Extreme Networks Summit1 manual Spanning Tree Protocol STP, Overview of the Spanning Tree Protocol

7Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)

Using the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) functionality of the Summit makes your network more fault tolerant.

The following sections explain more about STP and the STP features supported by the switch.

STP is a part of the 802.1D bridge specification defined by the IEEE Computer Society. To explain STP in terms used by the 802.1D specification, the Summit will be referred to as a bridge.

OVERVIEW OF THE SPANNING TREE PROTOCOL

STP is a bridge-based mechanism for providing fault tolerance on networks. STP allows you to implement parallel paths for network traffic, and ensure that

•Redundant paths are disabled when the main paths are operational.

•Redundant paths are enabled if the main path fails.

SPANNING TREE DOMAINS

The Summit can be partitioned into multiple virtual bridges. Each virtual bridge can run an independent Spanning Tree instance. Each Spanning Tree instance is called a Spanning Tree Domain (STPD). Each STPD has its own Root Bridge and active path. Once the STPD is created, one or more VLANs can be assigned to it.

SUMMIT SWITCH INSTALLATION AND USER GUIDE 7-1