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Catalyst 2950 Desktop Switch Software Configuration Guide
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Chapter 1 Overview
Management Options
Management Options
The Catalyst 2950 switches are designed for plug-and-play operation: you only need to assign basic IP
information to the switch and connect it to the other devices in your network. If you have specific
network needs, you can configure and monitor the switch—on an individual basis or as part of a switch
cluster—through its various management interfaces.
This section discusses these topics:
• Interface options for managing the switches
• Advantages of clustering switches and using CMS
Management Interface Options
You can configure and monitor individual switches and switch clusters by using these interfaces:
• CMS—CMS is a graphical user interface that can be launched from anywhere in your network
through a web browser such as Netscape Communicator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. CMS is
already installed on the switch. Using CMS, you can configure and monitor a standalone switch, a
specific cluster member, or an entire switch cluster. You can also display network topologies to
gather link information and to display switch images to modify switch and port level settings.
For more information about CMS, see Chapter 2, “Getting Started with CMS.”
• CLI—The switch IOS CLI software is enhanced to support desktop-switching features. You can
configure and monitor the switch and switch cluster members from the CLI. You can access the CLI
either by connecting your management station directly to the switch console port or by using Telnet
from a remote management station.
For more information about the CLI, see Chapter 3, “Using the Command-Line Interface.”
• SNMP—SNMP provides a means to monitor and control the switch and switch cluster members.
You can manage switch configuration settings, performance, security, and collect statistics by using
SNMP management applications such as CiscoWorks2000 LAN Management Suite (LMS) and HP
OpenView.
Monitoring
• Switch LEDs that provide visual port and switch status
• Switch Port Analyzer (SPAN) for complete traffic monitoring on any port
• Four groups (history, statistics, alarms, and events) of embedded remote monitoring (RMON) agents for network
monitoring and traffic analysis
• MAC address notification for tracking the MAC addresses that the switch has learned or removed
• Syslog facility for logging system messages about authentication or authorization errors, resource issues, and time-out
events
1. This feature is available only on a switch running the enhanced software image.
Table 1-1 Features (continued)
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