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Understanding Virtual Chassis Configuration

You configure and manage almost all aspects of a Virtual Chassis configuration through the master of the Virtual Chassis. However, you can also configure Virtual Chassis parameters when a Juniper Networks EX4200 Ethernet Switch is a standalone switch not interconnected with other members.

An EX4200 switch has some innate characteristics of a Virtual Chassis by default. A standalone EX4200 switch is assigned member ID 0 and is the master of itself. Therefore, you can edit its Virtual Chassis configuration. When the standalone switch is interconnected with an existing Virtual Chassis configuration, the Virtual Chassis configuration statements and any uplink Virtual Chassis port (VCP) settings that you previously specified on the standalone switch remain part of its configuration.

A switch is not recognized as a member of a Virtual Chassis until it is interconnected with the master or interconnected with an existing member of the Virtual Chassis. When a switch is located too far away to be interconnected through dedicated VCPs, you can specify an uplink module port or an EX4200-24F network interface as a VCP by using the request virtual-chassis vc-port command. You must issue the request virtual-chassis vc-port command on the switch you are adding to the Virtual Chassis as well as on the existing member switch that you will connect to the new member. Because the to-be-added switch is not yet a member, the master switch will not recognize that added switch unless the latter has an uplink VCP. A link aggregation group (LAG) will be formed automatically when the new switch is added to the configuration if more than one such link with the same speed is detected between uplink VCPs on the new member and an existing member. See Understanding Virtual Chassis Configurations and Link Aggregation.

When an uplink module port or an EX4200-24F network interface is set as a VCP, it cannot be used for any additional purpose. If you want to use the uplink module port or EX4200-24F network interface for another purpose, you can delete the VCP setting by using the request virtual-chassis vc-port command. You can execute this command directly on the member whose uplink VCP setting you want to delete or through the master of the Virtual Chassis configuration.

Caution: Deleting a VCP in a Virtual Chassis chain configuration can cause the Virtual Chassis configuration to split. For more information, see Understanding Split and Merge in a Virtual Chassis Configuration.

You can create a preprovisioned configuration. This type of configuration allows you to deterministically control the member ID and role assigned to a member switch by associating the switch with its serial number. For an example of a preprovisioned configuration, see Example: Configuring a Virtual Chassis Using a Preprovisioned Configuration File.

Note: If an EX4200 switch is interconnected with other switches in a Virtual Chassis configuration, each individual switch that is included as a member of the configuration is identified with a member ID. The member ID functions as an FPC slot number. When you are configuring interfaces for a Virtual Chassis configuration, you specify the appropriate member ID (0 through 9) as the slot element of the interface name.

The default factory settings for a Virtual Chassis configuration include FPC 0 as a member of the default VLAN because FPC 0 is configured as part of the ethernet-switching family. In order to include FPC 1 through FPC 9 in the default VLAN, add the ethernet-switching family to the configurations for those interfaces.

Published: 2009-07-29

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