HP 5300, Reviewer'S Manual

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HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series Reviewer’s Guide
The console interface is also available in-band through the network via the telnet service.
The RS-232 port of the switch speed senses the RS-232 port on the terminal/PC interface up to 115,200
baud. Modems are also supported through the RS-232 port using a straight through cable.
2.8 Availability
Availability is the measure of the ability for the switch to remain running over a period of time with
minimal impact to the network environment.
2.8.1 Hot Swap
The HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series allows hot-swapping of the port modules and hot-swapping of
the mini-GBIC while the switch is still running without affecting the other port modules. This allows a
defective port module to be replaced without affecting the rest of the network.
2.8.2 Redundant Power Supply
An optional redundant power supply (identical to the primary supply) can be installed. The power
supplies load-share, allowing both supplies to run cooler, extending their Mean Time Between Failure
(MTBF) values. If either of the supplies in the chassis does fail, the other continues to run preventing
switch interruption. Power supplies can be hot-swapped (unplug it first!) during switch operation when
two are present. Each supply has its own power cord and it is recommended that they be connected to
different power mains to limit exposure to failure in any one power main.
2.8.3 Dual Flash
The HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series have dual flash memory. This provides for two copies of the
switch operating system and is particularly useful when doing an OS upgrade. If problems are found
when moving to the new OS, the switch can be immediately rebooted using the older OS.
2.8.4 Alert Log
The HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series, like most other switches in the HP ProCurve line, look for the
following common port-based network problems:
•
Too many undersized/giant packets
•
Excessive jabbering
•
Excessive CRC/alignment errors
•
Excessive late collisions
•
High collision or drop rate
•
Excessive broadcasts
•
Loss of link
When any of these conditions are detected on a switch port, the HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series
informs the network manager through:
•
The browser-based GUI interface (Alert Log on the switch status page). The GUI interface
will also provide some suggested remedies for these problems when the user double-clicks
on the alert in the list.
•
A SNMP trap sent to the net management application(s) address(es) configured on the
switch
This alert feature can save a lot of troubleshooting time, particularly in small network environments
that may not be continuously running a network management application. Many of these detected
problems tend to be intermittent and thus difficult to troubleshoot. Having a readily available port
specific alert log, with time stamps and possible problem remedies, can speed up troubleshooting
resolution, particularly for a very part-time network manager.
In larger environments, proactive messages sent to the net management station speeds detection and
can lower troubleshooting time, as alarm thresholds do not have to be set specifically in the net
management application to capture these problems.
© Hewlett-Packard Co. 2002, 2003 Rev 1.1 – 2/11/2003
http://www.hp.com/go/hpprocurve
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