  Mechanisms regulating the origin of X-rays in YSOs and the correlation with
their evolutionary stage are under debate. Studies of the X-ray properties in
young clusters allow to understand these mechanisms. One ideal target for this
analysis is the Eagle Nebula (M16), with its central cluster NGC6611. At 1750
pc from the Sun, it harbors 93 OB stars, together with a population of low-mass
stars from embedded protostars to disk-less Class III objects, with age <=
3Myrs. We study an archival 78 ksec Chandra/ACIS-I observation of NGC6611, and
two new 80ksec observations of the outer region of M16, one centered on the
Column V, and one on a region of the molecular cloud with ongoing
star-formation. We detect 1755 point sources, with 1183 candidate cluster
members (219 disk-bearing and 964 disk-less). We study the global X-ray
properties of M16 and compare them with those of the Orion Nebula Cluster. We
also compare the level of X-ray emission of Class II and Class III stars, and
analyze the X-ray spectral properties of OB stars. Our study supports the lower
level of X-ray activity for the disk-bearing stars with respect to the
disk-less members. The X-ray Luminosity Function (XLF) of M16 is similar to
that of Orion, supporting the universality of the XLF in young clusters. 85% of
the O stars of NGC6611 have been detected in X-rays. With only one possible
exception, they show soft spectra with no hard component, indicating that
mechanisms for the production of hard X-ray emission in O stars are not
operating in NGC 6611.
