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  5. The VIPRION 4400 Series Platform
Manual Chapter : The VIPRION 4400 Series Platform

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The VIPRION® 4400 Series Platform

About the platform

The VIPRION® 4400 Series system provides you with the flexibility and feature-rich capabilities of F5® products on a powerful and highly-extensible hardware platform. With this platform, you install and configure multiple F5 products using hot-swappable blades. This provides you with the ability to add, remove, or change the platform's configuration to best fit your network. Many components are available for you to add, remove, or change including the blades, power supplies, fan tray, LCD panel, and more. This configuration allows for an extremely robust and flexible system that can manage large amounts of application traffic, and remain operational even if one of its components goes offline.

VIPRION platforms include two types of components: blades, which provide the hardware and software needed to manage network traffic, and a chassis, which houses the blades.

Important: The chassis and blades are shipped in separate boxes. The blades are not designed to be shipped inside a chassis.

Although the VIPRION 4400 Series platform is highly extensible and designed to be easy to implement, familiarity with the platform components can help ensure that you install and integrate the platform successfully and effectively.

About the chassis

The chassis is the housing unit that contains all of the components necessary for the VIPRION® 4400 Series platform to operate effectively.

The VIPRION 4400 Series includes two chassis models: the VIPRION C4400 and the VIPRION C4480. The two chassis models appear identical, with the exception of the model number on the front. The VIPRION C4480 is designed to support higher bandwidth blades, such as B4300 and B4400 Series blades.

The VIPRION C4400 and C4480 chassis and B4100, B4200, B4300, and B4400 Series blades are available in DC-powered Network Equipment-Building System (NEBS) compliant versions. For a system to be completely NEBS-compliant, you must use a NEBS-compliant chassis and blades.

Front view of the VIPRION platform

Front view of a VIPRION C4400 chassis with four blades and front bezel (with LCD panel) attached

  1. Indicator LEDs (system and power status)
  2. LCD display
  3. LCD control buttons
Front view of the VIPRION platform

Front view of a VIPRION C4480 chassis with four blades and front bezel (with LCD panel) attached

  1. Indicator LEDs (system and power status)
  2. LCD display
  3. LCD control buttons

The back of the AC-powered chassis includes four AC power receptacles.

Back view of the AC platform

Back view of the AC chassis

The back of the DC-powered chassis includes two DC power block terminals.

Back view of the DC platform

Back view of the DC chassis

About the blades

A blade is the primary component that handles the traffic management within the VIPRION® platform. You can install up to four blades in a VIPRION 4400 Series chassis. These blades comprise a group, known as a cluster. The chassis includes blanks in the slots where blades are not installed.

Blanks must be installed in all unused slots, as they help ensure proper airflow within the chassis and EMI compliance of the unit.

You can use B4100, B4200, or B4300 Series blades in a VIPRION 4400 Series chassis. You can use only B4200, B4300, and B4400 Series blades in the VIPRION 4480 chassis. For optimum performance, you should use B4300 or B4400 Series blades only in a VIPRION 4480 chassis.

Note: You should not mix B4300 or B4400 blades with other blade types in a chassis.
Front view of the B4100 Series blade

Front view of the B4100 Series blade

  1. Compression screw
  2. Blade indicator LEDs
  3. Management port
  4. USB ports (2)
  5. Console port
  6. Serial (hard-wired) failover port
  7. XFP ports (2)
  8. 10/100/1000 interfaces (8)
  9. SFP ports (12)
Front view of the B4200 Series blade

Front view of the B4200 Series blade

  1. Compression screw
  2. Blade indicator LEDs
  3. Management port
  4. USB ports (2)
  5. Console port
  6. Serial (hard-wired) failover port
  7. 10/100/1000 ports (4)
  8. SFP+ ports (8)
Front view of a B4300 Series blade

Front view of a B4300 Series blade

  1. Compression screw
  2. Blade indicator LEDs
  3. Management port
  4. USB ports (2)
  5. Console port
  6. Serial (hard-wired) failover port
  7. SFP+ ports (8)
  8. 40GbE ports (2)
  9. Interface indicator LEDs
Front view of a B4400 Series blade

Front view of a B4400 Series blade

  1. Compression screw
  2. Blade indicator LEDs
  3. Management port
  4. Console port
  5. USB port
  6. 100GbE ports (2)
  7. 40GbE ports (4)
  8. Interface indicator LED legend

LCD panel

The LCD panel provides the ability to manage the unit without attaching a console or network cable.

LCD panel

The LCD panel and control buttons

Using the LCD panel

Put the LCD panel into Menu mode to manage the platform using the LCD menus and control buttons.
Press the X button to activate Menu mode for the LCD.
The Left Arrow, Right Arrow, Up Arrow, and Down Arrow buttons are functional only when the LCD is in Menu mode.

Pausing on a screen

Normally, the screens cycle on the LCD panel at a constant rate, but you can pause on a specific screen.
Push the Check button to switch the LCD screen between Hold and Rotate modes.
In Hold mode, a single screen is displayed. The Rotate mode changes the screen that is displayed on the LCD screen every four seconds.

Clearing alerts

Use the LCD control buttons to clear alerts from the LCD screen.
Press the Check button to clear any alerts on the LCD screen.
You must clear any alerts on the screen before you can use the LCD panel.

About LCD menus

There are three menus on the LCD panel. You can configure the display options to meet your needs.

Options menu

You can use the Options menu to adjust the display properties of the LCD panel.

Option Description
Backlight Specifies an LCD screen backlighting option. Select from these options:
  • ON enables the backlight.
  • GRAY enables the software to specify when the backlight is illuminated.
  • OFF disables the backlight.
Contrast Sets the contrast of the LCD.
On Brightness Adjusts LCD backlight brightness.
Off Brightness Controls the brightness of the LCD when the backlight is off.

System menu

You can use the System menu to configure the management interface on both clusters and blades. This menu also provides various options for the hardware.

Option Description Suboptions
Cluster Configures the cluster IP address, netmask, and default gateway for managing the cluster. Cluster Mgmt

Select from these suboptions:

  • Cluster IP sets the cluster IP address.
  • Cluster IP Mask sets the netmask.
  • Gateway sets the default gateway for managing the cluster.
  • Commit saves your changes.
  Configures the management IP addresses of the blades within the cluster. Cluster Mbrs

Select from these suboptions:

  • Blade [1-] Mgmt
    • Blade Mgmt IP sets the management IP address of the selected blade within the cluster.
    • Commit saves your changes.

Screens menu

You can use the Screens menu to specify the information that is displayed on the default screens.

Option Description
DateScreen Displays the date and time.
InfoScreen Displays the information screen menu.
VersionScreen Displays product version information.

Indicator LEDs

 

The VIPRION® 4400 Series platform includes indicator LEDs in two locations: on the LCD panel and on the individual blades. On the LCD panel, the LEDs provide information about platform power, blade alarms, and status.

On the blades, the LEDs indicate whether the blade is a primary or secondary blade, and show alarm and blade status. The Alarm LED status for blades is also displayed in the corresponding LED on the LCD panel.

Indicator LED actions

The behavior of the LEDs indicate system or component status.

Action Description
Off (none) LED is not lit and does not display any color.
Solid LED is lit and does not blink.
Blinking LED turns on and off at a regular frequency.
Intermittent LED turns on and off with an irregular frequency and might appear solid.

Chassis standard operating states

The chassis LEDs indicate the operating state of a chassis.

System state Status LED Alarm LED
Active/Standalone Green solid Off/None
Standby Green solid Off/None
Powered off Off/None Off/None

Front bezel indicator LEDs

The front bezel LEDs indicate the overall operating status of the chassis.

LED Status
Power Indicates that a power supply is present and operational (green), present but non-functioning (amber), or does not have a power supply connected (off). The chassis front bezel has one LED per power supply. There are eight power supply LEDs; however, only the first four are functional in the four-slot chassis. The chassis front bezel has four power supply LEDs: one LED per supply.
Status Indicates the overall state of the chassis: functional (green) or experiencing errors (amber).
Alarm Indicates both blade and chassis alarms. If a blade indicates an alarm condition, the chassis Alarm LED mirrors that state. In situations where more than one blade is generating an alarm, the chassis Alarm LED displays the most severe alarm status.

Blade standard operating states

The blade LEDs indicate the operating state of a blade.

Note: On power up, the Status LED of each blade turns amber. When the BIG-IP® software boots successfully, the Status LED changes to green.
System state Primary LED Secondary LED Status LED Alarm LED
Active mode Off/None Off/None Green solid Off/None
Powered off Off/None Off/None Off/None Off/None

Blade indicator LEDs

The blade LEDs indicate whether the blade is a primary or secondary blade, and show alarm and blade status.

LED Status
Primary Indicates that the blade is a primary blade for a cluster.
Secondary Indicates that the blade is a secondary blade for a cluster.
Status Indicates the state of the system.
Alarm Indicates a non-specific alert level. Use SNMP traps, system logs, or the LCD display for more information.

Blade LED status conditions

The blade LEDs indicate specific operating conditions, such as high availability (HA) status, or when a blade is shut down, reset, or not properly seated.

Blade state Primary LED Secondary LED Status LED Alarm LED
Blade is fully functional and operating as the primary in a high availability (HA) configuration Green solid Off/None Green solid Off/None
Blade is fully functional and operating as a secondary in a high availability (HA) configuration Off/None Amber solid Green solid Off/None
User-initiated blade power down Green blinking Green blinking Green blinking Off/None
Blade shut down due to thermal overtemp limit Amber blinking Amber blinking Amber blinking Red solid
Blade not seated properly Amber blinking Amber blinking Amber solid Red solid

LED alert conditions

The Alarm LED indicates when there is an alert condition on the system.

Note: The Alarm LED might continue to display until alerts are cleared using the LCD panel.
Action Description
System situation Alarm LED behavior
Emergency Red blinking
Alert or Critical Red solid
Error Amber blinking
Warning Amber solid

Defining custom alerts

The /etc/alertd/alert.conf and the /config/user_alert.conf files on the VIPRION® system define alerts that cause the indicators to change. The /etc/alertd/alert.conf file defines standard system alerts, and the /config/user_alert.conf file defines custom settings. You should edit only the /config/user_alert.conf file.
  1. Open a command prompt on the system.
  2. Change to the /config directory.
    cd /config
  3. Using a text editor, such as vi or Pico, open the /config/user_alert.conf file.
  4. Add these lines to the end of the file:
    alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_POOL_MEMBER_MON_DOWN "Pool member (.*?):(.*?) monitor status down." 
{
  snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.10";
  lcdwarn description="Node down" priority="1"
}
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_NODE_ADDRESS_MON_DOWN "Node (.*?) monitor status down." {
  snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.12";
  lcdwarn description="Node address down" priority="1"
}
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_POOL_MEMBER_MON_UP "Pool member (.*?):(.*?) monitor status up."
{
  snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.11"
}
alert BIGIP_MCPD_MCPDERR_NODE_ADDRESS_MON_UP "Node (.*?) monitor status up." 
{
  snmptrap OID=".1.3.6.1.4.1.3375.2.4.0.13"
}
  5. Save the file and exit the text editor.
    The front panel LEDs now indicate when a node is down.

Platform interfaces

Every platform includes multiple interfaces. The exact number of interfaces that are on the system depends on the platform type.

Each interface on the platform has a set of properties that you can configure, such as enabling or disabling the interface, setting the requested media type and duplex mode, and configuring flow control.

About blade interfaces

B4100 and B4200 Series blades

The B4100 and B4200 Series blades have SFP optical interfaces, RJ45 10/100/1000 copper interfaces, and 10GbE XFP or 10GbE SFP+ optical interfaces that are connected internally. Each set of interfaces is numbered from x.1 through x.n, with each group of media types designated by a different prefix. It is important to note some facts about these interfaces:

  • The RJ45 connectors can each support 10/100/1000 Mbit Ethernet speed, except where otherwise noted.
  • The SFP connectors can each support 1000 Mbit speed with a 1GbE transceiver module installed or 10/100/1000Mbit speeds with an F5®-branded copper SFP module.
  • The XFP connectors can each support 10G speed with an F5-branded XFP transceiver module installed. Only B4100 Series blades include XFP interfaces.
  • The SFP+ connectors can each support 10G speed with an F5-branded SFP+ transceiver module or 1000 Mbit speed with an F5-branded SFP 1GbE transceiver module installed.

B4300 Series blades

The B4300 Series blade has eight SFP+ interfaces and two 40GbE interfaces that are connected internally. The blade supports up to four 40GbE ports (2.1-2.4) that you can use as individual 10GbE ports or as a 40GbE port, depending on how you bundle the ports.

B4300 Series blade interfaces and LEDs

B4300 Series blade interfaces and LEDs

B4400 Series blades

The B4400 Series blade has four 40GbE interfaces and two 100GbE interfaces that are connected internally. You can use the 40GbE interfaces as individual 10GbE ports or as a 40GbE port, depending on how you bundle the ports.

The B4400 Series blades use an updated numbering convention for interfaces.

B4400 Series blade interfaces and LEDs

B4400 Series blade interfaces and LEDs

About 40GbE interfaces

On VIPRION® platforms that include 40GbE interface ports, you can use the ports as a single 40GbE port or as four 10GbE SFP+ ports.

Note: Only the B4300 and B4400 Series blades include 40GbE interface ports.

VIPRION B4300 Series blades

On VIPRION B4300 Series blades, the first group of ports (1.1-1.4 and 1.5-1.8) defaults to 10GbE. You can bundle them as ports 2.1 and 2.2 using a QSFP+ breakout cable. When bundled, the cable that you use when operating at 40GbE is an industry-standard OM3 qualified multi-mode fiber optic cable with female MPO/MTP connectors at both ends. You must provide your own cable for 40GbE operation.

You can also disable the 40GbE bundle and use the ports as individual 10GbE ports (1.1-1.4, 1.5-1.8, 1.9-1.12, and 1.13-1.16) using a QSFP+ breakout cable. This cable has a female MPO/MTP connector at one end, which connects to a 40GbE port, and four LC duplex connectors at the other end, which connect to SFP+ ports on an upstream switch.

VIPRION B4400 Series blades

On VIPRION B4400 Series blades, the 40GbE ports (3.0-8.0) default to 40GbE. The cable that you use when operating at 40GbE is an industry-standard OM3 qualified multi-mode fiber optic cable with female MPO/MTP connectors at both ends. You must provide your own cable for 40GbE operation.

You can also disable the 40GbE bundle and use the ports as individual 10GbE ports (3.1-3.4, 4.1-4.4, 5.1-5.1, 6.1-6.4, 7.1-7.4, and 8.1-8.4) using a QSFP+ breakout cable. This cable has a female MPO/MTP connector at one end, which connects to a 40GbE port, and four LC duplex connectors at the other end, which connect to SFP+ ports on an upstream switch.

40 GbE QSFP+ components

Note: If you are using a breakout cable for 10GbE connectivity, you should use the supported distance as detailed in the Specifications for fiber QSFP+ modules section of this platform guide and not the Specifications for fiber SFP+ modules section.

An example of a 40 GbE QSFP+ breakout cable

You can order these 40 GbE QSFP+ components from F5®:

  • QSFP+ breakout cables (MTP to LC), provided as a pair, in these lengths:
    • 1 meter (F5-UPG-QSFP+-1M-2)
    • 3 meter (F5-UPG-QSFP+-3M-2+)
    • 10 meter (F5-UPG-QSFP+-10M-2)
  • F5-branded 40GbE QSFP+ transceiver modules (F5-UPG-QSFP+ and F5-UPG-QSFP+LR4)

Configuring bundling for 40GbE interfaces using tmsh

You can use tmsh to configure bundling for the 40GbE interfaces on the platform. When you disable bundling, you can use the 40GbE ports as individual 10GbE ports using a QSFP+ breakout cable.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Configure bundling for a specific interface, where <interface_key> is 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, or 2.4.
    modify interface <interface_key> bundle [enabled | disabled]
    Note: When a 2.x port is bundled, the LEDs for the 10GbE ports remain off. When a 2.x port is unbundled, the 40GbE LEDs remain off.

Configuring bundling for 40GbE interfaces using the Configuration utility

You can use the Configuration utility to configure bundling for the 40GbE interfaces on the platform. When you disable bundling, you can use the 40GbE ports as individual 10GbE ports using a QSFP+ breakout cable.
  1. On the Main tab, click Network > Interfaces .
    This displays the list of available interfaces.
  2. Click an interface name.
    The properties screen for that interface opens.
  3. From the Bundled list, select whether to enable or disable bundling.
  4. Click Update.

About 100GbE interfaces

On platforms that include 100GbE interface ports, you can use only F5-branded 100GbE QSFP28 transceiver modules in those ports.

When a 100GbE interface operates at either 40GbE and 100GbE speeds, it is considered to be bundled.

VIPRION B4400 Series blades

On VIPRION B4400 Series blades, the 100GbE ports (1.0 and 2.0) default to 100GbE. The cable that you use when operating at 100GbE with 100GBASE-SR4 transceiver modules is an industry-standard OM4 qualified multi-mode fiber optic cable with female MPO/MTP connectors at both ends. The cable that you use with 100GBASE-LR4 transceiver modules is an industry-standard SMF fiber optic cable with LC duplex connectors and a reach of up to 10km. You must provide your own cable and F5-branded QSFP28 transceiver modules for 100GbE operation.

Configuring bundling for 100GbE interfaces using tmsh

You can use tmsh to configure bundling for the 100GbE QSFP28 interfaces on the platform at either 100GbE or 40GbE speeds.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Configure bundling for a specific interface using this syntax.
    modify interface <interface_key> bundle [enabled | disabled] bundle-speed [100G | 40G | not-supported]
    Note: The default value of bundle-speed is determined by the interface type. Unbundled interfaces have bundle-speed set to not-supported.

Configuring FEC for 100GbE interfaces using tmsh

If your upstream switch does not support Reed-Solomon Forward Error Correction (RS-FEC), you can use tmsh to disable it for the 100GbE interfaces on your platform.
Note: RS-FEC is intended to be enabled with 100GBASE-SR4 links and disabled for 100GBASE-LR4 links.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Configure FEC for a specific interface using this syntax.
    modify interface <interface_key> forward-error-correction [enabled | disabled]

About managing interfaces

You can use tmsh or the Configuration utility to configure platform interfaces.

Viewing the status of a specific interface using tmsh

You can use tmsh to view the status of a specific interface on a platform.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Display the current status of a specific interface.
    show interface <interface_key>
    This is an example of the output that you might see when you run this command on interface 1/1.2 (slot 1, interface 1.2):
                                     

----------------------------------------------------------------
Net::Interface
Name   Status    Bits  Bits  Pkts  Pkts  Drops  Errs       Media
                   In   Out    In   Out
----------------------------------------------------------------
1/1.2      up  637.8G  5.8M  1.1G  5.7K   1.1G     0  10000SR-FD

Viewing the status of all interfaces using tmsh

You can use tmsh to view the status of all interfaces on the platform.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Display the current status of all interfaces.
    show interface
    This is an example excerpt of the output that you might see when you run this command on B4100/B4200/B4300 Series blades:
                                     
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net::Interface
Name    Status    Bits   Bits    Pkts   Pkts  Drops  Errs       Media
                    In    Out      In    Out
---------------------------------------------------------------------
1/1.1     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.2       up  636.5G   5.5M    1.1G   5.4K   1.1G     0  10000SR-FD
1/1.3     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.4     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.5     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.6     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.7     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.8     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.9   uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.10  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.11  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.12  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.13  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.14  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.15  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/1.16  uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/2.1   uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/2.2   uninit       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/2.3     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/2.4     miss       0      0       0      0      0     0        none
1/mgmt      up  248.3M  42.8M  392.2K  16.1K      0     0    1000T-FD

    This is an example excerpt of the output that you might see when you run this command on B4400 Series blades:

                                     
Display all 147 items? (y/n) y
						
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net::Interface
Name    Status    Bits    Bits    Pkts    Pkts  Drops  Errs         Media
                    In     Out      In     Out
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/1.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/2.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/3.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/4.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/5.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/6.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/7.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
1/8.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/1.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/2.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/3.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/4.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/5.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/6.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/7.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
2/8.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/1.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/2.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/3.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/4.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/5.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/6.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/7.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
3/8.0     pend       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/1.0       up   23.8G   19.4M   42.5M   12.2K  42.3M     0  100000AR4-FD
5/1.1   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/1.2   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/1.3   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/1.4   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/2.0     miss       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/2.1   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/2.2   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/2.3   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/2.4   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/3.0       up    2.2T   19.5M    4.2G   12.3K   4.2G     0   40000SR4-FD
5/3.1   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/3.2   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/3.3   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none
5/3.4   uninit       0       0       0       0      0     0          none

Viewing the status of all interfaces using the Configuration utility

You can use the Configuration utility to view the status of all interfaces on the platform.
  1. On the Main tab, click Network > Interfaces .
    This displays the list of available interfaces.
  2. Click Statistics.
    The Statistics screen for all interfaces opens.

About interface media type and duplex mode

All interfaces on the system default to auto-negotiate speed and full duplex settings. We recommend that you also configure any network equipment that you plan to use with the system to auto-negotiate speed and duplex settings. If you connect the system to network devices with forced speed and duplex settings, you must force the speed and duplex settings of the system to match the settings of the other network device.

Important: If the system is attempting to auto-negotiate interface settings with an interface that has the speed and duplex settings forced (that is, auto-negotiation is disabled), you will experience severe performance degradation. This applies to 10GbE and 40GbE interfaces.

By default, the media type on interfaces is set to automatically detect speed and duplex settings, but you can specify a media type as well. Use the following syntax to set the media type:

                        
tmsh modify net interface <interface_key> media <media_type> | auto

If the media type does not accept the duplex mode setting, a message appears. If media type is set to auto, or if the interface does not accept the duplex mode setting, the duplex setting is not saved to the /config/bigip_base.conf file.

Important: Auto-MDI/MDIX functionality is retained when you manually configure an interface to use specific speed and duplex settings. You can use either a straight-through cable or a crossover cable when media settings are forced, and you will be able to successfully link to either DTE or DCE devices.
Valid media types

These media types are valid for the tmsh interface command.

Note: This platform might not support all of the media type options that are available in tmsh.
10BaseT half 10GBaseLR full
10BaseT full 10GBaseER full
100BaseTX half 10SFP+Cu full
100BaseTX full 40GBaseSR4 full
1000BaseT half 40GBaseLR4 full
1000BaseT full 100GbaseSR4 full
1000BaseSX full 100GbaseLR4 full
1000BaseLX full auto
1000BaseCX full none
10GBaseT full no-phy
10GBaseSR full  
Viewing valid media types for an interface
You can use tmsh to view the valid media types for an interface.
Note: This platform might not support all of the media type options that are available in tmsh.
  1. Open the Traffic Management Shell (tmsh).
    tmsh
  2. Change to the network module.
    net
    The command prompt updates with the module name: user@bigip01(Active)(/Common)(tmos.net)#.
  3. Display the valid media types for a specific interface:
    show running-config interface <interface_key> media-capabilities
    Important: In all Gigabit Ethernet modes, the only valid duplex mode is full duplex.
    This is an example of the output that you might see when you run this command on interface 1.3:
                                        
net interface 1.3 {
    media-capabilities-sfp {
        none
        auto
        1000T-FD
        1000LX-FD
        1000SX-FD
        1000CX-FD
        10000SR-FD
        10000LR-FD
        10000SFPCU-FD
    }
}

Network interface LED behavior

The appearance and behavior of the network interface LEDs on the blades indicate network traffic activity, interface speed, and interface duplexity.

RJ45 copper interface LED behavior

The appearance and behavior of the RJ45 network interface LEDs indicate network traffic activity, interface speed, and interface duplexity.

Blade type Link Speed LED Activity LED
B4100, B4200 No link Not lit Not lit
B4100 10 Mbit/s, half duplex Amber blinking (with traffic) Amber (with traffic)
B4100 10 Mbit/s, full duplex Amber blinking (with traffic) Green (with traffic)
B4100 100 Mbit/s, half duplex Amber solid Amber (with traffic)
B4100 100 Mbit/s, full duplex Amber solid Green (with traffic)
B4100, B4200 1 Gbit/s, half duplex Green solid Amber (with traffic)
B4100, B4200 1 Gbit/s, full duplex Green solid Green (with traffic)

XFP port LED behavior

The appearance and behavior of the XFP interface LEDs indicate network traffic activity, interface speed, and interface duplexity.

Blade type Link Speed LED Activity LED
B4100 No link Not lit Not lit
B4100 10Gbit/s, full duplex Green solid Green (with traffic)

SFP port LED behavior

The appearance and behavior of the SFP interface LEDs indicate network traffic activity, interface speed, and interface duplexity.

Blade type Link Speed LED Activity LED
B4100 No link Not lit Not lit
B4100 10 Mbit/s, half duplex Amber blinking (with traffic) Amber (with traffic)
B4100 10 Mbit/s, full duplex Amber blinking (with traffic) Green (with traffic)
B4100 100 Mbit/s, half duplex Amber solid Amber (with traffic)
B4100 100 Mbit/s, full duplex Amber solid Green (with traffic)
B4100 1 Gbit/s, half duplex Green solid Amber (with traffic)
B4100 1 Gbit/s, full duplex Green solid Green (with traffic)

SFP+ port LED behavior

The appearance and behavior of the SFP+ interface LEDs indicate network traffic activity, interface speed, and interface duplexity, if supported.

Note: On the B4300 Series blade, the 40GbE interfaces are lit only when all four 10GbE interfaces contain transceiver modules and have a link.
Blade type Link Speed LED Activity LED
B4200 No link Not lit Not lit
B4200 10 Mbit/s, half duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 10 Mbit/s, full duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 100 Mbit/s, half duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 100 Mbit/s, full duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 1 Gbit/s, half duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 1 Gbit/s, full duplex Amber solid Green (with traffic)
B4200 10 Gbit/s, half duplex Not supported Not supported
B4200 10 Gbit/s, full duplex Green solid Green (with traffic)
B4300 1 Gbit/s, full duplex Amber solid Green (with traffic)
B4300 10 Gbit/s, full duplex Green solid Green (with traffic)

QSFP+ port LEDs behavior

The appearance and behavior of the 40GbE QSFP+ interface LEDs indicate network traffic activity and interface speed.

On VIPRION® B4300 Series blades, there are two sets of LEDs for 40GbE ports. One set is for operation in 40GbE, and the other set is for operation in a 4 x 10GbE configuration.

On VIPRION B4350 blades, there is one set of LEDs for 40GbE ports.

Blade type Link Speed LED Activity LED
B4300 No link Not lit Not lit
B4300 40 Gbit/s Green solid Green (with traffic)
B4450 No link Not lit Not lit
B4450 40 Gbit/s Green solid (blinking with traffic) N/A
B4450 10 Gbit/s Amber solid (blinking with traffic) N/A

QSFP28 port LEDs behavior

The appearance and behavior of the 100GbE QSFP28 port LEDs indicate network traffic activity and interface speed.

On VIPRION® B4350 blades, there is one set of LEDs for QSFP28 ports.

Blade type Link Speed
B4450 No link Not lit
B4450 100 Gbit/s Solid blue (blinking with traffic)

Transceiver module specifications

For current specification information for optical transceivers that are supported by this platform, see F5® Platforms: Accessories.

Cable pinout specifications

For current pinout information for this platform, see F5® Platforms: Accessories.

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