* * * * *

                      Riverstone Networks RS 3000 sucks!

See, yesterday [1], all I wanted to do was assign an unused port on the
Riverstone Networks RS 3000 [2] from one VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network) to
another. Actually, two unused ports, but it's something that, for a switch,
should be rather uncomplicated.

Now, the Riverstone Networks RS 3000 works much like a Cisco router—you log
in and can type commands at the command line prompt, and even change the
configuration through the command line. It will even walk you through the
command lines, showing you which options are valid at any point in the
command line.

It will even allow you to group ports together into a command. For instance,
on our Riverstone Networks RS 3000, a default setting for all the ports are
set with one command:

> port set et.(1-2).(1-16) speed 100mbps duplex full auto-negotiation off
>

This sets all 16 ports on the two Ethernet modules to a known setting. And if
you need to set a port differently, well …

> port set et.(1-2).(1-16) speed 100mbps duplex full auto-negotiation off
> port set et.2.8 speed 10mbps duplex half auto-negotiation off
> port set et.1.3 auto-negotiation on
>

So you can set a default, then override later on in the configuration.

The same is true for the port descriptions:

> port description et.(1-2).(1-16) "UNUSED"
> port description et.1.1 "ns1.example.net"
> port description et.1.2 "LINK to switch FOO"
> port description et.1.3 "ns2.example.net"
>

Pretty simple so far (but our hero is walking through an empty house, and
finds the stairs to the basement—the audience is shouting at the hero not to
go down the stairs. Of course he does).

And the creation of a VLAN is also straight forward:

> vlan create TheCompanyVLAN1 port-based id 500
> vlan create TheCompanyVLAN2 port-based id 501
>

This associates a human readable name to a numeric ID that VLANs use. Again,
straightforward. You can even assign a block of IP (Internet Protocol)
addresses to a VLAN quite simply:

> interface create ip TheCompanyVLAN1 address-netmask 10.10.10.1/24 vlan TheCompanyVLAN1
> interface create ip TheCompanyVLAN2 address-netmask 10.10.20.1/24 vlan TheCompanyVLAN2
>

This will automagically set up routing between the two VLANs so far thus
defined.

Now, here's where things get interesting. You can assign ports to a VLAN
simply enough:

> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-16) to TheCompanyVLAN1
>

This assigns all the ports on the Riverstone Networks RS 3000 to VLAN
TheCompanyVLAN1. So just like the port speeds and descriptions, it so far
looks like you can assign a default VLAN to each port, and then override it
futher down in the configuation:

> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-16) to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.1.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
> vlan add ports et.2.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
>

One would think that, but one would be **horribly wrong!**
Muahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! **YOU CAN'T DO THAT!**
Muahahahahahahahahahaha! (and here the hero has his face eaten off by a
zombie—the audience is going “told you so! Told you not to go into that
basement!”)

Try to do that, and the Riverstone Networks RS 3000 will complain bitterly
about ports et.1.4 and et.2.4 belonging to VLAN TheCompanyVLAN1. You just
can't assigned a default VLAN, then reassign it later (unless it's a trunk
port, but then a a trunked port can be assigned to multiple VLANs, and I
didn't want that). No, you have to assign each port once to a VLAN.

So, one may then attempt:

> comment out vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-16) to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-3) to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(5-16) to The CompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.1.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
> vlan add ports et.2.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
>

**BUT YOU'RE SCREWED!** The Riverstone Networks RS 3000 will complain about
the ports already being part of TheCompanyVLAN1 so it'll ignore the
reassignments of the ports to the same VLAN, it'll bitch about ports et.1.4
and et.2.4 being reassigned, but since you commented out the line that
assigns all the ports to TheCompanyVLAN1, it'll then nock the ports out of
that VLAN (and here, the hero is now a shambling zombie, stalking his
girlfriend to eat her face off).

And if you're unlucky, you'll do this on a live network.

And then all the phones on your desk will start ringing off the hook.

And your cell phone will start ringing.

And you're running around, trying to figure out why the network suddenly took
a dump when all you're doing to trying to reconfigure two unused ports to a
new VLAN.

Did I mention the part about being screwed?

No, apparently, what you have to do is

> comment out vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-16) to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(1-3) to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.(1-2).(5-16) to The CompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.1.4 to TheCompanyVLAN1
> vlan add ports et.2.4 to TheCompanyVLAN1
>

And ignore any warnings that the Riverstone Networks RS 3000 may throw at
you, and then check to see if all the ports are set correctly:

> RS3000BrainDeathRouter# vlan show
> VID VLAN Name       Used For                     Ports
> --- --------------- ---------------------------- -----------------------
> 1   DEFAULT         IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2
> 500 TheCompanyVLAN1 IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2 et.1.(1-16),et.2.(1-16)
>

Then go back into the configuration and comment out the two ports:

> comment out vlan add ports et.1.4 to TheCompanyVLAN1
> comment out vlan add ports et.2.4 to TheCompanyVLAN1
>

And check to see if that took:

> RS3000BrainDeathRouter# vlan show
> VID VLAN Name       Used For                     Ports
> --- --------------- ---------------------------- -----------------------
> 1   DEFAULT         IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2 et.1.4,et.2.4
> 500 TheCompanyVLAN1 IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2 et.1.(1-3,5-16),et.2.(1-3,5-16)
>

Then bounce back into the configuation, and add the two ports to the other
VLAN:

> vlan add ports et.1.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
> vlan add ports et.2.4 to TheCompanyVLAN2
>

And if you're lucky:

> RS3000BrainDeathRouter# vlan show
> VID VLAN Name       Used For                     Ports
> --- --------------- ---------------------------- -----------------------
> 1   DEFAULT         IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2
> 500 TheCompanyVLAN1 IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2 et.1.(1-3,5-16),et.2.(1-3,5-16)
> 501 TheCompanyVLAN2 IP,IPX,ATALK,DEC,SNA,IPv6,L2 et.1.4,et.2.4
>

And if you're not, all the phones on your desk will start ringing off the
hook.

And your cell phone will start ringing.

And you're running around, trying to figure out why the network suddenly took
a dump when all you're doing to trying to reconfigure two unused ports to a
new VLAN (mmmmmmmmmm—brains).

So, the lesson I'm trying to impart here?

**Riverstone Networks RS 3000s suck!**

But, if you are in the position of having to use them, then you might want to
think ill of grouping ports as part of a command and apply each command to
each port separately. Then you stand less of a chance of knocking multiple
ports off a VLAN.

Oh, and one more thing. Riverstone Networks RS 3000s are not known to boot
fast. Oh no. They take their time. They take at least three minutes to fully
boot. Three minutes may not seem like a long time, but when all the phones on
your desk are ringing and your cell phone is ringing, three minutes is a
XXXXXXX **ETERNITY!** It's even worse if you have to run to the other side of
the building to find a computer you can use to log into the Riverstone
Networks RS 3000.

Me? Bitter?

Did I mention that the Riverstone Networks RS 3000 sucks?

[Note to Smirk: I'm not saying we should replace the Riverstone Networks RS
3000, since it's there, it runs, and can otherwise handle the traffic we're
throwing at it. I'm just venting a bit at the sheer braindeathness of the
software running the darned thing.]

[1] gopher://gopher.conman.org/0Phlog:2005/10/11.1
[2] http://www.riverstonenet.com/products/rs1x00.shtml

Email author at [email protected]

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