# Teaming

- Adapter Fault Tolerance (AFT) - provides automatic redundancy for your adapter. If the primary adapter fails, the secondary takes over. Adapter Fault Tolerance supports two to eight adapters per team. This feature works with any hub or switch.

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

- Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB) - allows balancing the transmission data flow among two to eight adapters. Also includes adapter fault tolerance. This feature works with any switch.

- Intel Link Aggregation, Cisco EtherChannel* (FEC/GEC/802.3ad static mode) - creates a same-speed team of two to eight adapters to increase transmission and reception throughput. This also includes adapter fault tolerance and load balancing (only routed protocols). This requires a switch with Link Aggregation, FEC/GEC, or static 802.3ad capability.

Multi-Vendor Teaming (MVT) - adds the capability to include adapters from selected other vendors in a team. If you are using a Windows-based server, the adapter names which appear in Intel® PROSet are candidates for a team.

For an overview of Teaming Options, see "Solving Server Bottlenecks with Intel Server Adapters." This document covers teaming and load balancing options. You can view this document with the Adobe Acrobat* Viewer.

For detailed information about teaming, including setup requirements and step-by-step instructions, see the online help.

| These teaming options are supported only on Intel PRO/100 and PRO/1000 server adapters, and the Intel PRO/1000 T Desktop Adapter when at least one server adapter is installed.
| IMPORTANT: For optimal performance, you must disable the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) when using teaming.
| IMPORTANT: When you use Intel PROSet II to create a team in Windows XP, a virtual adapter instance is displayed in both the Device Manager and Network and Dial-up Connections. Each virtual adapter instance is listed as "Intel® Advanced Network Services Virtual Adapter." Do not attempt to modify (except to change protocol configuration), disable or remove these virtual adapter instances using Device Manager or Network and Dial-up Connections. Instead, you must only use Intel PROSet II. Doing otherwise may result in system anomalies, including blue screens.

## Operating Systems Supported

- Windows XP

## 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 running a Windows-based system, check the Intel PROSet II control panel utility to see which adapters are compatible.)

#### Compatibility Notes

In Intel test labs, it was 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.
- Hardware offloading is automatically disabled when Broadcom*-based NICs are team members.

## 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 uninterrupted network performance.

Adapter Fault Tolerance is implemented with a primary adapter and one or more backup, or secondary adapters. During normal operation, the backup adapters are disabled. If the link to the primary adapter fails, the link to the secondary adapter automatically takes over.

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

## Switch Fault Tolerance (SFT)

Switch Fault Tolerance (SFT) teaming enables you to connect two teamed adapters to two switches. Each adapter connects 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

- On either switch connected to the adapters

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. It does not transmit or receive traffic. If the primary adapter loses connectivity, the secondary adapter automatically takes over.

In SFT mode, the two adapters creating the team can operate at different speeds.

## Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB)

Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB) uses software to balance the transmission load of your server among a team of two to eight same-speed Intel adapters (must include at least one server adapter) connected to the same switch. The software analyzes transmit loading on each adapter and balances the rate across the adapters based on destination address. Received data is not load-balanced. Adapter teams configured for ALB also provide the benefits of AFT.

| NOTE: ALB does not balance non-routed protocols such as NetBEUI and some IPX* traffic.
| NOTE: If you team up a gigabit adapter with a slower adapter, the team will operate at the highest negotiated or common speed for all adapters. This will mean that the gigabit adapter will drop down to 100 or even 10 Mbps.

## Cisco EtherChannel (FEC/GEC), Intel Link Aggregation, 802.3ad Static Mode

Fast EtherChannel/Gigabit EtherChannel (FEC/GEC) are performance technologies developed by Cisco to increase throughput between switches. Intel has implemented FEC/GEC on server adapters that works with either FEC/GEC capable switches, or Intel Link Aggregation capable switches to increase your server's throughput to multiple addresses. Unlike ALB, these technologies move some of the load-balancing overhead from the server to an FEC/GEC/LA-compatible switch.

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 FEC/GEC also provide the benefits of fault tolerance and load balancing. No primary need be set in these modes.

## 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 XP).

If you are running a Windows-based system, check the Intel PROSet II control panel utility to see which adapters are compatible.

### 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).

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