Why are the logs “not forthcoming”?
What software version are you running?

I was running a clinical telemetry real-time monitoring network with a stack of Avaya ERS 5530s so they can certainly work well if configured and maintained properly.

Good Luck!

Thank You

If you are replacing like for like it should be straight forward… just restore the configuration. It would be wise to document the configuration just in case you have problems with restoring the (binary) backup.

You can probably find more details on the discussion forums.

Good Luck!

Hi Michael,

May I please ask you another question. My production switch is a 5520 and I need to stack another same model to it. The new switch has a newer firmware as well as software so my question is would the new switch automatically push the new firmware and software onto the base switch – if so will the base switch lose all its configurations? It’s good if to have it upgraded automatically but not good if the configuration is lost!

Thanks,
Shaun

I believe the maximum length you can order is 5 meters which is 16′ 4″ in length.

Good Luck!

Thank you very much for your reply! Highly Appreciated!

Shaun.

Hi Shaun,

I would advise you to review the configuration of the switch. The default configuration or any new switch/stack or switch added to an existing switch/stack has all ports members of VLAN 1. If you are not using VLAN 1 then that would explain why you are having issues communicating. You should configure the ports on the new switch in the stack (2/1-2/48) with the proper VLAN membership for those ports.

Good Luck!

I am a beginner of Nortel Network Switch and I have an urgent question for you. The scenario is I have a production single Nortel 5520 48T switch and I need to make a stack by adding a new 5530 24 port switch to it. I’ve done everything as you’ve suggested in the post but I can’t seem to get the new switch working in the stack. The new switch is seen as unit 2 in the stack but for some reason it has no connectivity whenever I plug a device in. The base switch works fine – no dram whatsoever. It appears to me that the VLANs configuration on the base swtich does not pass thru to the second switch. Will I need to create VLANs on the second swith to be identical to the base switch and tag all the ports? Do I need to use 2 stack cables to x cross the switches? I only used one as I don’t think it’s neccessary. Also there are only 2 VLANs on the base switch: Data and VoIP which in general are commonly found on access switches.

Thank you,
Shaun

Hi Ami.A,

You’ve got some pretty old hardware there… technically the BayStack 420-24T/48T and BayStack 425 24T/48T were intended to be stacked together but I believe there was a software requirement – you had to be running a certain version of software on the switches. In general you only need to connect the switches and they will stack themselves together without any intervention. Are you running at least software release 3.0 on all the switches?

Sorry I can’t offer more help.

Good Luck!

what should we do for the 425 see and work as a stack with the 420 switches ?

Ami.A

Thank you for this information. I appreciate the response!

Hi Michael. Everything worked great! Thank you again for your assistance on this!

Thank you for your prompt reply, Michael. Your reply is definitively going to help me in this project. Also, thanks for the tip of documenting each switchport migration from old to new. Quiet handy !!! Much appreciated !!!

Hi Rahim,

Your question is probably better suited for the discussion forum but since you’ve taken the time and effort to post let me at least do the courtesy of a reply.

You can’t stack a BayStack 420 and an ERS 4500 series switch so any configuration changes/migrations will need to be handled manually. Assuming you only have a few VLANs I would suggest you document the existing switch and then configure ports on the new stack (after adding the new switch to the existing stack of 3 switches). You can even setup an 802.1q tagged trunk port to bridge the traffic between the old stack and the new stack so you can physically move the connections one at a time.

Assuming you’ve kept all your ports at auto-negotiate you should only need to worry about VLAN assignments. I’ve personally done with 300+ ports which involves a lot of meticulous documentation, document the which data jacks go to which switch ports, then document the port settings for that switch port, then document the new switch port that will be used, then configure that port. Ultimately you follow the documentation and make the physical move.

Here are some of your answers;

A) I would add the new ERS 4500 switch to the stack first, make sure it has the same FW and SW releases as the stack (save yourself another headache).
B) You need to manually document it via Java Device Manager or the CLI, then use Enterprise Device Manager or the CLI to configure the new ports.
C) AUR is only an option if you are replacing a switch in the stack that is defective… you are adding a switch not replacing a switch.
D) The first step you should take is to add the new switch to the stack… if you configure the switch when it’s a standalone that configuration will be lost when it is added to the stack.

Good Luck!

I have to replace a Baystack 420 stack (stack of 2 x 24-port switches) and add a new 48-port 4548GT-PWR to an existing stack of 3 x 4548GT-PWR switches.

Following are the tasks that need to be completed –
1) Mirror configurations of 2 x 420 Nortel Baystack 420-24T over to the new Nortel 4548T switch
2) Configure the new 4548T Nortel switch as a stack with the existing 4548T switch
3) Move cables from 2 x 420 Nortel Baystack 420-24T over to the new Nortel 4548T switch
4) Decommission 2 x 420 Nortel Baystack 420-24T

Given that I am a novice to Nortel, I have a few questions around the approach to be taken –
a. At what stage should I be replicating the switchport configs, vlan creation, vlan port assignment etc from Baystack 420’s to the new 4548GT-PWR switch? Should this be after the 4548GT-PWR has been added to the stack or should this be done before it is added to the stack?
b. How do I replicate the config from both Baystack 420 to the new 4548GT-PWR? Is it going to be a port-by-port based config copy?
c. If yes and once the config has been copied across to the 4548GT-PWR, do I just add this 4548GT-PWR switch to the existing stack & let the stack auto-unit-replacement do the magic to ensure that the switch becomes part of the stack & is number as Unit 4. Will this erase my switchport/vlan config from 4548GT-PWR switch?
d. Once the 4548GT-PWR becomes part of the stack, do I need to re-configure the switch again for switchports/vlans etc?

I will ensure that the sw/fw version on the new 4548GT-PWR is the same as the existing switches in the 4548GT-PWR stack.

Hoping for your assistance Michael.

Thank you.

Depending on the software release there is a feature called Auto Unit Replacement that can make things pretty easy. Short of that I would recommend backing up the configuration, power off stack, replace switch, factory default stack and re-number if necessary – download configuration file to stack.

You’ll find some discussions on this site and on the discussion forums.

Cheers!

Hi Richard,

You should be able to break the stack and insert the new switch. The existing switches can be left running, I would suggest connecting the new switch powered off. Once you have all the stacking cables re-attached you can power it up and it should join the stack showing up as the next unit in the stack.

Good Luck!

You’re using the wrong syntax…

copy running-config tftp address 10.1.1.1 filename config.cfg

Good Luck!

Thanks for the information, I appreciate it a lot. I was a little confuse at the beginning because the switch5 was disconnected from the stack and it was already with the version 5.5, so I downgraded it to 5.1 and I will reconnect to the stack again and then follow all your steps.

I have problems to backup the information, I get the following errors, Do you know what to do in this case?

4526GTX-PWR#copy running-config tftp 192.53.213.201 ?
^
% Invalid input detected at ‘^’ marker.
4526GTX-PWR#copy running-config usb runningconf.txt
^
% Invalid input detected at ‘^’ marker.
4526GTX-PWR#

Hi Santiago,

Heavens no… no no no!!! You don’t need to disconnect the stack cables. You telnet or console up to the base and initiate the upgrade and the base switch will automatically push the software down to all the switches in the stack. If you are in front of the switches you’ll see a cut little LED display from all the switch ports.

I would follow these steps;

1. Backup the configuration (trust me – better safe than sorry)
2. Upgrade diagnostic software
3. Wait for reboot
4. Upgrade agent software
5. Wait for reboot
6. Test that everything is working
7. Plenty of time left for drinks!

You should refer to the release notes on page 21.

Good Luck!

I am missing something else?