Lenovo ThinkSystem NE1032 shows third-party SFP+ as Unapproved and holds the ports down
We run a pair of ThinkSystem NE1032 RackSwitch units as top of rack in a small colo cage. The Lenovo-branded optics we inherited only cover half the ports, so the rest got filled with generic SFP+ modules and a couple of short DACs out of the same batch we already use on other vendors' switches without trouble.
Kit:
- Lenovo ThinkSystem NE1032 RackSwitch, stock configuration apart from VLANs
- generic uncoded 10G SFP+ modules
- two short passive DACs on the inter-switch link
- Lenovo-coded SFP+ in the neighbouring ports, working fine
Port information for every non-Lenovo module reads the same way:
port 17 transceiver present approval: Unapproved
port 17 link: downThe coded modules in the ports next to them are up at 10G, so cabling and the far end are not the problem.
Tried so far:
- reseated the modules and swapped them between ports, the Unapproved rating follows the module
- moved the same generic modules into another vendor's switch, where they link at 10G immediately
- went through the port and interface configuration line by line, nothing differs from the working ports
Is there a supported way to make the switch accept modules it does not recognise, or is buying coded optics the only route?
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Comments 3
That rating is not a verdict on the optic. The firmware reads the vendor-specific area of the module EEPROM, roughly bytes 96-128, and anything that does not match its own list gets stamped Unapproved, after which the port is not allowed to come up. Nothing you change on the port config will move it.
On the NE1032 there is a documented override and it is a plain global command:
Save it and restart the switch. After the reload the modules are driven off their MSA fields instead of the vendor check, and generic SFP+ come up like anything else.
Two caveats. The command is platform-specific - the same wording is not guaranteed on other Lenovo switches, so do not push it out as a template across the whole estate. And support will happily point at the third-party optics if you open a case on a port that has this enabled, so keep a few coded modules on the shelf for a swap test. If you would rather not carry the override in the config at all, the alternatives are genuine Lenovo optics or third-party modules ordered already coded for Lenovo.
Same story rigth across that switch line, not only the NE1032. I have seen an Intel-coded SFP refused in a RackSwitch G8124-E, and a Cisco-Finisar SFP-10G-LR-S in a G8272 sitting there as Disabled with an Unapproved rating and the link down. The firmware rates eevry module against its vendor list first and asks questions later.
Worth knowing before you go hunting for the same command on the older boxes: on the ENOS-based RackSwitch models the override lives in the boot loader as an sfp Override setting rather than as a config command, so what works on CNOS simply is not there. I have not had a G8124-E in my hands recently enough to walk you through that menu, so verify it on your own unit before you plan an outage window around it.
Ran it in the maintenance window. configure terminal, system unsupported-transceiver, exit, copy running-config startup-config, then a reload - after the switch came back, all the generic modules show up normally and both DAC links are at 10G. The port information no longer carries the Unapproved rating on them.
For anyone finding this later: the reload was needed, the ports did not change state while the switch stayed up. And we did put two coded modules in the spares drawer as suggested, so we can prove a port is healthy before calling anyone.