Port Settings Window

This window appears when you take either of these actions:

You can also click here to launch it.

Begin by selecting a host from the Host Name list. Information about the host ports appears on these tabs:

Configuration Settings

The following instructions tell you how to modify the settings and how to enter interface descriptions on a host switch. If you need an explanation of the settings, see Settings Table.

If the host is a Catalyst 2900 LRE XL switch, you see two additional columns on the tab: LRE Upstream and LRE Downstream. These columns apply to the Long-Reach Ethernet (LRE) link on the LRE ports. All the other columns apply to the Ethernet link associated with the LRE ports. The LRE link represents the connection between an LRE port and the WAN port on remote customer-premises equipment (CPE) such as the Cisco 575 LRE CPE. The Ethernet link represents the connection between the remote CPE Ethernet port and an Ethernet device such as a PC. LRE port configuration and monitoring involves both links. Use the Modify Port Settings window to change the Ethernet link settings of an LRE port. Use the Profile Configuration window to change the LRE link settings of an LRE port. To display the Profile Configuration window, choose Device > Profile Configuration. For information about profiles, see LRE Profiles. For more descriptions and considerations about configuring the LRE ports, see LRE Port Considerations.

To modify settings:

  1. Select one or more ports.
    To select several ports, hold down the Ctrl key and make your selections, or hold down the Shift key and select the first and last port in a range.
  2. Click Modify to display the Modify Port Settings window.
  3. Complete the window.
  4. Click OK to put your changes into effect and to close the window.
    Your new settings are displayed in the Port Settings window.
  5. Click OK to close the window.

To add or modify interface descriptions:

  1. Select one or more ports.
  2. Click Describe to display the Basic Port Description window.
  3. Complete the window.
    Note: From the Basic Port Description window, you can go to the Advanced Port Description window to specify automatic incrementation of up to three descriptors.
  4. Click OK to save your descriptions and to close the window.
    The descriptions appear in the Port Settings window.
  5. Click OK to close the window.

If you select multiple ports and specify a configuration setting that is not valid for a selected port, the current setting remains unchanged. For example, if you select a 10BaseT Ethernet, a Fast Ethernet, and a Gigabit port and then select a speed of 100 Mbps, the 10BaseT Ethernet port remains set to 10 Mbps, and the Gigabit port remains set to 1000 Mbps.

Runtime Status

This table explains the read-only information on this tab.

Column Explanation
Interface
Identifies the port: Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, ATM, or FDDI, the module or slot number (0, 1, or 2), and the port number.
DescriptionThe current description of the interface.
LRE Link

Catalyst 2900 LRE XL only
The state of the LRE link between the switch LRE port and the WAN port on the remote CPE. If the LRE link state is down, status displayed in the other columns is unavailable.
Ethernet Link The current state of the port. The status of a port can be up, down, or administratively down.

Note:
On an LRE port, this is the state of the remote CPE Ethernet port.
Duplex The current duplex state of the port.
For ATM ports, this field displays full.

Note: On an LRE port, this is the duplex mode of the remote CPE Ethernet port.
Speed The current speed of the port.
For Gigabit Ethernet ports, this field is read-only and displays 1000 (1000 Mbps).
For ATM ports, this field is read-only and displays 155 (155 Mbps).

Note:
On an LRE port, this is the speed on the remote CPE Ethernet port. This setting does not reflect the upstream and downstream LRE link speeds, which are defined by the active LRE profile on the port and displayed from the Configuration Settings tab. For information about LRE ports and LRE profiles, see LRE Port Considerations and LRE Profiles.

LRE Port Considerations

Catalyst 2900 LRE XL switches use Long-Reach Ethernet (LRE) technology to transfer data and voice traffic over existing standard telephone lines. Connecting a switch LRE port to a remote Ethernet device requires two types of connections:

The actual line speed between an LRE port and a remote Ethernet device, in either direction, depends on the active profile for the LRE port and the Ethernet link speed. For example, if a PC Ethernet port is configured to 100 Mbps and the LRE port is configured with an upstream link speed of 5.69 Mbps, the actual upload rate provided to the PC user is 5.69 Mbps, not 100 Mbps.

LRE Link on the LRE Ports

The LRE link settings on the LRE ports define the connection between the switch LRE port and the WAN port on a remote CPE. The LRE link provides symmetric and asymmetric bandwidth for voice and data traffic. Symmetrical transmission is when the downstream and upstream bandwidth are the same. Asymmetrical transmission is when the downstream and the upstream bandwidth differ. Downstream transmission refers to the data traveling from the LRE port to the CPE. Upstream transmission refers to the data traveling from the CPE to the LRE port.

The switch controls bandwidth within the LRE link by using configurations called profiles. An LRE profile configures the upstream and downstream rates on the LRE link. Depending on the profile, the upstream and downstream bands on an LRE link can be approximately 5, 10, or 15 Mbps. By default, all LRE ports on the switch are enabled with the LRE-10 private profile in effect.

You can assign profiles on a per-port or switch-wide basis. When the LRE port establishes a link with the CPE, the switch downloads its profile settings to the CPE port so that both ports on both devices operate with the same configuration. For more information about profiles, see LRE Profiles.

Ethernet Link on the LRE Ports

The Ethernet link settings on the LRE ports are for configuring the remote CPE Ethernet port. They define the connection between the remote CPE and Ethernet device. You can set the CPE Ethernet port to operate at 10 or 100 Mbps and at half- or full-duplex mode, depending on the capability of the remote Ethernet device. Autonegotiation for port speed and duplex mode are supported. The default speed for the CPE Ethernet port is auto; the default duplex mode is half duplex with flow control.

The speeds on the LRE and Ethernet links do not need to match. However, to prevent the possible loss of data when the LRE link is slower than the Ethernet link, use duplex autonegotiation only if the remote device supports 802.1X full-duplex flow control. The PC user should notice no significant difference in performance between 100-Mbps half duplex and 100-Mbps full duplex.

For more information about configuring LRE ports, refer to the Catalyst 2900 Series XL and Catalyst 3500 Series XL Software Configuration Guide.