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DuraLAN Fast Ethernet NICs User’s Guide
single interface, allowing the software to manage the combined
resources of the group efficiently. In the event of a port failure, the
remaining ports carry the load and keep the network running and
uninterrupted.
Note:
Although a switch is required for Port Aggregation,
the switch itself does not require any special trunking
capability.
FEC (Fast EtherChannel)
FEC is a technology developed by Cisco Systems based on
standard Fast Ethernet and used in parallel to provide the
additional bandwidth network backbones require today. FEC
combines two or four Fast Ethernet links to a single logical
connection capable of carrying 800 Megabits/sec of aggregate full-
duplex throughput. In addition to scalable bandwidth, the
technology also provides fault tolerance and resiliency, protecting
the network from outages due to failed links.
FEC allows grouping of DuraLAN ports or NICs allowing full
utilization of available bandwidth (up to 800 Megabits/sec). Up to
four single-port NICs, two 2-port NICs, or one 4-port NIC can be
grouped. This technology also provides load balancing and
management of each link by distributing traffic across multiple
links in the channel. In addition, FEC technology provides
redundancy in the event of link failure.
Duralink64 software and all of Adaptec DuraLAN NICs support
FEC technology, allowing redundancy and high-speed aggregation
between switches supporting FEC and servers configured with
Adaptec’s FEC driver option.
FEC is available on select Cisco Catalyst switches and Cisco
routers.
For additional information on Cisco’s FEC technology, visit the
Cisco Systems Web site at
http://www.cisco.com
.
