3-1

Chapter 3

Using the TSX-1620 Bridge View
A brief explanation of bridging methods; a tour of the Bridge Traffic View; using the Detail View;
monitoring bridge operation; using the Filtering Database; configuring bridge operating parameters;
setting forwarding thresholds and notification options; setting polling parameters; enabling and
disabling bridges
The SPECTRUM Portable Management Application (SPMA) Bridge View
presents a series of windows that describe the TSX-1620 bridge and its bridge
interfaces. The Bridge View is available for devices that support the dot1dBridge
MIB. You can monitor bridge activity and performance and manage bridge
configuration for both Transparent and Source Routing bridging through the
Bridge Traffic View and other related windows. The SPMA bridge application
provides separate windows for configuring Source Route and Transparent
bridging.

Bridging Basics

Bridges are used in local area networks to connect two or more network segments
and to control the flow of packets between the segments. Ideally, bridges forward
packets to another network segment only when necessary. Bridges are also used
to increase the fault tolerance in a local area network by creating redundant
bridge paths between network segments. This is so that in the event of a bridge or
bridge segment failure, an alternate bridge path will be available to network
traffic, without significant interruption to its flow.
The method a bridge uses to forward packets, choose a bridge path, and ensure
that a sending station’s messages take only one bridge path depends on the
bridge’s type: Transparent or Source Routing. A third type of bridge — a Source
Route Transparent (SRT) bridge —has both Source Routing and Transparent
bridging capabilities.