Question

Difficulty: MediumLayer 2 and Layer 3 EtherChannel (LACP)

A network administrator needs to establish a routed (Layer 3) EtherChannel between two Cisco switches using LACP active mode across physical interfaces GigabitEthernet0/1 and GigabitEthernet0/2. In what correct chronological order should the administrator execute the Cisco IOS CLI commands to configure this Layer 3 EtherChannel from global configuration mode?

  1. 1Enter interface range configuration mode for physical member interfaces: interface range GigabitEthernet0/1 - 2
  2. 2Convert physical interfaces to Layer 3 routed interfaces: no switchport
  3. 3Bind the physical member interfaces to EtherChannel group 10 using LACP active mode: channel-group 10 mode active
  4. 4Enter logical port-channel interface configuration mode: interface Port-channel 10
  5. 5Assign the IP address directly to the logical port-channel interface: ip address 10.10.10.1 255.255.255.252

Answer

The correct configuration order requires selecting physical member interfaces first, converting them to Layer 3 routed ports using 'no switchport', assigning them to EtherChannel group 10 with LACP active mode, entering Port-channel 10 configuration mode, and finally configuring the IPv4 address on the logical Port-channel interface.
The correct order follows Cisco standard CLI logic for Layer 3 EtherChannel configuration: select physical member interfaces ('interface range GigabitEthernet0/1 - 2'), convert them to routed ports ('no switchport'), form the LACP EtherChannel bundle ('channel-group 10 mode active'), navigate into the logical interface ('interface Port-channel 10'), and assign the IP address ('ip address 10.10.10.1 255.255.255.252').

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Select physical member interfaces
Entered interface range configuration mode for GigabitEthernet0/1 - 2.
CLI commands must be applied to physical interfaces first before grouping them into a bundle.
2
Execute 'no switchport' on physical member interfaces
Member interfaces are converted from Layer 2 switch ports to Layer 3 routed ports.
A Layer 3 EtherChannel requires member interfaces to be configured as routed interfaces before establishing the channel group.
3
Execute 'channel-group 10 mode active'
Physical interfaces are added to Port-channel 10 under LACP active negotiation mode.
The channel-group command dynamically creates the Port-channel interface with LACP protocol.
4
Enter logical interface mode via 'interface Port-channel 10'
Router moves into logical interface configuration prompt.
Layer 3 configurations (IP addressing) must be defined on the logical port-channel interface itself.
5
Apply IP address parameters on Port-channel 10
IP address 10.10.10.1/30 is bound to Port-channel 10.
Traffic routing across Layer 3 EtherChannel uses the logical interface IP address.

Key Concept

Layer 3 EtherChannel CLI configuration workflow requires setting 'no switchport' on physical member interfaces prior to creating the channel-group and applying IP addressing on the logical Port-channel interface.
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