NETGEAR M4350-24F4V 24-Port 10G SFP+ Managed AV Network Switch - Manual (Page 36)

Switch stacking overview
A stackable switch is a switch that is fully functional operating as a stand-alone unit but
can also operate together with up to seven other switches. This group of switches has
the characteristics of a single switch and the port capacity of the sum of all stacked
switches.
One of the switches in the stack controls the operation of the stack. This switch is called
the stack management switch. The other switches in the stack are stack members. The
stack management switch and stack members use stacking technology to behave and
work together as a unified system. Layer 2 and higher protocols present the entire switch
stack as a single entity to the network.
A switch stack can be described in terms of three semi-independent functions:
• Forwarding plane: The forwarding plane forwards data packets. The forwarding
plane is implemented in hardware.
• Control plane: The control plane is the set of protocols that determine how the
forwarding plane forwards packets, that is which packets are allowed to be forwarded
and where they go. Application software on the management switch acts as the
control plane.
• Management plane: The management plane is application software running on
the management switch that provides the interfaces, allowing you to configure and
monitor the switch stack.
The stack management switch is the single point of stack-wide management. From the
stack management switch, you configure the following:
• System-level (global) features that apply to all stack members
• Interface-level features for all interfaces on any stack member
A switch stack is identified in the network by its network IP address. The network IP
address is assigned according to the MAC address of the stack management switch.
Every stack member is uniquely identified by its own stack member number, which is a
number from 1 to 8. The stack management switch can be any number within that range.
Stacking supports the following:
• Up to eight switches per stack
• Single IP address management through a web browser, the CLI, or SNMP.
• management switch-member configuration:
- The stack management switch retains the configuration for the entire stack.
- Automatic detection of new members, with synchronization of firmware (upgrade
or downgrade, as needed).
• Configuration updates across the stack through a single operation.
Main User Manual 36 Manage Stacking
Fully Managed Switches M4350 Series Main User Manual