Interface in access mode vs interface in trunk mode

[Dom Lukos]

Hi guys,

Do you know if there is a difference in performance for example between the interfaces being configured in access mode and interfaces being configured in trunk mode with just one VLAN permitted???

[Ganesh Hariharan]

Hi guys,


Do you know if there is a difference in performance for example between the interfaces being configured in access mode and interfaces being configured in trunk mode with just one VLAN permitted???

Hi,

Both types are of different definition and different roles in switching network. Access port are solely configured for dedicated vlan on that switch and trunk means that ports allows the vlans to carry between switches.

What performance are you asking here ??

-GI

[Jon Marshall]

If you mean performance in terms of traffic I would doubt very much there is any difference between the two.

Jon

[Joseph W. Doherty]

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As switches tend to do most of their processing in hardware, the only difference you might bump into is whether the trunk's frames are tagged or not.  If frames are actually tagged, you'll going to lose bandwidth to tag overhead.  That overhead would also reduce your PPS rate.

[Dom Lukos]

Thanks for your answers all,

The reason I'm asking we have a F5 deployed in 2-arm mode.

There is external VLAN in DMZ via 1st-arm and internal VLAN in LAN via 2nd-arm. Interfaces are connected to Cisco 3750Xes switches. Currently interfaces on both ends are configured in trunk mode (VLAN tagging). I have recently been told those interfaces should be actually configured in access mode as only one VLAN travels via each link. I have configured it as a trunk for a future expansion so additional VLAN can be added without taking the current services down.

What is the good practice then?

[Ganesh Hariharan]

Thanks for your answers all,

The reason I'm asking we have a F5 deployed in 2-arm mode.

There is external VLAN in DMZ via 1st-arm and internal VLAN in LAN via 2nd-arm. Interfaces are connected to Cisco 3750Xes switches. Currently interfaces on both ends are configured in trunk mode (VLAN tagging). I have recently been told those interfaces should be actually configured in access mode as only one VLAN travels via each link. I have configured it as a trunk for a future expansion so additional VLAN can be added without taking the current services down.

What is the good practice then?

Hi Dom,

F5 Load balancers are deployed with two arm mode in DMZ segment to have security implemented and traffic to server can only go via F5 internal ip address.

Trunking configuration on F5 interface is standard method to expand the F5 involvement in multiple VLANS.

Performance can only comes under consideration with F5 model when it handle the type of traffic like concurrent HTTP or HTTPS or any specific application port traffic. For more interface bandwidth you can do port channel at both segment for double bandwidth.

Hope that Helpss.

-GI

Rate if it Helpss 

[Dom Lukos]

Hi Ganesh,

Thanks for your reply.

Each arm in my deployment is made of 2x10GB logical channels so I believe that should be more that required. 

I will leave it as it is then - in trunk mode.

Thanks for your help

[Jon Marshall]

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