Cisco Packet Tracer Lab Guide for EtherChannel

EtherChannel is a technology used to combine multiple physical Ethernet links into a single logical link to increase bandwidth and provide redundancy. It’s commonly used in switches to prevent link failures from disrupting network traffic and to provide load balancing.

This lab guide will help us set up and configure EtherChannel using Cisco Packet Tracer for CCNA 200–301 preparation.

Lab Objectives

1. Configure EtherChannel between two switches (using LACP and PAgP).
2. Verify EtherChannel status.
3. Understand and configure different EtherChannel modes.
4. Troubleshoot EtherChannel misconfigurations.

Lab Setup

We will use two switches (Switch1 and Switch2) connected by multiple Ethernet links to create an EtherChannel between them.

Photo by Brian Botos on Unsplash

Network Topology

— Devices: 2 Switches (Cisco 2960 or 3560)

Connections:

— Two GigabitEthernet ports on each switch (Switch1: G0/1, G0/2; Switch2: G0/1, G0/2)

You should have the following ports connected:

— Switch1: G0/1 and G0/2