Change switch role in a stack of two, from Member to Standby on C9200L

[AJ07]

Hi guys,

I am i need of your assistance. We have two C9200L running on IOS version: 

122  426931224 Jul 29 2021 03:22:26.0000000000 +00:00 cat9k_lite-rpbase.17.03.03.SPA.pkg
When the Active switch went down due to onsite power issues, the second unit did not take over rolls as the active switch to pass traffic. What unit 2 did instead, it got stuck in Rommon mode. We had to physically reboot the switch to go back to a normal operational state.

Below is the "show switch" output:

sh switch:
Switch/Stack Mac Address : a478.0628.2700 - Local Mac Address
Mac persistency wait time: Indefinite
H/W Current
Switch# Role Mac Address Priority Version State
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*1 Active a478.0628.2700 15 V02 Ready
2 Member e8eb.34a9.6c00 1 V01 Ready

Please advise how we can change the switch role of  unit 2 from "Member"  to Standby. I believe that will resolve the issue when the Active switch goes down, the standby switch should take over.

[balaji.bandi · Accepted solution]

what IOS XE code running :

By default, the priority is 1 for all switches; hence it falls back to the MAC address to determine the ACTIVE switch if a priority is not defined explicitly. 

as per your output it says member ready, not standby ready.  may be check #show redundancy

Also follow below guide and make necessary changes to be standby.

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/switches/catalyst-9200-series-switches/nb-06-stackwise-architecture-cte-en.html

[AJ07]

Hi Balaji, yes the issue was with the second unit marked as a "member" not "standby. We changed the roles by using the following command: switch  2 role standby. I could now see the 2nd unit when issuing the #show redundancy

Thank you.

[balaji.bandi]

So the  issue is resolve - as per your testing ?

[AJ07]

Yes that is correct. Issue is resolved after being able to change the roles of the member switch to standby.

#show redundancy
Redundant System Information :
------------------------------
Available system uptime = 1 week, 1 day, 12 hours, 26 minutes
Switchovers system experienced = 0
Standby failures = 0
Last switchover reason = none

Hardware Mode = Duplex
Configured Redundancy Mode = sso
Operating Redundancy Mode = sso
Maintenance Mode = Disabled
Communications = Up

Current Processor Information :
-------------------------------
Active Location = slot 1
Current Software state = ACTIVE
Uptime in current state = 1 week, 1 day, 12 hours, 26 minutes
Image Version = Cisco IOS Software [Amsterdam], Catalyst L3 Switch Software (CAT9K_LITE_IOSXE), Version 17.3.3, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc7)
Technical Support: http://www.cisco.com/techsupport
Copyright (c) 1986-2021 by Cisco Systems, Inc.
Compiled Thu 04-Mar-21 08:48 by mcpre
BOOT = flash:packages.conf;
Configuration register = 0x102

Peer Processor Information :
----------------------------
Standby Location = slot 2
Current Software state = STANDBY HOT
Uptime in current state = 1 week, 1 day, 12 hours, 23 minutes
Image Version = Cisco IOS Software [Amsterdam], Catalyst L3 Switch Software (CAT9K_LITE_IOSXE), Version 17.3.3, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc7)
Technical Support: http://www.cisco.com/techsupport
Copyright (c) 1986-2021 by Cisco Systems, Inc.
Compiled Thu 04-Mar-21 08:48 by mcpre
BOOT = flash:packages.conf;
Configuration register = 0x102

[Leo Laohoo]

---

@AJ07 wrote:
What unit 2 did instead, it got stuck in Rommon mode. 

---

This behaviour has nothing to do with switch priority.  It is a different thing. 

Post the complete output to the command "sh boot".

[AJ07]

Hi all, my apologies for the late response. A lot has been happening.

Anyway, I found a simple command to use to change the unit roles. The command is: switch  2 role standby

After a few minutes, the roles where changed without even needing a reboot. We also tested the "failover", powered down the Active unit, and the 2nd unit (standby) took over transmission of traffic as the configs were synced between the two units.