Basic Trunk Principles

The member links of a trunk link can be configured with different weights to carry out load balancing,
which helps ensure connection reliability and greater bandwidth.
Users can configure trunk interfaces to support various routing protocols and services.
Figure 1 shows a simple Eth-Trunk example in which two routers are directly connected through
three interfaces. These three interfaces are bundled into an Eth-Trunk interface at both ends of the
trunk link. In this way, the bandwidth is increased, and reliability is improved.
Figure 1 Schematic diagram of a trunk

A trunk link can be considered as a point-to-point link. The devices on the end the link can be
both routers or switches, or a routeron one end and a switch on the other.
A trunk has the following advantages:
 Greater bandwidth
The total bandwidth of a trunk interface equals the sum of the bandwidth of all its member
interfaces. In this manner, the interface bandwidth is multiplied.
 Higher reliability
If a member interface fails, traffic on the faulty link is then switched to an available member link.
This ensures higher reliability for the entire trunk link.
 Load balancing
Load balancing can be carried out on a trunk interface, which distributes traffic among its
member interfaces and then transmits the traffic through the member links to the same
destination. This prevents network congestion that occurs when all traffic is transmitted over
one link.

Constraints on the Trunk Interface

As a logical interface with multiple member physical interfaces transparently transmitting upper-layer
data, a trunk interface must comply with the following rules:
 Parameters of the member physical interfaces on both ends of a trunk link must be consistent.
The parameters include:
 Number of member interfaces bundled on each end
 Transmission rate of member interfaces
 Duplex mode of physical interfaces
 Traffic-control mode of physical interfaces
 Data must be transmitted in sequence.
A data flow is a set of data packets with the same source and destination MAC addresses and
IP addresses. For example, the traffic over a Telnet or FTP connection between two devices is
a data flow.
Before a trunk is configured, frames that belong to a data flow can reach their destination in
correct order because only one physical connection exists between two devices. When the
trunk interface is configured, frames are transmitted by multiple physical links. If the second
frame is transmitted over a different physical link than the first frame, the second frame may
reach the destination before the first.
To prevent frame mis-sequence, a datagram forwarding mechanism is used to ensure the
correct order of frames belonging to the same data flow. This mechanism categorizes data
 flows based on MAC or IP addresses. The datagrams that belong to the same data flow are
transmitted over the same physical link.
After the datagram forwarding mechanism is introduced, frames are transmitted in either of the
following manners:
 Frames with the same source and destination MAC addresses are transmitted over the
same physical link.
 Frames with the same source and destination IP addresses are transmitted over the same
physical link.

Types and Features of Trunk Interfaces

Types of Trunk Interfaces
The following types of trunk interfaces are available:

 An Eth-Trunk interface consists of Ethernet interfaces.

 An IP-Trunk interface consists of POS interfaces.

Features of Trunk Interfaces

Eth-Trunk and IP-Trunk interfaces configured on the NE40E support the following features:
 Assignment of IP addresses
 Load balancing based on a hash algorithm
 Addition of interfaces on different interface boards to the same trunk interface

Upper and Lower Thresholds for the Number of Up Member Links

The number of member links in the Up state affects the status and bandwidth of a trunk interface.
The bandwidth of an Eth-Trunk interface equals the total bandwidth of all member interfaces in the
Up state. As shown in Figure 1, two devices are directly connected through three interfaces, and the
three interfaces are bundled into an Eth-Trunk interface on each end of the trunk link. If the
bandwidth of each interface is 1 Gbit/s, the bandwidth of the Eth-Trunk interface is 3 Gbit/s. If the
Eth-Trunk interface has two Up member interfaces, its bandwidth is reduced to 2 Gbit/s.
You can set the following thresholds to stabilize an Eth-Trunk interface's status and bandwidth as
well as reduce the impact brought by frequent changes of member link status.
 Lower threshold for the number of member links in the Up state
When the number of member links in the Up state is smaller than the lower threshold, the Eth-
Trunk interface goes Down. This ensures the minimum available bandwidth of an Up trunk link.
For example, if an Eth-Trunk interface needs to provide a minimum bandwidth of 2 Gbit/s and
each member link can provide 1 Gbit/s bandwidth, the lower threshold must be set to 2 or a
larger value. If one or no member links are in the Up state, the Eth-Trunk interface goes Down.
 Upper threshold for the number of member links in the Up state
After the number of member links in the Up state reaches the upper threshold, the bandwidth of
the Eth-Trunk interface does not increase even if more member links go Up. This improves
network reliability and ensures sufficient bandwidth.
For example, 10 member links are added to an Eth-Trunk link, each providing 1 Gbit/s
bandwidth. If the Eth-Trunk interface only needs to provide a maximum bandwidth of 5 Gbit/s,
 the upper threshold can be set to 5, indicating a maximum of five member links needs to be
active. The remaining links automatically enter the backup state. If one or more of the active
member links go Down, the backup links automatically become active, which ensures the 5
Gbit/s bandwidth of the Eth-Trunk interface and improves network reliability.

Load Balancing of Trunk Interfaces

Load can be balanced among member links of a trunk link according to the configured weights.
The following types of load balancing are available:
 Per-flow load balancing
Per-flow load balancing differentiates data flows based on the MAC or IP address in each
packet and ensures that packets of the same data flow are transmitted over the same member
link.
This load balancing mode ensures the data sequence, but not the bandwidth usage.
 Per-packet load balancing
Per-packet load balancing takes each packet (rather than a data flow) as the transmission unit,
and transmits packets over different member links.
This load balancing mode ensures bandwidth utilization, but not the packet sequence.
Therefore, this mode applies to the scenarios where the packet sequence is not strictly
required.
 Symmetric load balancing
Symmetric load balancing differentiates data flows based on IP addresses of packets to ensure
that packets of the same data flow are transmitted over member links with the same serial
number on two connected devices.
This load balancing mode ensures the data sequence, but not the bandwidth usage.

MAC address
Each station or server connected to an Ethernet interface of a device has its own MAC address. The
MAC address table on the device records information about the MAC addresses of connected
devices.
When a Layer 3 router is connected to a Layer 2 switch through two Eth-Trunk links for different
services, if both Eth-Trunk interfaces on the router adopt the default system MAC address, the
system MAC address is learned by the switch and alternates between the two Eth-Trunk interfaces.
In this case, a loop probably occurs between the two devices. To prevent loops, you can change the
MAC address of an Eth-Trunk interface by using the mac-address command. By configuring the
source and destination MAC addresses for two Eth-Trunk links, you can guarantee the normal
transmission of service data flows and improve the network reliability.
After the MAC address of an Eth-Trunk interface is changed, the device sends gratuitous ARP
packets to update the mapping relationship between MAC addresses and ports.

MTU
Generally, the IP layer controls the maximum length of frames that are sent each time. Any time the
IP layer receives an IP packet to be sent, it checks which local interface the packet needs to be sent
to and queries the MTU of the interface. Then, the IP layer compares the MTU with the packet length
to be sent. If the packet length is greater than the MTU, the IP layer fragments the packet to ensure
that the length of each fragment is smaller or equal to the MTU.
 If forcible unfragmentation is configured, certain packets are lost during data transmission at the IP
layer. To ensure jumbo packets are not dropped during transmission, you need to configure forcible
fragmentation.
Generally, it is recommended that you adopt the default MTU value of 1500 bytes. If you need to
change the MTU of an Eth-Trunk interface, you need to change the MTU of the peer Eth-Trunk
interface to ensure that the MTUs of both interfaces are the same. Otherwise, services may be
interrupted.

Link Aggregation Control Protocol

Emergence of Link Aggregation
With the wide application of Ethernet technology on metropolitan area networks (MANs) and wide
area networks (WANs), carriers have an increasing requirement on the bandwidth and reliability of
Ethernet backbone links. To obtain higher bandwidth, the conventional solution is to replace the
existing interface boards with boards of higher capacity or install devices which support higher-
capacity interface boards. However, this solution is costly and inflexible. To provide an economic
and convenient solution, link aggregation is introduced. Link aggregation increases link bandwidth by
bundling a group of physical interfaces into a single logical interface without the need to upgrade
hardware. In addition, link aggregation can implement a link backup mechanism, which improves
transmission reliability.
As a link aggregation technology, trunk bundles a group of physical interfaces into a logical interface
to increase the bandwidth. However, trunk can only detect link disconections, not link layer faults or
link misconnections. The Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) is therefore used to improve
trunk fault tolerance, provide M:N backup for the trunk, and improve reliability.
LACP provides a standard negotiation mechanism for devices to automatically aggregate multiple
links according to their configurations and enable the aggregated link to transmit and receive data.
After an aggregated link is formed, LACP maintains the link status and implements dynamic link
aggregation and deaggregation.

Basic Concepts
 Link aggregation
Link aggregation is a method of bundling several physical interfaces into a logical interface to
increase bandwidth and reliability.
 Link aggregation group
A link aggregation group (LAG) or a trunk link is a logical link that aggregates several physical
links.
If all these aggregated links are Ethernet links, the LAG is called an Ethernet link aggregation
group, or an Eth-Trunk for short, and the interface at each end of the Eth-Trunk link is called an
Eth-Trunk interface.
Each interface that is added to the Eth-Trunk interface is called a member interface.
An Eth-Trunk interface can be considered as a single Ethernet interface. The only difference
lies that an Eth-Trunk interface needs to select one or more member Ethernet interfaces before
forwarding data. You can configure features on an Eth-Trunk interface the same way as on a
single Ethernet interface, except for some features that take effect only on physical Ethernet
interfaces.
NOTE:
 An Eth-Trunk member interface cannot be added to another Eth-Trunk interface.

 Active and inactive interfaces

There are active and inactive interfaces in link aggregation. An interface that forwards data is
active, while an interface that does not forward data is inactive.
A link connected to an active interface is an active link, while a link connected to an inactive
interface is an inactive link.
To enhance link reliability, a backup link is used. Interfaces on the two ends of the backup link
are inactive. The inactive interfaces become active only when the active interfaces fail.
 Upper threshold for the number of active interfaces
In an Eth-Trunk interface, if an upper threshold for the number of active interfaces is configured
and the number of available active interfaces exceeds the upper threshold, the number of active
interfaces in the Eth-Trunk remains at the upper threshold value.
 Lower threshold for the number of active interfaces
In an Eth-Trunk interface, if a lower threshold for the number of active interfaces is configured
and the number of active interfaces falls below this threshold, the Eth-Trunk interface goes
Down, and all member interfaces of the Eth-Trunk interface stop forwarding data. This prevents
data loss during transmission when the number of active interfaces is insufficient.
The lower threshold configured for the number of active interfaces ensures the bandwidth of an
Eth-Trunk link.
 System LACP priority
A system LACP priority is set to prioritize the devices at both ends. A lower system LACP
priority value indicates a higher system LACP priority. The device with a higher system priority
is selected as the Actor, and then active member interfaces are selected according to the
configuration of the Eth-Trunk interface on the Actor. In LACP mode, the active interfaces
selected by devices must be consistent at both ends; otherwise, the LAG cannot be set up. To
ensure the consistency of the active interfaces selected at both ends, you can set a higher
priority for one end. Then the other end can select the active interfaces accordingly.
If neither of the devices at the two ends of an Eth-Trunk link is configured with the system
priority, the devices adopt the default value 32768. In this case, the Actor is selected according
to the system ID. That is, the device with the smaller system ID becomes the Actor.
 Interface LACP priority
An interface LACP priority is set to specify the priority of an interface to be selected as an active
interface. Interfaces with higher priorities are selected as active interfaces.
A smaller interface LACP priority value indicates a higher interface LACP priority.
 M:N backup of member interfaces
Link aggregation in static LACP uses LACPDUs to negotiation on active link selection. This
mode is also called M:N mode where M indicates the number of active links and N indicates the
number of backup links. This mode improves link reliability and implements load balancing
among the M active links.
On the network shown in Figure 1, M+N links with the same attributes (in the same LAG) are
set up between two devices. When data is transmitted over the aggregation link, traffic is
distributed among the active (M) links. No data is transmitted over the backup (N) links.
Therefore, the actual bandwidth of the aggregation link is the sum of the bandwidth of the M
links, and the maximum bandwidth that can be provided is the sum of the bandwidth of M + N
links.
If one of the M links fails, LACP selects one available backup link from the N links to replace the
faulty link. In this situation, the actual bandwidth of the aggregation link remains the sum of the
bandwidth of M links, but the maximum bandwidth that can be provided is the sum of the
bandwidth of M + N - 1 links.
 Figure 1 M:N backup

M:N backup applies to the scenario where bandwidth of M links needs to be provided and link
redundancy is required. If an active link fails, an LACP-enabled device can automatically select
the backup link with the highest priority and add it to the LAG.
If no backup link is available and the number of Up member links is less than the lower
threshold for the number of Up links, the device shuts down the trunk interface.

Link Aggregation Mode

Link aggregation can use manual load balancing or LACP:
 Manual 1:1 master/backup mode
In 1:1 master/backup mode, an LAG contains only two member interfaces. One interface is the
primary interface and the other is the backup interface. In normal situations, only the master
interface forwards traffic.
In manual mode, you must manually set up an Eth-Trunk and add an interface to the Eth-Trunk.
You must also manually configure member interfaces to be in the active state.
The manual 1:1 master/backup mode is used when the peer device does not support LACP.
 Manual load balancing mode
In this mode, you must manually create an Eth-Trunk interface and add member interfaces to it.
The LACP protocol is not required.
All member interfaces forward data and perform load balancing.
In manual load balancing mode, traffic can be evenly distributed among all member interfaces.
Alternatively, you can set different weights for member interfaces to implement uneven load
balancing. The interfaces set with greater weights transmit more traffic.
If an active link of the LAG fails, traffic load balancing is implemented among the remaining
active links.
 LACP mode
In LACP mode, you also manually create a trunk interface and add member interfaces to it.
Compared with link aggregation in manual load balancing mode, active interfaces in LACP
mode are selected through the transmission of Link Aggregation Control Protocol Data Units
(LACPDUs). This means that when a group of interfaces are added to a trunk interface, the
status of each member interface (active or inactive) depends on the LACP negotiation.
Table 1 shows the similarities and differences between the manual load balancing mode and
LACP mode.

Table 1 Comparison of manual load balancing and LACP mode

Difference/Similarity Manual Load Balancing Mode LACP Mode

Difference LACP is disabled. LACP is enabled.

Whether interfaces in an LAG can be LACP checks whether interfaces in an L
aggregated is not checked. Here, aggregation means the bundling of
 Table 1 Comparison of manual load balancing and LACP mode

Difference/Similarity Manual Load Balancing Mode LACP Mode

Similarity The LAG is created and deleted manually, and the member links are added and delete

Principle of Link Aggregation in Manual Load Balancing Mode

Link aggregation in manual load balancing mode is widely applied. In this mode, multiple interfaces
can be manually added to an aggregation group, all of which forward data and participate in load
balancing. This mode applies when a great amount of link bandwidth is required for two directly
connected devices and one of them does not support LACP. As shown in Figure 2, Device A
supports LACP, while Device B does not.
Figure 2 Networking of link aggregation in manual load balancing mode

In this mode, load balancing is carried out among all member interfaces. The NE40E supports two
types of load balancing:
 Per-flow load balancing
 Per-packet load balancing

Principle of Link Aggregation in LACP Mode

LACP, specified in IEEE 802.3 ad, provides a standardized means of exchanging information to
dynamically configure and maintain link aggregation groups. The local device and the peer
exchange information through LACPDUs.
After member interfaces are added to a trunk interface, the member interfaces send LACPDUs to
inform the peers of their system priorities, MAC addresses, interface priorities, interface numbers,
and keys. After the peer receives the information, the peer compares this information with stored
information and selects interfaces that can be aggregated. Devices at both ends then determine
which interfaces are to be active interfaces.
Figure 3 shows the fields in an LACPDU.
Figure 3 LACPDU

An Eth-Trunk link in LACP mode is set up in the following process:

1. Devices at both ends send LACPDUs.
As shown in Figure 4, an Eth-Trunk interface in LACP mode is created on Device A
and Device B, and member interfaces are added to each. Then LACP is automatically
enabled on the member interfaces, and Device A and Device B send LACPDUs to each other.
Figure 4 LACPDU sending in LACP mode

2. Devices at both ends determine the Actor according to the system LACP priority and system
ID.
 As shown in Figure 5, devices at both ends receive LACPDUs from each other.
When Device B receives LACPDUs from Device A, Device B checks and records information
about Device A and compares their system priorities. If the system priority of Device A is
higher than that of Device B, Device A functions as the Actor and Device B selects active
interfaces according to the interface priority of Device A. In this manner, devices on both ends
select the same active interfaces.
Figure 5 Determining the Actor in LACP mode

3. Devices at both ends determine active interfaces according to the LACP priorities and
interface IDs of the Actor.
On the network shown in Figure 6, after the devices at both ends determine the Actor, both
devices select active interfaces according to the interface priorities on the Actor.
Then active interfaces are selected, those to be included in the LAG are specified, and load
balancing is implemented among these active links.
Figure 6 Selecting active interfaces in LACP mode

 Switching between active links and inactive links

In LACP mode, if a device at either end detects any of the following events, link switching is
triggered in the LAG.
 A link is Down.
 Ethernet OAM detects a link failure.
  LACP discovers a link failure.
 An active interface becomes unavailable.
 After LACP preemption is enabled, the priority of the backup interface is changed to be
higher than that of the current active interface.
If any of the preceding conditions are met, a link switching occurs in the following steps:
6. The faulty link is disabled.
7. The backup link with the highest priority is selected to replace the faulty active link.
8. The backup link of the highest priority becomes the active link and then begins
forwarding data. The link switching is complete.
 LACP preemption
After LACP preemption is enabled, interfaces with higher priorities in an LAG function as active
interfaces.
As shown in Figure 7, Port 1, Port 2, and Port 3 are member interfaces of Eth-Trunk 1. The
upper threshold for the number of active interfaces is 2. LACP priorities of Port 1 and Port 2 are
set to 9 and 10, respectively. The LACP priority of Port 3 is the default value. When LACP
negotiation is complete, Port 1 and Port 2 are selected as active interfaces because their LACP
priorities are higher. Port 3 becomes the backup interface.
Figure 7 Networking diagram of LACP preemption

LACP preemption needs to be enabled in the following situations.

 Port 1 fails and then recovers. When Port 1 fails, Port 3 takes its place. After Port 1
recovers, if LACP preemption is not enabled on Eth-Trunk 1, Port 1 remains as the backup
interface. If LACP preemption is enabled on Eth-Trunk 1, Port 1 becomes the active
interface after it recovers, and Port 3 becomes the backup interface again.
 If LACP preemption is enabled and you want Port 3 to take the place of Port 1 or Port 2 as
an active interface, you can set the LACP priority value of Port 3 to a smaller value. If
LACP preemption is not enabled, the system does not re-select an active interface or
switch the active interface when the priority of a backup interface is higher than that of the
active interface.
 LACP preemption delay
After LACP preemption occurs, the backup link waits for a period of time before switching to the
Active state. This period of time is called an LACP preemption delay.
The LACP preemption delay can be set to prevent unstable data transmission on an Eth-Trunk
link due to frequent link status changes.
As shown in Figure 6, Port 1 becomes an inactive interface due to a link fault. If the system is
enabled with LACP preemption, Port 1 can resume its Active state only after a preemption delay
when the link fault is rectified.
 Loop detection
LACP supports loop detection. If a local Eth-Trunk interface in LACP mode receives a sole
LACP protocol packet, the Eth-Trunk interface sets its member interfaces to the Unselected
state so that they cease to participate in service traffic forwarding.
After the loop is eliminated:

 If the Eth-Trunk interfaces on each end of a link can exchange LACPDUs normally and
LACP negotiation succeeds, the member interfaces in Unselected state are restored to the
Selected state and resume service traffic forwarding.
  If the Eth-Trunk interfaces on each end of a link still cannot exchange LACPDUs normally,
the member interfaces remains in the Unselected state, and the member interfaces still
cannot participate in service traffic forwarding.

Associating an Eth-Trunk Interface in Static LACP Mode with an

mVRRP Backup Group
Figure 8 Typical networking diagram for a CE being dual-homed to UPEs

In Figure 8, a CE is dual-homed to UPE1 and UPE2. Eth-Trunk links in static LACP mode are
configured between the CE and the UPEs. UPE1 and UPE2 are configured as a VRRP backup
group, with UPE1 being the master and UPE2 being the backup. The VRRP backup group is
invisible to the CE.
UPE1 and UPE2 negotiate the master and backup by exchanging VRRP packets. After the
negotiation completes, one UPE functions as the master, and the other as the backup.

 UPE1 functions as the master, and the Eth-Trunk connecting to UPE1 goes Up.
 UPE2 functions as the backup, and the Eth-Trunk connecting to UPE2 goes Down.
If UPE1 becomes faulty and UPE2 no longer receives VRRP packets from UPE1, a timer starts.
After the timer expires, UPE2 becomes the master and notifies the LACP module of its master
status. After LACP negotiation is complete, the Eth-Trunk connecting to UPE2 goes Up. When UPE1
 recovers from the fault, UPE1 switches to the master again. The master/backup status changes are
as follows:
 When UPE1 becomes faulty, a master/backup switchover is performed in the VRRP backup
group, and UPE2 switches to the master. The Eth-Trunk link between the CE and UPE1 detects
the status change of the VRRP backup group and switch traffic to the Eth-Trunk link between
the CE and UPE2, which becomes the active link.
 When UPE1 recovers, it becomes the master and UPE2 becomes the backup. The Eth-Trunk
link between the CE and UPE2 detects the status change of the VRRP backup group and
switches traffic back to the Eth-Trunk link between the CE and UPE1, which becomes the active
link.
If the vrrp vrid track interface command is used on the UPEs to configure VRRP tracking interface
status for fast master/backup switchover:

 When a member interface of the Eth-Trunk between the CE and UPE1 becomes faulty or the
link between UPE1 and IP/MPLS core becomes faulty, the VRRP backup group detects the
fault based on the status of the monitoring interface, and UPE1 on which the interface resides
increases or decreases its priority by a specified value and performs a rapid master/backup
VRRP switchover by sending VRRP Advertisement packets.
 When a member interface of the Eth-Trunk between the CE and UPE1 recovers or the link
between UPE1 and IP/MPLS core recovers, the VRRP backup group detects the recovery and
performs a rapid master/backup VRRP switchover to have UPE1 become the master again.

E-Trunk
Definition
Enhanced Trunk (E-Trunk) implements inter-device link aggregation, providing device-level
reliability.

Background
Eth-Trunk implements link reliability between single devices. However, if a device fails, Eth-Trunk
fails to take effect.
To improve network reliability, carriers introduced device redundancy with master and backup
devices. If the master device or primary link fails, the backup device can take over user services. In
this situation, another device must be dual-homed to the master and backup devices, and inter-
device link reliability must be ensured.
E-Trunk was introduced to meet the requirements. E-Trunk aggregates data links of multiple devices
to form a link aggregation group (LAG). If a link or device fails, services are automatically switched to
the other available links or devices in the E-Trunk, improving link and device-level reliability.
 Basic Concepts
Figure 1 E-Trunk diagram 1

Basic E-Trunk concepts are introduced based on Figure 1.

 Link aggregation control protocol (LACP) system priority of a member Eth-Trunk interface in an
E-Trunk
For an Eth-Trunk interface that is a member interface of an E-Trunk, the LACP system priority is
referred to as the LACP E-Trunk system priority.
When an E-Trunk consists of Eth-Trunk interfaces working in static LACP mode, each member
Eth-Trunk interface and the connected peer Eth-Trunk interface use LACP E-Trunk system
priorities to determine the priority of the device at either end of the Eth-Trunk link. The device
with the higher priority functions as the LACP Actor and determines which member interfaces in
its Eth-Trunk interface are active based on the interface priorities. The other device selects the
member interfaces connected to the active member interfaces on the Actor as active member
interfaces.
In an E-Trunk, for a CE to consider the peer PEs to be a single device, the peer PEs must have
the same LACP E-Trunk system priority and system ID.
NOTE:

 The LACP E-Trunk system priority is used for the E-Trunk to which Eth-Trunk interfaces in
static LACP mode are added.
 The LACP system priority is used for Eth-Trunk interfaces in static LACP mode.
 The LACP E-Trunk system priority and LACP system priority can be changed. If both
priorities are configured, after an Eth-Trunk interface working in static LACP mode is
added to an E-Trunk, only the LACP E-Trunk system priority takes effect for the Eth-Trunk
interface.
 LACP system ID of a member Eth-Trunk interface in an E-Trunk
For an Eth-Trunk interface that is a member interface of an E-Trunk, the LACP system ID is
referred to as the LACP E-Trunk system ID.
If two devices on an Eth-Trunk link have the same LACP E-Trunk system priority, the LACP E-
Trunk system IDs are used to determine the devices' priorities. A smaller LACP E-Trunk system
ID indicates a higher priority.
NOTE:

 The LACP E-Trunk system ID is used for the E-Trunk to which Eth-Trunk interfaces in
static LACP mode are added.
 The LACP system ID is used for Eth-Trunk interfaces in static LACP mode.
  To change the LACP E-Trunk system ID, run the lacp e-trunk system-id command. The
LACP system ID can only be the MAC address of an Ethernet interface on MPU and
cannot be changed.
 E-Trunk priority
E-Trunk priorities determine the master/backup status of the devices in an aggregation group.
As shown in Figure 1, the smaller the E-Trunk priority value, the higher the E-Trunk priority.
PE1 has a higher E-Trunk priority than PE2, and therefore PE1 is the master device while PE2
is the backup device.
 E-Trunk ID
An E-Trunk ID is an integer that uniquely identifies an E-Trunk.
 Working mode
The working mode is subject to the working mode of the Eth-Trunk interface added to the E-
Trunk group. The Eth-Trunk interface works in one of the following modes: Automatic, Forcible
master and Forcible backup.
 Timeout period
Normally, the master and backup devices in an E-Trunk periodically send Hello messages to
each other. If the backup device does not receive any Hello message within the timeout period,
it becomes the master device.
The timeout period is obtained through the formula: Timeout period = Sending period x
Multiplier.
If the multiplier is 3, the backup device becomes the master device if it does not receive any
Hello message within three consecutive sending periods.

E-Trunk Working Principle

In Figure 2, the NE40E supports Eth-Trunk interfaces working in static LACP mode or manual load
balancing mode to be added to an E-Trunk.
Figure 2 E-Trunk diagram 2

 Eth-Trunk interfaces and E-Trunk deployment

 PE end
The same Eth-Trunk and E-Trunk interfaces are created on PE1 and PE2. In addition, the
Eth-Trunk interfaces are added to the E-Trunk group.
NOTE:
 The Eth-Trunk interfaces can work in either static LACP mode or manual load balancing
mode. The Eth-Trunk and E-Trunk configurations on PE1 and PE2 must be the same.
 CE end
Adding Eth-Trunk interfaces in static LACP mode to an E-Trunk: Create an Eth-Trunk
interface in static LACP mode on the CE, and add the CE interfaces connecting to the PEs
to the Eth-Trunk interface. This ensures link reliability.
Adding Eth-Trunk interfaces in manual load balancing mode to an E-Trunk: Create an Eth-
Trunk interface in manual load balancing mode on the CE, and add the CE interfaces
connecting to the PEs to the Eth-Trunk interface. Then, configure Ethernet operation,
administration and maintenance (OAM) on the CE and PEs, ensuring link reliability.
The E-Trunk group is invisible to the CE.
 NOTE:

 Eth-Trunk interfaces to be added to an E-Trunk can be either Layer 2 or Layer 3 interfaces.

 When you configure IP addresses for Eth-Trunk interfaces connecting the CE and PEs to
transmit Layer 3 services, the PE's Eth-Trunk interface configurations must meet the following
requirements:
 The same IP address must be configured for the PE Eth-Trunk interfaces.
In most cases, the master device advertises the direct route to its Eth-Trunk interface, and
the backup device does not. After a master/backup device switchover is complete, the new
master device (former backup device) advertises the direct route to its Eth-Trunk interface.
 The same MAC address must be configured for the PE Eth-Trunk interfaces.
This prevents the CE from updating its ARP entries for a long time when a master/backup
device switchover is performed and therefore ensures uninterrupted service forwarding.
 There are few scenarios for configuring IP addresses for Eth-Trunk interfaces, which connect
the CE and PEs to transmit Layer 3 services and which on PEs are added to to an E-Trunk. In
most cases, Eth-Trunk interfaces work as Layer 2 interfaces.
 Sending and receiving E-Trunk packets
E-Trunk packets carrying the source IP address and port number configured on the local end
are sent through UDP. Factors triggering the sending of E-Trunk packets are as follows:

The sending timer expires.

The configurations change. For example, the E-Trunk priority, packet sending period,
timeout period multiplier, addition/deletion of a member Eth-Trunk interface, or
source/destination IP address of the E-Trunk group changes.
 A member Eth-Trunk interface fails or recovers.
 E-Trunk master/backup status
PE1 and PE2 negotiate the E-Trunk master/backup status by exchanging E-Trunk packets.
Normally, after the negotiation one PE functions as the master and the other as the backup.
The master/backup status of a PE depends on the E-Trunk priority and E-Trunk ID carried in E-
Trunk packets. The smaller the E-Trunk priority value, the higher the E-Trunk priority. The PE
with the higher E-Trunk priority functions as the master. If the E-Trunk priorities of the PEs are
the same, the PE with the smaller E-Trunk system ID functions as the master device.
 Master/backup status of a member Eth-Trunk interface in the E-Trunk group
The master/backup status of a member Eth-Trunk interface in the E-Trunk group is determined
by its E-Trunk status and the peer Eth-Trunk interface status.
As shown in Figure 2, PE1 and PE2 are on the two ends of the E-Trunk link. PE1 is considered
as the local end and PE2 as the peer end.
Table 1 shows the status of each member Eth-Trunk interface in the E-Trunk group.
 Table 1 Master/backup status of an E-Trunk and its member Eth-Trunk interfaces

Status of the Local E-Trunk Working Mode of the Local Status of the Peer Eth-Trunk Status o
Eth-Trunk Interface Interface Trunk I

- Forcible master - Master

- Forcible backup - Backup

Master Automatic Backup Master

Backup Automatic Backup Master

Backup Automatic Master Backup

In normal situations:
 If PE1 functions as the master, Eth-Trunk 10 of PE1 functions as the master, and its link
status is Up.
 If PE2 functions as the backup, Eth-Trunk 10 of PE2 functions as the backup, and its link
status is Down.
If the link between the CE and PE1 fails, the following situations occur:
3. PE1 sends an E-Trunk packet containing information about the faulty Eth-Trunk 10 of
PE1 to PE2.
4. After receiving the E-Trunk packet, PE2 finds that Eth-Trunk 10 on the peer is faulty.
Then, the status of Eth-Trunk 10 on PE2 becomes master. Through the LACP
negotiation, the status of Eth-Trunk 10 on PE2 becomes Up.
The Eth-Trunk status on PE2 becomes Up, and traffic of the CE is forwarded through
PE2. In this way, traffic destined for the peer CE is protected.
If PE1 is faulty, the following situations occur:
5. If the PEs are configured with BFD, the PE2 detects that the BFD session status
becomes Down, then functions as the master and Eth-Trunk 10 of PE2 functions as the
master.
6. If the PEs are not configured with BFD, PE2 will not receive any E-Trunk packet from
PE1 before its timeout period runs out, after which PE2 will function as the master and
Eth-Trunk 10 of PE2 will function as the master.
Through the LACP negotiation, the status of Eth-Trunk 10 on PE2 becomes Up. The
traffic of the CE is forwarded through PE2. In this way, destined for the peer CE is
protected.
 BFD fast detection
A device cannot quickly detect a fault on its peer based on the timeout period of received
packets. In this case, BFD can be configured on the device. The peer end needs to be
configured with an IP address. After a BFD session is established to detect whether the route to
the peer is reachable, the E-Trunk can sense any fault detected by BFD.
 Switchback mechanism
The local device is in master state. In such a situation, if the physical status of the Eth-Trunk
interface on the local device goes Down or the local device fails, the peer device becomes the
master and the physical status of the member Eth-Trunk interface becomes Up.
When the local end recovers, the local end needs to function as the master. Therefore, the local
Eth-Trunk interface enters the LACP negotiation state. After being informed by LACP that the
negotiation ability is Up, the local device starts the switchback delay timer. After the switchback
 delay timer times out, the local Eth-Trunk interface becomes the master. After LACP
negotiation, the Eth-Trunk interface becomes Up.

E-Trunk Restrictions
To improve the reliability of CE and PE links, and to ensure that traffic can be automatically switched
between these links, the configurations on both ends of the E-Trunk link must be consistent. Use the
networking in Figure 2 as an example.
 The Eth-Trunk link directly connecting PE1 to the CE and the Eth-Trunk link directly connecting
PE2 to the CE must be configured with the same working rate, and duplex mode. This ensures
that both Eth-Trunk interfaces have the same key and join the same E-Trunk group.
 Peer IP addresses must be specified for the PEs to ensure Layer 3 connectivity. The address of
the local PE is the peer address of the peer PE, and the address of the peer PE is the peer
address of the local PE. Here, it is recommended that the addresses of the PEs are configured
as loopback interface addresses.
 The E-Trunk group must be bound to a BFD session.
 The two PEs must be configured with the same security key (if necessary).