Lantronix LSB4 Installation Manual

The information in this guide may change without notice. The manufacturer assumes no re­sponsibility for any errors which may appear in this guide.

DEC, thickwire, thinwire, VMS, VT100, and ULTRIX are trademarks of Digital Equip­ment Corporation. UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T. Ethernet is a trademark of
XEROX. NetWare is a trademark of Novell Corp. AppleTalk, Chooser and Macintosh are
trademarks of Apple Computer Corp.

Copyright 1994, Lantronix. All rights reserved. No part of the contents of this book
may be transmitted or reproduced in any form or by any means without the written
permission of Lantronix. Printed in the United States of America.

The revision date for this manual is September 28, 1994.

Part Number: 900-040

WARNING

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital
device pursuant to Part 15 of FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable
protection against such interference when operating in a commercial environment. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy, and if not installed and
used in accordance with this guide, may cause harmful interference to radio communica­tions.

Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause interference in which
case the user, at his or her own expense, will be required to take whatever measures may
be required to correct the interference.

Warning: Changes or modifications to this device not explicitly approved by Lantronix will
void the user's authority to operate this device.

Cet appareil doit se soumettre avec la section 15 des statuts et règlements de FCC. Le fonc­tionnement est subjecté aux conditions suivantes:

(1) Cet appareil ne doit pas causer une interférence malfaisante.
(2) Cet appareil doît accepter n'importé quelle interférence reìue qui peut causer une

opération indésirable.

LSB4 Installation Guide

For Lantronix LSB4 Ethernet Switch

i

Contents

1

Introduction

What the LSB4 Does............................................................................... 1-1

Advantages of the LSB4......................................................................... 1-2

Reduction of Packet Traffic................................................. 1-2

Management of Packet Traffic............................................ 1-3

Initial LSB4 Configuration .................................................................... 1-3

Networks and Protocols Supported .................................................... 1-4

LSB4 vs. Other Methods ........................................................................ 1-5

2

Installation

Installation Instructions......................................................................... 2-1

Initializing the LSB4............................................................................... 2-4

Initial LSB4 Configuration .................................................................... 2-6

Changing System Passwords................................................................ 2-7

IP Address Configuration ..................................................................... 2-8

Power-up Troubleshooting................................................................. 2-10

ii

3

Set-up and Operation

Accessing the LSB4................................................................................. 3-1

Connections from TCP/IP Hosts ....................................... 3-2

Connections from VMS Hosts ............................................ 3-6

Connections from Netware Hosts...................................... 3-7

Connections from Macintosh Hosts using AppleTalk.... 3-9

Editing Command Entries..................................................................... 3-9

Editing Keys .......................................................................... 3-9

Automatic Command Completion .................................. 3-11

Common Configuration Changes...................................................... 3-12

Password Protection .......................................................... 3-12

System Configuration ........................................................ 3-13

Customizing Serial Console Port Settings ...................... 3-15

Switch Configuration......................................................... 3-16

Filter Configuration............................................................ 3-18

A

Technical Support

B

Spanning Tree Algorithm

C

Pinouts

D

SNMP Support

E

Updating LSB4 Software

F

LSB4 Specifications

iii

G

Warranty

Glossary

Index

iv

1

Introduction

Introduction

What the LSB4 Does .................................................................................. 1-1

Advantages of the LSB4 ............................................................................ 1-2

Reduction of Packet Traffic ........................................................ 1-2

Management of Packet Traffic................................................... 1-3

Initial LSB4 Configuration........................................................................ 1-3

Networks and Protocols Supported........................................................ 1-4

LSB4 vs. Other Methods............................................................................ 1-5

LSB4 Installation Guide Introduction

1-1

Introduction

Introduction

Congratulations on the purchase of the Lantronix Model LSB4 Switch.

This chapter gives a conceptual introduction to the LSB4. Later chapters
will cover installation and operation of the switch. For detailed informa­tion on LSB4 configuration and commands, refer to the LSB4 Reference

Manual .

The terms bridge and switch are used interchangeably in this manual;
they are equivalent in meaning.

What the LSB4 Does

The LSB4 switch switches packets between different local area network
segments. The different segments are defined by where the LSB4 is placed.
A local area network can be divided into four segments.

When a packet is received, the LSB4 completes the following steps:

1. The address is compared to an internal table, which con-

tains the source and destination addresses of the different
devices on the network. If the source Ethernet address of
the packet (the address of the Ethernet where the packet
originated) is not in the table, it is added to it.

2. The destination Ethernet address of the packet (where the

packet is going) is examined. If the destination Ethernet
address matches the current Ethernet, the packet is pre­sumed to be at its final destination, and is discarded.

3. If the destination Ethernet address is recorded in the ad-

dress table as one of another segment, or the destination
Ethernet address is not listed in the table (not known), the
packet will be forwarded to another segment. At this
point, the packet is compared to any user-defined filters
associated with that LAN port.

User-defined filters can permit or deny packet forwarding based on the
packetÕs network protocol, source or destination Ethernet address, or
data patterns within the packet.

NOTE

1chapternumber

NOTE

Introduction LSB4 Installation Guide

1-2

Introduction

Advantages of the LSB4

Dividing a LAN into segments has the following advantages:

♦

Reduction of packet traffic

♦

Management of packet traffic

Reduction of Packet Traffic

The LSB4 is designed to be connected to an Ethernet; it will divide the
Ethernet into 4 network segments. The LSB4 will isolate each segmentÕs lo­cal packet traffic; in other words, packets that are not destined for another
segment of the network will not pass through the switch. This reduces un­wanted packet traffic on other segments of the network.

Figure 1-1 illustrates the use of the LSB4.

Figure 1-1: LANs With and Without LSB4

LAN Without Switch LAN With Switch

Sun Sun MicroVAXMicroVAX

LSB4

LSB4 Installation Guide Introduction

1-3

Introduction

Introduction

In the Local Area Network without a switch [Figure 1-1], incoming pack­ets are examined by all hosts connected to the network. In the Local Area
Network with the LSB4 installed, the only traffic on the Sun segment of the
switch will be between the Suns plus any traffic specifically directed to a
VAX or directed to a Sun from a VAX. The same applies to the VAX seg­ment of the network.

Management of Packet Traffic

The LSB4 does not add or change any of the information in the packets that
passes through the switch. However, it can be configured to regulate the
passage of certain packet traffic through the use of filters . Filters prevent
the passage of particular packets from one segment to another.

For more information about filters, see the Filter Commands chapter of
the LSB4 Reference Manual.

Initial LSB4 Configuration

When the switch boots up, it will be configured in the following manner:

♦

Automatic filtering and forwarding of packets will
take place. To customize packet filtering, see the Filter

Commands chapter of the LSB4 Reference Manual.

♦

The Spanning Tree Algorithm will be enabled. This
can be disabled or customized to particular needs; see
Appendix B, Spanning Tree Algorithm for more infor­mation.

To view diagnostic information as the LSB4 boots up, a terminal must be
connected to the LSB4. A serial cable is shipped with the switch; this may
be used to connect a terminal to the serial console port.

NOTE

Introduction LSB4 Installation Guide

1-4

Introduction

Networks and Protocols Supported

The LSB4 supports and processes packets for any Ethernet network. The
operation of the LSB4 is fully compliant with both the IEEE 802.3 Ethernet
specification and the IEEE 802.1d Bridge specification.

The LSB4 operates independently of the different protocols used in pack­ets. Unless a particular protocol is specified using the Set/Define Filter
command, the bridge will pay no attention to a packet's protocol.

Remote connections can be made through one of the LAN ports using any
of the following protocols: AppleTalk, NetWare, Telnet/Rlogin, or MOP/
NCP/TSM. (The protocols may be disabled in order to improve perfor­mance.) In addition to the protocols listed above, the LSB4 responds to
pings and SNMP commands.

See Chapter 3, Set-up and Operation, for more information about log­ging into the LSB4 through the network.

NOTE

LSB4 Installation Guide Introduction

1-5

Introduction

Introduction

LSB4 vs. Other Methods

A switch differs significantly from other methods of connecting Ethernet
segments together. A few examples of segment connection and the ways
in which they differ from a network switch are discussed in Table 1-1.

Table 1-1: Comparisons to Network Switch

Method of

Segment

Connection

Comparison to Network Switch

Connecting directly to
the local area
network (using a ÒTÓ
or barrel connector)

An Ethernet has maximum cable lengths and maxi­mum numbers of devices that can be connected. With
a switch installed, each segment connected by the
switch may use the maximum amount of cable length
and maximum number of connected devices.

Connecting segments
with a repeater

A repeater forwards all network traffic, including
problems such as collisions. Rather than automatical­ly forwarding all traffic, a switch forwards only pack­ets intended for that particular Ethernet segment.
Nodes no longer receive unwanted traffic; this reduc­es network traffic on all segments.

Connecting segments
with a router

A router must be configured for the different proto­cols being used on the network. A switch is unaffect­ed by the nature or contents of the data in the packets
it receives; it requires no information about the differ­ent protocols being used on the network.

Introduction LSB4 Installation Guide

1-6

Introduction

2

Installation

Installation

Installation Instructions.............................................................................2-1

Initializing the LSB4................................................................................... 2-4

Initial LSB4 Configuration ........................................................................2-6

Changing System Passwords.................................................................... 2-7

IP Address Configuration .........................................................................2-8

Power-up Troubleshooting..................................................................... 2-10

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-1

Introduction

Installation

Installation Instructions

To connect the LSB4 to your Local Area Network, complete the following
steps:

♦

Connect one or all of the LSB4's network ports to an At­tachment Unit Interface (AUI) cable or to a transceiv­er.

♦

Connect a terminal to the LSB4's serial console port (op­tional.) The port is configured at the factory for 9600
baud, 8 data bits, no parity, and one stop bit.

♦

Plug the power cord into the AC input on the LSB4 and
into an AC power source.

See Figure 2-1 on page 2-2 for an illustration of the LSB4.

For connector specifications and configuration, see the LSB4 Reference
Manual.

The LSB4 is configured at the factory to operate in any network configura­tion. For specific configuration instructions, see Chapter 3, Set-up and Op-

eration .

NOTE

2chapternumber

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-2

Installation

Figure 2-1: LSB4 Back and Front Panels

The illustrations on the following page [Figure 2-2 and Figure 2-3] are ex­amples of the placement and connection of the LSB4 to different types of
networks.

LAN Ports

Serial Console Port

AC input

AUI 3 Address::

#

AUI 4 Address:

#

Serial

95-250V ~ 50-60Hz 0.5A T2A/250V

CAUTION

For continued protection against

risk of fire, replace only with
same type and ratings of fuse

Made in U.S.A.

Fabriqué in Etats-Unis

This equipment complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following

two conditions: (1) the device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device

must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired

operation.

Serial #

LSB4

SER 2 1

LANTRONIX

LSB4

AUI 1 Address::

#

AUI 2 Address:

#

34

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-3

Introduction

Installation

Figure 2-2: Network Configuration Example ( Thickwire )

Figure 2-3: Network Configuration Example ( Thinwire/10BASE-T )

Thickwire

10BaseT Hub

Twisted Pair

Macintosh

Netware

File Server

Sun

MicroVAX

10Base2

Repeater

Thinwire

Macintosh

Sun

MicroVAX

LSB4

10BaseT Hub

Macintosh

Netware

File Server

Sun

MicroVAX

Macintosh

Thinwire

10Base2

Repeater

MicroVAX

Netware

File Server

LTX-TA

Transceivers

LSB4

LTX-2A

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-4

Installation

Initializing the LSB4

Each time the LSB4 is turned on, it will go through an initialization pro­cess. The process consists of the following steps:

♦

Power-on diagnostic tests will last approximately 5
seconds.

♦

The contents of the LSB4's internal Flash ROM will be
checked for validity and then executed. This will take
approximately thirty seconds.

The LEDs will display as follows:

♦ During power-up diagnostics, the serial and network

port LEDs will display varying patterns depending on
the test being run. If the unit fails power-up diagnos­tics, it will display a fixed pattern.

If the LEDs display a fixed pattern, contact Lantronix technical support
for additional information.

♦ If the unit passes its power-up diagnostics, all serial

and network port LEDs will show green for three sec­onds.

♦ When the LSB4 is operational, the serial LED will be

green and blink every second, or more often if the se­rial console port is being used. The Network Port
LEDs will blink roughly in accordance with the traffic
on the network ports. If there is no activity on a partic­ular port, its LED will remain off. If there is no trans­ceiver connected to a port or the port has a faulty
network connection, the Network Port LED will be
solid orange.

NOTE

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-5

Introduction

Installation

If there is a problem during the initialization process, the serial LED will
be orange after individualization is complete. If this occurs, see ÒPower­up TroubleshootingÓ on page 2-10.

If a terminal is attached to the serial console port, text similar to the follow­ing will be displayed on the terminal during initialization [Figure 2-4].

Figure 2-4: Startup Messages

When all of the above is complete, the LSB4 is running normally.

Lantronix LSB4 Initialization
Boot Rom Version

n.n (Month Day, Year

)
Port 1: Ethernet Address: 00-80-A3-xx-xx-xx
Port 2: Ethernet Address: 00-80-A3-xx-xx-xx

Internet Address: (undefined)
Current Diagnostics Report:

RISC: 3051 (4K I/2K D) CPU Speed: 20 MHz
RAM Size: 1 MB Flash Size: 512 K
Flash Version:

n.n

Gate Array Rev:

n.n

Errors: None

Checking 8 sections from flash:
From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) -> ....

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) ->

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) -> ....

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) -> ....

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) ->

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) -> ....

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) -> ....

From address 0x

nnn

to 0x

nnn, nnn

bytes) ->

Loaded

nnnnnn

bytes.

Load Completed - Boot in Progress
%% Lantronix LSB4

%% Ethernet 1 Address: 00-80-A3-

xx-xx-xx

Internet Address: (Undefi

n

%% Ethernet 2 Address: 00-80-A3-

xx-xx-xx

Port 3: Ethernet Address: 00-80-A3-xx-xx-xx
Port 4: Ethernet Address: 00-80-A3-xx-xx-xx

%% Ethernet 3 Address: 00-80-A3-

xx-xx-xx

%% Ethernet 4 Address: 00-80-A3-

xx-xx-xx

NOTE

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-6

Installation

If the messages on the previous page do not appear on the terminal, see
Power-up Troubleshooting on page 2-10.

If the characters displayed on the terminal are incoherent, turn the LSB4
off, check the settings on the terminal, the cable connections, and turn the
LSB4 on again.

Initial LSB4 Configuration

The LSB4 will operate properly in all local area networks without the need
for any configuration changes. After the power-up initialization process,
the LSB4 will automatically start learning the different node addresses
connected to its ethernet ports and will start to process traffic within ap­proximately one minute of power-up.

The LSB4 can be configured further, for example, to filter certain packet
traffic, or to enable logins from other network nodes. Configuration is
done through the use of specific commands. There are several ways to en­ter these commands:

♦ Connect a terminal to the LSB4's serial console port
♦ Log onto the LSB4 over the network using one of the net-

work protocols: AppleTalk, NetWare, NCP/MOP/TSM,
Telnet/Rlogin

♦ Use BOOTP or ARP to configure the IP address from a

TCP/IP network host

♦ Send SNMP commands from an SNMP manager

Instructions for configuring the LSB4 will be provided in Chapter 3, Set­up and Operation.

NOTE

NOTE

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-7

Introduction

Installation

Changing System Passwords

There are two important passwords on the LSB4: the privileged password
and the login password.

The privileged password is the password that must be entered to become
the privileged user. The default privileged password is system; it can be
changed with either the Set System Privileged Password or Define Sys-
tem Privileged Password command.

The privileged user level is required before the privileged password can
be changed. Use the default privileged password to obtain the privileged
user level.

The login password is required for logging into the LSB4 through a net­work connection. The default login password is access; it can be changed
with either the Set System Login Password or Define System Login Pass-
word command.

To begin using the terminal connected to the serial console port, press
Return until a user prompt appears.

Use of the Set/Define System Privileged Password and Set/Define System
Login Password are shown in Figure 2-5.

Figure 2-5: Set/Define Password Commands

Local> SET PRIVILEGED
Password> SYSTEM (not echoed)
Local>> SET SYSTEM PRIVILEGED PASSWORD HOBBES
Local>> DEFINE SYSTEM PRIVILEGED PASSWORD HOBBES
Local>> SET SYSTEM LOGIN PASSWORD CALVIN
Local>> DEFINE SYSTEM LOGIN PASSWORD CALVIN

NOTE

NOTE

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-8

Installation

IP Address Configuration

The LSB4's IP address must be configured before any TCP/IP functional­ity is available. The address can be defined using a terminal connected to
the serial port, or via a host BOOTP or RARP server.

To define the IP address via the serial port, connect a terminal to the LSB4,
become the privileged user and issue the Set and Define Protocol IP IP-

address commands [Figure 2-6].

Figure 2-6: Set/Define Protocol IP Commands

To configure the IP address using RARP or BOOTP, see the
RARP/BOOTP server's documentation.

Many BOOTP daemons will not reply to a BOOTP request if the down­load filename in the configuration file does not exist. If this is the case,
create a file in the download path to get the BOOTP daemon to respond.

To configure the IP address using ARP, create an entry in the hostÕs ARP
table [Figure 2-7]. Note that this requires privileged user status.

Figure 2-7: Creating ARP Entry

Local> SET PRIVILEGED
Password> SYSTEM (not echoed)
Local>> SET PROTOCOL IP IPADDRESS xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
Local>> DEFINE PROTOCOL IP IPADDRESS xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

# arp -s 192.0.1.228 00:80:a3:xx:xx:xx

NOTE

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-9

Introduction

Installation

Substitute the intended IP address and the hardware address of the
switch. Then ping the switch using the following command [Figure 2-8]:

Figure 2-8: Ping Command

When the switch receives the ping packet, it will notice that its IP address
is currently not set and will send out broadcasts to see if anyone else is us­ing this address. If no duplicates are found, the switch will use this IP ad­dress and will respond to the ping packet. The LSB4 will not save this
learned IP address permanently. It is intended as a temporary measure to
enable the administrator to telnet into the LSB4Õs console port.

Any host wishing to access the LSB4 will have to be told of the LSB4's IP
address. This is typically configured in the file /etc/hosts or via a name­server. Refer to the host's documentation for additional information.

unix% ping xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-10

Installation

Power-up Troubleshooting

There are several possible error situations if the terminal connected to the
serial port does not display the welcome message or the LEDs on the LSB4
do not light properly.

Condition: All serial and network port LEDs display a specific pattern denot-

ing the exact failure. A terminal connected to the serial console
port may also display an error message. The LSB4 is unable to pro­ceed further.

Cause: The LSB4 has detected a fatal hardware fault.

Action: Contact your hardware dealer or Lantronix.

Condition: An error is detected during power-up that is non-fatal; the LSB4

continues to boot up but will not begin normal operation. The se­rial LED will blink orange. If a terminal is connected to the serial
console port, a diagnostic message is displayed. The terminal dis­plays a Boot> prompt and awaits a response.

Cause: The LSB4 has detected network errors on one or all of the ethernet

ports.

Action: Connect a terminal to the serial console port if one is not connect-

ed. Check the network connection, and verify that power is reach­ing the MAUs.

LSB4 Installation Guide Installation

2-11

Introduction

Installation

Condition: All tests have passed successfully but the instructions stored in

Flash ROM have become corrupted. The LSB4 will automatically
attempt to find and load a file containing instructions from a host
on the local area network. All of the Network Port LEDs will be al­ternating as the LSB4 looks for new software.

The following text will be displayed on the terminal connected to
the serial console port [Figure 2-9]:

Figure 2-9: LSB4 Searching For Instruction File

If the last line in the above message appears, the LSB4 has been
unable to find and load the instruction file.

Cause: Usually this occurs if the LSB4 is disturbed while downloading a

file containing instructions for the LSB4's Flash ROM. The stored
instructions become corrupted.

Action: Reload the file containing the Flash ROM instructions.

See Appendix E, Updating LSB4 Software for instructions on reloading
Flash-ROM.

Checking X sections from flash: invalid checksum
found.

Attempting TFTP boot....

Attempting NetWare boot.....

Attempting MOP boot....

Will wait 1 minute for next download attempt...

NOTE

Installation LSB4 Installation Guide

2-12

Installation

Condition: All tests have passed and the unit is operating normally, but it ap-

pears that no packet traffic is being forwarded by the LSB4 to the
different segments of the local area network.

Cause: There are several conditions that can cause this problem. Often it

is caused by incorrect or faulty network cable connections or in­correct network hardware configuration.

Action: Check the LEDs of the LAN ports to see if they are green and

flashing, and use the Show Switch Status command to determine
the state of the ports.

Where Show /Monitor /List Switch and Set/Define Switch com­mands are used, ÒBridgeÓ can be used in place of ÒSwitch.Ó For example,
List Bridge has the same functionality as List Switch.

♦ If Show Switch Status displays that a port is in the

testing state, there is a faulty network connection.
Check the cable connections.

♦ If Show Switch Status displays that a port is in the

overflow state, there may be a ÒloopÓ in the net­work due to the Spanning Tree Algorithm being
disabled. Ensure that the switch state and span-
ning tree are enabled; these parameters can be set
with the Set/Define Switch command.

If conditions occur that havenÕt been described in this section, contact
Lantronix Technical Support. For contact information, refer to Appen­dix A.

NOTE

NOTE

3

Set-up and Operation

Installation

Set-up and

Operation

Accessing the LSB4 .................................................................................... 3-1

Connections from TCP/IP Hosts .............................................. 3-2

Connections from VMS Hosts ................................................... 3-6

Connections from Netware Hosts............................................. 3-7

Connections from Macintosh Hosts using AppleTalk........... 3-9

Editing Command Entries ........................................................................ 3-9

Editing Keys ................................................................................. 3-9

Automatic Command Completion ......................................... 3-11

Common Configuration Changes.......................................................... 3-12

Password Protection.................................................................. 3-12

System Configuration ............................................................... 3-13

Customizing Serial Console Port Settings.............................. 3-15

Switch Configuration ................................................................ 3-16

Filter Configuration................................................................... 3-18

3

Set-up and Operation

Installation

Set-up and

Operation