CHAPTER
12-1
Catalyst 2950 Desktop Switch Software Configuration Guide
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12

Configuring RSTP and MST P

This chapter describes how to configure the Cisco implementation of the IEEE 802.1W Rapid Spanning
Tr ee Protoc ol (RSTP) an d the IEEE 802.1S Multipl e STP (MSTP) on your sw itch. To use the featur es
descri bed i n t his ch apt er, you must have the e nh ance d soft ware im ag e (E I) inst al led on your sw itch.
RSTP pr ovides r api d convergence of the s pa nning tre e. MSTP, which use s R STP to p rovid e ra pid
convergence, enab les VLAN s to be groupe d into a span ning-t ree insta nce, provides for multip le
forwarding paths for data traffic, and enables load balancing. It improves the fault tolerance of the
network because a failure in o ne instance (forwarding path) does not affect ot her instances (forwarding
paths). The most commo n initia l deployment of MSTP an d RSTP is in the ba ckbon e and distri bution
layers of a Laye r 2 swit ched n etwor k; t his de ployme nt p rovides t he hi ghl y-available ne twork r equi red
in a service-provider environment.
Both RSTP and MSTP improve the operation of the spanning tree while maintaining backward
compatibility with equipment that is based on the (original) 802.1D spanning tree, with existing Cisco
per-VLAN span ning tree (PVS T+), an d with the existing Cisco-pro prietar y Multipl e Instanc e STP
(MIST P). For i nf orm ati on abo ut ST P, see Ch apter 11, Configuring STP. For infor mation ab out
optional spa nning -tre e f eat ures , se e Chapte r 13, Configurin g Optional Spa nning-Tree Featur es.
Note For complete syntax and usage information for the commands used in this chapter, refer to the
comm an d ref e renc e for thi s rel eas e.
This chapter consists of these sections:
Understa ndin g R S TP, pa ge 1 2-2
Understa ndin g MS TP, p age 12-7
Intero pera bil ity w it h 802. 1D STP, pa ge 12-11
Configuring RSTP and MSTP Features, page 12-11
Display ing the MST Configura tion and Statu s, page 12-23