is up, line protocol is down - but nothing is plugged in

I've got a 2801 sitting here.

When I 'sh int', both FastEth interfaces show "interface is up, line protocol is down".

The thing is, nothing is plugged into either one... Shouldn't they both be down/down due to physical issue?

Thanks.

Find more posts tagged with

SAVE $250 on Your CISCO Boot Camp — Use Code "EXAM26"

Exclusively for TechExams members for Infosec Boot Camps starting before April 30, 2026

View CISCO Boot Camps

Comments

Netwurk

Yes, it should show as down, down

Post your show run interface fa x/x output if you can

joshgibson82

mzinz wrote:

I've got a 2801 sitting here.

When I 'sh int', both FastEth interfaces show "interface is up, line protocol is down".

The thing is, nothing is plugged into either one... Shouldn't they both be down/down due to physical issue?

Thanks.

No, the interface will show up/down if the interface does not have "shutdown" in its config.

This is very common.

dynamik

I thought the interface would appear down if it wasn't physically connected as well. I'm just learning this now though, so maybe I'm mistaken (or there are exceptions I'm not aware of i.e. only applies to serial interfaces).

mzinz

joshgibson82 wrote:

mzinz wrote:

I've got a 2801 sitting here.

When I 'sh int', both FastEth interfaces show "interface is up, line protocol is down".

The thing is, nothing is plugged into either one... Shouldn't they both be down/down due to physical issue?

Thanks.

No, the interface will show up/down if the interface does not have "shutdown" in its config.

This is very common.

Please explain then. This does not make sense to me.