ACOS 4.1.

4-GR1-P5
Configuring ACOS Virtual Chassis
Systems
for A10 Thunder® Series
24 August 2020
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Table of Contents

OVERVIEW OF VCS ........................................................................................... 7

VCS Prerequisites............................................................................................................................7
Layer 2 Connectivity ....................................................................................................................................7
VCS Image Location ................................................................................................................................... 8
VCS Overview .................................................................................................................................. 8
Virtual Chassis Management Interface (Floating IP Address) ........................................................10
VCS Configuration Management ............................................................................................................10
VCS Software Version Management .....................................................................................................10
vMaster Election.............................................................................................................................11
Understanding vMaster Election ............................................................................................................ 11
VCS Initial Deployment ....................................................................................................................... 11
VRRP-A Active/Standby Device Selection ...................................................................................12
VCS and VRRP-A vMaster Selection ..............................................................................................12
vMaster Election During Initial (First-Time) Deployment .................................................................13
vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Same Priority and Boot Time ..............................14
vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Different Priorities, Same Boot Time .................15
vMaster Election Using Dynamic Priority .............................................................................................15
vMaster Election and Heartbeat Messages ......................................................................................... 17
vMaster Election and Split Chassis ........................................................................................................18
Forced vMaster Takeover .........................................................................................................................19
VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization.......................................................19
VCS Configuration Management ...........................................................................................................20
Automated Configuration Synchronization ........................................................................................ 22
Manual Configuration Synchronization ............................................................................................... 24
VCS Software Image Synchronization.................................................................................... 25
Customizing the Virtual Chassis............................................................................................... 26
Changing the System Time in a Virtual Chassis ................................................................................ 26
Configurable VCS Prompts ..................................................................................................................... 26
Restoring the Default Prompt Display ................................................................................................. 27

DEPLOYING A VIRTUAL CHASSIS ..................................................................... 29

Initial VCS Deployment ............................................................................................................... 29
Initial VCS Deployment Overview ..........................................................................................................30
Initial vMaster Configuration ..................................................................................................................30
Initial vBlade Configuration ......................................................................................................................31
First-Time Deployment Example ........................................................................................................... 33
vMaster Initial Configuration Example .......................................................................................... 33
vBlade Initial Configuration Example ............................................................................................ 37

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Forcing vMaster Takeover.......................................................................................................... 39

Forced vMaster Takeover Procedure ................................................................................................... 39
Temp-Priority Value .................................................................................................................................. 39
Determining a Device’s VCS ID ................................................................................................. 40
Viewing VCS Information ............................................................................................................41
VCS CLI-Session Management ..................................................................................................41
CLI Message for Commands That Affect Only the Local Device .................................................. 42
Option To Configure VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active .........................................................43
Overview of VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active ..................................................................43
VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active Configuration Example .............................................44
VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active and vMaster Takeover ...............................................45
Option to Disable Syncing of SNMP sysContact OID .......................................................................46
vMaster Maintenance Mode ....................................................................................................................46

ADDING A DEVICE TO A VIRTUAL CHASSIS ........................................................ 47

Overview of Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis ............................................................... 47
Procedure for Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis............................................................ 49

REPLACING A DEVICE IN A VIRTUAL CHASSIS .................................................... 51

CONFIGURATION SYNCHRONIZATION WITHOUT RELOAD ...................................... 53

VRRP-A with VCS Deployment Example ............................................................................................ 53

VCS CLI COMMANDS ......................................................................................57

VCS Operational Commands ..................................................................................................... 58
device-context .............................................................................................................................58
vcs admin-session-connect ..................................................................................................... 59
vcs disable .....................................................................................................................................60
vcs enable .......................................................................................................................................61
vcs vMaster-maintenance ........................................................................................................ 62
vcs vmaster-take-over .............................................................................................................. 62
VCS Configuration Commands ................................................................................................. 64
vcs dead-interval .........................................................................................................................64
vcs debug ...................................................................................................................................... 65
vcs device ...................................................................................................................................... 65
vcs failure-retry-count .............................................................................................................. 67
vcs floating-ip ............................................................................................................................... 67
vcs floating-ipv6 ..........................................................................................................................68
vcs force-wait-interval ..............................................................................................................68
vcs multicast-ip ...........................................................................................................................68
vcs multicast-ipv6 ....................................................................................................................... 69
vcs multicast-port ....................................................................................................................... 69
vcs reload ....................................................................................................................................... 69
vcs ssl-enable ............................................................................................................................... 70

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vcs time-interval .......................................................................................................................... 70

vcs vmaster-maintenance ........................................................................................................ 70
VCS Show Commands.................................................................................................................. 71
show vcs debug ............................................................................................................................ 71
show vcs images .......................................................................................................................... 71
show vcs summary ..................................................................................................................... 72

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OVERVIEW OF VCS

This chapter provides an overview of the Virtual Chassis System (VCS).

Note: VCS and aVCS, an acronym for ACOS Virtual Chassis System, are used interchangeably.

The following topics are covered:

• VCS Prerequisites

• VCS Overview

• vMaster Election

• VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

• VCS Software Image Synchronization

• Customizing the Virtual Chassis

VCS Prerequisites
VCS has the following prerequisite requirements:

• Layer 2 Connectivity

• VCS Image Location

Layer 2 Connectivity

VCS uses IP multicast. All ACOS devices in an VCS virtual chassis must be in the same Layer 2
broadcast domain.

VCS can operate across different geographic regions provided latency is low. VRRP-A session
synchronization will be the gating factor in terms of latency.

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VCS Overview

NOTE: When using VCS with VRRP-A high availability, the VCS manage-
ment address (virtual chassis’ floating IP address) should not be
the same as a VRRP-A floating IP address of the VRID.

VCS Image Location

The VCS-capable image must be installed in the same image area on each device. For example,
install the image in the primary image area of the hard disk or solid state drive (SSD) on each
device.

VCS Overview
ACOS Virtual Chassis System (VCS) enables you to manage a cluster of ACOS devices like a
single, virtual chassis. One ACOS device in the virtual chassis is the virtual master (vMaster). The
other ACOS devices are virtual blades (vBlades) within the virtual chassis, and are managed by
the vMaster. As a controller for the vBlades, the vMaster provides centralized storage of the
entire ACOS device configuration. Any configuration changes from the vMaster are
automatically propagated to the vBlades.

VCS, as a management tool, provides high availability functionality on the ACOS device with the
help of VRRP-A across multiple ACOS devices.

Depending on the ACOS series model, with the help of VRRP-A, VCS can support a maximum 7
additional blades. VCS requires that all devices in the same virtual switch have the same number
of CPUs and are the same ACOS device model.

CAUTION: If you use the system-reset command to restore an ACOS device to

its factory default state, the command affects all ACOS devices in
the virtual chassis. The command erases any saved configuration
profiles (including startup-config), as well as system files such as
SSL certificates and keys, aFleX policies, black/white lists, and sys-
tem logs. The management IP address and admin-configured
admin and enable passwords are also removed. The only work-
around is to reload the system from a saved configuration or con-
figure the device once again.

Before performing a system-reset, always create a system backup

of the ACOS device to allow you to be able to restore the ACOS
device from the backup when necessary.

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VCS Overview

VCS elects a single device within the virtual chassis as the vMaster for the chassis. The vMaster
provides a single point of control for all devices in the virtual chassis, as shown in Figure 1.

FIGURE 1 : vMaster - Control Point for all Devices

In addition to individual device management and VCS configurations, the vMaster can also take
care of the following operations on vBlades:

• Synchronize configurations

• Synchronize certificates

• Synchronize keys

• Synchronize aFleX policies

• Synchronize black/white lists

• Synchronize code versions

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vMaster Election

Virtual Chassis Management Interface (Floating IP Address)

The virtual chassis has a floating IP address. The virtual chassis’ floating IP address is the
management address for the chassis. To manage a virtual chassis, establish a management
connection (for example, CLI or GUI) to the floating IP address.

When you connect to the virtual chassis’ management IP address, the connection goes to the
vMaster. You can make configuration changes only on the vMaster. The vMaster automatically
sends the changes to the vBlades.

If necessary, you can change the context of the management session to a specific vBlade. To
change the management context to the vBlade, use the vcs admin-session-connect command.
The management session will change from the vMaster to the specified vBlade.

For additional information, refer to “VCS CLI-Session Management” on page 41.

VCS Configuration Management

When you make a configuration change on the vMaster, the change is sent to the running-
config on each vBlade.

For more information, see “VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization” on page 19.

VCS Software Version Management

The vMaster also ensures that each device in the virtual chassis is running the same software
version.

For more information, see “VCS Software Image Synchronization” on page 25.

vMaster Election
This section contains information about vMaster election in a virtual chassis and the factors that
help determine which device becomes the vMaster.

The following topics are covered:

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vMaster Election

• Understanding vMaster Election

• vMaster Election During Initial (First-Time) Deployment

• vMaster Election Using Dynamic Priority

• vMaster Election and Heartbeat Messages

• vMaster Election and Split Chassis

• Forced vMaster Takeover

Understanding vMaster Election

The devices in a virtual chassis use a vMaster election process to elect the vMaster for the
virtual chassis.

To understand when a vMaster will take over as the Active device, it is necessary to understand
different configuration scenarios that impact vMaster selection for VCS, for VRRP-A, and for
VCS with VRRP-A:

• VCS Initial Deployment

• VRRP-A Active/Standby Device Selection

• VCS and VRRP-A vMaster Selection

VCS Initial Deployment

For initial configuration, each ACOS device in the virtual chassis is assigned a VCS device ID and
VCS priority. An ACOS device becomes the vMaster if it has the highest configured VCS priority
among all the other ACOS devices in the virtual chassis. If all ACOS devices in the VCS
configuration have the same VCS priority, then the ACOS device with the lowest device ID will
become the vMaster. In this configuration, each ACOS device will be a stand-alone device,
without any active or standby pairs.

To avoid having to configure each individual ACOS device separately, it is recommended that
you configure only one ACOS device that will serve as the vMaster then have the vMaster
automatically configure the remaining ACOS devices in the virtual chassis.

VRRP-A Active/Standby Device Selection

When VRRP-A is configured, the Active device selection is based on two factors, weight and
priority, before electing an Active device that will have several Standby devices ready to take
over that role. An ACOS device will become an Active or Standby device depending on the
weight or priority of that device. The weight of an ACOS device will always take precedence over
the priority. If we have a higher weight but a lower priority, the ACOS device with the higher

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vMaster Election

weight will be the Active. If the weight of the devices are equal, the ACOS device with the higher
priority will become the Active ACOS device. If the weight and the priority of the devices are
equal, the ACOS device will the lowest VRRP-A device ID will be the Active ACOS device.

As a ACOS device user, configure VRRP-A using VRRP-A failover templates and VRRP-A
tracking options to adjust the weight (using failover templates) or priority (using global tracking
options) of an ACOS device and elect an Active device.

For more information, see Configuring VRRP-A High Availability.

VCS and VRRP-A vMaster Selection

When VCS and VRRP-A are configured to work in conjunction, all ACOS devices will be able to
process traffic as an Active/Standby pair, but these Active/Standby pairs will be configurable
using a single ACOS device. The VRRP-A concept of having an Active device and a Standby
device to process traffic will remain the same. However, with VCS, you can configure the Active
and Standby devices using a single ACOS device.

In summary, VCS has its own configured priority and dynamic priority for electing the vMaster
not for electing the Active or Standby device. Use the show vcs statistics command to display
the configured and dynamic priority.

VRRP-A has its own weight and priority algorithm to determine which ACOS device is the Active
or the Standby device, however, it does not elect the vMaster. Use the show vrrp-a command to
display the weight and priority for the devices running VRRP-A. For details on how a failover
occurs based on weight or priority using a template, refer to “Event Tracking for Weight or
Priority” in Configuring VRRP-A High Availability. You can force a device to serve as a vMaster
without dynamic election by temporarily assigning it a higher priority.

vMaster Election During Initial (First-Time) Deployment

For initial virtual chassis deployment, the vMaster is elected based on one of the following
parameters:

• Priority – The device with the highest configured VCS priority is elected to be the vMaster.
If you boot one of the devices first and allow it to become the vMaster, the device remains
the vMaster when the other devices join the virtual chassis, even if the configured priority
is higher on another device. This is due to the dynamic priority value assigned by VCS.
For more information, see “vMaster Election Using Dynamic Priority” on page 15.
• Device ID – If all devices have the same configured priority, the device with the lowest
VCS device ID is elected to be the vMaster

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vMaster Election

For more information, see “vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Same Priority and Boot
Time” on page 14 and “vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Different Priorities, Same
Boot Time” on page 15.

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vMaster Election

vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Same Priority and Boot Time
Figure 2 illustrates vMaster selection in a virtual chassis where all devices have the same priority
and are booted up at the same time. In this situation, the device with the lowest device ID
(Device 1) is elected as the vMaster.

FIGURE 2 : vMaster Election in Initial Deployment - Same Priority Value on each Device

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vMaster Election

vMaster Election for Initial Deployment - Different Priorities, Same Boot Time
Figure 3 illustrates vMaster selection in a virtual chassis where each device has a different
priority, and all devices are booted up at the same time. In this situation, the device with the
highest priority (Device 4) is elected as the vMaster.

FIGURE 3 : vMaster Election in Initial Deployment - Different Priority Values Configured

vMaster Election Using Dynamic Priority

The configurable VCS priority is a static value in each device’s configuration. After a virtual
chassis becomes active, another priority value, the dynamic priority, becomes the most
important parameter when electing the vMaster. The device with the highest dynamic priority
always becomes the vMaster.

The dynamic priority adds stability to the virtual chassis, by consistently using the same device
as vMaster whenever possible. Once a device becomes vMaster, its dynamic priority ensures
that it will remain the vMaster, even if another device has a higher configured priority. For
example, if the vMaster becomes unavailable and a vBlade transitions to vMaster, the new
vMaster remains in control even if the previous vMaster rejoins the virtual chassis.

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vMaster Election

Figure 4 shows an example of how dynamic priority works. Device 3 was booted first, and even
though other devices have higher priority values, dynamic priority keeps Device 3 as the
vMaster.

FIGURE 4 : vMaster Election with Dynamic Priority

Dynamic priority is not configurable. However, you can force a vBlade to become the vMaster.
(See “Forced vMaster Takeover” on page 19.)

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vMaster Election

vMaster Election and Heartbeat Messages

At regular intervals (the heartbeat time interval), the vMaster sends heartbeat messages to each
of the vBlades, to inform them that the vMaster is still up, as shown in Figure 5.

FIGURE 5 : Heartbeat Messages

If a vBlade does not receive a heartbeat message within a specified amount of time (heartbeat
dead interval), the vBlade changes its state from vBlade to vMaster-candidate, and engages in
the vMaster election process with the other devices that are still up.

The default heartbeat time is 3 seconds. The default heartbeat dead interval is 10 seconds. Both
parameters are configurable.

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vMaster Election

vMaster Election and Split Chassis

If one or more vBlades lose contact with the vMaster, the vMaster remains in control for the
vBlades that can still receive the vMaster’s heartbeat messages. However, the other vBlades
use the vMaster election process to elect a new vMaster. This results in two separate virtual
chassis (a “split chassis”), as shown in Figure 6.

FIGURE 6 : vMaster Election - Split Chassis

After the links among the disconnected devices are restored, the devices again use the vMaster
election process to elect a vMaster. Generally, the vMaster that was in effect before the virtual
chassis divided continues to be the vMaster after the virtual chassis is rejoined, based on the
device’s dynamic priority value. (See “vMaster Election Using Dynamic Priority” on page 15.)

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VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

Forced vMaster Takeover

You can force a vBlade to take over as vMaster, without changing the vMaster-election priority
values configured on the devices. For example, you can force a vBlade to take over the vMaster
role, without changing the VCS profiles of any of the devices.

FIGURE 7 : Forced vMaster Takeover

For a configuration example, see “Forcing vMaster Takeover” on page 39.

VCS Configuration Management and

Synchronization
This section describes how configuration changes are handled within the virtual chassis.

The following topics are covered:

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VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

• VCS Configuration Management

• Automated Configuration Synchronization

• Manual Configuration Synchronization

VCS Configuration Management

When you make a configuration change on the vMaster, the change is simultaneously
propagated to the running configuration on each vBlade. For example (Figure 8), if you create a
new SLB server “RS1” on the vMaster, the vMaster sends the server to the running configuration
on each of the vBlades.

When the configuration on the vMaster is saved, the vMaster writes the contents of its running
configuration to its startup configuration and performs the same action on each vBlade in the
virtual chassis.

FIGURE 8 : VCS Configuration Management

Once the virtual chassis is fully operational, all devices in the virtual chassis have exactly the
same set of configuration profiles. This includes the startup configuration and any custom
configuration profiles.

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VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

Automated Configuration Synchronization

VCS automatically synchronizes configuration information within the virtual chassis.

Configuration changes are synchronized in real-time as they occur.

All configuration changes are synchronized, even changes to device-specific parameters such
as hostnames and IP addresses. VCS configuration synchronization ensures that each device in
the virtual chassis has a complete set of configuration information for itself and for each of the
other devices. For example, configuration synchronization ensures that each device has the
complete VCS configuration for the virtual chassis (Figure 9).

FIGURE 9 : VCS Device-Specific Parameters

In this example, the device-specific portions of the configuration are shown in enlarged text
bold type for each device.

NOTE: For brevity, some commands are omitted from the illustration. For
example, in a working configuration, the vcs enable command nor-
mally would appear in the configuration for each device, under the
vrrp-a commands, and the enable command would appear among
the VCS commands for each device.

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VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

Common parameters, such as SLB parameters, are shared by all devices in the virtual chassis
and do not have a device ID (Figure 10).

FIGURE 10 : Common Parameters

Interface parameters are unique to each device and include the VCS device number (Figure 11).

FIGURE 11 : Interface Parameters

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VCS Configuration Management and Synchronization

This example shows the configuration for each device’s management IP address and an
Ethernet interface. VLANs, Virtual Ethernet (VE) interfaces, and trunks also include the VCS
device ID.

Manual Configuration Synchronization

Optionally, you can manually synchronize the VRRP-A configuration to specific devices. For
more information on manual synchronization using VRRP-A, refer to “Manually Synchronizing
the Configuration” in Configuring VRRP-A High Availability.

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VCS Software Image Synchronization

VCS Software Image Synchronization

In addition to the configuration repository, each device in the virtual chassis also has a software
image repository. When a new or rebooted device joins the virtual chassis as a vBlade, the
device compares its running software image version with the version running on the vMaster. If
the version on the vMaster is newer, the vBlade downloads the image from the vMaster, then
reboots to place the image into effect.

When a vBlade upgrades in this way, the new image replaces the older image, in the same image
area. For example, if the vBlade boots the older image from the primary image area on the hard
drive, the upgrade image downloaded from the vMaster replaces the image in the primary image
area.

NOTE: When the web GUI image is upgraded on the vMaster, it gets synchronized to
all vBlades.

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Customizing the Virtual Chassis

Customizing the Virtual Chassis

This section contains information for customizing items related to VCS configuration.

The following topics are covered:

• Changing the System Time in a Virtual Chassis

• Configurable VCS Prompts

Changing the System Time in a Virtual Chassis

If you need to set or change the system time on a vBlade in a virtual chassis, make sure to make
the change on the vMaster, not directly on the vBlade.

This is especially important if you need to set the time ahead on the vBlade. In this case, if you
set the time ahead directly on a vBlade, that device leaves, then rejoins the virtual chassis, and
the change does not take effect.

Configurable VCS Prompts

The CLI prompt can be configured to reflect the VCS chassis device ID and status.

To explicitly enable display of information items in the CLI prompt, use the following command
at the global configuration level of the CLI:

terminal prompt info-item-list

The info-item-list can contain one or more of the following values:

• vcs-status [chassis-device-id] – Enables display of the aVCS status of the device.

The chassis-device-id option enables display of the virtual chassis ID and device ID.
• hostname – Enables display of the ACOS hostname.

• chassis-device-id – Display aVCS device id in the prompt. For example, this can be 7/1,
where the number 7 indicates the chassis ID and 1 indicates the device ID within the aVCS
set.

NOTE: The aVCS Chassis ID and the aVCS Device ID are configurable as
part of the prompt if aVCS is running. The prompt that you specify
will be synchronized and reflected on all the other devices in the
aVCS set.

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Customizing the Virtual Chassis

Restoring the Default Prompt Display

To re-enable display of all the information items, use the no terminal prompt global
configuration command.

The following command disables display of the aVCS status and hostname in the CLI prompt:

ACOS2-Active-vMaster[1/1](config)# terminal prompt ha-status

Active(config)#

The following command re-enables display of all the information items:

Active(config)# no terminal prompt

ACOS2-Active-vMaster[1/1](config)#

For more information, see “VRRP-A / VCS Status in Command Prompt” in the Command Line
Interface Reference.

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DEPLOYING A VIRTUAL CHASSIS

This chapter describes how to deploy VCS.

The following topics are covered:

• Initial VCS Deployment

• Forcing vMaster Takeover

• Determining a Device’s VCS ID

• Viewing VCS Information

• VCS CLI-Session Management

Initial VCS Deployment

This section describes how to deploy VCS for the first time.

The following topics are covered:

• Initial VCS Deployment Overview

• Initial vBlade Configuration

• First-Time Deployment Example

CAUTION: Use this procedure only for first-time deployment of VCS. If you
are upgrading ACOS devices on which VCS is already configured,
refer to the upgrade instructions included with the release notes
for your release.

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Initial VCS Deployment

Initial VCS Deployment Overview

Table 1 summarizes the steps in the procedure for initial VCS deployment.

TABLE 1 : Summary of Steps for Initial VCS Deployment

Step Description and Documentation
1 Complete VCS configuration on the device that will be the vMaster.

See “Initial vMaster Configuration” on page 30 for more information.

2 After completing VCS configuration on the vMaster, enable VCS on the vBlades, and configure
VCS-related parameters for the vBlades.

See “Initial vBlade Configuration” on page 31 for more information.

3 Reload VCS on the vBlades. At this point, the vMaster synchronizes the configuration to the
vBlades.

NOTE: This step is not required when deploying VCS in the GUI; when VCS is enabled the GUI
automatically performs the system reload to synchronize configurations.
4 View the running-config on the vMaster and on the vBlades to verify that both the vMaster
and vBlades configurations are synchronized.

The steps above establishes the first-time base VCS configuration synchronization between
vMaster and vBlades. After this, subsequent configuration changes on the vMaster are auto-
matically synchronized to the vBlades.
5 If you plan to use Layer 3 virtualization, configure it on the vMaster.

Initial vMaster Configuration

To configure the vMaster for the first time:

1. If you have not already done do, configure basic system settings:
• Management interface and default gateway
• Hostname
• Ethernet interfaces
• VLANs
• Routing
2. Configure the following VCS settings related to VRPR-A high availability:
• Chassis ID – Assign each device to the same set (this is the VRRP-A set ID).
• Device ID – Assign a unique device ID to each device (this is the VRRP-A device ID).

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3. Enable VCS.
4. Configure the floating IP address that will be used by the virtual chassis.
The floating IP address must be in the same subnet as the ACOS device’s management IP
address or one of the device’s data interface IP addresses.
5. Configure VCS device settings:
• vMaster-election interface – Ethernet interface(s) to use for vMaster election. Generally,
these are the interfaces connected to the other devices in the virtual chassis. The elec-
tion interfaces for devices in a VCS virtual chassis must be in the shared partition. Use of
an L3V private partition’s interface as a VCS election interface is not supported.
• (Optional) vMaster-election priority – If you want a specific device to serve as the vMas-
ter for the virtual chassis, set that device’s VCS priority to 255. You can leave the priority
set to its default value on the other devices, which will become vBlades.
To allow VCS to select the vMaster based on VCS device ID, leave the vMaster-election
priority on all devices unchanged.

NOTE: It is recommended not to disable any of the vMaster election inter-

faces. Doing so can interrupt communication between vMaster
and vBlade, and cause the vBlade to reload.

See “vMaster Initial Configuration Example” on page 33 for an example configuration.

Initial vBlade Configuration

This section provides details for initial vBlade configuration. You must perform these steps on
each device that you want to be a vBlade in the virtual chassis.

1. Configure basic system settings:

• Management interface and default gateway
• Hostname
• Ethernet interfaces
• VLANs
• Routing
2. Configure the following VCS settings related to VRPR-A high availability:
• Chassis ID – Assign each device to the same set (this is the VRRP-A set ID).
• Device ID – Assign a unique device ID to each device (this is the VRRP-A device ID).
3. Enable VCS.
4. Configure VCS device settings:

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• vMaster-election interface – Ethernet interface(s) to use for vMaster election. Generally,

these are the interfaces connected to the other devices in the virtual chassis. The elec-
tion interfaces for devices in an VCS virtual chassis must be in the shared partition. Use
of an L3V private partition’s interface as a VCS election interface is not supported.
• (Optional) vMaster-election priority – If you want a specific device to serve as the vMas-
ter for the virtual chassis, set that device’s VCS priority to 255. You can leave the priority
set to its default value on the other devices, which will become vBlades.
To allow VCS to select the vMaster based on VCS device ID, leave the vMaster-election
priority on all devices unchanged.

NOTE: It is recommended not to disable any of the vMaster election inter-

faces. Doing so can interrupt communication between vMaster
and vBlade, and cause the vBlade to reload.

See “vBlade Initial Configuration Example” on page 37 for an example configuration.

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First-Time Deployment Example

The following commands deploy a virtual chassis containing two devices.

FIGURE 12 : Sample First-Time VCS Deployment Topology

NOTE: For simplicity, configuration of basic system settings is not shown.

vMaster Initial Configuration Example

This section provides an example of initial configuration for the vMaster.

vMaster Initial Configuration Example Using the CLI

1. Enable VRRP-A and configure the VRRP-A set ID and device ID:
ACOS# configure
ACOS(config)# vrrp-a common
ACOS(config-common)# set-id 1
ACOS(config-common)# device-id 1
ACOS(config-common)# enable
ACOS-Active(config-common)# exit
ACOS-Active(config)#

NOTE: If VRRP-A is not already configured on your system, the prompt

will show “ForcedStandby” until the system is able to determine
that it should be the active device. When this happens, the prompt
will show “Active” as illustrated in this example.

2. Enable VCS:

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ACOS-Active(config)# vcs enable

ACOS-Active(config:1)#

Note the “:1” at the end of the prompt, indicating that VCS enabled and you are on local
device 1 (the vMaster). The device ID was set earlier using the device-id command under
VRRP-A common configuration mode.
3. Configure the floating IP address for the virtual chassis:
ACOS(config:1)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.209.23 /24

4. Configure the VCS profile for the device:

ACOS(config:1)# vcs device 1
ACOS(config:1-device:1)# interfaces management
ACOS(config:1-device:1)# priority 125
ACOS(config:1-device:1)# enable
ACOS(config:1-device:1)# exit
ACOS(config:1)# vcs reload

System configuration has been modified. Save? [yes/no]:yes

Building configuration...
Write configuration to primary default startup-config
[OK]
Running configuration is saved
ACOS(config:1)#

vMaster Initial Configuration Example Using the GUI

1. Enable VRRP-A and configure the VRRP-A set ID and device ID.
a. Hover over System in the menu bar, then select VRRP-A. Ensure Global is selected
under the Settings Tab.
b. Under the General Fields section, select Enable for the VRRP-A Enable field and config-
ure the Device ID and Set ID by entering a device ID and set ID number in the respective
fields.
c. Click OK.

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2. Configure VCS General Settings:

a. Hover over System in the menu bar, then select aVCS and select Enable in the aVCS
Enable field.
b. Configure the management address for the virtual chassis.
Click +Add in the Floating IP Address section to add a Floating IP address row. In the IP
Address Type field, select IPv4 as the address type from the drop-down list, then enter
192.168.209.23 as the floating IP management address in the IP Address field, and enter
/24 as the subnet mask in the Netmask field.

c. Click OK.

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3. Configure the aVCS device settings:

a. From the System >> aVCS >> Settings, select the Device tab.
b. Click New Device.
c. In the Device field, specify the device ID.
d. In the Priority field, specify the priority.
e. Select Enable in the Enable field.
f. Select Enable in the Management field.
g. Click Submit.

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vBlade Initial Configuration Example

This section provides an initial configuration example for the vBlade. If your configuration
contains multiple vBlades, this procedure should be repeated on each device.

vBlade Initial Configuration Example Using the CLI

ACOS-2# configure
ACOS-2(config)# vrrp-a common
ACOS-2(config-common)# set-id 1
ACOS-2(config-common)# device-id 2
ACOS-2(config-common)# enable
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config-common) #exit
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config)# vcs enable
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.209.23 /24
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2)# vcs device 2
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2-device:2)# interfaces management
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2-device:2)# priority 120
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2-device:2)# enable
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2-device:2)# exit
ACOS-2-ForcedStandby(config:2)# vcs reload

System configuration has been modified. Save? [yes/no]:yes

Building configuration...
Write configuration to primary default startup-config
[OK]

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Running configuration is saved

ACOS-2(config:2)#

vBlade Initial Configuration Example Using the GUI

1. Enable VRRP-A and configure the VRRP-A set ID and device ID.
a. Hover over System in the menu bar, then select VRRP-A. Ensure Global is selected
under the Settings Tab.
b. Under the General Fields section, select Enable for the VRRP-A Enable field and config-
ure the Device ID and Set ID by entering a device ID and set ID number in the respective
fields.
c. Click OK.
2. Configure VCS General Settings:
a. Hover over System in the menu bar, then select aVCS and select Enable in the aVCS
Enable field.
b. Configure the management address for the virtual chassis.
Click +Add in the Floating IP Address section to add a Floating IP address row. In the IP
Address Type field, select IPv4 as the address type from the drop-down list, then enter
192.168.209.23 as the floating IP management address in the IP Address field, and enter
/24 as the subnet mask in the Netmask field.

c. Click OK.
3. Configure the aVCS device settings:
a. From the System >> aVCS >> Settings, select the Device tab.
b. Click New Device.
c. In the Device field, specify the device ID.
d. In the Priority field, specify the priority.
e. Select Enable in the Enable field.
f. Select Enable in the Management field.
g. Click Submit.
4. Reload the device:
a. From the System >> aVCS >> Device, select the Actions tab.
b. In the Reload Option drop-down list, select Reload and click Apply.

Repeat this procedure for each device.

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Forcing vMaster Takeover

Forcing vMaster Takeover

This section describes how to force a vBlade to take over as the vMaster.

The following topics are covered:

• Forced vMaster Takeover Procedure

• Temp-Priority Value

Forced vMaster Takeover Procedure

If you need to force a vBlade to take over the vMaster role:

1. Either change the management context to the vBlade or log directly onto the vBlade.
To change the management context to the vBlade, use the vcs admin-session-connect
command. For example, to change management context to the vBlade device 2:
vcs admin-session-connect device 2

2. After you have changed the management context to the vBlade, or logged on directly to the
vBlade, use the vcs vmaster-take-over command. For example:
vcs vmaster-take-over 215

You are required to specify a temp-priority value (215 in this example). Unless you use this
command on more than one vBlade, it does not matter which value within the range 1-255
you specify. (See “Temp-Priority Value” on page 39.)

Temp-Priority Value

This command does not change the configured VCS priority on the vBlade. The command only
temporarily overrides the configured priority.

If you enter this command on only one vBlade, you can specify any value within the valid range
(1-255). The takeover occurs regardless of priority settings on the current vMaster

If you enter the vcs vmaster-take-over command on more than one vBlade, the device on
which you enter the highest temp-priority value becomes the vMaster

If you enter the same temp-priority value on more than one vBlade, the same parameters used
for initial vMaster election are used to select the new vMaster:

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Determining a Device’s VCS ID

• The device with the highest configured VCS priority is selected. (This is the priority config-
ured by the priority command at the configuration level for the VCS device.)
• If there is a tie (more than one of the devices has the same highest configured VCS prior-
ity), then the device with the lowest device ID is selected.

In either case, the new vMaster is selected from among only the vBlades on which you enter the
vcs vmaster-take-over command.

Determining a Device’s VCS ID

When you log onto the virtual chassis or onto an individual device in the chassis, the device’s
VCS ID is not apparent, unless you modified the device’s hostname to indicate the device ID.

To determine a device’s VCS ID, use the show vcs summary command. The device you are
logged onto is indicated with an asterisk in the State column of the Members section.

• If you are logged directly onto a device through its management interface or a data inter-
face, the asterisk indicates the device.
• If you are logged onto the floating IP address of the virtual chassis, the asterisk indicates
the vMaster.
(This is true unless you changed the device context of the management session. In this
case, you are logged onto the vBlade to which you changed the device context. See “Virtual
Chassis Management Interface (Floating IP Address)” on page 10.)

The following example indicates that the device you are logged onto is VCS device 1, indicated
by the asterisk for device ID 1 in the “Members” section of the output:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]# show vcs summary

VCS Chassis:
VCS Enabled: Yes
Chassis ID: 1
Multicast IP: 224.0.0.210
Multicast Port: 41217
Version: 4.0.1.b159

Members(* means local device):

ID State Priority IP:Port Location
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 vMaster(*) 0 192.168.216.201:41216 Local
2 vBlade 0 192.168.216.202:41216 Remote
Total: 2

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Viewing VCS Information

In the GUI, you can view this information in the main header. Look for this section in the header:

The Device Context field shows that you are currently working on device 1 in the chassis. In
addition, the field on the left indicates that this device (the local device, indicated by the
asterisk) is the vMaster.

Viewing VCS Information

Use the show vcs summary command to view global virtual chassis parameters and the current
role (vMaster or vBlade) of each device in the virtual chassis:

Use the show vcs images command to view the installed VCS-capable ACOS software image:

ACOS# show vcs images

Image Name Type
aximage_4_0_0_500.tar.gz hd_pri
aximage_2_7_0-P2_53.tar.gz hd_sec
-------- ext

From the GUI, navigate to System >> aVCS >> Settings. Click on the Statistics tab, then
select aVCS Summary from the drop-down list. The resulting page shows general VCS
statistics and available aVCS-capable images on the device.

Also from the GUI, navigate to System >> aVCS >> Settings, then click on the aVCS
Deployment Summary tab to view information about your virtual chassis deployment.

VCS CLI-Session Management

This section contains the following topics:

• CLI Message for Commands That Affect Only the Local Device

• Option To Configure VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active

• Option to Disable Syncing of SNMP sysContact OID

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• vMaster Maintenance Mode

CLI Message for Commands That Affect Only the Local Device

This release provides an option that displays a message when you enter a configuration
command that applies to only the local device. When this option is enabled, a message is
displayed if you enter a configuration command that affects only the local device, and the
command does not explicitly indicate the device.

This enhancement is enabled by default and can not be disabled.

Local Device

The “local device” is the device your CLI session is on.

• If you log directly onto one of the devices in the virtual chassis, that device is the local
device. For example, if you log on through the management IP address of a vBlade, that
vBlade is the local device.
• If you change the device context to another ACOS device, that device becomes the local
device.
• If you log onto the virtual chassis’ floating IP address, the vMaster is the local device.

Message Example

The following command sets an aging time for learned MAC entries:

ACOS(config)# mac-age-time 444

This operation applied to device 1

This type of configuration change is device-specific. However, the command does not specify
the device ID to which to apply the configuration change. Therefore, the change is applied to the
local device and the output message displays the device ID results. In this example, the local
device is device 1 in the VCS virtual chassis.

The message is not necessary if you explicitly specify the device, and therefore is not displayed:

ACOS(config)# device-context 2
ACOS(config)# mac-age-time 444 device 2

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Notes

• For commands that access the configuration level for a specific configuration item, the
message is displayed only for the command that accesses the configuration level. For
example:
ACOS(config)# interface ethernet 2
This operation applied to device 1
ACOS(config-if:ethernet1/2)# ip address 1.1.1.1 /24
ACOS(config-if:ethernet1/2)#

The message is not displayed after the ip address command is entered, because the mes-
sage is already displayed after the interface ethernet 2 command is entered.
The same is true for commands at the configuration level for a routing protocol. The mes-
sage is displayed only for the command that accesses the configuration level for the proto-
col.
• In most cases, the message also is displayed following clear commands for device-spe-
cific items. An exception is clear commands for routing information. The message is not
displayed following these commands.
• The message is not displayed after show commands.

Option To Configure VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active

This section contains the following:

• Overview of VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active

• VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active Configuration Example

• VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active and vMaster Takeover

Overview of VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active

Master affinity to VRRP-A Active enables the vMaster device in a virtual chassis to failover when
the Active device in a VRRP-A VRID fails over to a Standby device. When the Standby device
becomes Active, it will also act as the vMaster device in the virtual chassis (Figure 13).

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FIGURE 13 : VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active

In this topology, device 1 is the Active device in the VRID. When it fails over, device 2 will become
the Active device, as it has the next highest priority. Device 4, which is currently the vMaster in
the virtual chassis and is configured with VRID affinity, will follow the update in VRRP-A and
switch to device 2 as the vMaster.

This ensures that the device assuming the master configuration also serves as the active data
path. Configuring the VRID affinity causes the vMaster to stay with a selected VRID. This
capability provides deterministic behavior on the location of the VCS master and the unit
processing traffic for a particular VRRP-A VRID. It also provides better control to effectively
utilize available bandwidth and facilitates troubleshooting efforts.

VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active Configuration Example

To enable a vMaster failover to the Active device, the shared partition is configured to follow the
Active device on a specified VRID (device running VRRP-A). On each device that is part of the
VCS cluster, including the Active device, issue the affinity-vrrp-a-vrid command. See vcs
device for more information.

The following example snippets configure VRID affinity for four devices in a virtual chassis,
based on the example topology in Figure 13:

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VCS CLI-Session Management

NOTE: The affinity-vrrp-a-vrid must be explicitly configured on all

devices for which you want to enable this feature, and the VRID
must also be the same for all devices.

!
...
vcs device 1
priority 225
enable
affinity-vrrp-a-vrid 0
!
vcs device 2
priority 200
enable
affinity-vrrp-a-vrid 0
!
vcs device 3
priority 150
enable
affinity-vrrp-a-vrid 0
vcs device 4
priority 175
enable
affinity-vrrp-a-vrid 0

!
vcs local-device 1
...

VCS Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active and vMaster Takeover

VRID affinity and forced vMaster takeover (“Forced vMaster Takeover” on page 19) cannot be
used together; you will see the following message if you try to configure vMaster takeover with
VRID affinity configured:

Take over vMastership: VCS: vmaster take over is not allowed in affinity vrid state

Once VRID affinity is configured, the vMaster will continue to follow the active device in the VRID
using the existing device priorities. To change the priorities, you must issue the vcs reload
command for the new priorities to take effect.

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VCS CLI-Session Management

vMaster takeover can be used to assign a new vMaster without regard to existing priorities;
hence it is not allowed in conjunction with VRID affinity.

Option to Disable Syncing of SNMP sysContact OID

By default, the SNMP sysContact OID value is synchronized among all member ACOS devices of
an VCS virtual chassis. The current release provides an option to disable this synchronization, on
an individual device basis.

NOTE: After configuring this option for an ACOS device, if you disable VCS
on that device, the running-config is automatically updated to
continue using the same sysContact value you specified for the
device. You do not need to reconfigure the sysContact on the
device after disabling VCS.

The following example shows an example; to disable syncing of SNMP contact snmp-admin on
VCS device 2:

ACOS(config)# no snmp-server contact snmp-admin on-device 2

vMaster Maintenance Mode

In maintenance mode, the vMaster can briefly be placed into maintenance without triggering a
failover of the vMaster role to a vBlade. During the maintenance window, the vBlades continue
to operate, without attempting to failover to the vMaster role.

For more information, see the vcs vMaster-maintenance command.

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ADDING A DEVICE TO A VIRTUAL CHASSIS

This chapter describes how to add a configured ACOS device to a running virtual chassis.

CAUTION: By default, when you add a configured ACOS device to a running

virtual chassis, the device-specific configuration is retained but
the common configuration (SLB and so on) is replaced by the
vMaster.

To allow the vMaster to also replace the new device’s device-spe-

cific configuration, use the disable-merge option when you reload
VCS.

NOTE: If a device has already been a member of a virtual chassis, the

device can not be added to a new virtual chassis.

The following topics are covered in this chapter:

• Overview of Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

• Procedure for Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

Overview of Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

Figure 14 shows the process that occurs when you add an ACOS device that is already
configured to a virtual chassis.

NOTE: The configuration merge behavior described in this section is the

default behavior. If you want the vMaster to also remove the
device-specific configuration information from the new device,
use the disable-merge option when you reload VCS.

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Overview of Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

FIGURE 14 : Previously Configured Device Added to Virtual Chassis and Merged with Virtual
Chassis

The following process occurs when you add a previously configured ACOS device to a virtual
chassis:

1. The previously configured ACOS device (labeled “Configured Device” in the figure) is con-
nected to the virtual chassis network at Layer 2.
An admin then configures VCS settings on the previously configured device and reloads
VCS.
The VCS reload causes the device to send its VCS configuration and its device-specific
configuration to the vMaster.
2. The vMaster applies the VCS configuration and device-specific configuration to its virtual
chassis configuration.
The vMaster then synchronizes the device’s configuration to the other vBlades as part of
the normal configuration synchronization process.
3. The vMaster sends its running-config to the device.
4. On the device, the vMaster running-config is saved as the device’s startup-config. To com-
plete its VCS reload, the device loads its new startup-config. The device is now another
vBlade in the virtual chassis.

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Procedure for Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

Procedure for Adding a Device to a Virtual Chassis

To add an ACOS device that already has a configuration to a VCS chassis:

1. Make sure the virtual chassis is running:

a. Log onto the floating IP address (management address) of the virtual chassis.
b. View the virtual chassis status using the show vcs summary command
2. Connect the configured ACOS device to the Layer 2 network that contains the other virtual
chassis members.
3. Configure VCS settings on the new device and reload VCS.
The following commands show how to configure VCS settings on a configured ACOS device
to be added to a virtual chassis, and reload VCS to activate the VCS configuration:
ACOS# configure
ACOS(config)# vrrp-a common
ACOS(config-common)# set-id 1
ACOS(config-common)# device-id 3
ACOS(config-common_# enable
ACOS-Active(config-common)# exit
ACOS-Active(config)# vcs enable
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.100.169 /24
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs device 3
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# interface management
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# priority 197
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# enable
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# exit
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs reload

Following the reload of VCS, the ACOS device joins the virtual chassis as a vBlade, and its
configuration information is migrated to the virtual chassis’ vMaster.
4. Verify that the device is now a member of the virtual chassis using the show vcs summary
command.

NOTE: Do not use the disable-merge option when you reload VCS; this
option is used only when replacing an existing virtual chassis
member with a new device.

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REPLACING A DEVICE IN A VIRTUAL CHASSIS

By default, when you add an ACOS device to a virtual chassis that is already running, the
device’s configuration information is migrated to the vMaster.

However, if you are replacing a member of the virtual chassis by removing the ACOS device
from the network and inserting another ACOS device of the same model, you may want the
vMaster to migrate the removed device’s configuration information to the new device. In this
case, when you reload VCS on the new device, make sure to use the disable-merge option:

The following commands configure VCS settings on a replacement ACOS device to be inserted
into a virtual chassis, and reload VCS to activate the VCS configuration:

ACOS# configure
ACOS(config)# vrrp-a common
ACOS(config-common)# set-id 1
ACOS(config-common)# device-id 3
ACOS(config-common)# enable
ACOS-Active(config-common)# exit
ACOS-Active(config)# vcs enable
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.100.169 /24
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs device 3
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:#)# interface management
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# priority 197
ACOS-Active(config:3-device:3)# enable
ACOS(Active(config:3-device:3)# exit
ACOS-Active(config:3)# vcs reload disable-merge

Following the reload of VCS, the ACOS device joins the virtual chassis as a vBlade, and receives
its configuration information from the virtual chassis’ vMaster.

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CONFIGURATION SYNCHRONIZATION WITHOUT RELOAD

You can use the Virtual Chassis System (VCS) feature to provide automated configuration
synchronization in VRRP-A deployments, even if you do not plan to use any other VCS features.
Use of VCS for configuration synchronization provides the following benefits:

• VCS configuration synchronization is automatic and occurs in real time. Each configura-
tion change is synchronized to the other ACOS device(s) as soon as the change occurs.
• Reload is not required.

Figure 15 shows an example VRRP-A deployment that uses VCS for automated configuration
synchronization.

FIGURE 15 : VCS Used for Automated Configuration Synchronization

VRRP-A with VCS Deployment Example

The following commands deploy the VRRP-A configuration shown in Figure 15.

Commands on Device 1

The following commands configure the VRRP-A set ID and device ID, and enable VRRP-A on
device 1:

ACOS-1# configure

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ACOS-1(config)# vrrp-a common

ACOS-1(config-common)# set-id 1
ACOS-1(config-common)# device-id 1
ACOS-1(config-common)# enable
ACOS-1-Active(config-common)# exit
ACOS-1-Active(config)#

The following command enables VCS and configures the floating IP address, which is the
management address for the virtual chassis. The floating IP address must be in the same subnet
as the ACOS device’s management IP address or one of the device’s data interface IP
addresses.

ACOS-1-Active(config)# vcs enable

ACOS-1-Active(config:1)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.209.23 /24

The following commands configure the VCS profile for the device.

ACOS-1-Active(config:1)# vcs device 1

ACOS-1-Active(config:1-device:1)# priority 110
ACOS-1-Active(config:1-device:1)# interface management
ACOS-1-Active(config:1-device:1)# interfaces ethernet 1
ACOS-1-Active(config:1-device:1)# enable
ACOS-1-Active(config:1-device:1)# exit

The priority command helps identify this ACOS device as the preferred vMaster. Use a higher
priority value on this device than on the second device.

The interfaces commands identify interfaces that can be used by VCS. It is recommended to
specify more than one interface, to help ensure continued communication in case a link goes
down.

The following commands save the changes and activate the VCS configuration.

ACOS-1-Active(config:1)# write memory

ACOS-1-Active(config:1)# vcs reload

Commands on Device 2

The following commands configure the VRRP-A set ID and device ID, and enable VRRP-A on
device 2:

ACOS-2# configure
ACOS-2(config)# vrrp-a common
ACOS-2(config-common)# set-id 1

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ACOS-2(config-common)# device-id 2
ACOS-2(config-common)# enable
ACOS-2(config-common)# exit
ACOS-2-Active(config)# vcs enable
ACOS-2-Active(config:2)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.209.23 /24
ACOS-2-Active(config:2)# vcs device 2
ACOS-2-Active(config:2-device:2)# priority 100
ACOS-2-Active(config:2-device:2)# interface management
ACOS-2-Active(config:2-device:2)# interface ethernet 1
ACOS-2-Active(config:2-device:2)# enable
ACOS-2-Active(config:2-device:2)# exit
ACOS-2-Active(config:2)# vcs reload

System configuration has been modified. Save? [yes/no]:yes

Building configuration...
Write configuration to primary default startup-config
[OK]
Running configuration is saved
ACOS-2-Active(config:2)#

NOTE: When you enter the vcs reload command on the second device, it
receives non-device-specific configuration information from the
first device. This occurs if the first device already has become the
vMaster for the VCS virtual chassis.

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VCS CLI COMMANDS

This chapter describes the commands used to configure Virtual Chassis System (VCS).

The following topics are covered:

• VCS Operational Commands

• VCS Configuration Commands

• VCS Show Commands

NOTE: VCS reload is required to place any VCS-related configuration

changes into effect.

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VCS Operational Commands

VCS Operational Commands

This section describes the VCS operational commands.

These commands are used to operate VCS, but do not change any VCS configuration settings.
To configure VCS, refer to “VCS Configuration Commands” on page 64.

The following operational commands are covered in this section:

• device-context

• vcs admin-session-connect

• vcs disable

• vcs enable

• vcs vMaster-maintenance

• vcs vmaster-take-over

device-context
Description Change the context of the CLI session from the vMaster to a vBlade, in
order to configure the vBlade.

This command is used to configure device-specific and routing

settings for an ACOS device in a VCS environment. To configure VCS-
related settings for a device in a VCS environment, use the vcs device
command.

This command can also be applied to certain non-routing

configuration commands (for example, LACP).

NOTE: This command replaces the router device-context command

in previous releases.

Syntax device-context DeviceID

Replace DeviceID with the ID of the target device. The target device is
the device you plan to access. The acceptable values for this
parameter will vary depending on your specific hardware platform.

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Default By default, the vMaster for the virtual chassis is the context of the
management session.

Mode Configuration mode

Example The following example changes the configuration context to device 3

in a virtual chassis, and changes the hostname of that device to
“ACOS3:”

ACOS(config)# device-context 3
All the following configuration will go to device 3
ACOS(config)# hostname ACOS3
ACOS3(config)#

vcs admin-session-connect
Description Open an SSH admin session with a device in a VCS virtual chassis.

Syntax vcs admin-session-connect device DeviceID

Replace DeviceID with the ID of the target device. The target device is
the device you plan to access. The acceptable values for this
parameter will vary depending on your specific hardware platform.

Default By default, the CLI session is on the device you logged onto.

Mode Global Config (on vMaster only)

Usage This command does not apply to device-specific configuration com-

mands. To enter device-specific configuration commands on another
device, use the device-context command instead.

Entering this command on the vMaster creates an SSH connection to

the vBlade, without a password prompt. After the connection is
established, you can enter configuration commands to take effect on
the vBlade.

While the connection to the vBlade is in effect, configuration

commands cannot be entered directly on the vBlade through any
other management connections.
If an SSH security warning about the RSA fingerprint is displayed:

• If the RSA fingerprint is correct, enter yes.

• If the RSA fingerprint does not match, enter no. Someone may be
attempting to spoof the device in order to gain information about
the system or network access.

Example The following command changes the CLI session to VCS device 2. In
this example, this is the first time the command has been used to
access device 2.

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VCS Operational Commands

ACOS-device1(config)# vcs admin-session-connect device 2

spawn ssh -l admin 192.168.100.126
The authenticity of host '192.168.100.126 (192.168.100.126)' can't be established.
RSA key fingerprint is ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)? yes
Warning: Permanently added '192.168.100.126' (RSA) to the list of known hosts.
Last login: Thu Feb 23 03:33:37 2017 from 10.254.101.80

ACOS system is ready now.

[type ? for help]

TIS-Standby-vBlade[1/2]>enable
Password:***
Last login: Thu Jul 22 21:06:46 2010 from 192.168.3.77
ACOS-device2#

At the Password prompt, enter the password for the admin account on
the target device.

Example The following example shows the CLI response if you accidentally try
to switch to the device you are already on:

ACOS-device1(config)# vcs admin-session-connect device 1

Unnecessary to do such operation to manage local device

vcs disable
Description Disable VCS on the device.
Syntax vcs disable

Default N/A. This is an operational command rather than a configuration com-

mand.

Mode Privileged EXEC (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage In addition to disabling VCS on the current device, you can also use
device-context to disable VCS on another device. See examples
below.

Example The following example disables VCS on the current device:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]# vcs disable

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]#

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Example The following example switches to device 2 from device 1, then dis-
ables VCS on device 2:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]# configure
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# device-context 2
All the following configuration will go to device 2
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:2)# vcs disable
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:2)#

vcs enable
Description Enable VCS on the device.
Syntax vcs enable

Default N/A. This is an operational command rather than a configuration com-

mand.

Mode Privileged EXEC (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage After you enter the vcs enable command, you must enter the vcs
reload command to place any VCS configuration changes into effect
and activate the feature.

Before using this command, many of the VCS commands are not
available from the CLI.

The following example shows the commands available prior to running

the vcs enable command:
ACOS(config)# vcs ?
failure-retry-count VCS retry count after fails to join the chassis
vMaster-maintenance During this period, vMaster can leave and come back to
be vMaster again
enable enable VCS
disable disable VCS
ACOS(config)# vcs

In addition to enabling VCS on the current device, you can also use
device-context to enable VCS on another device. See examples below.

Example The following example enables VCS on the current device:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]# vcs enable

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]#

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VCS Operational Commands

Example The following example switches to device 2 from device 1, then

enables VCS on device 2:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1]# configure
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# device-context 2
All the following configuration will go to device 2
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:2)# vcs enable
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:2)#

vcs vMaster-maintenance
Description Change the length of the vMaster maintenance window.
Syntax [no] vcs vMaster-maintenance seconds

Replace seconds with the length of the maintenance window. You can
specify 0-3600 seconds.

Default The default is 60 seconds.

Mode Privileged EXEC (on vBlade); Privileged EXEC and Global Config (on
vMaster)

Usage VCS option that allows the vMaster to briefly be placed into mainte-
nance, without triggering failover of the vMaster role to a vBlade.
During the maintenance window, the vBlades continue to operate,
without attempting to failover to the vMaster role.

vcs vmaster-take-over
Description Force vMaster re-election, by temporarily changing a device’s VCS pri-
ority. This command is useful for changing a vBlade to vMaster with-
out changing the VCS configuration profile for either device.

Syntax [no] vcs vmaster-take-over temp-priority

Replace temp-priority with the priority value, 1-255.

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Default N/A

Mode Privileged EXEC (on vBlade); Privileged EXEC and Global Config (on
vMaster)

Usage This command does not change the configured VCS priority on the
device. The command only temporarily overrides the configured prior-
ity.

If you enter this command on only one vBlade, you can specify any
value within the valid range (1-255). The takeover occurs regardless of
priority settings on the current vMaster.

If you enter the vcs vmaster-take-over command on more than one

device, the device on which you enter the highest temp-priority value
becomes the vMaster.
If you enter the same temp-priority value on more than one device,
the same parameters used for initial vMaster election are used to
select the new vMaster:

• The device with the highest configured VCS priority is selected.

(This is the priority configured by the priority command at the
configuration level for the VCS device.)
• If there is a tie (more than one of the devices has the same high-
est configured VCS priority), then the device with the lowest
device ID is selected.
In either case, the new vMaster is selected from among only the
devices on which you enter the vcs vmaster-take-over command.

Example The following commands change the management context to a

vBlade, then force the device to become the vMaster:

ACOS-1# vcs admin-session-connect device 2

spawn ssh -l admin 192.168.100.126
The authenticity of host '192.168.100.126 (192.168.100.126)' can't be established.
RSA key fingerprint is ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)? yes
Warning: Permanently added '192.168.100.126' (RSA) to the list of known hosts.
Password:
Last login: Wed Aug 11 20:27:24 2010 from 192.168.3.74

[type ? for help]

ACOS>enable
Password:********
ACOS-2#vcs vmaster-take-over 255

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VCS Configuration Commands

VCS Configuration Commands

This section describes the VCS configuration commands.

These commands are used to configure specific VCS settings, and are available after entering
the device-context global configuration command.

The following commands are available:

• vcs dead-interval

• vcs debug

• vcs device

• vcs failure-retry-count

• vcs floating-ip

• vcs floating-ipv6

• vcs force-wait-interval

• vcs multicast-ip

• vcs multicast-ipv6

• vcs multicast-port

• vcs reload

• vcs ssl-enable

• vcs time-interval

• vcs vmaster-maintenance

vcs dead-interval
Description Configure the number of seconds vBlade devices wait for a keepalive
message from the vMaster, before assuming the vMaster is unavaila-
ble and triggering vMaster re-election.

Syntax [no] vcs dead-interval seconds

Replace seconds with the maximum number of seconds to wait for a

keepalive message from the vMaster before triggering vMaster re-
election. You can specify 5-60 seconds.

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Default 10

Mode Global Config (vMaster only)

Example The following example sets the interval to 20 seconds:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs dead-interval 20

vcs debug
Description Enable VCS debugging.

Syntax [no] vcs debug {daemon | election | info | vblade | vmaster}

Parameter Description
daemon Enables debugging for the VCS process.
election Enables debugging for vMaster election.
info Enables display of informational messages in the debugging
output.
vblade Enables debugging for vBlade-related operations.
vmaster Enables debugging for vMaster-related operations.

Default Disabled

Mode Privileged EXEC (on vBlade); Privileged EXEC and Global Config (on
vMaster)

Example The following commands enable debugging for VCS vMaster opera-
tions, and display the output:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs debug vmaster

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# show vcs debug
Debugging switches: vmaster,
Debugging Buffer Size: 8 MB
2010/08/02 10:46:02, [vMaster], vBlade 0, msg loop, received msg
21
2010/08/02 10:46:02, [vMaster], vBlade 0, msg loop, sent msg 20
...

vcs device
Description Add a device to an existing VCS chassis, and configure VCS-related
settings for the specified device.

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VCS Configuration Commands

To configure device-specific or routing settings for an ACOS device in

an VCS environment, use the device-context command.

Syntax [no] vcs device device-id

Replace device-id with the device ID. The acceptable values for this
parameter will vary depending on your specific hardware platform.

This command changes the CLI to the configuration level for the
specified VCS device, where the following VCS-related commands are
available.

Command Description
[no] affinity-vrrp-a- Configures a vMaster failover to the Active device on a specified VRID
vrid vrid-group (device running VRRP-A). Use this command on each device that is part
of the VCS cluster, including the Active device.

For more information about this feature, see “Option To Configure VCS
Master Affinity to VRRP-A Active” on page 43.
[no] enable Enables VCS on the device.

VCS is disabled by default.

[no] interfaces Device interfaces used for VCS vMaster election traffic. You can specify
{ethernet portnum | up to 6 election interfaces.
management |
trunk trunk-num | For vMaster election to work, the other devices in the virtual chassis
ve ve-num}
must be able to reach the device on the specified interface(s).
[no] priority num Priority of this device for vMaster election, 1-255. Higher priority values
are preferred over lower ones.

The default priority is 0 (not set).

[no] unicast-port Protocol port used to create TCP connection between the vMaster and
portnum vBlade. This connection is used for configuration synchronization.

The default unicast port is 41216.

Default No VCS devices are configured by default. When you add a VCS
device, its parameters have the default values described in the table
above.

Mode Global Config (vMaster only)

Usage The election interfaces for devices in an VCS virtual chassis must be in
the shared partition. Use of an L3V private partition’s interface as a
VCS election interface is not supported.

Example The following commands add device 3 to an existing VCS chassis. The
management interface will be used for VCS election traffic and its pri-
ority is 3.

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ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs device 3

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1-device:3)# interfaces manage-
ment
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1-device:3)# priority 3
ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1-device:3)# enable

vcs failure-retry-count
Description Configure the maximum number of retries for a VCS device to join a
virtual chassis.

Syntax [no] vcs failure-retry-count {retries | forever}

Parameter Description
retries Maximum number of retries for a VCS device to join a virtual
chassis. You can specify 0-255.
forever Specify an unlimited amount of retries for a VCS device to join
a virtual chassis.

Default 2

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage If the device is unable to join the virtual chassis after all allowed retries
are used, VCS stops on the device. In this case, you use the vcs reload
command to restart VCS on the device.

Example The following example configures an ACOS device to try 3 times to join
a virtual chassis:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs failure-retry-count 3

vcs floating-ip
Description Configure the management IP address for the VCS virtual chassis.

Syntax [no] vcs floating-ip ipaddr {subnet-mask | /mask-length}

Specifies the IP address and subnet mask.

Default Not set

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Example The following command sets the management address for the VCS
virtual chassis to 192.168.1.69/24:

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VCS Configuration Commands

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs floating-ip 192.168.1.69

/24

vcs floating-ipv6
Description Configure an IPv6 management IP address for the VCS virtual chassis.

Syntax [no] vcs floating-ipv6 ipv6-addr/mask-length

Specifies the IP address and subnet mask.

Default Not set

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Example The following command sets the management address for the VCS
virtual chassis to the IPv6 address fc00:0:3::23:a/24:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs floating-ipv6 fc00:0:3::23:a/24

vcs force-wait-interval
Description Delay the start of VCS following a reload/reboot.

Syntax [no] vcs force-wait-interval seconds

Replace seconds with the number of seconds (5-240) to wait following

a a reload or reboot to start VCS.

Default 5

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage This command can be useful if you use staggered upgrade.

Example The following example configures the device to wait 10 seconds

before starting the reload or reboot:

ACOS-Active-vMaster[1/1](config:1)# vcs force-wait-interval 10

vcs multicast-ip
Description Configure the multicast IPv4 address used for VCS vMaster election.

Syntax [no] vcs multicast-ip ipv4-addr

Replace ipv4-addr with the multicast address.

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Default 224.0.0.210

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage To configure the protocol port, see “vcs multicast-port” on page 69.

vcs multicast-ipv6
Description Configure the multicast IPv6 address used for VCS vMaster election.

Syntax [no] vcs multicast-ip ipv6-addr

Replace ipv6-addr with the multicast address.

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage To configure the protocol port, see “vcs multicast-port” on page 69.

vcs multicast-port
Description Configure the protocol port used for VCS vMaster election.

Syntax [no] vcs multicast-port portnum

Replace portnum with the protocol port number, 1-65535.

Default 41217

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

Usage To configure the multicast address, see “vcs multicast-ip” on page 68.

vcs reload
Description Reload the VCS process.

Syntax vcs reload [disable-merge]

The disable-merge option prevents configuration information from

being migrated from the vBlades to the vMaster following the reload.
This option is useful when you are replacing a virtual chassis vBlade by
removing an ACOS device and replacing it with another ACOS device
of the same model. In this case, the option allows the replacement
device to be configured by the vMaster.

After the initial configuration migration, configuration synchronization

operates normally.

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VCS Configuration Commands

Without this option, when you add an ACOS device to a virtual chassis
that is already running, the device’s configuration information is
migrated to the vMaster

Default N/A

Mode Global Config (vMaster only)

Usage VCS reload is required to place any VCS-related configuration changes

into effect.

vcs ssl-enable
Description Enable or disable SSL for configuration synchronization traffic
between VCS devices.

Syntax [no] vcs ssl-enable

Default Disabled

Mode Global Config (vMaster only)

vcs time-interval
Description Number of seconds between keepalive messages from the vMaster to
vBlades.
Syntax [no] vcs time-interval seconds

Replace seconds with the number of seconds between transmission

of keepalive messages from the vMaster to vBlades. You can specify
1-60 seconds.

Default 3

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

vcs vmaster-maintenance
Description Briefly place the vMaster into maintenance mode without triggering a
failover to a vBlade.

Syntax vcs vmaster-maintenance period

Replace period with the amount of time (0-3600 seconds) that the
vMaster is placed into maintenance mode without triggering a failover.

Default 60 seconds

Mode Global Config (vMaster or vBlade)

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Usage The vMaster can be placed into maintenance mode without triggering
a failover to a vBlade. During this maintenance window, the vBlades
continue to operate without attempting to take over the vMaster role.
At the end of the configurable maintenance period, the vMaster
returns to the vMaster role.

VCS Show Commands

This section describes the VCS-specific show commands:

• show vcs debug

• show vcs images

• show vcs summary

NOTE: This section only contains VCS-related show commands beginning

with show vcs. Many other show commands can be used in a VCS
context by specifying the specific ID of a device in the virtual
chassis.

For more information, see the “Show Commands” chapter in the

Command Line Interface Reference, or type “?” at the CLI prompt.

show vcs debug

Description Display VCS debug messages.

Syntax show vcs debug [old_first]

Use the old_first option to list messages beginning with the most
recent. Without this option, the list begins with the oldest message in
the buffer.

Mode All

show vcs images

Description Display the VCS-capable software images stored on the ACOS device.

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VCS Show Commands

NOTE: Only images that support VCS are listed. To list all images, use
the show bootimage command instead.

Syntax show vcs images

Mode All

Example The following command shows the VCS-capable software images

stored on the device:

ACOS# show vcs images

Image Name Type
aximage_4_0_1_159.tar.gz hd_pri
aximage_4_0_0_536.tar.gz hd_sec
-------- cf_pri
-------- cf_sec
-------- ext

The following table describes the fields in the command output.

Field Description
Image Name Name of the software image.
Type Location of the image:

• hd_pri – Primary image area of the hard drive or Solid State Drive (SSD)
• hd_sec – Secondary image area of the hard drive or SSD
• cf_pri – Primary image area of the compact flash drive
• cf_sec – Secondary image area of the compact flash drive
• ext – Extended image, used for staged upgrades during which multiple ACOS software versions
run in the virtual chassis.

Note: If dashes (--------) are displayed instead of an image name, the image does not support
VCS.

show vcs summary

Description Display VCS virtual chassis information.

Syntax show vcs summary

Mode All

Example The following command shows summary VCS information:

ACOS# show vcs summary

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VCS Chassis:
VCS Enabled: Yes
Chassis ID: 3
Floating IP: 5.5.5.254
Mask: 255.255.255.0
Floating IP: 192.168.148.14
Mask: 255.255.255.0
Multicast IP: 224.0.0.210
Multicast Port: 41217
Version: 2.6.1.b478

Members(* means local device):

ID State Priority IP:Port Location
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 vMaster(*) 200 192.168.148.16:41216 Local
2 vBlade 199 192.168.148.15:41216 Remote
Total: 2

The following table describes the fields in the command output.

Field Description
VCS Chassis Fields
VCS Enabled State of the VCS feature, Enabled or Disabled.
Chassis ID ID of the virtual chassis.
Floating IP IP interface associated with the virtual chassis floating IP address.
Mask Network mask of the Floating IP interface.
Multicast IP Multicast IP address used for VCS vMaster election.
Multicast Port Protocol port used for vMaster election.
Version Software version and build running on the ACOS device.
Members Fields
ID VCS ID of the member device.
State Current role of the device, vMaster or vBlade.

NOTE: If you enter this command in a session that is logged onto the VCS float-
ing IP address, the “local device” is always the vMaster, unless you change the
context ID of the management session.
Priority vMaster election priority of the device.

NOTE: This is the admin-configured priority value, not the dynamic priority
assigned by VCS.

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VCS Show Commands

Field Description
IP:Port IP address and protocol port used for configuration synchronization with the
member device.
Location Indicates whether this is the device context on which you entered the show vcs
summary command:

• Local – This is the device context on which you entered the command.
• Remote – This is not the device context on which you entered the command.

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