MS225 Stack Replacement

[NWNSM]

I have received switch replacements for the fan issue and need to replace complete stacks.  While I see I can do one at a time, I'd just like to pull the entire stack of 2, 3 or 4 switches at once and replace them all at once.  Can I do that or is it just once at a time? 

[MacuserJim]

You can do them all at once. Do you have a specific concern about doing them all at once?

[NWNSM]

No concern.  I was just checking that I could do them all at once.  

[MacuserJim]

Yeah you can do them all at once. I would suggest configuring them and setting them up on a bench before hand so they can do firmware upgrades and download config settings before hand. That will only mean a little less downtime when you are doing the physical swap.

[NolanHerring]

I also have two switches to RMA for this same thing. However mine are not stacked so I was planning on doing it via the cloning method (never done before).

https://documentation.meraki.com/MS/Other_Topics/MS_Replacement_Process

https://documentation.meraki.com/MS/Other_Topics/Switch_Cloning

[BrechtSchamp]

For stacks there's more info here:

https://documentation.meraki.com/MS/Stacking/Switch_Stacks#Replacing_a_Stack_Member

[Adoos]

No 1 thing I say is allow the device to upgrade its firmware to the network equivalent and let it sit for at least 20 minutes.

[michaelpatton]

Sorry for the thread hijack. Is there anything bad that would happen if I cloned the switches during production time? I have two stacks of three switches each, and if I can save myself some maintenance time by cloning ahead of time, that'd be great. I don't want to clone early and bring down the network during a non-maintenance window, though.

Thanks!

[redsector]

cloning is no problem, the IP-Addresses will not be cloned, so there should be no impact to the network.

[NWNSM]

I completed my replacement process. Very smooth using the clone option for a single switch or clone stack member for a stack. You cannot clone stack members during production because it instantly removes the old switch and adds the replacement to the stack.

However, you can clone an entire stack and power down the stack and power up the new stack in a single process.

I did claim and new switches and power them on for a couple of hours allowing them to update their firmware and to cook a bit before actual installation to make sure they didn't have an immediate defect.

During the physical replacement of the stacks, I would add the static IP information so when they powered up, they were 100% done. The dashboard usually would show an error about the switches not being part of a stack for 5 to 10 minutes after they came online but they worked and that error naturally went away.

All very smooth other than having to physically do it which is a pain to find appropriate downtime for a network of 2500 users.