request virtual-chassis mode

Mixed Mode Requirements and Best Practices

You must set mixed mode on all devices in a Virtual Chassis or a VCF when the devices have differences in how they interoperate. See Understanding Mixed EX Series and QFX Series Virtual Chassis or Understanding Mixed Virtual Chassis Fabric for details on which devices can be combined to form a mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF.

Some combinations of different types of switches form non-mixed Virtual Chassis or VCFs because the devices can run the same software images. You don't need to configure mixed mode if the only devices in your Virtual Chassis are the following combinations of switches:

• Only EX4500 and EX4550 switches in an EX Series Virtual Chassis.

• EX2300 multigigabit switches (EX2300-24MP and EX2300-48MP models) with any other EX2300 model switches in an EX2300 Virtual Chassis.

• EX4400 multigigabit switches (EX4400-24MP and EX4400-48MP models) with any other EX4400 model switches in an EX4400 Virtual Chassis.

• Only QFX3500 and QFX3600 switches in a QFX Series Virtual Chassis.

• QFX5110 and QFX5100 switches in a QFX5110 Virtual Chassis or QFX5110 VCF.

However, EX4300 switches that are not multigigabit models combined with EX4300 multigigabit model (EX4300-48MP) switches form a mixed EX4300 Virtual Chassis. In this case, you must set mixed mode on all member switches. In addition, when you set mixed mode on the EX4300 non-multigigabit model member switches, you must include the ieee-clause-82 option with the mode command. This option sets a special port mode (IEEE Clause 82) on the Virtual Chassis ports (VCPs) that enables them to communicate when interconnected with VCPs on EX4300 multigigabit switches.

Best practices when setting mixed mode include:

• Don’t enable mixed mode on a standalone device or for a member switch that is in a non-mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF. Mixed mode reduces the maximum scaling numbers for some features on the standalone switch, Virtual Chassis, or VCF to accommodate different types of devices that can be interconnected.

• To avoid potential traffic disruptions and configuration issues, on each device we recommend setting mixed mode for a mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF before cabling them into a mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF. You must then reboot the device, Virtual Chassis or VCF for the mode change to take effect.

  Note:

  The same best practice applies to setting fabric mode for a VCF—set this mode on the member devices before interconnecting them.

• You can change mode settings manually after a device has been added to a Virtual Chassis or VCF if you determine the settings are not the same on all the devices.

  However, if you set only some of the devices in a mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF to mixed mode, the mixed Virtual Chassis or VCF might not form. If you experience this issue, enter the request virtual-chassis mode mixed all-members command to force setting mixed mode on all devices in the Virtual Chassis or VCF. (Include the fabric mode option as well for a VCF.) You can then reboot the entire Virtual Chassis or VCF, or only the devices where the mode changed. The Virtual Chassis or VCF forms when the rebooted devices are online again.

  Note:

  On switches running Junos OS Release 11.4 or later, if you don’t set any of the switches in a mixed EX4200 and EX4500 Virtual Chassis to mixed mode, a mixed EX4200 and EX4500 Virtual Chassis forms where one of the switches assumes the primary role, and all other switches take on the linecard role. If you see this behavior, enter the request virtual-chassis mode mixed all-members command to set all members to mixed mode and reboot the Virtual Chassis.

Network Port Mode (EX4400 Switches Only)

If you are not using an EX4400 switch as a member switch in a Virtual Chassis, you can use this command with the network-port option to enable network port mode, which converts the default VCPs on the switch into network ports. By default, the two 100-Gigabit Ethernet QSFP28 ports on the rear panel are set as two logical 50-Gbps VCP interfaces each, forming a total of four logical 50-Gbps VCPs. (The default VCPs are in PIC slot 1, so the VCP interfaces are named vcp-255/1/0 through vcp-255/1/3.) If you convert these ports into network port mode, they become two 100 Gigabit Ethernet network ports, or you can channelize each of them into four 25-Gigabit Ethernet or four 10-Gigabit Ethernet network ports.

You can't use one of the rear panel 100-Gigabit Ethernet ports as a VCP and the other as a network port. When you use this command to enable network port mode, the mode affects both 100-Gbps ports together.

You can use the show virtual-chassis mode command to see the current port mode and what the port mode will be the next time the switch is rebooted. The two values might be different if you changed the mode but have not rebooted the switch yet.

To disable network port mode and return these ports to their default settings as VCPs, use the network-port and disable options with the request virtual-chassis mode command. You must reboot the switch for network port mode changes to take effect, so you can include the reboot option in the same command. For example:

You can use the request virtual-chassis vc-port delete command to disable one of these ports as a VCP, but that action doesn't change the port mode to network port mode. You must enter the request virtual-chassis mode network-port command (and reboot the switch) to use the port as a network port. Also, if you run the request virtual-chassis vc-port delete interface interface-name command to disable vcp-255/1/0, that command disables both logical ports 0 and 1 (vcp-255/1/0 and vcp-255/1/1). Similarly, specifying to disable vcp-255/1/2 disables both logical ports 2 and 3 (vcp-255/1/2 and vcp-255/1/3).

request virtual-chassis mode mixed

request virtual-chassis mode fabric mixed reboot

request virtual-chassis mode mixed (with IEEE Clause 82 mode for EX4300 switches mixed with EX4300 multigigabit switches in a Virtual Chassis)