OK, first of all, you do not always need a stacking module to stack switches (back-plane stacking).
Stacking can also be done "virtually". When you stack the switches virtually, you will use at least two interfaces on each switch to connect them together; this group of interfaces is called a Link Aggregation (Lagg). Depending on hardware, you can use different types of virtual stacking: VSF (Virtual Switching Fabric) and VSX (Virtual Switching Extension).
When two or more switches are stacked they are logically seen as one, they will share only one management IP address, and the ports will be identified as Eth1/1, Eth1/2 ... Eth1/48 for the first stack member and Eth2/1, Eth2/2 ... Eth2/48 for the second stack member, and so on. In other words, you managed the switches the same way as you would manage one switch only.
There are no other ways to stack Aruba switches (Instant ON, ArubaOS, or ArubaOS-CX).
STP, or Spanning Tree Protocol, is a protocol which prevents loops in the network topology. When you virtually stack switches, they will be connected to each other using more than one cable and it may seem there is a loop, so you think: "oh, I need STP to prevent loops", but that is not true - as soon as the Link Aggregations groups are configured, the protocol used is LACP (Link Aggregation Control Protocol) which makes that "loops" not being "loops" so STP is not needed.
Again, STP has nothing to do with stacking switches, nor with facilitating a way to treat more switches as one.
To summarise, there is no way you can stack, nor treat more switches as one in Aruba Instant On "world". At least, not yet.
------------------------------
Valentin Voica
------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 06-29-2021 03:57 AM
From: Jim tsoutsouras
Subject: Connecting 2 switches via 10G port. Spanning Tree option is the way??
A good link about Stack is the following https://www.computernetworkingnotes.com/ccna-study-guide/switch-stacking-explained-with-benefits.html
and according to that one 1930 don t have a special stacking module (which also requires special stacking cables). So stack is out of the way.
In order to use the uplink port, the same link above states that there is a high change that that uplink port will be blocked. So in order to use the 10G ports (one of them) as an uplink should I
-setup that port with specific options in the gui?
-do I need to turn off / disable STP in order not to block the uplink port. If yes what about this one then
<<You really, really do not want to disable STP where you connect switches to other switches.
That is the entire purpose of STP. If you disable STP, and there is a problem, it will really be too late
because your entire network could crash when you notice it, and recovering from a broadcast storm is no fun at all.>>
PS Still need to figure out what spanning tree does....at least for now all I get is helping prevent network loops between switches by dropping packages after a specified period of time, managing traffic paths the best possible way.
------------------------------
Jim tsoutsouras
Original Message:
Sent: 06-28-2021 04:55 PM
From: Jim tsoutsouras
Subject: Connecting 2 switches via 10G port. Spanning Tree option is the way??
.Hi back at you ....... yet again, still think that it can be done and the only way is via Spanning tree,.
Also an answer for a ticket in HPe/Aruba team ... finding it a little abstractive and general though ....
<<In the local mode(using its IP address), we have to manage both the switches separately.
Since you have queried for the knob spanning tree, I could conclude that the switches are managed using local mode.
Changes to the spanning tree knob is not required, the switch would be using MSTP. If you would like to change any configuration, you could change the STP mode.>>
New Edit:
Now that I come to think more about it, 1930 series and almost all switches support uplink ports (managed or not).
According to the definition of an up link port (An uplink port is a specially designed port found on some pieces of networking devices to allow these devices to communicate with each other. The uplink port on a network switch is used to reverse the transmit and receive circuits on a regular twisted-pair Ethernet cable. Its main purpose is to allow the direct connection of two like devices, such as two switches.) this is the only function that I need to make 2 switches with 48 ports act as a96 port switch.
Is that accomplished by uplink, stacking , Spanning Tree. Unfortunately, help files, all they do is explain abbreviations like a dictionary and not giving examples in order for someone to understand better the terms,. Can you help clarify these 3 terms and which one do I need?
------------------------------
Jim tsoutsouras
Original Message:
Sent: 06-28-2021 01:51 PM
From: Valentin Voica
Subject: Connecting 2 switches via 10G port. Spanning Tree option is the way??
Hi,
What you need is to stack (backplane via stacking modules or virtual stacking via the front ports). Others may correct me, but I don't think that stacking is an option for the Aruba Instant On switches.
As for the question in the title, Spanning Tree has nothing to do with stacking.
------------------------------
Valentin Voica
Original Message:
Sent: 06-25-2021 04:09 AM
From: Jim tsoutsouras
Subject: Connecting 2 switches via 10G port. Spanning Tree option is the way??
Hello
I have x2 / 48 port 1930 instant on switches and I need to connect them together to act as one. Does anyone have a link or can post here the way to do it with steps?
Thank you in advance.
------------------------------
Jim tsoutsouras
------------------------------