Cisco Catalyst 2960 Series, Configuration Manual

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Restrictions for Switch Stacks
The following are restrictions for your switch stack configuration:
• Stacking is not supported on switches running the LAN Lite image. All switches in the stack must be
running the LAN Base image.
• In a mixed stack of Catalyst 2960-X and Catalyst 2960-S switches, the number of supported stack
members is reduced from eight to four.
• In a mixed stack of Catalyst 2960-X and Catalyst 2960-S switches, full stack bandwidth is reduced from
80 Gbps to 40 Gbps.
• In a mixed stack of Catalyst 2960-X and Catalyst 2960-S switches, stack convergence time is increased
from milliseconds to 1 to 2 seconds.
• Auto-upgrade of stack can not be done when one of the switch in stack is with version Cisco IOS
15.2(3)E. This means that whenever any of the switches in the stack goes into a version mismatch, and
if either master is running Cisco IOS 15.2(3)E, or if a member is running Cisco 15.2(3)E, the member
can not be auto-upgraded to the required version.
Information About Switch Stacks
Switch Stack Overview
A switch stack is a set of up to eight stacking-capable switches connected through their stack ports. You can
connect only one switch type in a stack, or you can connect a mix of Catalyst 2960-X and Catalyst 2960-S
switches in the stack. The stack can have one of these configurations:
• Homogeneous stack — A Catalyst 2960-X stack with only Catalyst 2960-X switches as stack members.
A homogenous stack can have up to 8 stack members.
•
Mixed stack
—
A stack with a mix of Catalyst 2960-X and Catalyst 2960-S switches. A mixed stack can
have up to 4 stack members, with either a Catalyst 2960-X or Catalyst 2960-S switch as the stack master.
The stack master controls the operation of the switch stack, and is the single point of stack-wide management.
From the stack master, you configure:
• System-level (global) features that apply to all stack members
• Interface-level features for each stack member
The stack master contains the saved and running configuration files for the switch stack. The configuration
files include the system-level settings for the switch stack and the interface-level settings for each stack
member. Each stack member has a current copy of these files for back-up purposes.
Supported Features in a Switch Stack
The system-level features supported on the active switchstack master are supported on the entire switch stack.
Consolidated Platform Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 15.2(4)E (Catalyst 2960-X Switches)
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Restrictions for Switch Stacks