On many Extreme Networks switches, you can reconfigure one or two 10-Gbps Ethernet data ports to operate as stacking ports.
This feature, known as SummitStack-V, means that you can use less expensive cables to connect the switches in a stack. Because copper and fiber Ethernet ports support longer cable distances, you can also extend the physical distance between stack nodes – connecting, for example, switches on different floors in a building or in different buildings on a campus.
The SummitStack-V feature also allows you to stack switches that have no dedicated (or native) stacking ports but that do have at least two Ethernet ports, which can be configured to support either data communications or the stacking protocol. When these dual-purpose ports are configured to support stacking, they are called alternate stacking ports to distinguish them from the native stacking ports that use custom cables.
Note
The SummitStack-V feature is supported only on switches that are running ExtremeXOS 12.5.1 (or later).A single stack can use both native stacking ports and alternate stacking ports. On one switch, for example, you can use a native stacking port to connect to a switch in the same rack, and you can use an alternate stacking port to connect to a switch on a different floor.
Note
When you connect distant nodes using alternate stacking ports, be sure to run the cables over physically different pathways to reduce the likelihood of a cut affecting multiple links.On each switch model, only specific data ports can be used as alternate stacking ports. The alternate stacking ports must be 10-Gbps Ethernet ports, either on the front panel of the switch or on installed port option cards or versatile interface modules at the rear of the switch. Switch models that do not have native stacking ports can still use the SummitStack-V feature if they have 10-Gbps Ethernet ports.
Alternate stacking ports on different switches must be directly connected, with no intervening switch connections. This is because alternate stacking ports use the proprietary ExtremeXOS stacking protocol, not the standard Ethernet protocol.
Alternate Stacking Ports lists the data ports that can be used as alternate stacking ports for each switch model.
When the stacking-support option is enabled (with the enable stacking-support command), data communication stops on the physical data ports that are designated for alternate stacking. Then, when stacking is enabled (with the enable stacking command), those ports – shown in Alternate Stacking Ports as Alternate Stacking Port 1 and Alternate Stacking Port 2 – operate using the stacking protocol for the logical stacking ports.
Alternate Stacking Ports
| Switch Model | Type or location of Native Stacking Ports | Alternate Stacking Ports | Location of Alternate Stacking Ports |
|---|---|---|---|
| X440-24t-10G X440-24x-10G X440-24p-10G |
None | 25,26 | Front panel |
| X440-48t-10G
X440-48p-10G |
None | 49,50 | Front panel |
| X440-G2-12t-10GE4
X440-G2-12p-10GE4 |
Fixed (front panel) | 15,16 | Front panel |
| X440-G2-24t-10GE4 X440-G2-24p-10GE4 X440-G2-24x-10GE4 X440-G2-24t-10GE4-DC |
Fixed (rear panel) | 27,28 | Front panel |
| X440-G2-48t-10GE4 X440-G2-48p-10GE4 X440-G2-48t-10GE4-DC |
Fixed (rear panel, dedicated SFP+ port) | 49,50 | Front panel |
| X450a-24t X450a-24tDC X450a-24x X450a-24xDC X450e-24t X450e-24p |
Fixed (rear panel) | 25,26 | XGM2-2xf or XGM2-2xn or XGM2-2sf or XGM2-2bt |
| X450a-48t X450a-48tDC X450e-48t X450e-48p |
Fixed (rear panel) | 49,50 | XGM2-2xf or XGM2-2xn or XGM2-2sf or XGM2-2bt |
| X450-G2-24t-10GE4 X450-G2-24p-10GE4 |
Fixed (rear panel) | 27,28 | Front panel |
| X450-G2-48t-10GE4 X450-G2-48p-10GE4 |
Fixed (rear panel) | 51,52 | Front panel |
| X460-24t X460-24x X460-24p |
SummitStack module or SummitStack-V80 module |
S1,S2 (29,30) |
XGM3-2sf or XGM3S-2sf or XGM3S-2xf |
| X460-48t X460-48p |
SummitStack module or SummitStack-V80 module |
S1,S2 (53,54) |
XGM3-2sf or XGM3S-2sf or XGM3S-2xf |
| X460-48x | SummitStack module or SummitStack-V80 module |
S1,S2 (49,50) |
XGM3S-2sf or XGM3S-2xf |
| X460-G2-24t-GE4 X460-G2-24p-GE4 |
VIM-2ss or VIM-2q | 33,34 | VIM-2t or VIM-2x |
| X460-G2-48t-GE4 X460-G2-48p-GE4 |
VIM-2ss or VIM-2q | 53,54 | VIM-2t or VIM-2x |
| X460-G2-24t-10GE4 X460-G2-24x-10GE4 X460-G2-24p-10GE4 |
None | 31,32 | Front panel |
| X460-G2-48t-10GE4 X460-G2-48x-10GE4 X460-G2-48p-10GE4 |
None | 51,52 | Front panel |
| X480-24x | None: VIM has only data ports | S3,S4 (29,30) |
VIM2-10G4X module |
| None: No installed VIM | 25,26 | Front panel | |
| VIM2-SummitStack module VIM2-SummitStack128 module VIM2-SummitStack-V80 module VIM3-40G4X |
25,26 | Front panel | |
| X480-48t X480-48x |
None: VIM has only data ports | S3,S4 (51,52) |
VIM2-10G4X module |
| X620-8t-2x X620-10x |
None | 9,10 | Front panel |
| X620-16t X620-16x X620-16p |
None | 15,16 | Front panel |
| X670-48x | None | 47,48 | Front panel |
| X670V-48t X670V-48x |
VIM4-40G4X | 47,48 | Front panel |
| X670-G2-48x-4q | Ports 49,53,57,65 | 47,48 | Front panel |
| X670-G2-72x | None | 71,72 | Front panel |
| X770-32q | front panel, QSFP+ | 103,104 | Front panel |
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