Category Archives: Cisco
Redistribution of EIGRP and OSPF in a Hybrid Cisco/Dell Network
Check out my latest blog on networkpros.org where I demonstrate redistributing EIGRP routes into OSPF and redistributing OSPF routes into EIGRP in a mixed Cisco IOS and Dell FTOS environment. Of course only the Cisco switches are running EIGRP and … Continue reading
Default Port and VLAN Configuration/Behavior on Cisco IOS switches
In this short lab, I use two Cisco Catalyst 3550 switches [IOS 12.2(44)SE6] to demonstrate the default port and VLAN behavior on a Cisco switch running IOS. Below is the network diagram for this lab.
Cisco vPC with Dell S4810 at ToR
Cisco’s vPC technology is similar to Dell’s VLT; it enables an access/leaf switch or server to have single LAG connecting up to two separate switches. This allows for an non-blocking, multipathing scenario. You can read more about Dell’s VLT technology … Continue reading
Understanding Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extenders
Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extenders (FEX) behave and can be considered as remote line cards for Cisco Nexus switches. The fabric extender acts as an extension to the parent Cisco Nexus switch fabric; the fabric extender and the parent … Continue reading
Cisco Nexus 5548UP – Configuring the Management Interface
This is a relatively simple blog on configuring the Cisco Nexus 5548UP management interface. When Cisco moved away from IOS to NX-OS for the operating system on their new Nexus datacenter switches, some of the commands and syntax for even … Continue reading
Buying a Converged/FCoE Switch?
I felt the urge to write this article after receiving several inquiries about buying used Cisco Nexus 5010 and Nexus 5020 switches because they are available on some third-party site at large discounts – at least compared to the new … Continue reading
Connecting Dell PowerEdge M I/O Aggregator with Dell Force10 S4810 and Cisco Nexus 5548UP
The Dell PowerEdge M I//O Aggregator is a slick blade switch that plugs into the Dell PowerEdge M1000e chassis and requires barely any configuration/networking knowledge. Think of it as an advanced layer 2 switch that provides expandable uplink connectivity. The … Continue reading
Multi-Area OSPF in a Mixed Cisco and Dell Force10 Environment
In this lab I use one Cisco 2621XM [IOS 12.4(2)T], one Cisco 2621 [IOS 12.3(18)], one Cisco 3660 [IOS 12.1(1)T], one Cisco 3640 [IOS 12.1(2)T], one Cisco 3550-24PWR-SMI [IOS 12.2(44)SE6], one Dell Force10 S60 [FTOS 8.3.3.7], and one Dell Force10 … Continue reading
Gratuitous ARP and Basics of Connecting a Cisco IOS Switch with a Cisco CatOS Switch
Some of you may have an old Cisco Catalyst switch laying around that you may want to put to use. CatOS is the old Cisco operating system for Catalyst switches that predates IOS; it can still be found on some … Continue reading
Multi-Area OSPF – Redundancy, Route Summarization, and LSA Filtering
In this lab, all routers except for R4 and R5 are Cisco 3725 routers [IOS 12.4(15)T10]. Routers R4 and R5 are Cisco 7200 routers [IOS 12.4(24)T]. Below is the network diagram for this lab.