F5 Viprion User manual

Platform Guide:VIPRION
MAN-0311-02

Table of Contents
Legal Notices........................................................................................................................................................7
Chapter 1: The VIPRION platform...............................................................9
About the chassis....................................................................................................................................10
About the blades.....................................................................................................................................11
LCD panel..............................................................................................................................................12
About LCD menus.....................................................................................................................12
Using LCD menus......................................................................................................................13
About cluster management.........................................................................................................14
About configuring cluster members...........................................................................................15
Indicator LEDs.......................................................................................................................................15
Chassis indicator LED types......................................................................................................16
Blade indicator LED types.........................................................................................................16
Indicator LED actions................................................................................................................16
Chassis standard operating states...............................................................................................16
Chassis standard operating states...............................................................................................17
Powered-off blade indicator LED actions..................................................................................17
LED alert conditions..................................................................................................................17
Defining custom alerts...............................................................................................................17
Additional indicator LED status conditions...............................................................................18
Platform Interfaces.................................................................................................................................18
About blade interfaces................................................................................................................18
Viewing the status of a specific interface...................................................................................18
Viewing the status of all interfaces.............................................................................................19
About interface media type and duplex mode............................................................................19
Valid media types.......................................................................................................................20
Viewing valid media types for an interface................................................................................20
Network interface LED behavior...............................................................................................21
Chapter 2: Platform Installation..................................................................23
Components provided with the VIPRION AC Platform........................................................................24
Components provided with the VIPRION DC platform........................................................................24
Additional equipment for installing the VIPRION DC platform...........................................................24
Components provided with blades.........................................................................................................25
Peripheral hardware that you provide....................................................................................................25
About installing the chassis....................................................................................................................25
Installing the rack mount kit.......................................................................................................26
Installing the handle kit..............................................................................................................26
Installing the chassis into a rack.................................................................................................28
Platform Guide: VIPRION | Table of Contents | 3

Attaching the front bezel............................................................................................................28
About installing blades...........................................................................................................................29
Removing a blank.......................................................................................................................30
Installing a blade........................................................................................................................31
PB100 and PB200 blade compatibility......................................................................................32
About powering the VIPRION AC platform..........................................................................................33
Powering the AC platform..........................................................................................................33
About powering the VIPRION DC platform..........................................................................................34
Additional equipment for powering the DC platform................................................................34
About grounding the DC platform.............................................................................................35
About connecting the DC power source.....................................................................................36
Licensing the platform...........................................................................................................................37
Verifying blade availability....................................................................................................................37
Chapter 3: Platform Maintenance................................................................39
About AC power supplies.......................................................................................................................40
Installing an AC power supply...................................................................................................40
About DC power supplies......................................................................................................................41
Installing a DC power supply.....................................................................................................41
About the fan tray...................................................................................................................................42
Replacing the fan tray.................................................................................................................42
About the front bezel (with LCD component).......................................................................................43
Replacing the front bezel............................................................................................................43
Appendix A: Environmental Guidelines......................................................45
General environmental guidelines..........................................................................................................46
Guidelines for AC-powered equipment..................................................................................................47
Guidelines for DC-powered equipment.................................................................................................47
Guidelines for VIPRION DC platform installation................................................................................47
NEBS platform guidelines.....................................................................................................................47
Appendix B: Platform Airflow......................................................................49
Platform Airflow Diagram......................................................................................................................50
Appendix C: Platform Specifications...........................................................51
General specifications for system features.............................................................................................52
Blade hardware specifications................................................................................................................52
Chassis hardware specifications.............................................................................................................53
Chassis operating specifications.............................................................................................................54
AC power requirements..........................................................................................................................54
AC power cables.........................................................................................................................55
4| Platform Guide: VIPRION | Table of Contents

AC power redundancy provisioning...........................................................................................55
AC platform power consumption (low-line input).....................................................................55
AC platform power consumption (high-line input)....................................................................56
DC power requirements..........................................................................................................................56
DC power redundancy provisioning...........................................................................................56
DC platform power consumption...............................................................................................57
Safety requirements................................................................................................................................57
EMC requirements.................................................................................................................................57
Appendix D: China RoHS Requirements....................................................59
Hazardous Substance Levels for China..................................................................................................60
Appendix E: Repackaging Guidelines.........................................................63
Repackaging the chassis.........................................................................................................................64
Repackaging a blade...............................................................................................................................67
Platform Guide: VIPRION | Table of Contents | 5

6| Platform Guide: VIPRION | Table of Contents

Legal Notices
Publication Date
This document was published on March 4, 2011.
Copyright
Copyright ©2011, F5 Networks, Inc.All rights reserved.
F5 Networks, Inc. (F5) believes the information it furnishes to be accurate and reliable. However, F5 assumes no
responsibility for the use of this information, nor any infringement of patents or other rights of third parties which may
result from its use. No license is granted by implication or otherwise under any patent, copyright, or other intellectual
property right of F5 except as specifically described by applicable user licenses. F5 reserves the right to change
specifications at any time without notice.
Trademarks
3-DNS,Access Policy Manager, APM, Acopia, Acopia Networks,Advanced ClientAuthentication,Advanced Routing,
Application Security Manager, ASM, AskF5, ARX, BIG-IP, Data Manager, DevCentral, Edge Client, Edge Gateway,
Edge Portal, Enterprise Manager, EM, F5, F5 Networks, the F5 logo, F5 Management Pack, Fast Application Proxy,
Fast Cache, FirePass, Global Traffic Manager, GTM, iControl, Intelligent Browser Referencing, IBR, iHealth, Intelligent
Compression, IPv6 Gateway, iQuery, iRules, iRules OnDemand, L7 Rate Shaping, Link Controller, LC, Local Traffic
Manager, LTM, Message Security Module, MSM, NetCelera, OneConnect, PacketVelocity, Protocol Security Module,
PSM, Real Traffic Policy Builder, SSL Acceleration, StrongBox, SYN Check, TCP Express, Traffic Management
Operating System, TMOS, TrafficShield, Transparent Data Reduction, TDR, VIPRION, WANJet, WAN Optimization
Module, WOM, WebAccelerator, WA, and ZoneRunner, are trademarks or service marks of F5 Networks, Inc., in the
U.S. and other countries, and may not be used without F5's express written consent.
All other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Export Regulation Notice
This product may include cryptographic software. Under the Export Administration Act, the United States government
may consider it a criminal offense to export this product from the United States.
RF InterferenceWarning
This is a Class A product. In a domestic environment this product may cause radio interference, in which case the user
may be required to take adequate measures.
FCC Compliance
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 harmful interference when the equipment
is operated in a commercial environment. This unit generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference, in which case the user, at his
own expense, will be required to take whatever measures may be required to correct the interference.
Any modifications to this device, unless expressly approved by the manufacturer, can void the user's authority to operate
this equipment under part 15 of the FCC rules.
Platform Guide: VIPRION | Legal Notices | 7

Canadian Regulatory Compliance
This Class A digital apparatus complies with Canadian ICES-003.
Standards Compliance
This product conforms to the IEC, European Union, ANSI/UL and Canadian CSA standards applicable to Information
Technology products at the time of manufacture.
VCCI Class A Compliance
This is a Class A product. In a domestic environment, this product may cause radio interference, in which case the user
may be required to take corrective actions. VCCI-A
8| Platform Guide: VIPRION | Legal Notices

Chapter
1
The VIPRION platform
The VIPRION®platform provides you with the flexibility and feature-rich
capabilities of F5 products on a powerful and highly-extensible hardware
Topics:
•About the chassis platform. With this platform, you install and configure multiple F5 products
•About the blades using blades that are hot-swappable, which provides you with the ability to add,
remove, or change the platform’s configuration to best fit your network.
•LCD panel Everything is available for you to add, remove, or change including the blades,
power supplies, fan tray, LCD panel, and more.
•Indicator LEDs
•Platform Interfaces The VIPRION platform includes two primary components: the chassis, which
houses the components, and blades, which reside within the chassis and provide
the hardware and software needed to manage network traffic.
Important: The chassis and blades are shipped in separate boxes. The
blades are not designed to be shipped inside a chassis. For information
on repackaging the VIPRION platform, see Repackaging Guidelines.
TheVIPRION chassis and the PB100 and PB200 blades are available in Network
Equipment-Building System (NEBS) compliant versions. For a system to be
completely NEBS-compliant, you must use a NEBS-compliant chassis and
blades.
Although the VIPRION platform is highly extensible and designed to be easy
to implement, familiarity with the components of the VIPRION platform can
ensure that you install and integrate the platform successfully and effectively.
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 9

About the chassis
The VIPRION chassis is the housing unit that contains all of the components necessary for the VIPRION platform to
operate effectively. One of the most powerful features of the VIPRION platform is that you can add, remove, or change
any or all of the essential components of the platform. These components include blades, power supplies, the fan tray,
the front bezel (with LCD panel), and the System ID card. This configuration allows for an extremely robust and flexible
system that can manage large amounts of application traffic, and remain operational even if one of its components goes
offline.
1. Indicator LEDs (chassis and blades 1-4)
2. LCD display
3. LCD control buttons
Figure 1:Front view of theVIPRION platform with four blades and front bezel (with LCD panel) attached
The back of the AC-powered platform includes four AC power receptacles.
Figure 2: Back view of the AC platform
The back of the DC-powered platform includes two DC power block terminals.
10 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform

Figure 3: Back view of the DC platform
About the blades
A blade is the primary component that handles the traffic management within the VIPRION platform.You can install
up to four blades in aVIPRION chassis. These blades comprise a group, known as a cluster. The chassis includes blanks
in the slots where blades are not installed. Blanks must be installed in all unused slots, as they help ensure proper airflow
within the chassis and EMC compliance of the unit.
1. Compression screw
2. Indicator LEDs
3. Management port
4. USB ports
5. Console port
6. Hard-wired failover port
7. XFP ports
8. 10/100/1000 interfaces
9. SFP ports
Figure 4: Front view of the PB100 blade
1. Compression screw
2. Indicator LEDs
3. Management port
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 11

4. USB ports
5. Console port
6. Hard-wired failover port
7. 10/100/1000 interfaces
8. SFP+ ports
Figure 5: Front view of the PB200 blade
LCD panel
The LCD panel provides the ability to manage the unit without attaching a console or network cable.
About LCD menus
There are three menus on the LCD panel.You can configure the LCD panel to meet your needs.
Figure 6:The LCD panel and control buttons
Options menu
You can use the Options menu to adjust the display properties of the LCD panel.
DescriptionOption
Turns on (checked) or off (unchecked) the heartbeat panel on the LCD. This
heartbeat does not affect the failover mechanism of the system.
Heartbeat
Specifies an LCD screen backlighting option. Select from the following
options:
Backlight
• ON enables the backlight.
•GRAY enables the software to specify when the backlight is illuminated.
• OFF disables the backlight.
Sets the contrast of the LCD panel.Contrast
Adjusts the LCD backlight brightness.On Brightness
Controls the brightness of the LCD panel when the backlight is off.Off Brightness
System menu
You can use the System menu to configure the management interface on both clusters and blades. This menu also
provides various options for the hardware.
SuboptionsDescriptionOption
Serial Speed
Select from the following suboptions:
Changes the management interface information.Management
12 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform

SuboptionsDescriptionOption
• 9600
• 19200
• 57600
• 115200
Cluster Mgmt
Select from the following suboptions:
Changes the baud rate of the serial port.Cluster
• Cluster IP - Configure the cluster IP
address.
• Cluster IP Mask - Configure the netmask.
• Gateway - Configure the default gateway
for managing the cluster.
• Commit - Save your changes.
Cluster Mbrs
Select from the following suboptions:
Configures the management IP addresses of
the blades within the cluster.
• Blade [1-4] Mgmt
• Blade Mgmt IP - Configure the
management IP address of the selected
blade withing the cluster.
• Commit - Save your changes.
Screens menu
You can use the Screens menu to view various statistics and information about the system.
DescriptionOption
Displays the date and time.DateScreen
Displays the information screen menu.InfoScreen
Displays product version information.VersionScreen
Using LCD menus
Press the X button to put the LCD panel in Menu mode.
The Left Arrow, Right Arrow, Up Arrow, and DownArrow buttons are functional only when the LCD panel is in
Menu mode.
Pausing on a screen
Normally, the screens cycle on the LCD panel at a constant rate, but you can pause on a specific screen.
Push the Check button to toggle the LCD screen between Hold and Rotate modes.
In Hold mode, a single screen is displayed. The Rotate mode changes the screen displayed on the LCD panel every
four seconds.
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 13

Clearing alerts
Press the Check button to clear any alerts on the LCD screen.
You must clear any alerts on the screen before you can use the LCD panel.
About cluster management
You can use the LCD panel in the VIPRION platform to manage clusters and blades. The options for cluster and blade
management are located in the Cluster menu item under the System menu.
Note: When using the LDC panel to manage clusters, be sure that you use the Commit menu option after
changing each setting. Alternatively, you can change all cluster-related settings and use the Commit option
to save all settings at once.
The management IP address for the cluster is known as the cluster IP address. The cluster IP address enables you to
access the Configuration utility to configure other aspects of the product, such as the product license, VLANs, trunks,
and so on.
With the VIPRION platform, you assign cluster IP addresses on a per-cluster basis. Initially, all blades installed in the
chassis belong to a single default cluster. During the initial setup, you need only assign a single cluster IP address.
Configuring the cluster IP address
You can use the LCD panel to configure the cluster IP address.
1. Press the X button to access the LCD panel menus.
2. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
3. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
4. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster and press the Check button.
5. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster IP and press the Check button.
The LCD panel shows the current IP address of the cluster.
6. Use the arrow keys to configure the IP address of the cluster.
7. Press the X button until you return to the Cluster Mgmt menu.
8. Use the arrow keys to select Commit and press the Check button.
The system saves the new IP address for the cluster.
Configuring the cluster IP subnet mask
You can use the LCD panel to configure the cluster IP subnet mask.
1. Press the X button to access the LCD panel menus.
2. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
3. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
4. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster and press the Check button.
5. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster IP Mask and press the Check button.
The LCD panel shows the current subnet mask address of the cluster.
6. Use the arrow keys to configure the subnet mask of the cluster.
7. Press the X button until you return to the Cluster Mgmt menu.
8. Use the arrow keys to select Commit and press the Check button.
The system saves the new subnet mask for the cluster.
14 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform

Configuring the default gateway IP address for the cluster
You can use the LCD panel to configure the default gateway IP address for the cluster.
1. Press the X button to access the LCD panel menus.
2. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
3. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
4. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster and press the Check button.
5. Use the arrow keys to select Gateway and press the Check button.
The LCD panel shows the current gateway IP address of the cluster.
6. Use the arrow keys to configure the gateway IP address of the cluster.
7. Press the X button until you return to the Cluster Mgmt menu.
8. Use the arrow keys to select Commit and press the Check button.
The system saves the new default gateway IP address for the cluster.
About configuring cluster members
You can use the LCD panel to configure the management IP address of each blade within a cluster.
Important: When you configure an IP address for a blade, that IP address corresponds to the slot in which
the blade resides. If you replace that blade with another, the new blade automatically receives the
previously-configured management IP address.
Configuring the management IP address of a cluster member
You can use the LCD panel to configure the management IP address of a cluster member.
1. Press the X button to access the LCD panel menus.
2. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
3. Use the arrow keys to select System and press the Check button.
4. Use the arrow keys to select Cluster Mbrs and press the Check button.
5. Use the arrow keys to select the appropriate blade (Blade [1-4] Mgmt) and press the Check button.
6. Use the arrow keys to select Blade Mgmt IP and press the Check button.
The LCD panel shows the current IP address of the blade.
7. Use the arrow keys to configure the IP address of the blade.
8. Press the X button until you return to the Blade [1-4] Mgmt menu.
9. Use the arrow keys to select Commit and press the Check button.
The system saves the new IP address for the blade.
Indicator LEDs
TheVIPRION platform has LED displays in two locations: on the LCD panel and on the individual blades. On the LCD
panel, the LEDs provide information about platform power, blade alarms, and status.
On the blades, the LEDs indicate whether the blade is a primary or secondary blade, and show alarm and blade status.
The Alarm LED status for blades is also displayed in the corresponding LED on the LCD panel.
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 15

Chassis indicator LED types
There are several types of indicator LEDs on the VIPRION chassis. Each indicator LED serves a specific function.
DescriptionFunction
Reports that a power supply is present and operational (green), present but
non-functioning (yellow), or does not have a power supply connected (off).
Power
The chassis front panel has one LED per power supply. There are eight power
supply LEDs; however, only the first four are functional in the four-slot
chassis.
Reports the overall state of the chassis: functional (green) or experiencing
errors (yellow).
Status
Reports both blade and chassis alarms. If a blade indicates an alarm condition,
the chassisAlarm LED mirrors that state. In situations where more than one
Alarm
blade is generating an alarm, the chassisAlarm LED displays the most severe
alarm status.
Blade indicator LED types
There are several types of indicator LEDs on VIPRION blades. Each indicator LED serves a specific function.
DescriptionFunction
Reports the state of the system: Active/Standalone (Green) or Standby
(Yellow).
Status
Reports a non-specific alert level. Use SNMP traps, system logs, or the LCD
display for more information.
Alarm
Indicates that the blade is a primary blade for a cluster.Primary
Indicates that the blade is a secondary blade for a cluster.Secondary
Indicator LED actions
DescriptionAction
LED is not lit and does not display any color.Off (none)
LED is lit and does not blink.Solid
LED turns on and off at a regular frequency.Blinking
LED turns on and off with an irregular frequency and may sometimes appear
solid.
Intermittent
Chassis standard operating states
When the platform is in a standard operating state, the LEDs behave in a defined manner.
Alarm LEDStatus LEDSystem State
off/nonegreen solidActive mode
off/noneoff/nonePowered off
16 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform

Chassis standard operating states
When the platform is in a standard operating state, the LEDs behave in a defined manner.
Alarm LEDStatus LEDSystem State
off/nonegreen solidActive mode
off/noneoff/nonePowered off
Powered-off blade indicator LED actions
When a blade is powered off, the LEDs behave in a defined manner.
Alarm LEDStatus LEDSecondary LEDPrimary LEDBlade State
off/nonegreen blinkinggreen blinkinggreen blinkingUser initiated blade power down
red solidyellow blinkingyellow blinkingyellow blinkingBlade shut down due to thermal
overtemp limit
LED alert conditions
When there is an alert condition on the unit, the Alarm LED behaves in a specific manner.
DescriptionAction
Alarm LED behaviorSystem situation
red blinkingEmergency
red solidAlert or Critical
yellow blinkingError
yellow solidWarning
Defining custom alerts
The /etc/alertd/alert.conf and the /config/user_alert.conf files on the VIPRION system define alerts that cause the
indicators to change. The /etc/alertd/alert.conf file defines standard system alerts, and the /config/user_alert.conf
file defines custom settings.You should edit only the /config/user_alert.conf file.
1. Open a command prompt on the VIPRION system.
2. Type the following command:
cd /config
3. Using a text editor, such as vi or Pico, open the /config/user_alert.conf file.
4. Add the following lines to the end of the file:
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_POOL_MEMBER_MON_DOWN "Pool member (.*?):(.*?) monitor status
down."
{
snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.10";
lcdwarn description="Node down" priority="1"
}
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_NODE_ADDRESS_MON_DOWN "Node (.*?) monitor status down." {
snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.12";
lcdwarn description="Node address down" priority="1"
}
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 17

alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_POOL_MEMBER_MON_UP"Pool member (.*?):(.*?)monitorstatus up."
{
snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.11"
}
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_NODE_ADDRESS_MON_UP "Node (.*?) monitor status up."
{
snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.13"
}
5. Save the file and exit the text editor.
The front panel LEDs now indicate when a node is down.
Additional indicator LED status conditions
A few LED status conditions are not covered in the definition tables in the /etc/alertd/alert.conf file.
Yellow intermittent Status LED indicator
A yellow intermittent Status LED indicates that the unit is not under host computer control. This might be due to the
host being halted or due to a software or hardware problem that interferes with the host’s control of the LED.
Green/Yellow solid Status LED indicator
When the Status LED indicator is solid yellow or green, it indicates that the VIPRION system is in a Standby state
(yellow) or anActive state (green). It displays solid green if the unit is Standalone or if it is theActive unit of a redundant
system configuration. It displays yellow if the unit is the Standby member of a redundant system configuration.
Platform Interfaces
You can perform configuration tasks such as displaying interface status and settings and setting the media type using
the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
When using the tmsh interface command, you can either apply the command to all interfaces or to a specific interface
key.
About blade interfaces
The blades have SFP connector optic interfaces, RJ45 10/100/1000 copper interfaces, and 10GbE XFP or 10GbE SFP+
optic interfaces that are connected internally. Each set of interfaces is numbered from x.1 through x.n, with each group
of media types designated by a different prefix. It is important to note some facts about these interfaces:
• The RJ45 connectors can each support 10/100/1000 Mbit Ethernet speed, except where otherwise noted.
• The SFP connectors can each support 1000 Mbit speed with a 1 GbE optic module installed or 10/100/1000Mbit
speeds with an F5-branded copper SFP module.
• The XFP connectors can each support 10G speed with an F5-branded copper XFP module optic module installed.
• The SFP+ connectors can each support 10G speed with a F5-branded optic SFP+ module or 1000 Mbit speed with
a F5-branded optic SFP 1GbE module optic module installed.
Viewing the status of a specific interface
You can use tmsh (or bigpipe) to view the status of a specific interface on a platform.
1. From the system prompt, type the following to open tmsh:
tmsh
18 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform

The following prompt displays: (tmos)#.
2. Type the following to navigate to the network module:
net
The following prompt displays: (tmos.net)#.
3. Use the following syntax to display the current status of a specific interface:
show interface <interface_key>
The following is an example of the output you see when you issue this command on interface 1.2:
---------------------------------------------------------
Net::Interface
Name Status Bits Bits Errs Errs Drops Drops Colli
In Out In Out In Out sions
---------------------------------------------------------
1.2 up 191.4K 0 0 0 374 0 0
Viewing the status of all interfaces
You can use tmsh (or bigpipe) to view the status of all interfaces on the platform.
1. From the system prompt, type the following to open tmsh:
tmsh
The following prompt displays: (tmos)#.
2. Type the following to navigate to the network module:
net
The following prompt displays: (tmos.net)#.
3. Use the following syntax to display the current status of all interfaces:
show interface
The following is an example of the output you see when you issue this command:
------------------------------------------------------------
Net::Interface
Name Status Bits Bits Errs Errs Drops Drops Colli
In Out In Out In Out sions
------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 down 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1.2 up 191.4K 0 0 0 374 0 0
1.3 down 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1.4 up 22.5K 0 0 0 44 0 0
2.1 miss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2.2 miss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
mgmt up 43.2G 160.0G 0 0 0 0 0
About interface media type and duplex mode
All interfaces on the VIPRION system default to auto-negotiate speed and duplex settings. We recommend that you
also configure any network equipment that you plan to use with the VIPRION system to auto-negotiate speed and duplex
settings. If you connect the VIPRION system to network devices with forced speed and duplex settings, you must force
the speed and duplex settings of the system to match the settings of the other network device.
Important: If the VIPRION system is attempting to auto-negotiate interface settings with an interface that
has the speed and duplex settings forced, you will experience severe performance degradation.
Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform | 19

By default, the media type on interfaces is set to automatically detect speed and duplex settings, but you can specify a
media type. Use the following syntax to set the media type: tmsh modify net interface <interface_key> media
<media type> | auto.
If the media type does not accept the duplex mode setting, a message indicates this. If media type is set to auto, or if the
interface does not accept the duplex mode setting, the duplex setting is not saved to the /config/bigip_base.conf file.
Important: If you manually configure the platform to use specific speed and duplex settings on interfaces,
Auto MDI/MDIX functionality is turned off by default. Additionally, when an interface is set manually, it
functions as a data terminal equipment (DTE) port. This means that crossover cables are required to connect
to other DTE devices (for example, servers), and straight-through cables are required for connecting to data
communications equipment (DCE) devices (for example, switches or routers). Be sure to use the correct
cable type (straight-through or crossover) if you manually set interface speed and duplex settings.
Valid media types
This table lists the valid media types for the bigpipe interface command and the tmsh interface command.
tmshbigpipe
autoauto
10Base-T half10Base-T half
10Base-T full10Base-T full
100Base-TX half100Base-TX half
100Base-TX full100Base-TX full
1000Base-T half1000Base-T half
1000Base-T full1000Base-T full
1000Base-SX full1000Base-SX full
1000Base-LX full1000Base-LX full
10GBase-T full10GBase-T full
10GBase-SR full10GBase-SR full
10GBase-LR full10GBase-LR full
10GBase-ER full10GBase-ER full
none
no-phy
Viewing valid media types for an interface
This platform may not support all of the media type options that are available in tmsh and bigpipe.You can use tmsh
or bigpipe to view the valid media types for an interface.
1. From the system prompt, type the following to open tmsh:
tmsh
The following prompt displays: (tmos)#.
2. Type the following to navigate to the network module:
net
The following prompt displays: (tmos.net)#.
20 | Platform Guide: VIPRION | The VIPRION platform