3COM Hub 1000 SX User Manual

SuperStack® II Hub 1000 SX

User Guide

A member of the 3Com SuperStack II System

http://www.3com.com/

Part No. 09-1354-000 Published March 1998

3Com Corporation 5400 Bayfront Plaza Santa Clara, California 95052-8145

Copyright © 1998, 3Com Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this documentation may be reproduced in any form or by any means or used to make any derivative work (such as translation, transformation, or adaptation) without written permission from 3Com Corporation.

3Com Corporation reserves the right to revise this documentation and to make changes in content from time to time without obligation on the part of 3Com Corporation to provide notiﬁcation of such revision or change.

3Com Corporation provides this documentation without warranty of any kind, either implied or expressed, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and ﬁtness for a particular purpose. 3Com may make improvements or changes in the product(s) and/or the program(s) described in this documentation at any time.

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT LEGENDS:

If you are a United States government agency, then this documentation and the software described herein are provided to you subject to the following:

United States Government Legend:

and developed solely at private expense. Software is delivered as Commercial Computer Software as deﬁned in DFARS 252.227-7014 (June 1995) or as a commercial item as deﬁned in FAR 2.101(a) and as such is provided with only such rights as are provided in 3Com’s standard commercial license for the Software. Technical data is provided with limited rights only as provided in DFAR 252.227-7015 (Nov 1995) or FAR

52.227-14 (June 1987), whichever is applicable. You agree not to remove or deface any portion of any legend provided on any licensed program or documentation contained in, or delivered to you in conjunction with, this User Guide.

Unless otherwise indicated, 3Com registered trademarks are registered in the United States and may or may not be registered in other countries.

3Com, the 3Com logo, EtherLink, Net Age, and SuperStack are registered trademarks of 3Com Corporation. 3ComFacts is a service mark of 3Com Corporation.

CompuServe is a registered trademark of CompuServe, Inc. Other brand and product names may be registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holders.

All technical data and computer software is commercial in nature

ONTENTS

BOUT THIS GUIDE

NTRODUCTION

Hub 1000 SX General Description 1-1 Downlinks and Uplink 1-2 Full-Duplex Operation 1-2 Flow Control 1-2

Asymmetric Flow Control 1-3 Symmetric Flow Control 1-3 Auto-Negotiation 1-3 Forced Link 1-3

Features and Functions 1-4

NSTALLING THE HUB

Safety Precautions 2-1 Package Contents 2-1 Hub Description 2-2

Front Panel 2-2

Rear Panel 2-3 Preparing the Site 2-3 Installing and Connecting the Hub 2-3

Mounting in a Rack 2-3

Placing on a Desktop 2-5 Interpreting Hub Indicators 2-5 Installing and Connecting a GBIC Module 2-7 Using Optional Power Systems 2-8

Advanced RPS 2-8

Power Modules 2-9 Cabling Options 2-9

Uninterruptible Power System 2-10

AKING CONNECTIONS

Aggregating Servers 3-2 Connecting a Power Workgroup 3-2 Aggregating Switches 3-3 Mixing Connections 3-4 Connecting Through the Uplink 3-5 Troubleshooting 3-6

SING THE CONSOLE PORT

Requirements A-2 Connecting the Console Port A-2

With Power Connected A-2 With Power Disconnected A-3

POST Messages A-3 Logging On A-4 Changing the Password A-5 Conﬁguring Port Settings A-5

Disabling Ports A-7

Disabling Auto-Negotiation A-8

Conﬁguring the Uplink for Asymmetric Flow Control A-10 Displaying Hub Status A-12 Restoring the Factory Default Settings A-14 Updating the Firmware Image A-15

Checking the Firmware Version A-15

Transferring the Firmware Image File A-16 Logging Off A-17 Troubleshooting A-17

PECIFICATIONS

ECHNICAL SUPPORT

Online Technical Services C-1

World Wide Web Site C-1 3Com Bulletin Board Service C-1

Access by Analog Modem C-2

Access by Digital Modem C-2 3ComFacts Automated Fax Service C-2 3ComForum on CompuServe Online Service C-3

Support from Your Network Supplier C-3 Support from 3Com C-4 Returning Products for Repair C-5

LOSSARY

NDEX

3COM C

ORPORATION LIMITED WARRANTY

FCC C

LASS

A V

ERIFICATION STATEMENT

IGURES

2-1

Hub 1000 SX Front and Rear Panels 2-2

2-2

Attaching a Bracket for Rack Mounting 2-4

2-3

Rack Mounting the Hub 2-4

2-4

Sample GBIC Module 2-7

3-1

Server Farm Connection 3-2

3-2

Power Workgroup Connection 3-3

3-3

Aggregated Switches Connection 3-4

3-4

Mixed Connection 3-5

3-5

Connection to Another Hub 1000 SX 3-5

3-6

Uplink Connection to a 10/100 Mbps Switch 3-6

A-1

Console Port A-1

vii

ABLES

Notice Icons 1

Text Conventions 2

2-1

Downlink Connections 2-5

2-2

Hub 1000 SX Indicators 2-6

2-3

GBIC Modules 2-7

2-4

Advanced RPS Conﬁguration Options 2-10

3-1

Gigabit Ethernet Maximum Cable Lengths 3-1

3-2

Troubleshooting Tips 3-6

A-1

Situations That Require Conﬁguring Port Settings A-5

A-2

Port Conﬁguration

A-3

Hub Status Information A-12

A-4

File Transfer Error Messages A-18

A-5

Fatal Error Messages A-18

Menu A-7

BOUT

HIS

UIDE

This guide contains installation procedures and technical information about the 3Com full-duplex repeater (part number 3C510-SX).

It is assumed that the user knows basic precautions and procedures for working with electrical equipment and has experience installing, using, and managing an Ethernet network. It is also assumed that the user has some knowledge of repeater technology.

If release notes are shipped with this product and the information in the release notes differs from the information in this guide, follow the information in the release notes.

Table 1 and Table 2 list conventions that are used throughout this guide.

Table 1

Icon

Notice Icons

Notice Type Description

Information note

Caution Information to alert you to potential damage to a

Warning Information to alert you to potential personal injury

SuperStack® II Hub 1000 SX Gigabit Ethernet

Important features or instructions

program, system, or device

BOUT THIS GUIDE

Table 2

Text Conventions

Convention

Screen displays

Description

This typeface represents information as it appears on the screen.

Commands

The word “command” means you must enter the command exactly as shown in text and press Return or Enter. For example:

To remove the IP address, enter the following command:

SETDEFAULT !0 -IP NETaddr = 0.0.0.0

This guide always gives the full form of a command in uppercase and lowercase letters. However, you can abbreviate commands by entering only the uppercase letters and the appropriate value. Commands are not case sensitive.

The words “enter” and “type”

When you see the word “enter” in this guide, you must type something, and then press the Return or Enter key. Do not press the Return or Enter key when an instruction simply says “type.”

Keyboard key names If you must press two or more keys simultaneously, the key

names are linked with a plus sign (+). For example: Press Ctrl+Alt+Del.

Menu commands

and

buttons

Words in

italicized

Menu commands or button names appear in italics. Example:

From the

Help

menu, select

Contents

type Italics emphasize a point or denote new terms at the place

where they are defined in the text.

Words in

bold-face

Bold text denotes key features.

type

NTRODUCTION

Gigabit Ethernet technology allows signal transmission at the rate of one gigabit per second (1 Gbps, or 1000 Mbps), while continuing to support IEEE 802.3 CSMA/CD local area networks. Using this technology, you can add gigabit bandwidth to critical areas of a network and fully leverage investments in Ethernet and Fast Ethernet products.

Hub 1000 SX General Description

The 3Com® SuperStack® II Hub 1000 SX Gigabit Ethernet full-duplex repeater (part number 3C510-SX) combines the low cost and simplicity of a hub with the high performance and efﬁcient throughput of a switch. You can use the Hub 1000 SX to:

■

Aggregate servers Aggregate 10/100 Mbps switches

■

■ Provide gigabit bandwidth to a power workgroup that is running a

high-bandwidth application such as medical imaging, video editing, ﬁlm postproduction, CAD/CAM, or digital prepress

The Hub 1000 SX is an eight-port repeater. All ports transmit and receive at a speed of one gigabit per second. The hub forwards all incoming packets (without ﬁltering them) to all links except the originating link, thus providing a shared bandwidth domain. Like a switch, the Hub 1000 SX uses full-duplex ports and packet ﬂow control to increase bandwidth and ensure reliable performance.

The hub is ready to use and requires no conﬁguration. However, some conﬁguration options are available through the console interface for use in exceptional cases.

The Hub 1000 SX is part of the 3Com SuperStack II system and can be used with the SuperStack II Advanced Redundant Power System (Advanced RPS) and the SuperStack II Uninterruptible Power System (UPS), which provide fail-safe operation and a constant power supply.

1-2 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Downlinks and Uplink

Full-Duplex Operation

The hub’s eight 1000BASE-SX full-duplex downlink ports (downlinks) can connect to servers or clients that are equipped with Gigabit Ethernet network interface cards (NICs) or to 10/100 Mbps switches that are equipped with Gigabit Ethernet uplink devices.

One uplink port (uplink) accepts an optional gigabit interface connector (GBIC) module. The following types of GBIC modules are available:

■ 1000BASE-CX coaxial transmits over short-haul shielded balanced

copper cable (known as twinaxial STP).

■ 1000BASE-LX long-wavelength transmits over multimode ﬁber (MMF)

or single-mode ﬁber (SMF) cable.

■ 1000BASE-SX short-wavelength transmits over MMF cable.

The primary use of the uplink is to connect to a network backbone through a Gigabit Ethernet switch such as the 3Com SuperStack II Switch 9300.

Full-duplex operation allows frames to be transmitted and received simultaneously and, in effect, doubles the bandwidth available on a link. For Gigabit Ethernet devices, full-duplex operation allows a peak data transmission rate of 2 Gbps. All Hub 1000 SX ports operate only in full-duplex mode and receive frames from attached segments at a speed of 1 Gbps.

Each port’s input buffer places received packets in an 18 KB input FIFO to wait in a queue for the hub’s internal bus. The hub grants ports access to the bus in a round-robin fashion. When a port has access to the bus, it places the packet at the head of its input queue on the bus. All the other ports transmit the packet out. Link-level ﬂow control manages the queue.

Flow Control The Hub 1000 SX uses IEEE 802.3x ﬂow control to prevent input buffers

from overﬂowing. Flow control uses pause frames to communicate buffer status between linked transmitting and receiving devices (transmitters and receivers). A receiver sends a pause frame—thereby using outgoing ﬂow control—to tell a transmitter to stop the transmission of data frames for a speciﬁed period, allowing the receiver’s input port buffers to empty. When a transmitter receives pause frames—using incoming ﬂow control—it suspends transmission for the speciﬁed period.

Flow Control 1-3

When the receiver’s input buffers can store packets again, it can either send another pause frame to tell the transmitter to resume transmission, or wait for transmission to resume.

If the Hub 100 SX receives a pause frame, it does not remove the frame from the network. Instead, it corrupts the frame’s CRC ﬁeld and retransmits the frame to all other ports.

Asymmetric

Flow Control

With asymmetric ﬂow control, only one of two linked devices can use incoming ﬂow control to receive pause frames. Most full-duplex repeaters default to asymmetric ﬂow control. The Hub 1000 SX downlinks support asymmetric, outgoing ﬂow control only. The downlinks can send pause frames to tell attached devices to stop transmission. They ignore any pause frames that they receive, because acting upon them would stop transmission to all ports, bringing hub operation to a halt.

Symmetric

Flow Control

With symmetric ﬂow control, both linked devices can use incoming and outgoing ﬂow control to send and receive pause frames. The Hub 1000 SX uplink defaults to symmetric ﬂow control—also known as bidirectional ﬂow control—which prevents congestion at the core of the network when the hub is connected to the network backbone.

The uplink can be reconﬁgured for asymmetric, outgoing ﬂow control to support a connection to a server or 10/100 Mbps switch.

Auto-Negotiation Related to ﬂow control is the auto-negotiation capability, in which the

Hub 1000 SX ports and linked devices advertise their ﬂow control capabilities and automatically select the best common mode of communication. During an auto-negotiation sequence, the Hub 1000 SX downlinks advertise their capability for outgoing ﬂow control and the uplink advertises its capability for incoming and outgoing ﬂow control. For example, the result of an auto-negotiation sequence between a Hub 1000 SX downlink and a SuperStack II Switch 3000 port is that the downlink uses outgoing ﬂow control and the switch port uses incoming ﬂow control.

Forced Link The Hub 1000 SX ports default to auto-negotiation. Rare cases (for

example, linking to a device that does not support auto-negotiation) may require that auto-negotiation be disabled on a port, thereby enabling forced link on that port. When forced link is enabled, linked devices must have matching ﬂow control capabilities. For example, a port that is set for forced link and outgoing ﬂow control can connect successfully only with a port that is set for forced link and incoming ﬂow control.

1-4 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Features and Functions

The hub can be mounted in a 19-inch standard rack or placed on a ﬂat surface. It supports the 1000 Mbps media access control (MAC) as speciﬁed in the IEEE 802.3z standard. In addition, the hub has these features:

■ LED indicators report the status of each port and of hub operations. A

meter shows the percentage of bandwidth being used within the hub.

■ The serial console interface allows limited options for port

conﬁguration and, if necessary, ﬁrmware updates.

■ Power-on self-test (POST) diagnostics determine whether the hub is

functioning properly at power up.

■ Frame-aging ﬁrmware improves performance by minimizing

unnecessary frame aging and subsequent attempts to retransmit packets at the protocol level.

■ Round-robin arbitration grants fair access for all ports to the hub’s

internal bus on a packet-by-packet basis.

■ Signal retiming restores the timing and amplitude of the received

signal before retransmitting the signal.

■ A carrier integrity monitor checks packets for invalid framing and

removes invalid frames from the network.

■ Jabber control inhibits overly long transmissions of data generated by

the hardware failure of an attached device.

INSTALLING THE HUB

This chapter describes the Hub 1000 SX package contents and provides installation procedures for the hub and for optional GBIC modules and power systems.

No conﬁguration is required to install and use the hub.

Safety Precautions To avoid personal injury or damage to the Hub 1000 SX unit, observe the

following safety precautions:

WARNING: Do not perform any maintenance on the hub while it is still connected to a power source.

WARNING: Remove all jewelry from your hands and wrists before installing the hub. Use insulated or nonconductive tools.

CAUTION: Power for the unit must be supplied by a grounded power source. The hub should never be connected to an ungrounded AC outlet or power supply.

Package Contents Remove the hub from the shipping package and verify that you have

received these items in good condition:

■ Hub 1000 SX unit

■ Rack mounting kit containing two brackets and four screws

■ Four rubber feet for desktop placement

■ AC power cord

■ SuperStack II Hub 1000 SX User Guide

Inspect each item for damage. If you ﬁnd a problem, contact the network supplier and the carrier that delivered the package.

2-2 CHAPTER 2: INSTALLING THE HUB

If you need to return the hub to 3Com, pack it in the original (or equivalent) packing material to maintain the warranty.

If you ordered a GBIC module or optional power system, it is packaged separately from the hub.

Hub Description The hub’s front and rear panels are shown in Figure 2-1.

Front panel

TX RX2TX RX3TX RX4TX RX

3C510-SX

1000BASE-SX downlink ports

1000BASE-SX

TX RX6TX RX7TX RX8TX RX

100

ACTIVITY

LINK

% BW USAGE

% BW

usage meter

PORT STATUS

234 5678 9

Hub operation

RPS ONOVERTEMP

SuperStack II

HUB 1000 SX

LEDs

SUPER STACK

UNIT STATUS

PAUSERPS FAILPWR

PORT STATUS

LEDs

Rear panel

AC IN

REFER TO

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

FOR CORRECT SELECTION OF POWER CORD

CAUTION: For continued protection against risk of fire use only with same type and rating of of anti-surge fuse.

SUPPLY DATA

FUSE

2.0 AV~100-240Hz50/60A1.0

3Com Corporation Santa Clara, CA

Made in USA

INPUT

A max58.5

DC POWER GBIC

+12

-12

2.5

1.0

CONSOLE

RESET

GBIC portAC input DC power Console Reset

Figure 2-1 Hub 1000 SX Front and Rear Panels

Front Panel Eight 850-nanometer (nm) ﬁber-optic 1000BASE-SX Gigabit Ethernet

downlink ports accept SC connectors and support 50/125 µ or

62.5/125 µ ﬁber-optic cable. The ports can connect to servers that are equipped with Gigabit Ethernet NICs or to switches that are equipped with Gigabit Ethernet uplink devices.

Indicators (see Table 2-2) show hub and port status when power is on.

Preparing the Site 2-3

Rear Panel The AC input socket accepts a 100–240 V AC power cord. Power can

be supplied through optional 3Com SuperStack II Advanced Redundant Power System (Advanced RPS) and SuperStack II Uninterruptible Power System (UPS) units. These units use the DC power connector. See “Using Optional Power Systems” later in this chapter.

The console port, a DB-9 standard male connector, can connect to a PC through a null modem cable. For information on the console functions, see Appendix A.

The Reset button resets the hub’s on-board CPU.

The GBIC port accepts an optional 3Com GBIC module that lets the hub connect to a Gigabit Ethernet device.

Preparing the Site Make sure that the installation site meets the following conditions:

■ The hub is accessible and you can easily connect the cables.

■ The cables are away from:

■ Sources of electrical noise, such as: heating, ventilation,

and air conditioning (HVAC); radios; transmitters; and

broadband ampliﬁers

■ Power lines and ﬂuorescent lighting ﬁxtures

■ Water or moisture cannot enter the hub’s case.

■ Airﬂow around the unit and through the vents is not restricted.

Provide a minimum of 1-inch (2.5-cm) clearance on all four sides of the unit.

■ No objects are placed directly on top of the unit.

Installing and Connecting the Hub

You can mount the hub in a standard 19-inch rack or place it on a desk or table.

Mounting in a Rack Two brackets and four screws allow rack mounting in a standard

19-inch rack.

1 Place the hub on a level surface, with the front panel facing you. 2 Position a bracket over the mounting holes on one side of the hub,

as shown in Figure 2-2.

2-4 CHAPTER 2: INSTALLING THE HUB

Figure 2-2 Attaching a Bracket for Rack Mounting

3 Insert the two screws and tighten with a screwdriver. Do not overtighten

the screws.

4 Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the other side of the hub. 5 Mount the hub in the rack and secure it with suitable screws, as shown in

Figure 2-3.

TX RX

3C510-SX

1000BASE-SX

TX RX

100

TX RX

PORT STATUS

ACTIVITY

LINK

234 5678 9

% BW USAGE

SUPER STACK

RPS ONOVERTEMP

UNIT STATUS

PAUSERPS FAILPWR

SuperStack II

HUB 1000 SX

Figure 2-3 Rack Mounting the Hub

6 Remove the protective rubber cap from each downlink port and attach

the proper cable to make the desired network connection. Table 2-1 provides connector and cable information for downlink connections. For guidelines on making typical connections, see Chapter 3.

Table 2-1 Downlink Connections

Interpreting Hub Indicators 2-5

Connector Type

SC Short-wavelength (850 nm) fiber-optic:

Cable Type

62.5/125 µ MMF 50/125 µ MMF

Maximum Cable Length (Meters)

260 550

7 Apply power to the hub in either of these ways:

■ Plug one end of the power cord into the AC input socket and the

other end into a power source.

■ Connect the hub to a power supply, as described in “Using Optional

Power Systems” later in this chapter.

Placing on a Desktop If you place the hub on a desk or table, attach the supplied rubber feet to

each bottom corner of the hub. Remove the protective cap from each downlink port and attach the proper cable to make the desired network connection. (For connector and cable information, see Table 2-1. For guidelines on making typical connections, see Chapter 3.) Apply power to the hub in either of these ways:

■ Plug one end of the power cord into the AC input socket and the

other end into a power source.

■ Connect the hub to a power supply, as described in “Using Optional

Power Systems” later in this chapter.

Interpreting Hub Indicators

When power is applied, all the indicators on the front panel light momentarily. The UNIT STATUS LED is amber while POST is running. After approximately 30 seconds, the UNIT STATUS LED turns green. Verify that the PWR (power) LED remains lit, indicating that the hub is receiving power.

For explanations of the hub indicators, see Table 2-2.

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