Ghostcast Issue

your probably not allowing multicast traffic across your router.  the easiest way to test is to host a file using the server normally, boot up a client and instead of letting it auto discover the server manually type the IP address in.  if it works your not passing multicast traffic, if it doesnt you have another problem

No, thats not the issue, the ghostcast server see the clients and the clients see the session, but the process either never starts or it times out quickly. Not to mention, we are not doing any multicast routing as this is all on the same VLAN.

But here are the strang things i've noticed:

Session starts, but then times out. From reading, this is a querier issue. But, the querier is enabled and I see it going out every min or so via a packet sniff.

This is also shown if while the session is running (just for the min or so that it does), I can see the IGMP group on the switch but nothing is keeping the "Expires" timer renewd (aka the querier)

When I do an IGMP packet capture, I see that the ghost clients themselves are sending out a IGMPv3 membership request going out, why is this? Shouldn't it be IGMPv2?

Just to try to help, here is the IGMP settings on the VLAN interface:

  Internet address is X.X.X.1/24
  IGMP is enabled on interface
  Current IGMP host version is 2
  Current IGMP router version is 2
  IGMP query interval is 60 seconds
  IGMP querier timeout is 120 seconds
  IGMP max query response time is 10 seconds
  Last member query count is 2
  Last member query response interval is 1000 ms
  Inbound IGMP access group is not set
  IGMP activity: 9 joins, 6 leaves
  Multicast routing is enabled on interface
  Multicast TTL threshold is 0
  Multicast designated router (DR) is X.X.X.1 (this system)
  IGMP querying router is X.X.X.1 (this system)
  Multicast groups joined by this system (number of users):
      224.0.1.40(1)
  IGMP snooping is globally enabled
  IGMP snooping is enabled on this interface
  IGMP snooping fast-leave (for v2) is disabled and querier is disabled
  IGMP snooping explicit-tracking is enabled
  IGMP snooping last member query response interval is 1000 ms
  IGMP snooping report-suppression is enabled

Thanks for your help!

service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ghost.nsf/ppfdocs/2002101612025325

that link has detailed information on how ghost operates on a network.  under the IGMP section there is also a link to instructions from cisco.  hopefully something there helps you.

We are running a 6500 here where i work, though i am a server tech and not a network admin.  even when we first installed out 6500 we didnt have a problem like yours, we had to disable spanning tree for booting certain NIC's using DOS and configure it for multicast forwarding over the VLAN's so the clients could autodetect the server.  another problem we had was with mcafee antivirus blocking ghost traffic on whatever we were using as a ghostcast "server", it would kill multicast traffic and the clients couldnt connect unless i inputted the server IP manually.

Thanks for the response, and I've looked over that document many many times the past few days and still nothing. Ghosting was working just fine on our downstream switches and none of thoes have changed with the 6500 install.

Still nothing.

Now, here is something else that is strange. Sometimes, I can start a session and it goes until the IGMP group times out, but other (most) times, the session never starts at all and the IGMP group does not get created on the switch.

Any Clues!?!?

Thanks Again!

I am not having practical experience on the 6500 but you may want to give a try by enabling PIM configuration (config > ip PIM autorp - in 3550) which requires for multicasting to work.
Either sparse or sparse-dense mode on each Vlan interface, you need to find out the standard configuration for 6500.

I've tried enabling ip pim sparse-dense-mode but still have multicast routing disabled as we are only ghosting on one VLAN. Once i do that, I then see the interface sending out the IGMP queries but it still doesn't work for us.

When I setup a a ghostcast session on the server and begin accepting clients, i see the IGMP group being created on the switch with a group IP of 224.77.0.0 (default). While running wireshark on the VLAN, I have the clients try to connect. I see them (the clients) send an IGMP join request for 224.77.1.0 (different than the ghostcast group), then leave 227.77.1.0, then try to join group 224.77.x.x (random IPs on the 224.77 subnet).
Once that happens for the clients, the ghostcast server sends a IGMP leave for the 224.77.0.0 goup, but never joins the new random group. Once the ghostcast server leaves the 224.77.0.0 group, it dies on the switch as its the last client, but i never see the 224.77.x.x IGMP group created on the switch.

Again, the is all on the same VLAN so no multicast routing is needed.

Since I'm not routing any multicast traffic, i shouldn't need to enable any pim correct? I should be able to just enable a querier on the VLAN and that should manage all of the IGMP groups, correct? But, when i do that, i see the queries going out from the interface but if i do a "show ip igmp interface vlan xx", it shows that IGMP is disabled.

Very puzzled....