am a tinkerer (dangerous!! but learning with everything i break! :-D )

Now someone is free to come and tell me i am talking rubbish and put me back in my box! More than likely BOSON_Michael he always points out my FLAWS .... :-(

Cheers
Jon

 

I'll get in there first then, it's flaws not floors.

 

by the way... to work out if spanning tree is turned on, there is always a quick tst of creating a loop and seeing if the network loses the plot?

 

I done exactly the same yesterday and my colleague pointed that out!

My feeble excuse is that it is before 9 and its thursday ..... Wednesday @ 12 is when i work at my best but after that leading up to fridays my brain starts to shut down ! Monday is better than a friday but still need to work up to wednesdays brain power only to go back down again! (such a viscious circle!!)

Jon

 

So... is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Without knowing what data is being sent and why it needs to flow through the communications rack, I didn't know why the network was set up the way it is, so I didn't respond. Only thing I can recommend regarding STP is to make sure you know where your root is.

 

Good thing.... its always good to see where you are going wrong so you know next time! thats the whole point in learning isnt it??

 

As you have said, you really need to know the network, including what is in the comms rack! If it was my network then i would make sure i had that information by either being provided with it or by LOOKING myself.

My "Gun-Ho" approach is really not the best unless you are confident you know what you are doing or are aware of the implication of what you are changing and the effects!

Jon

 

Good... I didn't want you to think I'm some flaw-picker who likes to chew people down rather than someone who likes to build people up.