Chapter 25 Configuring Etherchannels; Understanding Etherchannels - Cisco Catalyst 2950 Software Configuration Manual

Configuring EtherChannels
This chapter describes how to configure EtherChannel interfaces.
For complete syntax and usage information for the commands used in this chapter, refer to the Catalyst
2950 Desktop Switch Command Reference for this release.
This chapter consists of these sections:
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Understanding EtherChannels

EtherChannel consists of individual Fast Ethernet or Gigabit Ethernet links bundled into a single logical
link as shown in
EtherChannel) or 2 Gbps (Gigabit EtherChannel) between your switch and another switch or host.
Each EtherChannel can consist of up to eight compatibly configured Ethernet interfaces. All interfaces
in each EtherChannel must be the same speed, and all must be configured as Layer 2 interfaces.
Note The network device to which your switch is connected can impose its own limits on the number of
interfaces in the EtherChannel. For Catalyst 2950 switches, the number of EtherChannels is limited to
six with eight ports per EtherChannel.
If a link within an EtherChannel fails, traffic previously carried over that failed link changes to the
remaining links within the EtherChannel. A trap is sent for a failure, identifying the switch, the
EtherChannel, and the failed link. Inbound broadcast and multicast packets on one link in an
EtherChannel are blocked from returning on any other link of the EtherChannel.
78-11380-04
Understanding Port-Channel Interfaces, page 25-2
Configuring EtherChannels, page 25-7
Displaying EtherChannel and PAgP Status, page 25-10
Figure 25-1. The EtherChannel provides full-duplex bandwidth up to 800 Mbps (Fast
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Catalyst 2950 Desktop Switch Software Configuration Guide
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