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Cisco ME 3400 Ethernet Access Switch Software Configuration Guide
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Chapter 31 Configuring EtherChannels
Understanding EtherChannels
EtherChannel Overview
An EtherChannel consists of individual Fast Ethernet or Gigabit Ethernet links bundled into a single
logical link as shown in Figure 31-1.
Figure 31-1 Typical EtherChannel Configuration
The EtherChannel provides full-duplex bandwidth up to 800 Mbps (Fast EtherChannel) or 2Gbps
(Gigabit EtherChannel) between your switch and another switch or host.
Each EtherChannel can consist of up to eight compatibly configured Ethernet ports. All ports in each
EtherChannel must be configured as either Layer 2 or Layer 3 ports. The number of EtherChannels is
limited to 48. For more information, see the “EtherChannel Configuration Guidelines” section on
page 31-10. The EtherChannel Layer 3 ports are made up of routed ports. Routed ports are physical ports
configured to be in Layer 3 mode by using the no switchport interface configuration command. For
more information, see the Chapter 9, “Configuring Interface Characteristics.”
Note The switch must be running the metro IP access image to support Layer 3 ports.
101237
Catalyst 8500
series switch
Gigabit EtherChannel
Workstations
10/100
Switched
links
Workstations
10/100
Switched
links
1000BASE-X 1000BASE-X
