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In an older quetion "Best practice to trunk two GB switches?" I asked about how to trunk two switches. I now used a static link to connect them and it runs well. Now I am not sure on how to connect our two servers. Both have vSphere 5 running and both have two LAN ports which are linked thourgh vSphere. What would be the best setup?

  1. Connect one LAN port to switch 1 and one to switch 2
  2. Connect both LAN ports to the same switch

Is the first solution even possible ad would it increase the performance for the clients connected to the other switch?

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2ndkauboy
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1 Answers1

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Option 1 is the best practice, however it depends on the trunking method you've configured and your network hardware capabilities.

LACP (802.3ad) will require your switches to support this protocol (common, if you're running any layer3 managed equipment).

Any other methods of trunking/bonding such as active backup or active load balancing do not require specific hardware configurations, although switches that have been stacked are preferable.

You will not see any 'performance' gains with this method, but you will sleep better at night knowing there's that layer of redundancy. (And I have seen this save the day on more than one occasion).

NcA
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  • Thanks so far. My two switches are conencted using a static link, as onw of the two switched does not support LACP. Would it be better two upgrade the old switch and use a LACP link? – 2ndkauboy Apr 30 '12 at 13:10
  • A static link? Are you load-balancing the two connections? Or just having an active backup if one goes down? I would configure for what you're capable of at the moment. Key points to look out for. Make sure that both switches support jumbo frames (if configured). Ensure that the switches themselves either have redundant PSUs, or are plugged into separate power sources. Lastly, I'm assuming that you've got the vlans and trunking properly configured on both switches, but it's worth verifying. – NcA Apr 30 '12 at 14:58
  • I have to use two switches because we have more than 60 clients, printers, devices. I used a static link with 4 ports, as it is the only possible mode both switches supports. I do not use any vlans on any of the switches. Both are connected to a USV. – 2ndkauboy Apr 30 '12 at 16:23