# Cisco Switch Virtualization **URL:** https://forum.networklessons.com/t/cisco-switch-virtualization/1164 **Category:** Lessons Discussion **Created:** [December 27, 2016, 5:46pm UTC](https://forum.networklessons.com/t/cisco-switch-virtualization/1164 "2016-12-27T17:46:13Z") **Posts on this page:** 1 **Showing post:** 20
### Author: ![lagapidis](https://cdn-forum.networklessons.com/user_avatar/forum.networklessons.com/lagapidis/32/4949_2.png) [@lagapidis](https://forum.networklessons.com/u/lagapidis) #### Post date: [September 11, 2024, 5:04am UTC](https://forum.networklessons.com/t/cisco-switch-virtualization/1164/20 "2024-09-11T05:04:33Z")
Hello Tom You have described a fundamental difference between how the the VSS, stackwise, and vPC solutions operate. Just one clarification. When you say “control panel” I assume you mean control plane, correct? Indeed, VSS and stackwise are designed to merge multiple physical switches into one logical unit, but they operate **with a single control plane**. This means there is only one physical switch that is actively using its control plane, managing the entire stack or VSS system. This provides equipment-level redundancy. If the control plane fails, the whole stack or VSS system is affected. However, this does not mean that the whole logical switch has failed. The other switch or switches will take over control plane operations almost immediately, with little to no downtime. vPC can also make multiple switches appear as a single logical unit, but with a crucial difference: each switch retains its own control plane. This independent control plane setup provides system-level redundancy because they both operate at the same time. This adds an additional aspect of redundancy. vPC is only available on Cisco Nexus switches, which are designed for data centers and other high-availability applications. This is why vPC offers a higher level of redundancy compared to VSS or Stackwise. For more information about MLAG and terminology, take a look at this post as well: > [@Chassis Aggregation](https://forum.networklessons.com/t/chassis-aggregation/1590/6): > > Hello Tom There are various terms used to refer to similar technologies from different vendors. Chassis Aggregation is a term used by Cisco to refer to the architecture of using two chassis switches to act as a single aggregated switch. The actual technology that is used to achieve this architecture is [Virtual Switching System or VSS](https://networklessons.com/cisco/ccie-routing-switching-written/cisco-6500-vss-configuration-example). Chassis Aggregation architecture can only be achieved between chassis-type switches. There are other aggregation technologies for both chassis and non-chassis… I hope this has been helpful! Laz --- _[View the full topic](https://forum.networklessons.com/t/cisco-switch-virtualization/1164)._