How to configure MC-LAG settings on QNAP switches for high availability?

如何在 QNAP 交換機上配置 MC-LAG 設定以用於高可用性？

Applicable Products

Hardware

• QSW-M7308R-4X
• QSW-M3224-24T

Software

• QSS Pro 4.1 and later

Details

Multichassis link aggregation (MC-LAG) allows two switches to operate as a single logical switch. It uses a peer link between the switches to coordinate traffic and link aggregation groups (LAGs) to combine multiple physical ports for redundancy and load sharing.

For NAS devices, MC-LAG enables connections to either switch while maintaining a single aggregated link. This provides redundancy (connections remain active if one switch fails), higher bandwidth (multiple NAS ports aggregated across switches), and load balancing across all member ports, ensuring resilient, high-performance storage access.

Procedure

Connection Guide

1. Enable port trunking on the QNAP NAS.
   For details, see "Configuring port trunking settings" in the QTS User Guide or QuTS hero User Guide.
2. Connect each NAS network port to switch ports that are members of the same LAG ID on both switches.
   If the NAS trunk group is assigned to LAG 1, NAS port 1 can connect to a LAG 1 member port on switch A, and NAS port 2 can connect to a LAG 1 member port on switch B.
   Note

   The NAS ports in the trunk can either connect to the same switch or be split across the two MC-LAG peer switches. In both cases, the ports must belong to the same LAG ID
3. Verify the connection.
   • On the NAS, confirm that the port trunking group shows all member ports as active.
   • On the switches, check that the assigned LAG connection is active and monitoring traffic.

Example Topology

Two switches are configured in an MC-LAG cluster, allowing them to operate as a single logical switch. The switches coordinate traffic over a peer link and use link aggregation groups (LAGs) to combine multiple physical ports for redundancy and load sharing.

Multiple NAS devices can connect to the cluster using link aggregation. Each NAS can distribute its network ports across both switches. For example, one NAS port can connect to switch A and another port can connect to switch B, while still maintaining a single aggregated connection.

Each NAS is connected to two switches (QSW-M3224-A and QSW-M3224-B) using port trunking. The connections are grouped via dynamic link aggregation (LAG) as follows:

• NAS-1 -> LAG1: Ports 1 and 2 on both switches
• NAS-2 -> LAG2: Ports 5 and 6 on both switches
• NAS-3 -> LAG3: Ports 7 and 8 on both switches

From the network perspective, the MC-LAG cluster ensures that if one switch or a single port fails, the NAS continues to communicate through the remaining switch, providing uninterrupted access to storage. Traffic is automatically load balanced across all LAG member ports, maximizing throughput and avoiding bottlenecks.

For NAS users, this configuration simplifies network management, improves performance, and provides resilient, high-availability storage access without requiring complex failover setup.

Further Reading

• How to set port trunking on your QNAP NAS to increase the bandwidth via 802.3ad protocol?
• How to set port trunking with managed switch devices?
• QTS 5.2.x User Guide
• QuTS hero 5.2.x User Guide
• QSS and QSS Pro 4.1 User Guide
• QSS and QSS Pro 4.2 User Guide

適用產品

硬體

• QSW-M7308R-4X
• QSW-M3224-24T

軟體

• QSS Pro 4.1 及更新版本

詳細資訊

多機箱鏈路聚合 (MC-LAG) 允許兩個交換機作為單一邏輯交換機運作。它使用交換機之間的對等鏈路來協調流量，並使用鏈路聚合群組 (LAG) 來結合多個實體埠以提供備援和負載共享。

對於 NAS 設備，MC-LAG 允許連接到任一交換機，同時維持單一聚合鏈路。這提供了備援（如果一個交換機故障，連接仍然保持活躍）、更高的頻寬（多個 NAS 埠跨交換機聚合），以及負載平衡在所有成員埠之間，確保高效能的儲存空間存取。

程式

連線指南

1. 在 QNAP NAS 上啟用 Port Trunking。
   如需詳細資訊，請參見「配置 Port Trunking 設定」於QTS 使用者指南或QuTS hero 使用者指南。
2. 將每個 NAS 網路埠連接到兩個交換機上屬於相同 LAG ID 的交換機埠。
   如果 NAS 中繼組分配給 LAG 1，則 NAS 埠 1 可以連接到交換機 A 上的 LAG 1 成員埠，而 NAS 埠 2 可以連接到交換機 B 上的 LAG 1 成員埠。
   注意

   中繼中的 NAS 埠可以連接到同一交換機或分佈在兩個 MC-LAG 對等交換機上。在這兩種情況下，埠必須屬於相同的 LAG ID
3. 驗證連線。
   • 在 NAS 上，確認 Port Trunking 組顯示所有成員埠為啟用狀態。
   • 在交換機上，檢查分配的 LAG 連線是否啟用並監控流量。

範例拓撲

兩個交換器配置在 MC-LAG 叢集中，使它們能夠作為單一邏輯交換器運作。這些交換器透過對等連結協調流量，並使用連結聚合群組 (LAG) 結合多個實體埠以提供備援和負載共享。

多台 NAS 設備可以使用連結聚合連接到叢集。每台 NAS 可以將其網路埠分配到兩個交換器上。例如，一個 NAS 埠可以連接到交換器 A，另一個埠可以連接到交換器 B，同時仍維持單一聚合連接。