Using the BayStack 450 10/100/1000 Series Switch1-16 302401-D Rev 00MultiLink TrunkingThe MultiLink Trunking feature allows you to group multiple ports (up to four)together when forming a link to another switch or server, thus increasingaggregate throughput of the interconnection between two devices, up to 800 Mb/sin full-duplex mode. BayStack 450 switches can be configured with up to sixMultiLink Trunks. The trunk members can be configured within a single unit inthe stack or distributed between any of the units within the stack configuration(distributed trunking).For more information about the MultiLink Trunking feature, see “MultiLinkTrunks” on page 1-57.Port MirroringThe port mirroring feature (sometimes referred to as conversation steering) allowsyou to designate a single switch port as a traffic monitor for up to two specifiedports or two media access control (MAC) addresses. You can specify port-basedmonitoring, where all traffic on specified ports is monitored, or address-basedmonitoring, where traffic between specified MAC addresses is monitored. Youcan attach a probe device (such as a Nortel Networks StackProbe, or equivalent) tothe designated monitor port.For more information about the port mirroring feature, see “Port Mirroring(Conversation Steering)” on page 1-76.Autosensing and AutonegotiationBayStack 450 switches are autosensing and autonegotiating devices:• The term autosense refers to a port’s ability to sense the speed of an attacheddevice.• The term autonegotiation refers to a standardized protocol (IEEE 802.3u) thatexists between two IEEE 802.3u-capable devices. Autonegotiation allows theBayStack 450 switch to select the best of both speed and duplex modes.Autosensing is used when the attached device is not capable of autonegotiation oris using a form of autonegotiation that is not compatible with the IEEE 802.3uautonegotiation standard. In this case, because it is not possible to sense theduplex mode of the attached device, the BayStack 450 switch reverts tohalf-duplex mode.kombk.book Page 16 Tuesday, June 29, 1999 3:25 PM
