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What are the risks and limitations of adding ISL on a Brocade Switch?

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fabric-interconnect-and-management-switches
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brocade
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Applies to

  • Brocade Switch
  • ISL connectivity between Multivendor SAN switches in a fabric , like Dell 6505 SAN Switch and Netapp G6720 SAN Switch.

Answer

  • Pre-requisites:
    • Domain ID of the switches should be unique. 
    • ISLs on FC switch fabric must be configured with the same speed and distance.
    • The small form-factor pluggable (SFP) type should match on both ends (shortwave/longwave)
    • The SFP speed should be same on both sides (16/32G) must support the speed.
    • Ensure having FC cable connected between the two switches and they should be of same type (OM2/OM3/ single mode or multimode).
    • Ports on both ends must have same parameters set (FEC/QoS/Credit recovery etc.)

 

  • Procedure:
    • Locate the ports used for ISL switch connectivity between 2 switches.
    • Have FC cable connected between the two switches.
    • Disable ISL ports using #portdisable (example: portdisable 0) on both the switches.
    • Enable ISL ports using #portenable (example: portenable 0) on both the switches.
    • The switch ports should come up with no alerts and can be seen in below outputs: 
      • #switchshow
      • #islshow
    • If the connectivity fails or observed any errors, we need to check the reason of failure and take measures accordingly.

 

  • Risks:
    • There should be no issues adding additional links,however, it should be done during off business hours and one fabric at a time.

Please contact NetApp Technical Support or log into the NetApp Support Site to create a case. Reference this article for further assistance.

Additional Information

 

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