Manage and monitor switch ports :

Last updated: 2026-03-31

Source: https://support.freshservice.com/support/solutions/articles/50000012076-manage-and-monitor-switch-ports

``` Note: Available only for new signups after the 31 March, 2026 release. If you signed up earlier, refer to the existing ITAM documentation. ```

Switch port management allows you to track physical and logical network interfaces across your infrastructure. By documenting port statuses, VLAN associations, and remote connections, you gain full visibility into your network fabric.

This article provides an overview of managing switch ports. It explains how to use autodiscovery, manual entries, and switch templates to document network connectivity and port properties efficiently.

Prerequisites

You need the following before managing switch ports:

Access to the IT Asset Management module in your Freshservice instance.

Administrator privileges or specific permissions to create and edit switch port records.

View and add switch ports

You can access port information through the global list or from specific device records. To manage ports, follow these steps:

1. Go to IT Asset Management > Inventory > Ports.

2. On the Ports page, perform one of the following:

To add a new port: Click Add new, enter the required details, and complete any optional sections such as Port Aliases, Parts, and so on. Click Save to create the record.

To view or edit an existing port: Click the relevant Port ID. To make changes, click Edit, modify the necessary fields, and click Update.

Notes:

- To learn more about the specific fields on the switch port details page, refer to the Understand switch port properties section later in this article.

- You can also view ports directly by navigating to a device’s details page and going to its Ports section.

Understand switch port properties

The following table describes the properties available for switch ports. You can configure these fields manually or populate them through autodiscovery.


Property/Field	Description
Port	The name of the switch port as identified during autodiscovery or defined by the user.
HW Address	Displays the MAC addresses, connected devices, and their associated VLANs.
Port Type	The classification of the port, such as Physical, Logical, or Split Physical.
Name	The display name of the port, which is either automatically discovered or user-generated.
Description	The description of the port as found during autodiscovery or defined by the user.
Type	Any custom port type. Click Add new Port Type to create a new custom classification.
Speed	The transmission speed associated with the switch port.
Primary Device	The primary device associated with the port.
Primary VLAN	The primary VLAN to which this port belongs.
VLANs	All VLANs associated with this port.
Module	If this port is part of a module in a chassis-based switch, the module association can be made here.
Asset	If the port is part of FEX or a similar asset connected to the switch, that association can be made here. You can either assign it to a module or asset.
Parent Part	The hardware part associated with the switch port.
Secondary Device	The secondary device associated with the switch port.
HWAddress 2nd	The secondary MAC addresses, connected devices, and their associated VLANs.
Up	Indicates the current operational status of the port.
Up admin	Indicates whether the port is administratively enabled.
Count	The numeric count of the port within the device.
Discovered type	A read-only field showing the port type found during autodiscovery. This value can be used to mark ports as uncounted, delete ports, or ignore certain port types in future discoveries.
Tags	A comma-separated list of keywords for filtering and categorization.

Perform bulk operations on switch port records

To modify multiple switch ports records simultaneously, go to the Ports page and select the checkboxes next to the switch ports you want to manage. Use the buttons that appear on the toolbar at the top of the list or click the More options (three vertical dots) icon to access additional options.

The following table describes the actions available for managing switch ports:


Action	Description
Delete	Permanently remove the selected switch ports records
Export selected items	Downloads the selected switch ports data into a CSV file.
Add tags to selected items	Update tags in bulk to improve searchability and reporting.
Remove tags from selected items	Remove tags from the selected switch ports in bulk.
Count selected Switchports	Marks the selected ports to be included in the total port count for the device.
Don't Count selected Switchports	Excludes the selected ports from the total port count for the device.
Associate selected ports to 2nd network device, module or FEX	Links the selected ports to a secondary network device, a specific hardware module, or a Fabric Extender (FEX) asset.
Set Custom Field Value	Assigns a specific value to a custom field for all selected port records.

View a list of active switch ports

To view only the active switch ports, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Ports page and click the Filter icon.

2. Select Yes from the Up filter dropdown menu.

3. Click Apply.

The list updates to show only the ports that are currently operational.

Configure stacked switches

All switches, whether stacked or independent, are represented based on their underlying hardware model. Stacked switches are configured by first defining the hardware model and then creating instances of that model. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Go to IT Asset Management > Inventory > Hardware Models and click Add new.

2. Enter the name for the device in the Name field and select physical subtype from the Physical Subtype dropdown menu

3. Enable the Network Device checkbox and click Save.

Configure FEX modules

Fabric Extender (FEX) modules can be added as assets and then linked to a switch using asset device relations.

To manually add and associate a FEX module:

1. Go to IT Asset Management > Inventory > All Assets and click Add new.

2. Name the asset and set the Type to Fabric Extender.

3. Under the Asset Device Relation section, associate the asset with the parent switch.