XGS2220-54 stacking issues

otello1

We are triyng to make a setup with 4 switch XGS2220-54 in stack.

When we make the stack, if more than one switch have stackid = 1 all the switch connected with the stacking port go crazy.

For example if we are changing in the options the stacking id of all the switches and we connect stacking cables BEFORE rebooting, all led of all the switches flash constantly and all freezes up until we remove the power.

This can happen for example if one switch reboot alone and not mantain the staking id. When you reconnect to the stack all the switches crash.

If you want to reproduce the issue yuo can setup all the switches as follow:

if put all the 4 switch as 1° of the stack As far as they try to recontruct the stack they stuck, all the led flash and you need to reboot the switch.

To make this happen you can simply unplug a stacking cable or reboot the switches.

Then they try to recontruct the stack priority and crash.

IT would be useful if they will try to reconstruct the stacking order from another mechanism (like mac address priority) instead of crashing all togheter when more than one FIRST stack ID is found.

Maybe it could happen even if more than one switch have the id 2 or 3 or 4. We didn't try this.

otello1

Intsead of increasing business continuity with stacking mode this is like a bomb that broke all the switches and the network. For example if you have a 2 switch stack setup and after some month you insert a third switch in this old setup forgetting to place a new ID for the new switch all the network will crash.

Zyxel_Kay

Hi @otello1

In the default Slot ID setting, the configuration is set to Auto, meaning that when you insert a third switch, the slot ID will be assigned based on the following order:

1. Find the slot with te same model type and inactive status.
2. If not found, find an empty alot and insert the system
3. If not found still, find the first slot with inactive status.

This means that the scenario you mentioned, where inserting a third switch into an old setup without assigning a new ID would cause the network to crash, should not occur.

However, if you manually set a fixed slot ID and assign the same slot ID to multiple switches (creating a Slot ID conflict), then indeed, all the switches' LEDs will turn on and stop forwarding (freeze), similar to the symptoms you observed. This behavior is a protective measure for the switch.

For proper guidance on creating a stack, please refer to the device’s Help guide or the User’s guide. You can find detailed instructions for setting up stacking in these resources.

otello1

Well, so when you add a switch to the stack in a second moment and mistakenly put an ID that's already present, the stack goes crazy due to a conflict we created.

But at least the graphical interface should prevent you from allowing you to enter the same value on multiple Switches already in the stack. Do you agree?

Zyxel_Kay

Hi @otello1

Thank you for your input! We have noted your suggestion to enhance the Slot ID UI interface to prevent users from entering the same value on multiple switches in the same stacking switch. We have posted your idea here:

https://community.zyxel.com/en/discussion/22223/improve-the-ui-for-selecting-staking-slot-ids

If anyone supports this idea, please don't hesitate to leave a comment or vote to this idea post. Your input, in the form of comments and votes, will play a crucial role in our evaluation process.