P A C K E T L O S S for HP ProCurve 2848

[OLARU Dan]

My 2848 in the data center does not work well. I am using it just as a Layer 2 device, not Layer 3. I have 10 servers running at 1Gbps, connected to 2848 using CAT6 S-STP cables, but my network is slower than ever. All problems happened after I set "Auto" both on the switch and Gig-capable servers, and they started to use 1Gbps.

I use I_07_62.swi image, boot ROM image I.08.02, I enabled the qos-passthru-mode as directed by the release notes for _62.

This test of HP 2848 says that when at 100% load this kind of switch loses 11% of the packets: http://www.nwfusion.com/reviews/2004/0322revhp.html

What can be done to stop that?

Is a firmware release due to come out at the beginning of November?

Am I stuck with a device that is advertised to do 1000 Mbps, but dies when one really want to use that feature?

Why is the current version of the software on this page http://www.hp.com/rnd/software/switches.htm I.07.61, when I already downloaded and installed I.07.62 (see attached Release Notes)?

Have I payed 3500 Euros for you, folks at HP, to sleep well?

[Les Ligetfalvy]

I too, noticed that I_07_62.swi has been pulled and wonder now is it just a web page problem or did HP find a problem with it.

At least my switch is not yet in production.

[Les Ligetfalvy]

I get a chuckle from your comment "Have I payed 3500 Euros for you, folks at HP, to sleep well?"

Not meaning to diminish your plight, but I invested considerably more on seven 5308xl-48g bundles way back in August and have yet to be able to put them into production. Please let us know how you make out as I too have a 2848 at stake with only my PCM+ box connected to it.

[Les Ligetfalvy]

Dan,
While my inquiries do not solve your specific problem, I did get an answer to the yanking of .62 code. I do not want to jeopardize any working relationship with the HP tech that told me, so I will skip the detail. Do not try to back-rev to .61 as that could cause you grief. While .64 should be out shortly, supposedly there is no new features except to fix the .62 no-back-rev issue.

HTH

[OLARU Dan]

Les,

Me and my Canadian manager (who is with AECL) decided to go back to .61 when we saw ther's no trace of .62 on HP site. It is working OK by now.

Last night we reduced the number of servers operating at 1Gbps from 12 to 4 (the backup server and 3 other servers who had high transfer rates during backups), and we've got rid of some of the problems by doing so.

Could you, please, ask your HP contact if there is any perspective somewhere in the future for us to be able to use all ports with 1Gbps? Or at least to tell us how many ports should we safely use on 1G?

Do you know approximately when .64 will be available for use? I hope they won't pull it out of the site so soon, and that it will be replaced by a highr version - not a lower version as happened with .62. We'll try again to run as many servers as we can on 1Gbps, when the new version will be available.

Dan

[Jorge Rodriquez]

New firmware is coming 11.7. Regardless of what you've read the 2800 works pretty well today - new firmware adds ~10 new features. I don't know the details.

All gig ports should be hard-coded to be 1000-Full, along with server settings locally coded to 1000-Full. Auto-negotiate is dicey at best on all vendor's products.

[Les Ligetfalvy]

Hmmm... Not quite what I was told. Release date jives but ~10 new features?

...expecting to release I.07.64 within a week. This will basically fix the boot rom issue only and wontâ introduce new features...


Anyway, glad you did not run into the no-back-rev issue and perhaps I was lied to and there will be some new "features".

- I tried that "positive thinking" once but I just knew it wouldn't wo

[Les Ligetfalvy]

Not only is 7.64 now available but so too is 8.55 posted.

[OLARU Dan]

Jorge
1. If 2848 can't sustain 44 servers and 4 uplinks connected at 1Gbps, then it's not good for me.
2. I can't hard-code "1000-Full" for the copper ports of 2848: the server and switch will negotiate 1000Mbps only when I set both to "Auto"

Les
We did run into the "no-back-rev" issue: whenever we changed the flow control setting for the copper ports we've got thrown off the management console (no console, no telnet), but the switch forwarded traffic OK. So I dont' think you've been lied to.

HP guys
I've got my salary reduced by 10% for three months, just because you don't know how to make switches and you lie to people about "features".

As soon as my Cisco 3750G will arrive, I will extract your garbage form my DataCenter, and put it in some non-important wiring closet - since I can't sell it.

Shame on you: you should quit making things you're not good at.

Dan OLARU

[Kevin Richter_1]

The only "fix" in I.07.64 is for the boot ROM. I.07.62 was pulled from the web awaiting posting of I.07.64 which would contain I.08.04 boot ROM with the fixes necessary to run I.08.55.

I.08.55 was posted to the external web a couple days ago. This is the code which contains "~10 new features" delivered by early November.

1. Supports 256 VLANs
2. DiffServ Codepoint (DSCP) Marking - L3/L4
3. 802.1s Multiple Spanning-Tree
4. Jumbo Packets
5. Web Authentication
6. MAC Authentication
7. MAC Lockdown/Lockout
8. Secure Copy and Secure FTP
9. Front-Panel Security
10. Auto-MDI-X manual mode
11. Flow sampling with sFlow

See the I.08.55 Release Notes at ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/networking/software/59906049-1004.pdf for full detail on these enhancements.

The ProCurve 2800 series can support gigabit links on every interface. Overloading outbound interfaces will create drops or packet loss on any vendor's device. QoS-Passthru-mode was added to increase the performance on traffic from gigabit ports to overloaded 100Mbps or 10Mbps ports. A fix was required in I.07.62 to restore this functionality. "QOS PR_1*194538 â QOS-Pass -Through-Mode (introduced in I.07.52) does not work in software versions I.07.54-I.07.61"

If the overloading was on your "4 uplinks," you may wish to note that I.07.50 added support for up to 8 ports per trunk.

Many companies have found great success with ProCurve 2800 series switch deployments. I'm sorry to hear yours has not gone so well. Removing or relocating switches in favor of a competing product is a business decision any customer is free to make. Should you desire addtional support beyond these forums, options for contacting ProCurve support can be found at http://www.hp.com/rnd/assistance/assistance.h