Cluster Builder shows a network map of the cluster command switch, cluster member switches, and all switches that are candidates for joining the cluster. Cluster Builder periodically polls the command switch for updates and redisplays the network map when devices are removed or added. An advisory is displayed while the network map is under construction. You can extend or restrict the network map and change the polling interval by selecting Cluster > User Settings (see the User Settings help file for details).
With this window, you can:
To use a pop-up menu on the Cluster Builder window, right-click on a device or link on the network map to display the menu. Then, slide the mouse to highlight a menu selection, and release the mouse button to activate the selection.
To use the drop-down menus in the menu bar on the Cluster Builder window, click a link or device on the network map to select it (selected switches are displayed in a red rectangle, and selected links are labeled with the word Selected); then, click on a menu and select an item from it. Whenever a menu selection is invalid for a selected device or link, the selection is disabled (grayed out).
A cluster can include a maximum of 16 switches: one command switch and 15 member switches. You can add devices to a cluster after you assign an IP address to the command switch and connect it to other devices running clustering software. If the command switch feature is not enabled on the command switch, you must enable it before building the cluster (you can enable it by using the Visual Switch Manager for the switch).
To add a device to the cluster:
Note: You can also do this procedure by using the Add to Cluster item on the switch pop-up menu.
When the device is added, its label turns green.
To remove a device from the cluster:
Note: If you remove a member that has downstream members connected to it and the software does not have enough information to draw these members on the map, the downstream members are displayed as orphan devices in the upper left area of Cluster Builder. These orphan devices are cluster members that you can configure.
Note: You can also do this procedure by using the Remove from Cluster item on the switch pop-up menu.
User settings control the polling interval that updates the Cluster Builder window, the graphing and reporting functions, and the screens that display when you launch the Cluster Management Suite. You can change these settings (Cluster > User Settings) and save them on the command switch so they remain in effect when you launch the application later.
From Cluster Builder, you can access Cluster Manager, which shows a graphic of a switch cluster (the command switch and member switches) in a wiring closet view. By default, the command switch is located at the top of the cluster and is the only cluster member with an IP address displayed. From Cluster Manager, you can perform tasks on the port, device, and cluster level.
To display Cluster Manager, select Goto Cluster Manager from the Cluster menu. For more information, select Help>Contents on the Cluster Manager page.
By default, Cluster builder is displayed when you launch the Cluster Management Suite, but you can change this default by selecting Cluster > User Settings (for details, see the User Settings help file).
In Cluster View, the network map displays the cluster as a double-switch icon, candidates, and edge devices directly connected to the cluster. From this view, you can display link and device performance graphs, and access other views. You can alternate between the Cluster Builder and Cluster View windows.
To display Cluster View, select Toggle Views from the Views menu. (Click here for detailed information on Cluster View.)
By default, Cluster Builder displays the host name on the label of each device. To display address and port connection information instead of host names, select Toggle Labels from the Views menu.
When you toggle to addresses and port connection information, Cluster Builder displays IP addresses if they are assigned; otherwise, it displays the MAC addresses. If the network map contains an unknown device, no port numbers are displayed for the device. When a link on the network map represents a port group, Cluster Builder displays the ID of the first port that responds to the information request. To display detailed information about these ports, display a link report (see Displaying Link Graphs and Link Reports).
Some links on the network map represent multiple connections between the same two switches. To generate a report on an individual link left-click on the link and select a link ID from the pop-up menu; then right-click on the link and choose Link Report from the pop-up menu.
To display the web page for the command switch, double-click on the command switch icon. You can display the web page for any other device by any of these methods:
The Bandwidth Graph displays an estimate of the traffic flowing through a switch that you select on the network map.
Note: Switch bandwidth graphs are not available on Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches.
To display a switch bandwidth graph:
By default, Cluster Builder displays the command switch, cluster members, and cluster candidates.
To hide candidates connected to a cluster member:
To display candidates connected to a cluster member:
If the state of a switch changes from down to up, Cluster Builder displays the device in yellow to notify you of the state change. To acknowledge this notification and display the up state:
If you did not assign a host name to the command switch prior to launching Cluster Builder, it is assigned a default host name of "Switch." Any unnamed members are assigned the name "Switch-" and a number that indicates the order in which the device was added (such as Switch-1). If the command or member switch has an assigned host name, the name is retained and displayed on the page when you launch Cluster Builder.
Note: You cannot change the host name of a candidate device.
To change a host name:
A Link Graph shows the total bytes transmitted and received on the link, total packets transmitted and received on the link, and total errors received on a link selected on the network map. To display a link graph, one end of the link must connect to a 2900 or 3500 XL port.
Note: You cannot graph links between Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches, or between candidate switches.
To display a link graph, right-click on a link to display its pop-up menu; then select Link Graph from the menu. Or use this procedure:
A Link Report displays port connection information for cluster members on each end of a selected link. If one of the link is connected to a Catalyst 1900 or 2820 switch, a candidate switch, or an unknown device, the report contains only member information.
Note: You cannot generate link reports between Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches.
To display a link report, right-click on a link to display its pop-up menu; then select Link Report from the menu. Or use this procedure:
Before arranging and saving the layout, make sure that all devices you want to manage are added to the cluster (either Cluster Builder discovered them or you added them manually).
To arrange and save the device layout:
Saving a configuration records any changes that you make using the Cluster Builder window to nonvolatile memory. Your changes remain in effect for subsequent sessions. To save your changes to nonvolatile memory, select Save Configuration from the Options menu.