10-10
Catalyst 4500 Series Switch, Cisco IOS Software Configuration Guide - Cisco IOS XE 3.9.xE and IOS 15.2(5)Ex
 
Chapter 10      Checking Port Status and Connectivity
Using Layer 2 Traceroute
If you want the switch to trace the path from a host on a source device to a host on a destination device, 
the switch can identify only the path from the source device to the destination device. It cannot identify 
the path that a packet takes from source host to the source device or from the destination device to the 
destination host. 
These sections describe how to use the Layer 2 traceroute feature: 
• Layer 2 Traceroute Usage Guidelines, page 10-10 
• Running Layer 2 Traceroute, page 10-11 
Layer 2 Traceroute Usage Guidelines
These are the Layer 2 traceroute usage guidelines:
• CDP must be enabled on all the devices in the network. For Layer 2 traceroute to function properly, 
do not disable CDP.
If any devices in the physical path are transparent to CDP, the switch cannot identify the path 
through these devices. 
Note For more information about enabling CDP, see Chapter 31, “Configuring CDP.”
• All switches in the physical path must have IP connectivity. When a switch is reachable from another 
switch, you can test connectivity by using the ping command in privileged EXEC mode.
• The maximum number of hops identified in the path is ten.
• You can enter the traceroute mac or the traceroute mac ip command in privileged EXEC mode on 
a switch that is not in the physical path from the source device to the destination device. All switches 
in the path must be reachable from this switch.
• The traceroute mac command output shows the Layer 2 path only when the specified source and 
destination MAC addresses belong to the same VLAN. If you specify source and destination MAC 
addresses that belong to different VLANs, the Layer 2 path is not identified, and an error message 
appears. 
• If you specify a multicast source or destination MAC address, the path is not identified, and an error 
message appears.
• If the source or destination MAC address belongs to multiple VLANs, you must specify the VLAN 
to which both the source and destination MAC addresses belong. If the VLAN is not specified, the 
path is not identified, and an error message appears.
• The traceroute mac ip command output shows the Layer 2 path when the specified source and 
destination IP addresses belong to the same subnet. When you specify the IP addresses, the switch 
uses Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) to associate the IP address with the corresponding MAC 
address and the VLAN ID. 
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If an ARP entry exists for the specified IP address, the switch uses the associated MAC address 
and identifies the physical path. 
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If an ARP entry does not exist, the switch sends an ARP query and tries to resolve the IP 
address. If the IP address is not resolved, the path is not identified, and an error message 
appears.
• When multiple devices are attached to one port through hubs (for example, multiple CDP neighbors 
are detected on a port), the Layer 2 traceroute feature is not supported. When more than one CDP 
neighbor is detected on a port, the Layer 2 path is not identified, and an error message appears.