Intra-chassis redundancy

[zarnims]

Hi,

Could anyone explain me about what "Intra-chassis" redundancy means? And what would be the example scenerios?

I have been studying HA for my ccnp switch exam and it covers a lot about "Inter-chassis" redundancy protocols but not this. It would be really great if someone help me with this. Thanks a lot guys!

[Jonn cos]

Its a very uncommon term but i will try to explain with a analogy

You are familiar with Desktop/PC/Laptops right ? how many motherboards they have ? almost always 1 ( i have never seen with 2 or more :-)). Now what happens if something happens to your motherboard or it simply malfunctions ?? your device stops working. Now what if you had 2 motherboards in your laptop/desktop machine working as failover. In case your primary motherboard goes down, the second can start functioning so you dont have any downtime. You can simply take out the faulty motherboard, repair it and place it back again. i hope the concept is bit clear

In switches and especially modular high end switches like 4500/6500 we have concept of Supervisor which are essentialy motherboards for the switch. They give brain and controlling to the chassis. Not all chassis but selected one can host 2 supervisors (hence 2 motherboards) in failover mode, if one fails the other can take over, reducing downtime to zero.

This is called intra chassis redundancy

[zarnims]

Hi Jonn,

Thanks for the reply. What are the exact Cisco technologies that you have mentioned? I could dig deeper on the internet if you would let me know the term for this.

[sean_evershed]

Hi, refer to the link below on intra-chassis redundancy of supervisors:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/solutions/Enterprise/Campus/Borderless_Campus_Network_1.0/BN_Campus_HA.html#wp1229679

Don't forget to rate helpful posts.

[zarnims]

Hi Sean,

Thanks for this helpful reply. I really need to take this a look. Cheers!

[Jonn cos · Accepted solution]

You need to look for these terms

1) Supervisor

2) SSO/RPR

3) Modular chassis

Reading about following switches will give you almost all the information

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/switches/ps4324/products_data_sheets_list.html

On above link, you will get datasheets about all the supervisors of 4500 switch. Read about them and they will tell you all you need. Below is the configuration guide that also helps you understand how SSO/RPR works

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/switches/lan/catalyst4500/12.2/25ew/configuration/guide/RPR.html

Start reading to get a taste of what its all about. If you find any difficulty you can always come back and ask

Please Rate if helpful

[zarnims]

Hi Jonn,

That really helps me a lot. Thanks so much.

[Jonn cos]

Most welcome dear friend