# Teaming

Teaming is a feature of the Intel Advanced Network Services (ANS) component that lets you to take advantage of multiple adapters in the system by grouping them together.

## Setting Up Adapter Teaming

Before you can set up adapter teaming in Windows*, you must install Intel® PROSet software.

For more information on setting up adapter teams and Intel PROSet software, see the links in the contents frame on the left.

## Teaming Modes

Some adapters do not support all of the teaming modes listed below.

- Adapter Fault Tolerance (AFT) - provides automatic redundancy for a server's network connection. If the primary adapter fails, the secondary adapter takes over. Adapter Fault Tolerance supports two to eight adapters per team. This teaming mode works with any hub or switch, and all team members must be connected to the same device.

- Switch Fault Tolerance (SFT) - provides a failover relationship between two adapters when each adapter is connected to a separate switch. Switch Fault Tolerance supports two adapters per team. Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) must be enabled when you create a team in SFT mode. This teaming mode works with any switch.

- Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB) - provides load balancing of transmit traffic and adapter fault tolerance. In Windows operating systems, you can also enable or disable receive load balancing (RLB) in ALB teams. This teaming mode works with any switch.

- Fast EtherChannel*/Link Aggregation (FEC) - provides increased transmission and reception throughput in a team of two to eight adapters operating at 100 Mbps. This mode also includes adapter fault tolerance and load balancing (only routed protocols). This teaming mode requires a switch with Intel® Link Aggregation or Cisco* FEC capability.

- Gigabit EtherChannel*/Link Aggregation (GEC) - is the gigabit extension of the FEC/Link Aggregation/802.3ad: static mode. All team members must operate at gigabit speeds.

- IEEE 802.3ad - creates one or more teams using dynamic Link Aggregation with mixed-speed adapters. Like the static Link Aggregation modes, Dynamic 802.3ad teams increase transmission and reception throughput and provide fault tolerance. This teaming mode requires a switch that fully supports the IEEE 802.3ad standard.

Multi-Vendor Teaming (MVT) - adds the capability to include adapters from selected other vendors in a team. If you are using a Windows-based computer, you can team adapters that appear in Intel® PROSet.

Teaming modes are available only on computers running Windows NT* 4.0, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003.

| IMPORTANT: Be sure to use the latest available drivers on all adapters. Also, when you create a team, use Intel PROSet.
| IMPORTANT: For optimal performance, you must disable the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) when using AFT, ALB, FEC, GEC, or IEEE 802.3ad mode teaming.
| IMPORTANT: When you create a team, a virtual adapter instance is created. In Windows, the virtual adapter appears in both the Device Manager and Network and Dial-up Connections. Each virtual adapter instance appears as "Intel® Advanced Network Services Virtual Adapter." Do not attempt to modify (except to change protocol configuration) or remove these virtual adapter instances using Device Manager or Network and Dial-up Connections. Changing or removing virtual adapters might result in system anomalies.
| IMPORTANT: Before creating a team, adding or removing team members, or changing advanced settings of a team member, make sure each team member has been configured similarly. Settings to check include VLANs and QoS Packet Tagging, Jumbo Frames, and the various offloads. These settings are available in Intel PROSet's Advanced Settings tab. Pay particular attention when using different adapter models or adapter versions, as adapter capabilities vary.
| IMPORTANT: If team members implement Advanced features differently, failover and team functionality will be affected. To avoid team implementation issues: Create teams that use similar adapter types and models. Reload the team after adding an adapter or changing any Advanced features. One way to reload the team is to select a new preferred primary adapter. Although there will be a temporary loss of network connectivity as the team reconfigures, the team will maintain its network addressing schema.

| NOTE: Teaming is supported on Intel PRO/100 and PRO/1000 server adapters, and certain server-oriented models from other manufacturers. If you are using a Windows-based computer, adapters that appear in Intel® PROSet may be included in a team. Teaming is also supported on the Intel PRO/1000 T and MT Desktop Adapters if at least one server adapter is installed in the computer.
| NOTE: Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 does not support Plug and Play (PnP). Any change in network configuration requires a system reboot in order to take effect. Hot Add/Remove of an adapter to/from a team is only available in Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003.

## Primary and Secondary Adapters

Teaming modes that do not require a switch with the same capabilities (AFT, SFT, ALB/RLB) use a primary adapter. In all of these modes except RLB, the primary is the only adapter that receives traffic.

If the primary adapter fails, another adapter will take over its duties. If you are using more than two adapters, and you want a specific adapter to take over if the primary fails, you must specify a secondary adapter.

There are two types of primary and secondary adapters:

- Default primary adapter: If you do not specify a preferred primary adapter, the software will choose an adapter of the highest capability (model and speed) to act as the default primary. If a failover occurs, another adapter becomes the primary. Once the problem with the original primary is resolved, the traffic will not automatically restore to the default (original) primary adapter in most modes. The adapter will, however, rejoin the team as a non-primary.

- Preferred Primary/Secondary adapters: You can specify a preferred adapter in Intel PROSet. Under normal conditions, the Primary adapter handles all traffic. The Secondary adapter will receive fallback traffic if the primary fails. If the Preferred Primary adapter fails, but is later restored to an active status, control is automatically switched back to the Preferred Primary adapter.

To specify a preferred primary or secondary adapter

1. In Intel PROSet, expand a team listing in the Network Component Tree.

2. Right-click on the adapter team member you want to use as the preferred primary or secondary adapter.

3. Click Preferred Primary or Preferred Secondary on the menu that appears.

4. Click Apply or OK to set.

The adapter's preferred setting appears in the Priority column on Intel PROSet's Team Configuration tab. A "1" indicates a preferred primary adapter, and a "2" indicates a preferred secondary adapter.

## Adapters Supported

Teaming options are supported on Intel PRO/100 and PRO/1000 server adapters, and on Intel desktop adapters if there is at least one server adapter installed. Selected adapters from other manufacturers are also supported. If you are using a Windows-based computer, adapters that appear in Intel PROSet may be included in a team.

#### Compatibility Notes

Intel test labs found that:

- Hot-adding non-Intel adapters to a team causes system instability. For this reason it is recommended that you restart the system or reload the team after hot-adding a non-Intel adapter to a team.

- Some advanced features, including hardware offloading, are automatically disabled when non Intel adapters are team members to assure a common feature set.

## Adapter Fault Tolerance (AFT)

Adapter Fault Tolerance (AFT) provides the safety of an additional backup link between the server and switch. In the case of switch port, cable, or adapter failure, you can maintain network connectivity.

Adapter Fault Tolerance is implemented with a primary adapter and one or more backup, or secondary adapters. During normal operation, the backup adapters are in standby. If the link to the primary adapter fails, the link to the secondary adapter automatically takes over. For more information, see Primary and Secondary Adapters.

To use Adapter Fault Tolerance, you must have at least one Intel PRO/100 or one PRO/1000 server adapter in your team, and all adapters linked to the same switch or hub.

| NOTE: You can mix gigabit and 10/100 adapters in an AFT team.

## Switch Fault Tolerance (SFT)

Switch Fault Tolerance (SFT) teaming allows you to connect each of two teamed adapters to a separate switch.

Switch Fault Tolerance can detect failures when they occur:

- On either teamed adapter

- On either cable connecting the teamed adapter to its switch

- On switch ports connected to the adapters, if link is lost

In SFT teams, one adapter is the primary adapter and one adapter is the secondary adapter. During normal operation, the secondary adapter is in standby mode. In standby, the adapter is inactive and waiting for failover to occur. It does not transmit or receive other network traffic. If the primary adapter loses connectivity, the secondary adapter automatically takes over.

In SFT mode, each adapter in the team can operate at a different speed than the other.

| NOTE: SFT is available on computers running Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003

## Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB)

Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB) uses software to balance routable traffic among a team of two to eight adapters (must include at least one server adapter) connected to the same switch. On computers running Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003, ALB balances routable transmit traffic. With Receive Load Balancing (RLB) enabled, it balances IP receive traffic. The software analyzes the send and transmit loading on each adapter and balances the rate across the adapters based on destination address. Adapter teams configured for ALB also provide the benefits of fault tolerance.

| NOTE: ALB does not load balance non-routed protocols such as NetBEUI and some IPX* traffic.
| NOTE: You can create an ALB team with mixed speed adapters. The load is balanced according to the adapter's capabilities and the bandwidth of the channel.

## FEC/Link Aggregation/802.3ad Static Mode

Fast EtherChannel (FEC) is a performance technology developed by Cisco to increase throughput between switches. This mode works with:

- Cisco FEC-capable switches using the PAgP protocol

- Intel switches capable of Link Aggregation

- Other switches capable of static 802.3ad

The transmission speed will never exceed the adapter base speed to any single address (per specification). Teams can contain 2 to 8 adapters, but must match the capability of the switch. Adapter teams configured for static Link Aggregation also provide the benefits of fault tolerance and load balancing. You do not need to set a primary in these modes.

## GEC/Link Aggregation/802.3ad Static Mode

Gigabit EtherChannel (GEC) is a performance technology developed by Cisco to increase throughput between switches. This mode works with:

- Cisco GEC capable switches using the PAgP protocol

- Intel switches capable of Link Aggregation

- Other switches capable of static 802.3ad

The transmission speed will never exceed the adapter base speed to any single address (per specification). Teams may be from 2 to 8 adapters but must match the capability of the switch. Adapter teams configured for static Link Aggregation also provide the benefits of fault tolerance and load balancing. You do not need to set a primary in these modes.

## IEEE 802.3ad Dynamic Mode

802.3ad is an adopted IEEE standard. Teams can contain two to eight adapters, and you can have a maximum of two IEEE 802.3ad dynamic teams per server. You must use 802.3ad switches (in dynamic mode, aggregation can go across switches). Adapter teams configured for IEEE 802.3ad also provide the benefits of fault tolerance and load balancing. Under 802.3ad, all protocols can be load balanced.

Dynamic mode supports multiple aggregators, and they are formed either by different speeds on the same switch (teams based on speed) or by using multiple switches (provides some redundancy between switches). Only one team will be active at a time.

| NOTE: Once you choose an aggregator, it remains in force until all adapters in that aggregator lose link.
| NOTE: In some switches, copper and fiber adapters cannot belong to the same aggregator in an IEEE 802.3ad configuration. If there are copper and fiber adapters installed in a system, the switch might configure the copper adapters in one aggregator and the fiber-based adapters in another. If you experience this behavior, for best performance you should use either copper or fiber-based adapters in a system.
| If multiple switches are used, all team members connected to the same switch must operate at the same speed.

### Before you begin

- Verify that the switch fully supports the IEEE 802.3ad standard.

- Check your switch documentation for port dependencies. Some switches require pairing to start on a primary port.

- Check your speed and duplex settings to ensure the adapter and switch are running at full duplex, either forced or set to auto-negotiate. Both the adapter and the switch must have the same speed and duplex configuration. The full duplex requirement is part of the IEEE 802.3ad specification: http://standards.ieee.org/.
  If needed, change your speed or duplex setting before you link the adapter to the switch. Although you can change speed and duplex settings after the team is created, Intel recommends you disconnect the cables until settings are in effect. In some cases, switches or servers might not appropriately recognize modified speed or duplex settings if settings are changed when there is an active link to the network.

- If you are configuring a VLAN, check your switch documentation for VLAN compatibility notes. Not all switches support simultaneous dynamic 802.3ad teams and VLANs. If you choose to set up VLANs, configure teaming and VLAN settings on the adapter before you link the adapter to the switch. Setting up VLANs after the switch has created an active aggregator affects VLAN functionality.

## Multi-Vendor Teaming (MVT)

MVT allows teaming with a combination of Intel and non-Intel adapters. This feature is currently available under Linux and Windows (NT 4.0, 2000, and Windows Server 2003 Server).

If you are using a Windows-based computer, adapters that appear in Intel® PROSet can be included in a team.

### MVT Design Considerations

- In order to activate MVT, you must have at least one Intel server adapter in the team, which must be designated as the primary adapter.

- A multi-vendor team can be created for any team mode, but not for VLANs.

- All members in a MVT must operate on a common feature set (lowest common denominator).

`Last modified on 1/23/03 8:38a Revision 17`