Brocade ICX Series (cheap & powerful 10gbE/40gbE switching)

[nieros]

Hello!

I recently acquired one of these neat little 6450 12 port boxes - and followed @fohdeesha 's awesome guide. The only thing that's tweaking me out a bit is the licensing:

ICX6450-C12PD-Router#show license
Index    Lic Mode        Lic Name               Lid/Serial No  Lic Type    Status     Lic Period    Lic Capacity    
Stack unit 1:
1        Node Lock       ICX6450-PREM-LIC-SW    H4CKTH3PLN8    Normal      Active     Unlimited         1
2        Node Lock       ICX6450-10G-LIC-POD    H4CKTH3PLN8    Normal      Invalid    Unlimited         2

The premium license sticks just fine, but the 10gig doesn't. I redid things from scratch a couple of times, thinking maybe I'd missed something in the process, (and maybe I still am?) I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

 

[Scarlet]

The ICX6450-C12PD is 1G only, with SFP slots instead of SFP+ on the larger ones (24 + 4 SFP+ / 48 + 4 SFP+). For reference, check the datasheet linked in Post #1 of this thread.

That's probably why the 10G license is invalid, it does not need it having not 10G ports.

 

[nieros]

The ICX6450-C12PD is 1G only, with SFP slots instead of SFP+ on the larger ones (24 + 4 SFP+ / 48 + 4 SFP+). For reference, check the datasheet linked in Post #1 of this thread.

That's probably why the 10G license is invalid, it does not need it having not 10G ports.

Well that's where I went wrong. Step 1 *reading the documentation*. For some reason I thought the SFP ports were 10gig. Oh well. Thanks for setting me straight!

 

[63z5mgng]

I just got ICX 7250. Following fohdeesha's guide works perfectly except the SPR08090mc.bin from download page can NOT be flashed to primary. Downloaded 8080f and works fine. In case anyone having the same issue.

Instead doing:

#IP of your TFTP server:
setenv serverip 192.168.1.8
setenv image_name ICX7xxx/SPR08090mc.bin
setenv uboot ICX7xxx/spz10118.bin

I did

#IP of your TFTP server:
setenv serverip 192.168.1.8
setenv image_name ICX7xxx/SPR08080f.bin
setenv uboot ICX7xxx/spz10114.bin

 

[fohdeesha]

I just got ICX 7250. Following fohdeesha's guide works perfectly except the SPR08090mc.bin from download page can NOT be flashed to primary. Downloaded 8080f and works fine. In case anyone having the same issue.

Instead doing:

#IP of your TFTP server:
setenv serverip 192.168.1.8
setenv image_name ICX7xxx/SPR08090mc.bin
setenv uboot ICX7xxx/spz10118.bin

I did

#IP of your TFTP server:
setenv serverip 192.168.1.8
setenv image_name ICX7xxx/SPR08080f.bin
setenv uboot ICX7xxx/spz10114.bin

did you first flash the newer bootloader, then reset, *then* flash 8090mc? It will work fine if you do so (as the guide says)

 

[63z5mgng]

Thanks foheesha as always.

I did followed your guide step by step. I did Page Brocade Overview ---> Brocade Setup --> ICX7250 / ICX7450. And the first step on the page is the command I put in my post. I am not sure about "flash newer bootloader". But I just double checked there is no other step before. But if I am not using 8090 instead 8080 it works and I could boot into primary after then flash the latest 8095.

Preparation
If you haven't already, visit the Brocade Overview page to download the latest guide package and get it ready to be served via TFTP - this unified package includes all the latest firmware, licenses, and documentation.

Connect to the serial/console port using a program like Putty (9600 8N1), then connect the management ethernet port to your network (do NOT use any of the regular switch ports yet). The management port is the one above the full size USB port.

Power on the switch while watching your serial terminal - start smashing the b key until you're dropped into the bootloader prompt, which looks like ICX7xxx-Boot> . If you missed the prompt and it boots the OS instead, pull power and try again.

Now at the boot prompt, give the bootloader a temporary IP on your network, as well as supply the IP of your TFTP server where it can find your files. Replace the example IPs with your own. This IP is only going to be used temporarily by the bootloader. We'll also tell it the filename & path of the firmware images:

#Temp IP address of the switch: setenv ipaddr 192.168.1.50 setenv netmask 255.255.255.0 #IP of your TFTP server: setenv serverip 192.168.1.8 setenv image_name ICX7xxx/SPR08090mc.bin setenv uboot ICX7xxx/spz10118.bin

 

[fohdeesha]

Thanks foheesha as always.

I did followed your guide step by step. I did Page Brocade Overview ---> Brocade Setup --> ICX7250 / ICX7450. And the first step on the page is the command I put in my post. I am not sure about "flash newer bootloader". But I just double checked there is no other step before. But if I am not using 8090 instead 8080 it works and I could boot into primary after then flash the latest 8095.

Those are just the setenv commands that saves the name of the images, so the bootloader knows what image names to use later when you run the actual update commands. They don't do anything themselves. After that, there's the update_uboot command, then a reset command so the new bootloader takes effect: (excuse the mobile screenshot)

 

[63z5mgng]

Yes, I did all those steps as well. But it failed when I used 8090. So instead doing 8090 ---> 8095, I did 8080 --> 8095. I follow the guide by using 8090 2 times all failed. So I decided to try 8080.

 

[fohdeesha]

How did it fail? what was the error message, did it spew one right after you ran "update_primary"?

 

[AllenB]

I also just got an ICX7250-48p and ran into a little glitch after following the upgrade instructions. Mine failed to boot the SPR08090mc.bin primary image and instead failed back to the secondary with 08030.

Turns out this was because the second reset reverted back to the original uboot image. It seems there are two uboot partitions as well. I was updating the second one. The first "reset" brought it up as expected, but the second reset (after the update_primary) was reverting back to the other uboot image.

Cure for this, found in the "Ruckus FastIron 08.0.80 Software Upgrade Guide" page 29, is to repeat the "update_uboot" command after the first reset or powercycle. Sure enough, that one will report "Loading image to Uboot Partition 1".

After that I was able to proceed into the 08090mc image, log in with default credentials, observe the PoE firmware update, and so forth.

@fohdeesha, this is probably worth a quick tweak to the setup process. And of course, thanks a million for putting together so much great info!

Allen

 

[63z5mgng]

How did it fail? what was the error message, did it spew one right after you ran "update_primary"?

If I recall correctly that was after "update_primary".

 

[63z5mgng]

I also just got an ICX7250-48p and ran into a little glitch after following the upgrade instructions. Mine failed to boot the SPR08090mc.bin primary image and instead failed back to the secondary with 08030.

Turns out this was because the second reset reverted back to the original uboot image. It seems there are two uboot partitions as well. I was updating the second one. The first "reset" brought it up as expected, but the second reset (after the update_primary) was reverting back to the other uboot image.

Cure for this, found in the "Ruckus FastIron 08.0.80 Software Upgrade Guide" page 29, is to repeat the "update_uboot" command after the first reset or powercycle. Sure enough, that one will report "Loading image to Uboot Partition 1".


Allen

I didn't check that. Great catch.

 

[tinfoil3d]

Tried to stack up two 7150 with 15+m rj45 and fs and mt SFP+ modules, didn't want to come up at all. When I was planning this house I didn't know what SFP is yet. Seems like I'll have to get creative and pull fiber either through very narrow pipe used for air ventilation or just upstairs directly.

 

[Phlesh]

I just picked up a 6610-48P after thorough research and a huge help from multiple folks in this community. Really appreciate this information and the detailed guides!

I followed @fohdeesha instructions all the way up to the point where I've disconnected the management network and plugged in one of the front network ports. What's weird is that, so far, I can't get the switch to connect to my network in any way.

What's the best guide for doing diagnostic network commands on the switch itself to try to figure out the issue? I found that I can do "show ip address" to see that the static IP is set correctly, but that's about as far as I've gotten.

 

[LodeRunner]

Output of "sh int br" and "sh run" would help. You can post them here in code tags wrapped in spoiler tags to make them collapse.
Off hand, subnet mismatch, VLAN tag vs untag issue (or port not part of the VLAN that has the VE with assigned IP), no default route, or a port in ERR-DISABLE state come to mind.

 

[S!rius]

Hello together

I've been trying to access my 7250 via console for 2 days now and I'm getting desperate. I have a Cisco DB9 cable which I have converted according to the following instructions.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Brocade/comments/b71xtq
Unfortunately the putty session does not respond. After that I found this article and tried it too, without success.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Brocade/comments/k25l5u
I also searched the internet for the original Brocade cable, but it is not available anywhere.

Should I assume that the 7250 mini-usb port is broken?

What else can I try?

 

[juju]

I am trying to setup my 7250 with pfsense as bgp router for kubernetes. Can't get bgp to work on pfsense. Connected to the pfsense via a layer 3 transit. Anyone has any pointers on how to set this up? Is this a route distribution issue? Do I need to do anything on the 7250 to allow bgp traffic?

 

[AllenB]

Hello together

I've been trying to access my 7250 via console for 2 days now and I'm getting desperate. I have a Cisco DB9 cable which I have converted according to the following instructions.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Brocade/comments/b71xtq
Unfortunately the putty session does not respond. After that I found this article and tried it too, without success.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Brocade/comments/k25l5u
I also searched the internet for the original Brocade cable, but it is not available anywhere.

Should I assume that the 7250 mini-usb port is broken?

What else can I try?

View attachment 20548

Hi S!rius,

I had to make the same sort of cable for mine, and can perhaps shed some light. First off, unless your Cisco cable uses different colors than mine, those are not the right pins. Here's the mapping I've used (successfully):

Green (Cisco) -> White (USB)
Yellow (Cisco) -> Blue (USB) (orange on the Cisco end should also work; both are grounds)
Red (Cisco) -> Green (USB)

Edit: My USB wire colors were different than what I found online and may be different than yours, so you might want to ignore this part of mine.

The important thing is that on the Cisco side, the middle two wires (pins 4 & 5) are ground. Then to each side of those (pins 3 and 6) are transmit and receive. Not sure offhand which is which, but on my cable they are green and red.

You can test your Putty setup by temporarily connecting pins 3 and 6 of the Cisco cable (ignoring the USB side). With that in place, anything you type in Putty should come right back and display on the screen.

If that doesn't work, you've got a problem on the Putty/serial port/Cisco cable side. If it does work, it's probably just a matter of getting the correct wires connected to the USB cable.

Hope that helps a bit.

Cheers,
Allen

 

[tinfoil3d]

Might be a stupid question. How do you reset PoE without scripting all the ssh login, config terminal, interface e .... and inline power, no inline power in expect script?

 

[klui]

What's your expectation of how it should work?