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<a name="wp1074543"> </a><h1 class="pTitle">
PortChannel Protocols

</h1>
<a name="wp1074544"> </a><p class="pBody">
In earlier Cisco SAN-OS releases, PortChannels required additional administrative tasks to support 
synchronization. The Cisco NX-OS software provides robust error detection and synchronization 
capabilities. You can manually configure channel groups or they can be automatically created. In both 
cases, the channel groups have the same capability and configurational parameters. Any change in 
configuration applied to the associated PortChannel interface is propagated to all members of the 
channel group.

</p>
<a name="wp1074545"> </a><p class="pBody">
A protocol to exchange PortChannel configurations is available in all Cisco MDS switches. This addition 
simplifies PortChannel management with incompatible ISLs. An additional autocreation mode enables 
ISLs with compatible parameters to automatically form channel groups without manual intervention. 

</p>
<a name="wp1074546"> </a><p class="pBody">
The PortChannel protocol is enabled by default.

</p>
<a name="wp1074547"> </a><p class="pBody">
The PortChannel protocol expands the PortChannel functional model in Cisco MDS switches. It uses the 
exchange peer parameters (EPP) services to communicate across peer ports in an ISL. Each switch uses 
the information received from the peer ports along with its local configuration and operational values to 
decide if it should be part of a PortChannel. The protocol ensures that a set of ports are eligible to be 
part of the same PortChannel. They are only eligible to be part of the same PortChannel if all the ports 
have a compatible partner. 

</p>
<a name="wp1074548"> </a><p class="pBody">
The PortChannel protocol uses two subprotocols:

</p>
<div class="pSmartList1"><ul class="pSmartList1">
<a name="wp1074549"> </a><li class="pSmartList1">Bringup protocol&#8212;Automatically detects misconfigurations so you can correct them. This protocol 
synchronizes the PortChannel at both ends so that all frames for a given flow (as identified by the 
source FC ID, destination FC ID and OX_ID) are carried over the same physical link in both 
directions. This helps make applications such as write acceleration, work for PortChannels over 
FCIP links.
</li>
<a name="wp1074550"> </a><li class="pSmartList1">Autocreation protocol&#8212;Automatically aggregates compatible ports into a PortChannel. 
</li>
</ul></div>
<a name="wp1074658"> </a><p class="pBody">
This section describes how to configure the PortChannel protocol and includes the following sections:

</p>
<div class="pSmartList1"><ul class="pSmartList1">
<a name="wp1074662"> </a><li class="pSmartList1"><a href="pc15.html">Channel Group Creation</a>
</li>
<a name="wp1074666"> </a><li class="pSmartList1"><a href="pc16.html">Autocreation</a>
</li>
<a name="wp1074674"> </a><li class="pSmartList1"><a href="pc17.html">Manually Configured Channel Groups</a>
</li>
</ul></div>
<hr /><br><p class="pBody">Copyright 2010-2013, Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.</p> 

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