Should i configure the uplink port of a meraki switch as a trunk or access?

[Ditter]

Hi to all,

my meraki switch is connected to another upstream switch before connecting to the cloud via our border router.

So my question is how to configure the uplink port of the upstream switch where meraki 9300 is connected?

Currently, the uplink switch port is configured as trunk port and although i connect a dhcp client  machine to the meraki switch  the client machine  does not get IP address from our DHCPd server (linux).

Off-course, the port on the meraki 9300 where the dhcp client machine is connected , is configured as access and is in the apropriate vlan.

However , it does not receive any ip address from our dhcp server.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Ditter.

[ww]

How it the trunk configured on the 9300 port and on the upstream switch port?

Where is the dhcp server connected and on which vlan

Where is the client connected and on which vlan

[GreenMan]

I'm not 100% on your topology, from your description, but I would definitely encourage matching up the config of any switch-to-switch link at both ends:   either both trunk (if you want to carry multiple VLANs) or both access, with a common native VLAN, if you're only ever going to use a single VLAN at the edge switch.

I'd personally always go for trunk and probably go for native VLAN 1, as a vanilla setting

[Ditter]

Hi thanks for your reply.

The problem is that when the meraki 9300 is configured as trunk with the other switch i mentioned i lose connectivity to the cloud.

What i mean is the following:

Meraki switch <---> Third party switch <---> Backbone Switch <---> Internet Router

When the meraki port is configured as access port in a client vlan , it can get to the DHCP server and get a public IP address and get to the internet and register to meraki cloud.

But when the meraki switch in configured as trunk it loses connectivity , so i suppose that i have to program the Meraki switch to be able to get a public (or private if NATed) in order to get to the cloud.

That last config i am missing.

Thanks,

Ditter

[GIdenJoe]

If your server is a VM that is also running on an ESX host and you are tagging the VLAN on the VMNIC you will also need to have a trunk from the switch towards the server.

Usually your links between switches are trunks.  The only situation where you use access ports is where you have a dumb switch behind the switch or are only using a single VLAN even for the switch mgmt behind it... not likely.

Also make sure if your switches are running DHCP snooping, the DHCP server MAC address is allowed.

If you believe your switches are configured correctly you should definitely run a packet capture first on the client port and secondly on the server port with a filter (port 67 or port 68) so you can verify your client is sending the discovers and the server is sending offers.