Controllerless Networks

It seems like we had to disable stacking and enable the REST interface on our switches to enable Aruba Central and provision via Aruba Activate.  Is there any way to manage switches in Aruba Central and have them in a backplane stack or VSF?  We're becoming very concerned that stacking and Aruba Central are mutually exclusive.  Thanks.

AFAIK the Aruba Central Cloud management on ArubaOS-Switch based Switches (like [*] 2920, 2930F, 3800, 3810 and 5400R) seems to be supported only on standalone units (and starting with very recent 16.02 and 16.03 software branches), it's unsupported on units deployed using (backplane/frontplane) stacking.

On 16.03 release notes an entire paragraph looks illuminating:

"Aruba Central Cloud management

Cloud management using Aruba Central is now available on the Aruba 3810 Switch Series enabling use cases such as Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) with Activate and Central which is ideal for branch office deployments. This is available only on standalone units and is not supported when stacking is enabled on the Aruba 3810."

 

[*] Edit: supported also on Aruba 2540...

Thanks for taking the time to reply, parnassus.

 

This seems like a huge oversight.  We just attended Atmosphere 2017 and we couldn't stop hearing about all the TLC and R&D that's being put into Aruba Central.  A good chunk of one of the keynotes was dedicated to driving this point home.

 

How can it not support a staple feature like stacking?  Does it also not support...switching?

More...on HPE ArubaOS-Switch Management and Configuration Guide for K/KA/KB.16.03 on Chapter 22 "Aruba Central Integration" [*]...there you will find a list of main restrictions:

 

Restrictions:

• Switch communication to Aruba Central is not supported via OoBM.
• Aruba-central is not supported in FIPS switches and it will be disabled by default.
• Aruba-central is not supported in Stack switches and it will be disabled by default.

So, despite the 3rd restriction to be totally clear should have been (IMHO) worded as "Aruba-central is not supported in frontplane/backplane stacked switches and it will be disabled by default", it really looks like stacking configurations (and so also VSF deployments) and Aruba Central Integration are - at least actually - mutually exclusive.

 

OTOH Aruba Central Integration seems a feature marketed to be used exactly on branch offices where no IT personnel are present (documentation reports: Branch Offices, Retail Stores and so forth) so, probably (my personal deduction), on sites where stacked switches' deployments were tought as very uncommon.

 

[*] Aruba Central Integrationd provides those features:

• ZTP Zero Touch Provisioning
• Network Management and/or Remote Monitoring
• Events/Alerts Notification
• Configuration
• Firmware Management

Nathan -

  We're working on bringing the ability for stacked switches (both fron and backplane) to be managed by Central.

 

Are you looking for remote management of stacks of for the ability to simply use a pre-configured stack? Also, which series of switches are you trying to onboard to Central?

 

Thanks,

Sreenath Seshadri

Global Product Line Manager - Campus Switch Software

More background information that might help clarify our situation.  Our locations are almost exclusively considered branch offices without dedicate on-site staff, though we do have field technicians that visit sites as needed.  All the same, the number of devices (workstations, access points, IP phones, etc) warrants significant port density, and it's not uncommon for us to put 4 x 48 switches in a site, and in these cases we prefer to have a single stack for that site.  While these stacks allow for easy management of all that switches at a single site, we have roughly 25 sites, and we'd prefer to manage all from a single pane of glass rather than as 25 individual stacks.

 

We would like to manage pre-configured stacks, but if we had to break a stack, join the switches to Central, and then re-stack, it wouldn't be the end of the world.

 

We are running on the 2920 almost exclusively, all running 16.03, which as of the time of this writing is the most current in GA.

 

Can you offer any timeline on when stacking will be supported in Central?  Will you be able to manage pre-configured stacks, or will you need to join to Central and then configure the stack?

 

Thanks.

Thanks for providing the deployment scenario. I've asked the account team to provide the BOM to know more about the SKUs you have and will reach out through the account team offline.

 

Sreenath Seshadri

Global Product Line Manager - Campus Switch Software

Sreenath, Has the stacking issue in Central been resolved? This is hindering a potential sale for one of my largest Partners. Please advise

It should be now supported since software release WB.16.04.0008:

 

"Management of 2920 stacks on Aruba Central

Besides enabling the stacking REST APIs, 16.04 also allows for 2920 stacks to be fully managed by Aruba Central.

Please refer to the Aruba Central release notes for information on availability on the feature. For more information, see the ArubaOS-Switch Management and

Configuration Guide for your switch."

As a warning, when you add any switches (stacked or otherwise) to Aruba Central, prepare to lose your VLAN port configurations.  That's what happened to us when adding single switches, though we haven't added any stacks yet.

 

Also, web management goes away, though you may have already expected that.

---

@nathan.howe wrote:

As a warning, when you add any switches (stacked or otherwise) to Aruba Central, prepare to lose your VLAN port configurations.  That's what happened to us when adding single switches, though we haven't added any stacks yet.

---

Not to speak that ArubaOS-Switch Management and Configuration Guide for WB.16.04 (edition: September 2014) still reports that Aruba Central feature is not supported on (frontplane/backplane) Stacks

 

Documentation probably needs to be properly updated (and keep aligned with) about existing/removed restrictions.

 

Could it be that Aruba Central implementation for (frontplane/backplane) Stacking configurations is still in development (so there are bugs that need to be fixed)?

I went to implement VSF stacking with 2930F switches yesterday and got a message that stacking was not supported in Central still.  I was able to add 2920 stacks to Central but was hoping to clarify if the message I received about stacking not being supported was accurate?  If so is there a timeframe to extend this stacking support to other models besides the 2920?

Are you sure the firmware was current? There were changes to both the firmware and Aruba Central to enable stacking support.

Yes on both WC.16.04.0008 as well as WC.16.04.0009.

AFAIK (see here, last updated October, 12nd 2017, and here, at page 21, this guide is on Revision 01 29 September 2017 so fairly recent) Aruba Central and Switch Stacking is only referenced with regard to Aruba 2920 Switch Series in (backplane) stacking...this since WB.16.04.0008...no references there are about Aruba Central and other Switch series with different stacking approaches (VSF, as example, on Aruba 2930F or on Aruba 5400R zl2).

Release Notes about WC.16.04.0009 doesn't report anything relevant to Aruba Central and supposed new support to non Aruba 2920 Stacking (so for Aruba 2930F, 5400R zl2 or 2930M).

Hope not to be wrong.

Hi parnassus,

 

Your last message got me confused. Do you know if Aruba Central supports 2930F VSF and 3810M stacking for the latest firmwares?

 

1. 2930F: Latest configuration guide says stacks are not supported but latest release notes says nothing related to that.

 

2. 3810M: Impossible to find latest configuration guide. Latest release notes says nothing related to that.

 

Regards,

Julián

Hi guys,

My Aruba SE confirmed me that stack switches 3810M and 2930F are not supported by Aruba Central currently. Maybe they will be in the future with a new firmware release.

Regards,
Julián

Hello everyone, after doing some reaseach, the latest software WC.16.06.0006 for 2930M there is support for backplane stacking in Aruba Central. 

 

A+

Central support for stacking

There is support for 5400R VSF and 2930M backplane stacking for Aruba Central with 16.06 software release.  The release is posted now.

what is the scheduled release date for support of 3810s in a stacked configuration?  

added a 2930F VSF stack to central yesterday.

Used Version 16.8.

 

While Switch was added, I was asked to import the existing config into a template.

Since VSF is not supported in Central WebUI and since CLI Snippets are deprecated, I had to do this anyway.

 

Haven't done much with the switches till now.

Justr wanted to share an update, that this seems to be supported now.

 

Does a VSF require a single device subscription or do we have to assign a subscription per device in the (2930F) stack?

Hi Eric,

 

You need a device subscription for each member in the stack.

 

Regards,

Julián

I am a reseller with several customers who use the 2920 switches with physical stacking. (J9728A) and the lack of stacking support is a deal breaker for Aruba Central.  Is there any timeline on this being supported?

Hi, Kelly.  One of our SEs chased down the product managers with this concern, and he found out that support for physical stacking and Aruba Central was in development and was expected to be in the general availability release by the end of 2017.  We decided we could wait until then.

 

The conversation referenced above happened in late March 2017.  We haven't followed up on it since then, so I couldn't say if the timeline has changed since then.  I'm hoping that if it has, it's been accelerated.  (crosses fingers)