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member device which is in Disconnect state will be added to the cluster. After that, the state of the 
member device locally and on the management device will be changed to Active. 
Besides, a member device informs the management device using handshake packets when there is a 
neighbor topology change. 
Management VLAN 
The management VLAN is a VLAN used for communication in a cluster; it limits the cluster 
management range. Through configuration of the management VLAN, the following functions can be 
implemented: 
z  Management packets (including NDP, NTDP and handshake packets) are restricted within the 
management VLAN, therefore isolated from other packets, which enhances security. 
z  The management device and the member devices communicate with each other through the 
management VLAN. 
 For a cluster to work normally, you must set the packets from the management VLAN to pass the 
ports connecting the management device and the member/candidate devices (including the cascade 
ports). Therefore: 
z  If the packets from the management VLAN cannot pass a port, the device connected with the port 
cannot be added to the cluster. Therefore, if the ports (including the cascade ports) connecting the 
management device and the member/candidate devices prohibit the packets from the 
management VLAN, you can set the packets from the management VLAN to pass the ports on 
candidate devices with the management VLAN auto-negotiation function. 
z  Only when the default VLAN ID of the cascade ports and the ports connecting the management 
device and the member/candidate devices is that of the management VLAN can you set the 
packets without tags from the management VLAN to pass the ports; otherwise, only the packets 
with tags from the management VLAN can pass the ports. 
 
 
z  If a candidate device is connected to a management device through another candidate device, the 
ports between the two candidate devices are cascade ports. 
z  For information about VLAN, refer to VLAN Configuration in the Access Volume. 
 
Cluster Configuration Task List 
Before configuring a cluster, you need to determine the roles and functions the devices play. You also 
need to configure the related functions, preparing for the communication between devices within the 
cluster.