CSS

In a CSS, two switches are connected through dedicated CSS cables to form a logical switch. A single switch cannot meet requirements of the increasing access volume of a data center and network reliability. To meet the forwarding requirement of the data center and improve network reliability, the CSS technology is used. After two switches set up a CSS, one switch functions as the master switch, and the other functions as the backup switch.

Context

When a switch attempts to set up a CSS with a CSS-capable switch but the CSS-capable switch has some configurations that the CSS does not support, the new switch cannot join the CSS and the system displays a message indicating that some configurations are not supported by the CSS and the new switch cannot be added to the CSS. The new switch can be added to the CSS only after these configurations are deleted.
Before the CSS is established, each switch is an independent entity. Each switch has its own IP address and functions independently. Therefore, you need to manage each switch separately. After the CSS is established, all the member switches are presented as one unified logical entity. In this manner, you can manage and maintain all the member switches in a CSS by using one IP address. The CSS protocol elects the master switch and backup switch in a CSS. Then, data can be backed up and the active/backup switchover can be implemented.

Procedure

Choose System Management > CSS in the navigation tree to display the CSS page.

Click

, and the Configure CSS page is displayed.

Table 1 describes the parameters on the Configure CSS page.

**Table 1** Configure CSS
Parameters	Description
Next CSS ID	Indicates the next CSS ID. The parameter takes effect after the device restarts.
Next Startup Priority	Indicates the priority for next startup. The parameter takes effect after the device restarts.
Specify the master switch	Specifies the device as the master switch after the next startup. The configuration takes effect after the device restarts.

Enable CSS: The options are Enable and Disable. The configuration takes effect after the device restarts.