cc/td/doc/product/lan
hometocprevnextglossaryfeedbacksearchhelp
PDF

Table of Contents

Release Notes for Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series Firmware Version 5.35

Release Notes for Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series Firmware Version 5.35

August 15, 1997

These release notes describe the new features, modifications, and caveats for the Catalyst 2820 and the Catalyst 1900 version 5.35 firmware.

The product documentation for the Catalyst 2820 Series switches and Catalyst 1900 Series switches is as follows:

Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series Installation and Configuration Guide

Catalyst 2820 Modules User Guide

Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series MIB Reference Manual

New Features

This firmware version adds the following new features.

Using the Port Fast Option

The switch Port Fast option is a simplified version of the Spanning-Tree Protocol that eliminates several of the normal spanning-tree states. The preforwarding states are bypassed to more quickly bring ports into the forwarding states. Port Fast is an option that you can enable on a per-port basis. It is recommended for end-station attachments only.

Enabling Port Fast

Use the Port Configuration Menu, shown in Figure 1, to disable or enable the Port Fast option.

Display this menu by pressing P on the Main Menu. The following prompt is displayed:

Identify port: 1 to 24, AUI,[A1],[B1]
Select [1 - 24, AUI, A1, B1]:	

Enter the number of the port you want to configure.


Figure 1:

Port Configuration Menu

[H] Port fast mode (spanning tree)--Select this option to accelerate the time it takes for Spanning-Tree Protocol to bring a port into the forwarding state. Enter an E or D at the prompt and press Return.

Using a Network Port to Drain Flooded Traffic

When a Catalyst 2820 or 1900 receives a unicast packet with a destination address that it has not learned, the default is to flood it to all ports. However, on ports with only statically assigned addresses or with single stations attached, there are no unknown destinations, and flooding would serve no purpose. You can disable flooding in this case on a per-port basis.

You can also assign a single port, referred to as the Network Port, to act as the destination for all packets with unknown unicast addresses. This port is usually connected to a legacy network or backbone. A secured port cannot be the Network Port, and the Network Port does not learn addresses. Use the "System Menu" menu to define a port as the Network Port.


Note When using a Network Port, it must be the only switch port connected to a backbone. If you are using a Network Port and you connect more than one port to a backbone, the switch might lose communication with the network. You can connect several ports to other multi-address devices if you are not using a Network Port. Refer to the Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series Installation and Configuration Guide for details.

Enabling a Network Port

Use the System Configuration Menu, shown in Figure 2, to define a Network Port. Display this menu by entering S on the Main Menu.


Figure 2: System Menu



[P] Network Port--Use this option to specify the destination port for all packets with unknown unicast addresses. If you select a secure port to act as the Network Port, you are prompted to disable the security feature before continuing. Define a port according to the conventions in the prompt and press Return.

Modifications

The following changes to the existing switch software are documented in the Catalyst 2820 Series and Catalyst 1900 Series Installation and Configuration Guide:

In addition, there are the following modifications:

Caveats

This section lists possibly unexpected behavior by version 5.35.

BOOTP

The BOOTP protocol operates across the VLAN to which port 1 is assigned. By default, port 1 is assigned to VLAN 1.

VLAN IP Addresses

Previous versions supported up to four switch IP addresses, each associated with a separate VLAN. With version 5.35, the switch has a single IP address that is associated with the management VLAN. When upgrading to version 5.35, the IP address of VLAN1 becomes the IP address of the switch and the management VLAN. IP addresses associated with the other VLANs in the earlier firmware version are dropped.

If you downgrade from version 5.35 to version 5.34, the switch IP address becomes the IP address of VLAN1. If there were other VLANs configured with their own IP addresses before the upgrade, the IP addresses assigned to the VLANs reappear after the downgrade.

VLAN Port Membership

When you upgrade to version 5.35, the VLANs and the ports that belong to them are preserved, unless there are overlapping VLANs. Overlapping VLANs are no longer supported with version 5.35. If there is a port that belongs to more than one VLAN, it is assigned to the VLAN with the highest number and dropped from the other VLAN definition.

If you downgrade from version 5.35 to an earlier version, any overlapping VLAN information that existed prior to the 5.35 upgrade is lost.

Minimum of One Port in VLAN1

There should always be at least one port belonging to VLAN1. If there are no ports belonging to VLAN1, traffic can cross VLAN boundaries when the switch is reset.

Upgrading from Version 5.25

If you have customized any version 5.25 parameters, the upgrade to version 5.34 or 5.35 resets these parameters to their factory default values. Reset them to your customized settings after the upgrade. (The 5.34 and 5.35 default values of the configurable parameters have not changed from version 5.25.)

The following parameters return to the listed factory default values when you upgrade to
version 5.34 or 5.35 from 5.25.

Parameter Default Value
Broadcast threshold (BCs received/sec) 500
Broadcast re-enable threshold 250
Spanning-Tree Protocol Enabled
Generate alert on address violation Enabled
Action upon address violation Suspend
Switching mode FastForward
Use of store-and-forward for multicast Disabled
Capturing frames to the monitor Disabled
Monitor port assignment None
MIB object sysConfigHigherProtocolMonitor Disabled
Authentication trap generation Enabled
LinkUp/LinkDown trap generation Enabled
Accept upgrade transfer from other hosts Enabled
Action upon exceeding broadcast threshold Ignore
Generate alert when threshold exceeded Disabled
RS-232 data bits 8
RS-232 stop bits 1
RS-232 parity setting None
RS-232 match remote baud rate (auto baud) Enabled
RS-232 auto answer Enabled
MIB object IP time to live 255
Help level setting of the management console Novice
Overlapping of VLANs permitted Disabled
Capture-time interval for the bandwidth-usage report 24 hours
Status of an SNMP write manager Enabled
Status of an SNMP trap manager Enabled
Management console inactivity timeout None
Password intrusion threshold 3 attempts
Silent time upon intrusion detection None
RS-232 baud rate 9600
Time delay between dial out attempts 300 seconds
Address aging time 300 seconds

Obtaining Service and Support

For service and support for a product purchased from a reseller, contact the reseller. Resellers offer a wide variety of Cisco service and support programs, which are described in the section "Service and Support" in the information packet that shipped with your product.


Note If you purchased your product from a reseller, you can access Cisco Connection Online (CCO) as a guest. CCO is Cisco Systems' primary, real-time support channel. Your reseller offers programs that include direct access to CCO's services.

For service and support for a product purchased directly from Cisco, use CCO.

Cisco Connection Online

CCO is Cisco Systems' primary, real-time support channel. SMARTnet customers and partners can self-register on CCO to obtain additional information and services.


Note If you purchased your product from a reseller, you can access CCO as a guest. Your reseller offers programs that include direct access to CCO's services.

Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, CCO provides a wealth of standard and value-added services to Cisco's customers and business partners. CCO services include product information, product documentation, software updates, release notes, technical tips, the Bug Navigator, configuration notes, brochures, descriptions of service offerings, and download access to public and authorized files.

CCO serves a wide variety of users through two interfaces that are updated and enhanced simultaneously: a character-based version and a multimedia version that resides on the World Wide Web (WWW). The character-based CCO supports Zmodem, Kermit, Xmodem, FTP, and Internet e-mail, and it is excellent for quick access to information over lower bandwidths. The WWW version of CCO provides richly formatted documents with photographs, figures, graphics, and video, as well as hyperlinks to related information.

You can access CCO in the following ways:

For a copy of CCO's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), contact cco-help@cisco.com. For additional information, contact cco-team@cisco.com.


Note If you need technical assistance with a Cisco product that is under warranty or covered by a Cisco maintenance contract, contact Cisco's Technical Assistance Center (TAC) at 800 553-2447, 408 526-7209, or tac@cisco.com.

Please use CCO to obtain general information about Cisco Systems, Cisco products, or upgrades. If CCO is not accessible, contact 800 553-6387, 408 526-7208, or cs-rep@cisco.com.



hometocprevnextglossaryfeedbacksearchhelp
Copyright 1989-1997 © Cisco Systems Inc.