BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules for IBM BladeCenter

As business applications become more and more demanding, data centers have become more complex, cumbersome, and expensive to manage. IBM BladeCenter offers solutions to help lower costs while enhancing performance by accommodating many integration technologies.

The BNT Layer 2/3 Switch offers all the switching features in a BladeCenter chassis at a competitive price. This switch is offered in two versions: Copper and Fiber. These versions provide reliability and flexibility and meet all the stringent requirements of both enterprise and telecom environments. Figure 1 shows the two switch modules.

Figure 1. BNT Layer 2/3 Copper (left) and Fiber (right) Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules

Did you know?

Clients do not need the most expensive switches to manage their virtualization requirements. These low cost switches offer the maximum uplink bandwidth and a low blocking ratio for maximum performance, while consuming extremely lower power at only 27W. The fiber model is ideal for those who need to carry data greater distances, want better security since it is difficult to tap and does not radiate data, or look for better reliability because it is immune to electromagnetic interference.

Part number information

Table 1 shows the part numbers to order these modules.

Table 1. Part number and feature code for ordering

Description	Part number	Feature codes*
BNT Layer 2/3 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module	32R1860	1495 / 3212 / 3212
BNT Layer 2/3 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module	32R1861	1496 / 3213 / 3213

* Feature codes are listed in the form of three codes separated by a forward slash mark (/). The first feature code is for BladeCenter E-, T-, H-, and HT-based configurations that are available through the IBM System x server. The second feature code is for BladeCenter S-based configurations that are available through the System x sales channel. The third feature code is for BladeCenter S- and BladeCenter H-based configurations that are available through the IBM Power Systems sales channel when applicable.

The part numbers include the following items:

• One BNT Layer 2/3 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module or BNT Layer 2/3 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module with six small form-factor pluggable (SFP) transceivers
• 3-meter Universal Serial Bus (USB)-to-DB9 serial console cable
• Printed documentation
• Documentation CD-ROM

Modes of operation

The switch module supports two unique operational modes that are determined by the firmware edition that is loaded onto the switch:

• Standard shipped Layer 2/3 mode
• SmartConnect mode (formerly known as BladeCenter Open Fabric Manager with Nortel/BNT Extensions)

Standard Layer 2/3 mode provides full implementation of networking services and technologies supported by the switch. SmartConnect mode provides a preconfigured subset of functions to enable basic Layer 2 connectivity only.

Note: SmartConnect is a firmware upgrade to this switch module and is different from the BladeCenter Open Fabric Manager offering from IBM.

SmartConnect mode is used for less complex environments where only basic network connectivity is required and there is no need for advanced networking services. SmartConnect mode’s reduced set of features and easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI) help to minimize administrative efforts and skills required to deploy this solution. Its features and GUI also help to minimize the impact (both from management and functional point of views) on upstream network devices.

One of the features of SmartConnect mode is ServerMobility, which enables you to assign IP addresses to servers based on their physical location in the BladeCenter chassis. This feature can help to keep server identity based on IP address in basic failover scenarios. For example, if you replace a failed server with a new unit, this new unit will have the same IP address as the failed server. Alternatively, if the server fails, then the other server in the chassis gets the IP address of the failed server. A Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server is required for ServerMobility operations.

Specifically, the following functions are supported in SmartConnect mode:

• Port groups
• Virtual LAN (VLAN) and VLAN tagging
• Trunking (link aggregation)
• Layer 2 Failover (Switch Failover)
• IGMP snooping
• Web-based or command-line interface (CLI)-based management interface
• Support for SSH
• RADIUS/TACACS+ access control to the switch
• Port monitoring
• ServerMobility

Notes:

• When the switch operates in SmartConnect mode, do not connect the host devices, such as workstations or servers, to the external ports because this leads to problems with network traffic flow.
• The Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is not supported in SmartConnect mode. By using the color-based BNT configuration tool, it is simple to build a loop-free layer 2 topology. The software also avoids basic mistakes that lead to these events .

Benefits

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules offer the following benefits:

• Integration and consolidation: These modules offer integration within the BladeCenter chassis, enabling clients to consolidate full Layer 2-3 LAN switching and routing capabilities into a single chassis. This consolidation helps flatten the data center infrastructure and reduces the number of discrete devices, management consoles, and equipment that administrators must deal with, helping to lower costs and simplify deployment.
• Layer 3 functionality: The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules are two of only a few switch modules in the blade market that include Layer 3 functionality as standard, which provides security and performance benefits as inter-VLAN traffic stays within the chassis. These switches also provide the full range of industry-standard Layer 3 protocols from static routes for small and medium business (SMB) customers to technologies, such as Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), for enterprise customers.
• Fiber offering: The fiber switch module is ideal for those clients who require fiber for high data rate systems that demand high bandwidth over long distances and require complete immunity to electrical interference.
• Interoperability: BNT switches interoperate seamlessly with the upstream switches of other vendors.
• Management: These switches are designed to support multiple CLIs, which allows IT staff to select one with which they are most comfortable: BLADEOS CLI for those who have a Nortel switch background, industry based CLI (Cisco-like) for those who are familiar with IOS, and a full-function Web-based GUI for the latest in simplicity.
• Fault tolerance: These BNT switches automatically learn alternate routes and perform faster convergence in the unlikely case of a link, switch, or power failure. The switch uses proven technologies such as L2 trunk failover, advanced VLAN-based failover, Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP), IGMP V3 snooping, and OSPF.

Features and specifications

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules for standard mode of operation includes the following features and functions:

• Internal ports
  • 14 internal full-duplex Gigabit ports, one connected to each of the blade servers in the BladeCenter unit
  • Two internal full-duplex 10/100 Mbps ports connected to the management module
• External ports
  • Copper switch: Six 1000BASE-T copper RJ-45 connections for making 10/100/1000 Mbps connections
  • Fiber switch: Six 1000BASE-SX SFP transceiver-based LC fiber connections for making 1000 Mbps connections
  • An RS-232 serial port that provides an additional means to install software and configure the switch module
• Scalability and performance
  • Autosensing 10/1000/1000 Mbps external Ethernet ports for bandwidth optimization
  • Non-blocking architecture with wire-speed forwarding of traffic
  • Media access control (MAC) address learning: automatic update, supports up to 16 K MAC addresses
  • Up to 128 IP interfaces per switch
  • Static, EtherChannel, and LACP (IEEE 802.3ad) link aggregation, up to 6 Gb of total bandwidth per switch, up to three trunk groups, and up to six ports per group
  • Support for jumbo frames (up to 9216 bytes)
  • Broadcast/multicast storm control
  • IGMP snooping for limit flooding of IP multicast traffic (IGMP V1, V2, and V3)
  • IGMP filtering to control multicast traffic for hosts participating in multicast groups (IGMP V1, V2, and V3)
  • Configurable traffic distribution schemes over trunk links based on source/destination IP addresses, MAC addresses, or both
  • Fast port forwarding and fast uplink convergence for rapid STP convergence
• Availability and redundancy
  • VRRP for Layer 3 router redundancy
  • IEEE 802.1D STP for providing Layer 2 redundancy with PVRST+
  • IEEE 802.1s Multiple STP (MSTP) for topology optimization, up to 128 STP instances are supported by single switch
  • IEEE 802.1w Rapid STP (RSTP) provides rapid STP convergence for critical delay-sensitive, traffic-like voice or video
  • Layer 2 Trunk Failover to support active/standby configurations of network adapter teaming on blades
  • Interchassis redundancy (Layer 2 and Layer 3)
• VLAN support
  • Up to 1024 VLANs supported per switch; VLAN numbers ranging from 1 to 4095 (4095 is used for the management module’s connection only)
  • 802.1Q VLAN tagging support on all ports
  • Private VLANs
• Security
  • VLAN-based, MAC-based, and IP-based access control lists (ACLs)
  • 802.1X port-based authentication
  • Multiple user IDs and passwords
  • User access control
  • Radius/TACACS+
• Quality of Service (QoS)
  • Up to eight queues per port
  • Support for IEEE 802.1p, IP ToS/DSCP, and ACL-based (MAC/IP source and destination addresses, VLANs) traffic classification and processing
  • Traffic shaping and re-marking based on defined policies
  • Eight Weighted Round Robin (WRR) priority queues per port for processing qualified traffic
• Layer 3 functions
  • IP forwarding
  • IP filtering with ACLs (up to 4096 ACLs supported)
  • VRRP for router redundancy
  • Support for up to 128 static routes
  • Routing protocol support (Router Information Protocol (RIP) v1, RIP v2, OSPF v1, v2, and v3, BGP-4), up to 1024 entries in routing table
  • Support for DHCP Relay
• Manageability
  • Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP; V1, V2, and V3)
  • HTTP/HTTPS browser GUI
  • Industry standard CLI and BLADEOS/AlteonOS CLI
  • Telnet interface for CLI
  • SSH
  • Serial interface for CLI
  • Scriptable CLI
  • Firmware image update (TFTP and FTP)
  • Network Time Protocol (NTP) for switch clock synchronization
  • BNT BLADEHarmony Manager support
• Monitoring
  • Switch LEDs for external port status and switch module status indication
  • Port mirroring for analyzing network traffic passing through switch
  • Change tracking and remote logging with syslog feature
  • POST diagnostics
• Serial over LAN (SOL)

The switch module supports the following IEEE standards:

• IEEE 802.1D STP with PVRST+
• IEEE 802.1s MSTP
• IEEE 802.1w RSTP
• IEEE 802.1p Tagged Packets
• IEEE 802.1Q Tagged VLAN (frame tagging on all ports when VLANs are enabled)
• IEEE 802.1x port-based authentication
• IEEE 802.2 Logical Link Control
• IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation Control Protocol
• IEEE 802.3x Full-duplex Flow Control
• For the copper switch module:
  • IEEE 802.3 10BASE-T Ethernet
  • IEEE 802.3u 100BASE-TX Fast Ethernet
  • IEEE 802.3ab 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet
  • IEEE 802.3z 1000BASE-X Gigabit Ethernet
• For the fiber switch module:
  • IEEE 802.3z 1000BASE-X Gigabit Ethernet
  • 1000BASE-SX Gigabit Ethernet

Supported BladeCenter chassis and expansion cards

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules are supported in the IBM BladeCenter chassis listed in Table 2.

Table 2. IBM BladeCenter chassis that support the BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules

I/O module	Part number
BNT Layer 2/3 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module	32R1860	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
BNT Layer 2/3 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module	32R1861	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules support the expansion cards listed in Table 3. This table also lists the chassis bays in which the switch module must be installed when used with each expansion card.

The BladeCenter chassis have the following bays:

• BladeCenter S, E, and T have four standard I/O bays (1, 2, 3, and 4)
• BladeCenter H has six standard I/O bays (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) and four high-speed bays (7, 8, 9, and 10)
• BladeCenter HT has four standard I/O bays (1, 2, 3, and 4) and four high-speed bays (7, 8, 9, and 10)

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules fit in a standard I/O bay (bays 1-4). The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper Ethernet Switch Module, with the addition of the Multi-Switch Interconnect Module (MSIM) in the BladeCenter H and HT chassis, can also fit in a high-speed I/O bay (bays 7-10). The BNT Layer 2/3 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module is supported in the BladeCenter H chassis with MSIM (bays 7-10) but is not supported with MSIM-HT in the high-speed bays of the BladeCenter HT chassis.

Table 3. BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules and BladeCenter chassis I/O bays support

Description	Part number
Gigabit Ethernet integrated on the server system board	None	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N
Ethernet Expansion Card (CFFv)	39Y9310	N	N	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N	N
Ethernet Expansion Card (CIOv)	44W4475	N	N	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N	N
QLogic Ethernet and 4 Gb FC Card (CFFh)	39Y9306	N	N	N	N	N	N	Y	N	Y	N
2/4 Port Ethernet Expansion Card (CFFh)	44W4479	N	Y*	N	N	N	N	Y	Y	Y	Y
QLogic Ethernet and 8 Gb FC Card (CFFh)	44X1940	N	N	N	N	N	N	Y	N	Y	N

* The 2/4 Port Ethernet Expansion Card supports I/O bay 2 connections only when installed into a blade server that is installed in the BladeCenter S chassis.


Popular configurations

The BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules can be used in various configurations.

Basic two-port configuration

Figure 2 shows a basic use of the BNT Ethernet Switch Modules to route the two-port Ethernet controller that is integrated onto the blade server. Two Ethernet Switch Modules are installed in bay 1 and bay 2 of the BladeCenter chassis. The connections between the controller and the switch modules are internal to the chassis. No wiring is needed.


Figure 2. Using BNT Ethernet Switch Modules to route the integrated Ethernet ports

Table 4 lists the components that are used in this configuration.

Table 4. Components used in two-ports-per-server configuration

Diagram reference	Part number / machine type	Description	Quantity
	Varies	IBM BladeCenter HS22 or other server	1 to 14
	None	Ethernet controller on the system board of the server	1 per server
	Varies	Any BladeCenter server (see Table 2)	1
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module	2

Four-port configuration

Figure 3 shows the use of BNT Ethernet Switch Modules to route four Ethernet ports from each server: the two integrated ports plus two ports supplied by a compatible CFFv or CIOv expansion card. Four Ethernet Switch Modules are installed in bay 1, bay 2, bay 3, and bay 4 of the BladeCenter chassis. All connections between the controller, card, and the switch modules are internal to the chassis. No wiring is needed.


Figure 3. Using BNT Ethernet Switch Modules to route the four Ethernet ports from the integrated controller and a CFFv or CIOv expansion card

Table 5 lists the components that are used in this configuration.

Table 5. Components used in the four ports-per-server configuration

Diagram reference	Part number / machine type	Description	Quantity
	Varies	IBM BladeCenter HS22 or other supported server	1 to 14
	None	Ethernet controller on the system board of the server	1 per server
	Varies	Compatible CFFv or CIOv expansion card (see Table 3)	1 per server
	Varies	Any BladeCenter chassis (See Table 2)*	1
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Ethernet Switch Modules routing signals from the CFFv or CIOv card	2
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Ethernet Switch Modules routing signals from the integrated controller	2

* The expansion card can be installed in servers in the BladeCenter S (8886). However, by doing so, you lose the ability to connect to the BladeCenter S Disk Storage Modules (DSMs). The Ethernet expansion card goes in the place of the SAS expansion card that is needed to connect to the DSMs. Instead, use the 2/4 Port Ethernet Expansion Card (CFFh), part number 44W4479.

Maximum configuration: Eight Ethernet ports per server

Since BladeCenter servers support both a CFFh expansion card, plus either a CFFv or CIOv card (depending on the model of the server), you can install up to eight BNT Layer 2/3 Copper or Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules in a BladeCenter H chassis and up to eight BNT Layer 2/3 Copper ESM in a BladeCenter HT. Figure 4 shows this 8-port solution. All connections between the cards and the switch modules are internal to the chassis. No wiring is needed.


Figure 4. Using BNT Ethernet Switch Modules to route eight Ethernet ports per server

Table 6 lists the components that are used in this configuration.

Table 6. Components used in the eight-ports-per-server configuration

Diagram reference	Part number / machine type	Description	Quantity
	Varies	IBM BladeCenter HS22 or other supported server	1 to 14
	None	Ethernet controller on the system board of the server	1 per server
	Varies	Compatible CFFv or CIOv expansion card (see Table 3)	1 per server
	44W4479	2/4 Port Ethernet Expansion Card (CFFh)	1 per server
	8852	BladeCenter H chassis	1
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Ethernet Switch Modules routing signals from the integrated controller	2
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Ethernet Switch Modules routing signals from the CFFv or CIOv card	2
	32R1860 or 32R1861	BNT Ethernet Switch Modules routing signals from the CFFh card	4
	39Y9314	Multi-switch Interconnect Module	2

Connectors and LEDs

Figure 5 shows the front panel of the BNT Layer 2/3 Copper and Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules.


Figure 5. Front panel of the BNT Layer 2/3 Copper (left) and Fiber (right) Gigabit Ethernet Switch Modules

The front panel contain the following components:

• LEDs display the status of the switch module and the network: OK (indicating that the switch module has passed the power-on self-test (POST) with no critical faults and is operational) and switch module error (indicating that the switch module has failed the POST or detected an operational fault).
• One USB RS-232 console port provides an additional means to install software and configure the switch module. This USB-style connector enables connection of a special serial cable that is supplied with the switch module.
• The copper model of the switch module has six external 1000BASE-T Ethernet ports for 10/100/1000 Mbps connections to external Ethernet devices.
• The fiber model of the switch module has six external 1000BASE SX SFP transceiver ports for 1000 Mbps connections to external Ethernet devices.
• Each external port on the switch module contains an Ethernet link OK LED and an Ethernet Tx/Rx LED.

Network cabling requirements

The following network cable is required for the fiber switch module:

• 1000BASE-SX: 850 Nm wavelength, multimode fiber, 50 µ or 62.5 µ (550 meters maximum), with LC duplex connector

Note: Fiber connections use SFP transceivers that provide 1000BASE-SX (850 nm wavelength) communications over multimode fiber cables (50µ or 62.5µ) for distances of up to 550 meters. 1000BASE-LX is not supported.

The following network cables are required for the copper switch module:

• 10BASE-T:
  • UTP Category 3, 4, 5 (100 meters (328 feet) maximum)
  • 100-ohm STP (100 meters maximum)
• 100BASE-TX:
  • UTP Category 5 (100 meters maximum)
  • EIA/TIA-568 100-ohm STP (100 meters maximum)
• 1000BASE-T:
  • UTP Category 6
  • UTP Category 5e (100 meters maximum)
  • UTP Category 5 (100 meters maximum)
  • EIA/TIA-568B 100-ohm STP (100 meters maximum)

Related publications
For more information, see the following documents:

• IBM Redbooks publication Nortel Networks L2/3 Ethernet Switch Module for IBM BladeCenter , REDP-3586
  http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/redp3586.html
• Nortel Networks Layer 2-3 GbE Switch Module Installation Guide
  http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=psg1MIGR-58334
• OFM with Nortel/BNT Extensions User's Guide for Nortel L2-3 GbESM
  http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=psg1MIGR-5074970
• Alteon OS Application Guide
  http://www.bladenetwork.net/userfiles/file/PDFs/IBM_GbE_L2-3_Applicat_Guide.pdf
• Alteon OS Command Reference
  http://www.bladenetwork.net/userfiles/file/PDFs/IBM_GbE_L2-3_Command_Ref.pdf
• Alteon OS Release Notes
  http://www.bladenetwork.net/userfiles/file/PDFs/IBM_GbE_L2-3_Release_Notes.pdf
• Alteon OS Browser-Based Interface (BBI) Quick Guide
  http://www.bladenetwork.net/userfiles/file/PDFs/IBM_GbE_L2-3_BBI_QuickGuide.pdf
• Alteon OS ISCLI Reference
  http://www.bladenetwork.net/userfiles/file/PDFs/IBM_GbE_L2-3_ISCLI_Ref.pdf
• Switch interoperability certifications by The Tolly Group
  http://www.thetollygroupinc.com/TVDetail.aspx?ProductID=296
• IBM US Announcement Letter
  http://ibm.com/common/ssi/cgi-bin/ssialias?infotype=dd&subtype=ca&&htmlfid=897/ENUS105-011
• IBM BladeCenter Interoperability Guide
  http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=psg1MIGR-5073016
• IBM Redbooks publication IBM BladeCenter Products and Technology, SG24-7523
  http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/sg247523.html