Types Of Units In Stack; Stack Mode - Cisco 500 series Administration Manual

Stack Management

Types of Units in Stack

Types of Units in Stack

Stack Mode

Cisco 500 Series Stackable Managed Switch Administration Guide
A stack consists of a maximum of four units. A unit in a stack is one of the following
types:
• Master—The master unit's ID must be either 1 or 2. The stack is managed
through the master unit that manages itself, the backup unit and the slave
units.
• Backup—If the master unit fails, the backup unit assumes the master role
(switchover). The backup unit's ID must be either 1 or 2.
• Slave—These units are managed by the master unit.
In order for a group of units to function as a stack, there must be a master-enabled
unit. When the master-enabled unit fails, the stack continues to function as long as
there is a backup unit (the active unit that assumes the master role).
Every Sx500 and SG500X device can operate in one of the following modes:
• Standalone—A standalone device does not have a stack port. It has four
network ports, and does not join any other devices to form a stack. The
device operates on its own.
• Native Stacking—A device is capable of joining other devices in Native
Stacking mode with its stack ports to form a stack. All units in a native stack
must be of the same type (all Sx500 or all SG500X) except that SF500 units
and SG500 units can be stacked together.
Changing the Stack Mode
A device can be switched from Native Stacking mode to Standalone mode (to
remove it from a stack) or vice versa (to prepare it for becoming part of a stack).
Changing the stack mode might affect whether the Startup Configuration is
retained and the switch's system mode (Layer 2 or Layer 3) after reboot. The
startup configuration removal is done during the boot process at reboot.
The system mode (Layer 2 or Layer 3) of the backup and slaves units is taken from
the master-enabled unit. This mode can be configured before the reboot process
and might be affected after reboot (see table below).
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