Dell Powerconnect 8164f Manual

Victor Teeter 
Network Solutions Engineer  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Rev. 1.1 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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This document is for informational purposes only and may contain typographical errors and 
technical inaccuracies. The content is provided as is, without express or implied warranties of any 
kind. 
© 2013 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Dell and its affiliates cannot be responsible for errors or omissions 
in typography or photography. Dell, the Dell logo, and PowerEdge are trademarks of Dell Inc....

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Contents 
Important Firmware Update for PowerConnect 81xx Stacking .................................... 4 
Introduction ............................................................................................... 6 
     Stacking and management ....................................................................................... 7 
     Simplified firmware updates for stack members...

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Important Firmware Update for PowerConnect 81xx Stacking 
As of May 2013, PowerConnect 8100 switches ship with an improved “B1” CPU.  These new CPUs are 
fully compatible and virtually identical to the original “A1” CPUs found in all prior PowerConnect 81xx 
switches. The only difference with the new B1 switch that will cause concern to those wanting to have 
both A1 and B1 switches in the same stack is the new B1 will not downgrade to...

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Errors Downgrading Firmware 
Before attempting to downgrade firmware on a stack to version 5.0.x.x, run the four steps above to 
determine each stack members CPU version.  Know that all CPUs in the stack must be version A1 for 
the stack to successfully downgrade to 5.0.x.x.  Attempting to downgrade to 5.0.x.x on a stack 
containing B1 CPUs will result in the following errors on the console: 
L7_LOGF(L7_LOG_SEVERITY_ERROR,...

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Introduction 
Most Dell PowerConnect switches today include a stacking feature that allows multiple switches to 
operate as a single unit.  These stacks include up to six Dell PowerConnect 8132/8132F/8164/8164F 
switches in any combination, use up to four links between stack members, and use any port type on the 
front panel to create these links  
A single switch in the stack (known as the Master switch) manages all the units in the...

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Stacking and management  
An important advantage of stacking is that it provides a consolidated interface for management of 
multiple switches that are linked together.  One switch acts as the Master, and the entire stack is 
managed through the management interface (Web, CLI, or SNMP) of the stack Master. After a stack is 
deployed in the network, operators can easily add units to the stack as their port requirements 
increase, with...

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copies of the stack configuration for the user’s knowledge.  The actual stack information used by the 
switch is not that which is stored in the startup configuration. 
A stack member configuration is always present on stacking capable switches, so there always is a line 
in the configuration that says stack and a second line that says member even if there are no devices 
stacked.  Since these are stack-capable devices, an un-stacked...

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3. A unit is selected as standby by the administrator, and a fail over action is manually initiated or 
occurs due to a Master unit failure. 
 
 Note: The terms Master and Manager/Management Unit are often used interchangeably in 
regards to stacking. 
In most cases, a switch that is added to an existing stack becomes a stack member, and not the 
Management Unit.  When a switch is added to the stack, one of the following scenarios takes...

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 Note that in this example Switch 1 is the Master (Mgmt Sw) and Switch 2 is the Standby (Oper 
Stby) ready to take over as Master in the event the Master fails. 
To find the same information from the Web UI go to System > Stack Management > Stack Summary. 
  
How to select a Master during initial stack setup 
After creating a stack it is easy to go into the settings on the Master and select any of the members to 
take its place as...