Brocade Network OS Administrator’s Guide v4.1.1 User Manual
Page 191
If you are adding a switch that is already configured for zoning, you must clear the zone configuration
on that switch before connecting it to the zoned fabric. Refer to
Clearing all zone configurations
on page
187 for instructions.
Adding a new fabric that has no zone configuration information to an existing zoned fabric is very similar
to adding a new switch. All switches in the new fabric inherit the zone configuration data. If the existing
fabric has an effective zone configuration, then the same configuration becomes the effective
configuration for all switches in the added fabric.
NOTE
To prevent an unwanted zone merge, use the no fabric isl enable command on ISL interfaces instead
of the shutdown command on tengigabitethernet ports.
Before the new fabric can merge successfully, it must satisfy the following criteria:
• Before merging
‐
Ensure that all switches adhere to the default zone merge rules as described in
on page 192.
‐
Ensure that the enabled and defined zone configurations match. If they do not match and
you merge with another switch, the merge might be successful, but unpredictable zoning
and routing behavior can occur. Refer to the Caution above and refer to
• Merging and segmentation
The system checks each port as it comes online to determine whether the ports should be segmented.
E_Ports come online on power up, enabling a switch, or adding a new switch, and the system checks
the zone database to detect if the two database that can be merged safely. Refer to
Observe the following rules when merging zones:
• Merging rules
‐
Local and adjacent configurations: If the local and adjacent zone database configurations
are the same, they will remain unchanged after the merge.
‐
Enabled configurations: If there is an enabled configuration between two switches, the
enabled zone configurations must match.
‐
Zone membership: If a zoning object has the same name in both the local and adjacent
defined configurations, the content and order of the members are important.
‐
Objects in adjacent configurations: If a zoning object appears in an adjacent defined
configuration, but not in the local defined configuration, the zoning object is added to the
local defined configuration. The modified zone database must fit in the nonvolatile memory
area allotted for the zone database.
‐
Local configuration modification: If a local defined configuration is modified because of a
merge, the new zone database is propagated to the other switches within the merge
request.
• Merging two fabrics
For best practices, the default-zone access modes should match, although this is not a requirement.
Refer to
on page 192.
If the two fabrics have conflicting zone configurations, they will not merge. If the two fabrics cannot join,
the ISLs between the switches will segment.
Administering Zones
Network OS Administrator’s Guide
191
53-1003225-04