Overview

Link aggregation technologies (LACP, EtherChannel, PAgP, NIC teaming, etc) based on the 802.3ad protocol, allow for multiple individual bandwidth links to be logically combined into a single logical link (i.e. 4 ports on a switch can be grouped together as one 'logical' link that is 4 times the bandwidth). This helps with removing congestion and increasing redundancy, as well as increasing efficiency by not wasting empty ports on devices.

While the Exinda supports link aggregation, it is possible to experience slow performance if the Exinda is not configured correctly to handle aggregate links. This can be seen through slow access, bandwidth drops and bottlenecks at the device.

Information

If using link aggregation through Exinda, ensure the following:

• Global QoS is applied (Configuration > System > Setup > Control tab). This ensures that a single set of policies apply to all bridges on the device regardless of the bridge the traffic goes over.
• If Acceleration is used as well, Dual bridge bypass must be applied (Configuration > System > Setup > Monitoring tab) as the aggregate link might require two passes through the Exinda. This limits the reduction in speed in cases where traffic is traveling through the Exinda more than once and being shaped multiple times. The second (or later) passes through the Exinda are ignored from a QoS perspective.