This read-write object selects how the switch manages its overall PoE power budget across ports: by per-port configured limit, by device class limit, or by a system-wide maximum limit. An admin chooses portlimit mode for fine per-port control, or classlimit/maxlimit modes to manage power more coarsely based on detected device class or a hard system cap. For example, an admin managing many identical low-power sensors might select classlimit mode so the switch allocates power based on each device's negotiated PoE class rather than requiring per-port manual limits.