Third-party Switch Requirements and Settings for Running AVPro MXNET AVOIP System

Third-party network switches must support the following features and functionalities and enable or disable some settings in order to support the AVPro MXNET AV-over-IP system:

1.       IGMP Version 2 for snooping, queries, Immediate-Leave, and unknown multicast data dropping.

2.       MTU Size to support Ethernet jumbo frames.

3.       PoE Budget to power the MXNet endpoint devices.

4.       Disable EEE functionality for system optimization.

 

1.      IGMP Settings

1.1.   IGMP Version 2

The AVPro MXNET AV-over-IP Ecosystem is based on IGMP Version 2. Please verify that your third-party network switch is currently running on, or capable of, IGMPv2.

1.2.   IGMPv2 Snooping

IGMP snooping is a method that network switches use to identify multicast groups, which are groups of decoders that all receive the same network traffic, such as video, audio, and control streams. IGMP snooping enables switches to forward IP packets to the correct devices (decoders) in their network.

For example, the Cisco CLI command to enable IGMP Snooping is Device(config)# ip igmp snooping vlan vlan-id

1.3.   IGMPv2 Querier

The IGMP querier is responsible for sending out IGMP group membership queries on a timed interval, retrieving IGMP membership reports from active members, and allowing updates of the IGMP group membership tables.

For example, the Cisco CLI command to enable IGMP Querier is Device(config)# ip igmp snooping querier

1.4.   IGMPv2 Immediate Leave

When Immediate-Leave is enabled, the device immediately removes a port when it detects the IGMPv2 Leave message on that port. This feature should be enabled on every port and is only supported on IGMPv2 hosts.

For example, the Cisco CLI command to enable IGMP Immediate-Leave is Device(config)# ip igmp snooping vlan vlan-id immediate-leave

1.5.   Unknown Multicast Dropping (or Unregistered Multicast Flooding)

Unknown multicast data refers to multicast data for which no forwarding entries exist in the IGMP snooping forwarding table. This feature enables the device to forward unknown multicast data only to the router port. If the device does not have a router port, unknown multicast data will then be dropped.

If you do not enable this feature, the unknown multicast data will flood the VLAN to which the data belongs.

1.6.   Examples of IGMP Settings on the Cisco Catalyst Switches

Switch> enable

Switch# configure terminal

Switch (config)# vlan 1

Switch (config-vlan) # name default vlan

Switch (config-vlan) # ip address 192.168.1.1 255.255.255.0

Switch (config-vlan) # end

Switch (config)# ip igmp snooping

Switch (config)# ip igmp snooping querier 192.168.1.1

Switch (config)# ip igmp snooping querier version 2

Switch (config)# ip igmp snooping vlan 1 immediate-leave

Switch (config-vlan) # exit

Switch#  copy running-config startup-config

2.      MTU Settings

The MTU size needs to be changed to over 9000 bytes to support Ethernet jumbo frames on the AVPro MXNET AV-over-IP system.

The MTU is the maximum payload length for a particular transmission media. For example, the MTU for Ethernet is typically 1500 bytes. 

A jumbo frame is an Ethernet frame with a payload greater than the standard MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) of 1500 bytes. Jumbo frames are used on local area networks that support at least 1Gbps and can be as large as 9000 bytes, or even bigger. Since jumbo frames are not defined in the IEEE 802.3 specifications for Ethernet, vendor support for jumbo frames and their MTU's may vary.

Jumbo frames provide a number of benefits over the traditional IEEE 802.3 Ethernet MTU's, including:

·         The amount of frames sent across the network is reduced.

·         The number of Ethernet headers are reduced as a result of fewer frames.

·         The reduction in frames results in fewer required headers.

·         CPU cycles are reduced at the sender and receiver side due to fewer headers needing to be built and read.

·         Network bandwidth is reduced due to the reduction in headers.

For example, the Cisco CLI command to change MTU size to 9000 is Device(config)# system mtu jumbo 9000

 

3.      PoE Budget

PoE switches will power the MXNET endpoint devices (encoders and decoders), as each MXNET endpoint device consumes 6 to 9 Watts of power. Be sure that you correctly identify the PoE budget of your third-party network switch before purchasing. For example, a 24-port switch with a PoE budget of 370 Watts can supply up to 15.4 Watts of power per port on all 24 ports, meaning you can connect 24 MXNET endpoint devices on the 24-port switch. Likewise, a 48-port switch with a PoE budget of 740 Watts can power up to 48 MXNET endpoint devices.

4.      Disable EEE

EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) is an IEEE 802.3az standard that is designed to reduce power consumption in Ethernet networks during idle periods.

If the third-party network switch supports EEE, be sure to disable the EEE function as it may cause issues with system optimization in some cases.

For example, the Cisco CLI command to disable EEE is Switch(config-if)#no power efficient-ethernet auto