MultiLink Trunking rules
All 8000 Series switch MLTs operate under the following basic set of rules:
- MLT is supported on 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 100BASE-FX, and Gigabit Ethernet ports.
- All ports in an MLT must be of the same media type (copper or fiber) and have the same speed and duplex settings.
- All ports in an MLT must be in the same spanning tree group.
- MLT is compatible with the Spanning Tree Protocol.
- IEEE 802.1Q tagging is supported on an MLT.
8600 module MLTs have the following general features and requirements:
- Up to 32 MLT groups are supported with as many as eight same-type ports belonging to a single MLT.
- The ports in an MLT can span modules, providing module redundancy.
- All ports in an MLT must be in the same spanning tree group, unless they are tagged; then they can belong to multiple STGs.
- Bridged packet traffic (except for IP distribution) is distributed across the MLT using a source and destination MAC address-based algorithm.
- Bridged and routed IP traffic, or routed Internet packet exchange (IPX) traffic, is distributed across the MLT using a source and destination IP address-based algorithm.
8100 module MLTs have the following features and requirements:
- Up to six MLT groups are supported with as many as four same-type ports belonging to a single MLT.
- All ports in an MLT must be in the one spanning tree group.
- To optimize performance, the switch will distribute traffic to an MLT on the same module. If there is no MLT on the module, a round robin algorithm determines which MLT should receive the traffic. This algorithm is based on the source MAC address and the port on which that MAC address was learned.
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