Aruba ACSP key terms

Aruba's modern network operating system for CX switches, built on a modular architecture with a native REST API, a time-series database, and the Network Analytics Engine. It supports VSF, VSX, and policy-based automation.

A deployment method in which a factory-default switch boots, gets an IP address from DHCP, contacts a configured server, and downloads its firmware and startup configuration without any manual steps.

A switch interface that carries traffic for exactly one VLAN. Frames entering it are assigned that VLAN untagged, and it normally connects to an end device such as a PC, printer, or access point.

A link that carries several VLANs by inserting a four-byte tag holding a 12-bit VLAN identifier into each frame. It interconnects switches, routers, and virtualized hosts.

The single VLAN on an 802.1Q trunk whose frames are sent untagged. Both ends must agree on it; a mismatch causes VLAN leakage and can merge two broadcast domains.

A Layer 2 feature that listens to IGMP join and leave messages so the switch forwards multicast traffic only to ports with interested receivers instead of flooding it across the whole VLAN.

Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol, IEEE 802.1w. It converges in seconds using edge ports and proposal-agreement handshakes rather than the slow timers of classic STP.

Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol, IEEE 802.1s. It maps groups of VLANs onto independent spanning-tree instances, so one blocked link affects only its instance and traffic can be load-balanced.

A port-security feature that error-disables an edge port when it receives a BPDU. It stops users from attaching a switch that could introduce a loop behind an access port.

A per-port feature that discards superior BPDUs arriving on that port. It keeps the current root bridge in place and stops a downstream switch from taking over the topology.

A feature that sends probe frames on ports where spanning tree is disabled and blocks a port when its own probe returns, catching loops in non-STP topologies.

A per-interface rate limit on broadcast, multicast, or unknown-unicast traffic. Traffic above the threshold is dropped or the port is disabled, shielding the network from broadcast storms.

A Link Aggregation Group bundles several physical links into one logical interface, adding bandwidth and redundancy. Member links must share speed, duplex, and VLAN settings.

The Link Aggregation Control Protocol, IEEE 802.3ad, negotiates a LAG dynamically by exchanging control frames. It confirms both ends agree on membership and detects misconfigured or failed links.

Multi-Chassis LAG lets a server or downstream switch run a single LAG across two independent switches, providing active-active forwarding and device-level redundancy without a spanning-tree block.

A Switch Virtual Interface is a logical Layer 3 interface bound to a VLAN. It provides the default gateway for hosts in that VLAN and enables inter-VLAN routing on the switch.

A logical grouping of OSPF routers and interfaces. Routers inside one area share a link-state database; area 0 is the backbone and every other area must attach to it.

The relationship two OSPF routers form after matching Hello parameters such as area, timers, MTU, and authentication. Full adjacency on a broadcast segment requires a DR and BDR election.

An OSPF setting that advertises the interface's network into the routing domain without sending Hellos on it. It is used on user-facing VLANs that should never form adjacencies.

Importing routes from another source, such as static, connected, or a different routing protocol, into OSPF. Metrics and route types must be set so paths are preferred correctly.

Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol. Several routers share a virtual IP and MAC address; the master forwards traffic while backups monitor it and take over if it fails.

Aruba's Virtual Switching Framework stacks up to ten switches into one logical device with a single management IP and shared control plane. One member is conductor; the rest are standby or line-card members.

Virtual Switching Extension links two independent ArubaOS-CX switches through an ISL and a keepalive path, synchronizing state so they behave as one logical pair while both forward traffic.

In VSX, the interswitch link carries synchronized configuration and data traffic between peers, while the separate keepalive path over a management or routed link detects peer failure.

A failure state where a redundant pair loses the link between peers yet both keep forwarding, producing duplicate addressing or dual-active gateways. Keepalive and VSX active-gateway guard against it.

A VSX capability in which both peers hold the same virtual MAC and IP on each SVI, so hosts use a single gateway address and traffic is forwarded locally by whichever peer receives it.

An Access Control List is an ordered set of permit and deny rules matched against packet fields such as source, destination, protocol, and port. It is applied to an interface or VLAN.

A feature that limits which source MAC addresses may send on an interface, either by learning a fixed count or by requiring a configured list. Violations drop traffic or disable the port.

An IEEE port-based authentication standard. A supplicant authenticates through the switch, acting as authenticator, to a RADIUS server before the port is authorized to pass user traffic.

A AAA protocol used to authenticate, authorize, and account for network users. The switch acts as a client, forwarding credentials to the server and enforcing the attributes returned.

A Layer 2 security feature that marks ports trusted or untrusted and allows DHCP server replies only from trusted ports, blocking rogue servers and building a binding table.

Aruba's on-premises network management application. It discovers and validates device configurations, pushes multi-device changes through a plan-and-validate workflow, and audits compliance.

The Network Analytics Engine runs Python scripts on the switch that watch time-series data and raise alerts or trigger actions when conditions such as a flapping port or high CPU occur.

A programmable HTTPS interface on ArubaOS-CX that exposes configuration, operational state, and telemetry through JSON requests. It underpins automation tooling and custom scripting.

A saved snapshot of the running configuration on ArubaOS-CX. Administrators can roll back to a checkpoint after a failed change without rebooting or rebuilding the device.

A diagnostic feature that copies traffic from one or more source ports or VLANs to a destination port where a protocol analyzer is attached for capture and analysis.

A switch function that measures the length and pair status of copper cabling to locate breaks, shorts, or poor terminations. Results are read with a per-port test command.

A troubleshooting command that collects a bundle of diagnostic output, including logs, configuration, interface states, and counters, for analysis by an administrator or support engineer.