Product Overview

Note To support IOS software releases, the Catalyst 6000 family switches require a Multilayer Switch Feature Card (MSFC) and a Policy Feature Card (PFC).

Caution Do not erase the boot loader image (c6msfc-boot-mz.120-7.xe.bin) from the MSFC bootflash: device. The boot helper must be present for the switch to boot successfully.

This IOS software release supports all Layer 2 and Layer 3 configuration on Catalyst 6000 family switches from a single user interface and stores the Layer 2 and Layer 3 configuration in a standard IOS configuration file.

Note With IOS software, Catalyst 6000 family switches support configuration using the CLI (see "Command-Line Interfaces"), SNMP (refer to the IOS Configuration Fundamentals Configuration Guide and Command Reference), and the Cisco web browser interface (refer to "Using the Cisco Web Browser" in the IOS Configuration Fundamentals Configuration Guide and Command Reference).

At Layer 3, the MSFC provides multiprotocol routing with up to 15 million packets per second (Mpps) of multilayer switching (MLS; also called Layer 3 switching) for the Catalyst 6000 family switch Ethernet interfaces. Catalyst 6000 family switches support MLS for IP, IP multicast, and Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX) protocols.

The PFC maintains a Layer 3 switching table (the Layer 3 MLS cache) for Layer 3-switched flows. The cache also includes entries for traffic statistics that are updated in tandem with the switching of packets. After the MLS cache is created, packets identified as belonging to an existing flow can be Layer 3 switched based on the cached information. The MLS cache maintains flow information for all active flows.

At Layer 2, the Catalyst 6000 family switches facilitate the migration from traditional shared-hub LANs to large-scale, fully integrated internetworks. These switches provide switched connections to individual workstations, servers, LAN segments, backbones, or other switches using a variety of media.

This chapter consists of these sections:

Note For complete information about commands not described in this software configuration guide, refer to the IOS Configuration Guide and Command Reference publications (see the "Cisco Connection Online" and "Documentation CD-ROM" sections in the Preface).

IOS Software

The IOS software is factory-installed on every supervisor engine module.

The Catalyst 6000 family switches have a command-line interface (CLI) with which you can configure modules and interfaces on the switches. For more information, see "Command-Line Interfaces." For descriptions of the available CLI commands, refer to the Catalyst 6000 Family IOS Command Reference publication.

Layer 2 and Layer 3 Interface Features

The Catalyst 6000 family switches support EtherChannel and the port aggregation protocol (PAgP) for both Layer 2 and Layer 3 interfaces (see "Configuring EtherChannel").

Layer 2 Interface Features

The Catalyst 6000 family switches support these Layer 2 interface features:

Layer 2 switch ports and VLAN trunks with the Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP; see "Configuring Layer 2 Ethernet Interfaces")
VLANs (see "Configuring VLANs")
VLAN Trunk Protocol (VTP) and VTP domains (see "Configuring VTP" )
Spanning-Tree Protocol (see "Configuring Spanning Tree")
Spanning-tree PortFast, UplinkFast, and BackboneFast (see "Configuring Spanning Tree PortFast, UplinkFast, and BackboneFast")
IGMP snooping (see "Configuring IGMP Snooping")
Broadcast Suppression (see "Configuring Broadcast Suppression")
Filtering of Layer 3 protocols on Layer 2 interfaces (see "Configuring Layer 3 Protocol Filtering")

Layer 3 Interface Features

The Catalyst 6000 family switches support these Layer 3 interface features:

Layer 3 routing features:
- IP unicast Multilayer Switching (MLS; see "Configuring IP Multilayer Switching")
- IP multicast MLS (see "Configuring IP Multicast Multilayer Switching")
- IPX unicast MLS (see "Configuring IPX Multilayer Switching")
Layer 3 routing protocols (refer to the IOS Network Protocols Configuration Guides, Parts 1 and 2, and the IOS Network Protocols Command Reference, Parts 1 and 2):
- IP routing protocols:
  Border Gateway Protocol (BGP)
  Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP)
  Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP)
  Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP)
  IGRP for OSI networks
  Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)
  Routing Information Protocol (RIP and RIP-2)
  ISO IS-IS
- IP multicast routing protocols:
  Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) sparse and dense mode
  Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol (DVMRP) interrupt
- IPX routing protocols: RIP and EIGRP
- Apollo
- AppleTalk Routing
- DECnet
- VINES
- XNS
Layer 3 related protocols (refer to the IOS Network Protocols Configuration Guides, Parts 1 and 2, and the IOS Network Protocols Command Reference, Parts 1 and 2):

Services

The Catalyst 6000 family switches support these services:

Standard Domain Naming System (DNS) support (refer to the IOS Network Protocols Configuration Guide, Part 1, and the IOS Network Protocols Command Reference, Part 1)
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP; under New Features in Release 12.0(1)T, refer to Cisco IOS DHCP Server)
Boot Protocol (BOOTP) relay (refer to the IOS Network Protocols Configuration Guide, Part 1, and the IOS Network Protocols Command Reference, Part 1)
Multiple-Hot Standby Routing Protocol (M-HSRP; refer to "Hot Standby Router Protocol" in the IOS Network Protocols Configuration Guide, Part 1, and the IOS Network Protocols Command Reference, Part 1)
Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP; see "Configuring Cisco Discovery Protocol" )
Standard IP access control lists (ACLs) at wire-speed (see "Configuring Network Security")
Standard reflexive ACLs (see "Configuring Network Security")
NetFlow Data Export (see "Configuring NetFlow Data Export")
Access control using several supported authentication methods (see "Configuring Network Security")
Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN; see "Configuring SPAN")
System message logs (see "Administering the Switch")
Network Time Protocol (NTP; see "Administering the Switch")
Redundant Supervisor Operation (see XREF)
Quality of Service (QoS; see the online Configuring Quality of Service for the Catalyst 6000 Family publication)

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