Switch Configuration & Management Flashcards
7 cards from real ACSP practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Switch Configuration & Management flashcards as text
What is the function of VSX (Virtual Switching Extension) on Aruba AOS-CX switches?
Answer: Pairs two switches to provide active-active redundancy with a shared control plane
VSX pairs two AOS-CX switches in an active-active configuration, providing redundancy and load-balancing without a stacking cable.
Which link in a VSX setup carries inter-switch protocol messages and data traffic during failover?
Answer: ISL (Inter-Switch Link)
The ISL (Inter-Switch Link) in a VSX pair carries both control plane synchronization traffic and data traffic that must cross between the two VSX peers.
In Aruba AOS-CX, what is a 'profile' used for in the context of switch management?
Answer: Groups configuration settings that can be applied to multiple interfaces at once
In AOS-CX, profiles allow administrators to define reusable configuration templates that can be applied consistently across multiple interfaces.
Which spanning tree mode is recommended for use with VSX deployments on Aruba AOS-CX?
Answer: MSTP (802.1s)
MSTP (Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol, 802.1s) is recommended in VSX environments because it provides efficient topology management across multiple VLANs.
What happens to traffic on a VSX setup when the ISL fails but both switches remain operational?
Answer: The secondary switch shuts down all its access ports to prevent split-brain loops
If the ISL fails while both VSX peers are still alive, the secondary switch disables its access ports to avoid a split-brain loop scenario.
Which CLI command on AOS-CX shows the synchronization status and role (primary/secondary) of a VSX pair?
Answer: show vsx brief
'show vsx brief' displays the VSX configuration summary including the local role (primary or secondary) and ISL/keepalive link states.
On Aruba switches, what is the purpose of the 'system-mac' configured under VSX?
Answer: Provides a shared MAC address used by both VSX peers to appear as a single logical switch to downstream devices
The VSX system-mac is a shared MAC address that both peers use so downstream devices see a consistent single-switch identity regardless of which peer is active.