Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch

Stacks
Document ID: 71925

Introduction
Prerequisites
Requirements
Components Used
Conventions
Background Information
Stacking Technologies
Stackwise Ports, Cables, and Connection Types
Creation and Management of Cisco Catalyst 3750 Stacks
Stack Member Numbers
Priority Values
Stack Master Election
Hardware Compatibility
Software Compatibility
Create a Switch Stack from Two Stand−alone Stacks
Create a Switch Stack from Two Two−member Stacks
Tips to Add a Switch as a Slave to the Stack
Tips to Add a Switch as a Master to the Stack
Remove a Member from the Stack
Remove a Provisioned Switch from the Stack
Verify
Troubleshoot
Troubleshooting Commands
NetPro Discussion Forums − Featured Conversations
Related Information

Introduction
This document provides the procedures to create and maintain the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks with the
Cisco StackWise feature.

Prerequisites
Requirements
There are no specific requirements for this document.

Components Used
The information in this document is based on the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Series Switches.

The information in this document was created from the devices in a specific lab environment. All of the
devices used in this document started with a cleared (default) configuration. If your network is live, make sure
that you understand the potential impact of any command.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

Conventions
Refer to the Cisco Technical Tips Conventions for more information on document conventions.

Background Information
Stacking Technologies
Cisco Catalyst switches can be stacked with two different features.

• Cisco StackWise Feature

Supported Devices/Modules:

♦ Cisco Catalyst 3750 Series Switches

♦ Cisco EtherSwitch Service Modules
A switch stack is a set of Cisco EtherSwitch service modules or Catalyst 3750 switches connected
through their Cisco StackWise ports. One of the Cisco EtherSwitch service modules or Catalyst 3750
switches controls the operation of the stack and is called the stack master. The master LED in the
front panel of the 3750 switch turns green when the switch becomes master in the stack. The stack
master and the other Cisco EtherSwitch service modules or Catalyst 3750 switches in the stack are
stack members. The stack members use the Cisco StackWise technology to behave and work together
as a unified system. Layers 2 and 3 protocols present the entire switch stack as a single entity to the
network.

The stack master is the single point of stack−wide management. From the stack master, configure
these:

♦ System−level (global) features that apply to all stack members

♦ Interface−level features for each stack member
A switch stack is identified in the network by its bridge ID and, if the switch stack operates as a Layer
3 device, its router MAC address. The MAC address of the stack master determines the bridge ID and
router MAC address. Every stack member is uniquely identified by its own stack member number.

All stack members are eligible stack masters. If the stack master becomes unavailable, the stack
members that remain participate in the election of a new stack master from among themselves. A set
of factors determines which Cisco EtherSwitch service module or Catalyst 3750 switch is elected as
the stack master.

Note: A Cisco 3750 switch can be stacked with any other model of Cisco 3750 switches. Catalyst
3750 switches that run Cisco IOS® Release 12.2(25)SEB are compatible with Cisco EtherSwitch
service modules that run Cisco IOS Release 12.2(25)EZ. Catalyst 3750 switches and Cisco
EtherSwitch service modules can be in the same switch stack. Within this switch stack, the Catalyst
3750 switch or the Cisco EtherSwitch service module can be the stack master.
• Cisco GigaStack Feature

Supported Devices/Modules:

1. Cisco Catalyst 2900 XL switches

WS−X2931−XL module for Catalyst 2900 XL switches

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 2. Cisco Catalyst 2950 switches
3. Cisco Catalyst 3500 XL switches
4. Cisco Catalyst 3550 switches
The GigaStack GBIC adds port density and high−performance connectivity to supportive switches.
When installed in a supportive switch, the GigaStack GBIC supports Gigabit connections in a
cascaded stack or point−to−point configuration. The GigaStack GBIC automatically negotiates the
duplex setting of each port to maximize the bandwidth for your configuration.

Refer to Cisco GigabitStack GBIC to install and troubleshoot Cisco GigabitStacks.

Stackwise Ports, Cables, and Connection Types

Ports

This is the rear−panel view of the Cisco Catalyst 3750−24TS, 3750G−24T, 3750G−12S, 3750G−16TD, and
3750−48TS:

No.
Description
1
StackWise Ports
2
RJ−45 Console Port
3
Fan Exhaust
4
AC Power Connector
5
RPS Connector

Note: The location of Fan exhaust, AC power connector, RPS connector, and the number of Fan exhausts
varies with the different models of Cisco Catalyst 3750 switches.

Cables

Use only approved cables, and connect only to similar Cisco equipment. Equipment can be damaged if
connected to other unapproved Cisco cables or equipment.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 Cable Part Number
Description
CAB−STACK−50CM
Cisco StackWise 50−cm stacking cable
CAB−STACK−1M
Cisco StackWise 1−m stacking cable
CAB−STACK−3M
Cisco StackWise 3−m stacking cable

Connection Types

Full Bandwidth Connection

This illustration shows an example of a stack of Catalyst 3750 switches that provides full bandwidth and
redundant StackWise cable connections:

When a cable fails at a single place, the stack will run with the half bandwidth connection.

In order to find the stack−ports through which the switches are connected to the stack, issue the show switch
stack−ports command.

3750−Stk#show switch stack−ports

Switch # Port 1 Port 2

−−−−−−−− −−−−−− −−−−−−
1 Ok Ok
2 Ok Ok
3 Ok Ok

Alternatively, in order to find the nearby switch on each port, issue the show switch neighbors command.

3750−Stk# show switch neighbors

Switch # Port 1 Port 2

−−−−−−−− −−−−−− −−−−−−
1 2 3
2 1 3
3 2 1

This illustration shows a stack of Cisco EtherSwitch service modules and Catalyst 3750 switches that provides
full bandwidth and redundant connections:

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

Half Bandwidth Connection

This illustration shows an example of a stack of Catalyst 3750 switches with incomplete StackWise cable
connections. This stack provides only half bandwidth and does not have redundant connections:

When a cable fails at a single place, the stack will be partitioned into two stacks.

3750−Stk# show switch stack−ports

Switch # Port 1 Port 2

−−−−−−−− −−−−−− −−−−−−
1 Ok Down
2 Ok Ok
3 Ok Down

3750−Stk# show switch neighbors

Switch # Port 1 Port 2

−−−−−−−− −−−−−− −−−−−−
1 2 None
2 1 3
3 2 None

Creation and Management of Cisco Catalyst 3750 Stacks

In this section, you are presented with the information needed to configure the StackWise stacks described in
this document.

Note: Use the Command Lookup Tool ( registered customers only) to obtain more information on the commands
used in this section.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

Stack Member Numbers
The stack member number (1 to 9) identifies each member in the switch stack. The member number also
determines the interface−level configuration that a stack member uses. You can display the stack member
number if you use the show switch user EXEC mode command.

3750−Stk>show switch
Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Slave 0016.4748.dc80 5 Ready
*2 Master 0016.9d59.db00 1 Ready

The default stack member number of a 3750 switch is 1. When it joins a switch stack, its default stack
member number changes to the lowest available member number in the stack. Stack members in the same
switch stack cannot have the same stack member number. Every stack member, which includes a standalone
switch, retains its member number until you manually change the number or unless the number is already used
by another member in the stack.

How do you manually change the member number?

1. Go to global configuration mode.

2. Issue the command switch current−stack−member−number renumber
new−stack−member−number .
3. Return to the privileged EXEC mode and reload the member with the command reload slot
current−stack−member−number .
4. After the member boots up, issue the command show switch to verify the stack member number. If
the number is used by another member in the stack, the switch selects the lowest available number in
the stack.

If you move a stack member to a different switch stack, the stack member retains its number only if the
number is not used by another member in the stack. If it is used by another member in the stack, the switch
selects the lowest available number in the stack. The switch is able to retain the stack member number as an
environment variable. You can also renumber a switch from the bootloader switch: prompt with the command
set SWITCH_NUMBER stack−member−number .

If you merge switch stacks, the switches that join the switch stack of a new stack master select the the lowest
available numbers in the stack.

Priority Values
A higher priority value for a stack member increases its likelihood to be elected stack master and to retain its
stack member number. The priority value can be 1 to 15. The default priority value is 1. You can display the
stack member priority value with the show switch user EXEC mode command.

3750−Stk>show switch
Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Slave 0016.4748.dc80 1 Ready
*2 Master 0016.9d59.db00 5 Ready

Cisco recommends that you assign the highest priority value to the switch that you prefer to be the stack
master. This ensures that the switch is re−elected as stack master if a re−election occurs.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

How do you change the priority value?

• From the global configuration mode, issue the command switch stack−member−number priority
new−priority−value .
• From the bootloader switch: prompt, issue the command set SWITCH_PRIORITY
new−priority−value .

Even though the priority value applies immediately to the member, it will not affect the status of the current
stack master. New priority value will play a role in the next stack−master election.

Stack Master Election

How is the stack master elected?

These rules have been defined to determine which unit within a stack is chosen as the master. When switches
are added or stacks are merged, the master will be chosen based on these rules, in the order specified:

1. The switch that is currently the stack master

Note: When stacks merge, the elected stack master would have been the master of one of the merged
stacks.

Note: When stacks partition, the stack master of the original stack will be the master of its partition.
2. The switch with the highest stack member priority value

Note: Cisco recommends that you assign the highest priority value to the switch that you prefer to be
the stack master. This ensures that the switch is re−elected as stack master if a re−election occurs.
3. The switch that uses the non−default interface−level configuration
4. The switch with the higher Hardware/Software priority. These switch software versions are listed
from highest to lowest priority:

a. Cryptographic IP services image software

b. Noncryptographic IP services image software
c. Cryptographic IP base image software
d. Noncryptographic IP base image software
Note: Switches that run Cryptographic or IP services image will take a longer time to load than
Non−Cryptographic or IP base image. When you power on or reset an entire switch stack, some stack
members will not participate in the stack master election. This is because stack members that are
powered on within the same 20−second time frame participate in the stack master election and have a
chance to become the stack master. Stack members that are powered on after the 20−second time
frame do not participate in this initial election and only become stack members. At times, switches
with lower software priority can become the stack master, but all stack members will participate in the
stack master re−election.
5. The switch with the longest system up−time
6. The switch with the lowest MAC address

Note: Data forwarding will not be affected within the stack master election.

When is the stack master elected?

• When the whole switch stack is reset1

• When the stack master is reset or powered off

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 Note: If you reset the stack master, it would reset the whole stack.
• When the stack master is removed from the stack
• When the stack master switch has failed
• The switch stack membership is increased by if you add powered−on standalone switches or switch
stacks.1
1
Within these events, the current stack master has a greater chance to get re−elected.

Hardware Compatibility
The Cisco Catalyst 3750 series switches use Switch Database Management (SDM) templates to optimize the
system resources for specific features dependent on how the switch is used in the network. There are two
versions of the SDM templates: Desktop and Aggregator. The 3750−12S switch alone supports both
templates. All other model switches of the 3750 series support only the Desktop version.

When a Cisco Catalyst 3750 switch stack consists of 3750−12S and other models, make sure to use only the
Desktop SDM template. This is an output from the show switch command when an SDM mismatch exists:

3750−Stk# show switch

Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
*2 Master 000a.fdfd.0100 5 Ready
4 Member 0003.fd63.9c00 5 SDM Mismatch

To change the SDM template on a 3750−12S to Desktop version, complete these steps:

3750−Stk# conf t
3750−Stk(config)# sdm prefer routing desktop

3750−Stk(config)# exit
3750−Stk# reload

For more information on the SDM templates, refer to Configuring SDM Templates.

Software Compatibility
Software compatibility between the stack members is determined by the Stack Protocol Version number. To
view the stack protocol version of your switch stack, you can issue the show platform stack−manager all
command.

3750−Stk# show platform stack−manager all

Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Slave 0016.4748.dc80 5 Ready
*2 Master 0016.9d59.db00 1 Ready

!−−− part of output elided

Stack State Machine View

==============================================================

Switch Master/ Mac Address Version Uptime Current

Number Slave (maj.min) State

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 −−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Slave 0016.4748.dc80 1.11 8724 Ready
2 Master 0016.9d59.db00 1.11 8803 Ready

!−−− rest of output elided

Switches with the same Cisco IOS software version have the same stack protocol version. Such switches are
fully compatible, and all features function properly across the switch stack. Switches with the same Cisco IOS
software version as the stack master immediately join the switch stack.

If an incompatibility exists, the fully functional stack members generate a system message that describes the
cause of the incompatibility on the specific stack members. The stack master sends the message to all stack
members.

Switches with different Cisco IOS software versions likely have different stack protocol versions. Switches
with different major version numbers are incompatible and cannot exist in the same switch stack.

3750−Stk# show switch

Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Member 0015.c6f5.6000 1 Version Mismatch
*2 Master 0015.63f6.b700 15 Ready
3 Member 0015.c6c1.3000 5 Ready

Switches with the same major version number but with a different minor version number as the stack master
are considered partially compatible. When connected to a switch stack, a partially compatible switch enters
version−mismatch (VM) mode and cannot join the stack as a fully functional member. The software detects
the mismatched software and tries to upgrade (or downgrade) the switch in VM mode with the switch stack
image or with a tar file image from the switch stack flash memory. The software uses the automatic upgrade
(auto−upgrade) and the automatic advise (auto−advise) features.

The auto−upgrade occurs if the software release that runs on the stack master is compatible with the switch in
VM mode and the tar file of the current image is available with any of the stack members. If tar file of the
current image is not available, the auto−advise feature will recommend that a compatible image be
downloaded with the required commands. The auto−upgrade and auto−advise features do not work if the
switch master and switch in VM mode run different feature sets (IP services and IP base) or different
cryptographic capabilities (cryptographic and non−cryptographic).

Create a Switch Stack from Two Stand−alone Stacks

This example shows how a switch stack is created from two stand−alone stacks.

1. Switch−A and Switch−B are merged together to form the stack.

and

2. A stack−master election occurs between Switch−A and Switch−B; let us consider that Switch−B

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 wins.
3. Switch−A will reload itself and join the switch stack.
4. The stack member number of Switch−A will change since it conflicts with Switch−B. Switch−A will
choose the lowest available stack number, which in this case, is number "2".

Create a Switch Stack from Two Two−member Stacks

This example shows how two switch stacks merge to form a stack.

1. The first switch stack consists of two members: Switch−A and Switch−B.

The second switch stack consists of members Switch−C and Switch−D with Switch−C as the stack
master.

2. When these two switch stacks are merged together, the election for stack master occurs; let us
consider that Switch−B wins the election.
3. Switch−A will retain its stack member number.
4. Switch−C and Switch−D will reload themselves and join the stack with new stack member numbers
of "3" and "4" respectively.

Tips to Add a Switch as a Slave to the Stack

To add a switch, as a slave, to a stack, complete these steps:

Note: Make sure the switch that you add into the stack has the same IOS version as the switches in the stack.
Refer to Catalyst 3750 Software Upgrade in a Stack Configuration with Use of the Command−Line Interface
to upgrade the IOS in a catalyst 3750 switch.

1. Change the switch priority of the switch to be added to "1".

switch stack−member−number priority new−priority−value

Note: This step is optional, but it will make sure that the switch has fewer chances to become a
stackmaster in the future.
2. Power off the switch that is to be added.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

 3. Make sure that the stack is fully connected so that, when you connect the new switch, the stack will
be at least in half connectivity and does not partition.
4. Connect the new switch to the stack with the StackWise ports.
5. Power on the newly added switch.
6. After the new switch comes up, issue the command show switch to verify stack membership.

Tips to Add a Switch as a Master to the Stack

To add a switch, as a master, to a stack, complete these steps:

Note: Make sure the switch you add into the stack has the same IOS version as the switches in the stack.
Refer to Catalyst 3750 Software Upgrade in a Stack Configuration with Use of the Command−Line Interface
to upgrade the IOS in a catalyst 3750 switch.

1. Issue the show switch command.to get the priority value of the members of the stack.

3750−Stk>show switch
Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority State
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
1 Slave 0016.4748.dc80 1 Ready
*2 Master 0016.9d59.db00 5 Ready
2. Change the priority value of the switch to be added to a value greater than the highest priority of the
stack. In the illustration, the priority value has to be a value of more than "5.".

switch stack−member−number priority new−priority−value

3. Make sure that the stack is fully connected so that, when you connect the new switch, the stack will
be at least in half connectivity, and do not partition.
4. With the new switch powered on, connect the StackWise ports of the switch to the stack.
5. The election for the stack master occurs, and the new switch will be elected as the master since it has
the highest priority value.
6. The members of the previous stack will reboot themselves to join the new stack. After all the
members come up, issue the command show switch to verify stack membership.

Remove a Member from the Stack

Complete these steps to remove a member from the stack:

1. Make sure that the stack is fully connected so that, when you remove the member, the stack will be at
least in half connectivity, and do not partition.
2. Power off the member to be removed.
3. If the member was the stack master, the stack master election will occur, otherwise no election will
occur.
4. Remove the StackWise cables from the member and close the stack ring.
5. Issue the command show switch to verify the stack membership.

Remove a Provisioned Switch from the Stack

If a switch stack runs Cisco IOS Release 12.2(20)SE or later and you remove a provisioned switch from the
switch stack, the configuration associated with the removed stack member remains in the running
configuration as provisioned information. In order to delete all configuration information associated with the
removed switch (a stack member that has left the stack), apply the no switch provision command in global
configuration mode.

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

In this example, switch number 2 was removed from a stack. The model number of the switch is
WS−C3750−48TS:

3750(config)# no switch 2 provision ws−c3750−48ts

3750(config)# exit
3750# write memory

Note: In order to avoid the receipt of an error message, you must remove the specified switch from the switch
stack before you use the no form of this command to delete a provisioned configuration.

Verify
Use this section to confirm that your configuration works properly.

The Output Interpreter Tool ( registered customers only) (OIT) supports certain show commands. Use the OIT to
view an analysis of show command output.

• show switchDisplays all relevant information related to the stack member or the switch stack.
• show platform stack−manager allDisplays information related to the management of stacks, which
includes the stack−protocol version, history of changes to the stack, etc.

Troubleshoot
Troubleshooting Commands
Note: Refer to Important Information on Debug Commands before you use debug commands.

• debug platform stack−manager sdpDisplays the Stack Discovery Protocol (SDP) debug messages.
• debug platform stack−manager ssmDisplays the stack state−machine debug messages.

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Related Information
• Catalyst 3750 Switch Software Configuration Guide, 12.2(25)SEE
• Catalyst 3750 Software Upgrade in a Stack Configuration with Use of the Command−Line
Interface
• Cisco Catalyst 3750 Series Switches − Support
• Switches − Product Support
• LAN Switching − Technology Support
• Technical Support & Documentation − Cisco Systems

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks

All contents are Copyright © 2006−2007 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Important Notices and Privacy Statement.

Updated: Jun 29, 2007 Document ID: 71925

Cisco − Creation and Management of Catalyst 3750 Switch Stacks