27

Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling

27.1 Overview

This chapter shows you how to configure layer 2 protocol tunneling on the Switch.

Layer 2 protocol tunneling (L2PT) is used on the service provider's edge devices.

27.1.1 What You Can Do

Use the Layer 2 Protocol Tunnel screen (Section 27.2 on page 253) to enable layer 2 protocol tunneling on the Switch and specify a MAC address with which the Switch uses to encapsulate the layer 2 protocol packets by replacing the destination MAC address in the packets.

27.1.2 What You Need to Know

Layer 2 protocol tunneling (L2PT) is used on the service provider's edge devices.

L2PT allows edge switches (1 and 2 in the following figure) to tunnel layer 2 STP (Spanning Tree Protocol), CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol) and VTP (VLAN Trunking Protocol) packets between customer switches (A, B and C in the following figure) connected through the service provider’s network. The edge switch encapsulates layer 2 protocol packets with a specific MAC address before sending them across the service provider’s network to other edge switches.

Figure 134 Layer 2 Protocol Tunneling Network Scenario

A

 

Service Provider's

C

STP

 

 

Network

 

CDP

1

 

STP

2

 

 

 

 

CDP

VTP

VTP

 

B

 

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GS2200-24 User’s Guide