Tag Archives: Spanning Tree Protocol

Distributed Core Network Architecture

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Humair

There is no doubt you have probably heard by now the importance of supporting ‘east-west’ traffic flow in large data center networks. So why is this and what does it mean? And when Gartner claims that 80 percent of data … Continue reading →

Posted in Dell Force10, Force10 Networks, Hadoop, Network Architecture, Networking, Servers, Technology, Virtualization and Cloud Computing | Tagged 'east-west' traffic flow, 10 GbE, 10 gig, 3-Tier, 3-Tier Network Architecture, 40 GbE, 40 gig, Data Center, Dell, Dell Force10, Dell Force10 S4810, Dell Force10 Z9000, Dell S4810, Dell Z9000, distributed cloud computing, distributed cloud computing platform, distributed cloud computing platforms, distributed core architecture, Distributed Core Network Architecture, east-west, east-west traffic, Facebook, Force10, Force10 Networks, Force10 Networks S4810, Force10 Networks Z9000, Force10 S4810, Force10 Z9000, Hadoop, server-to-server, server-to-server traffic, server-to-server traffic flow, Spanning Tree Protocol, spine and leaf, spine and leaf architecture, spine and leaf network, STP, Traditional 3-Tier Network Architecture, Z9000 | 3 Comments

Dell Force10 – Layer 2 Multipathing via Virtual Link Trunking (VLT)

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Humair

In this blog I use one Dell Force10 S50N [FTOS 8.4.2.7] and three Dell Force10 S4810 switches [FTOS 8.3.12.1] to demonstrate Dell Force10’s layer 2 mulipathing technology called Virtual Link Trunking (VLT). With VLT, you can create a LAG for … Continue reading →

Posted in Dell Force10, Force10 Networks, Labs, Networking, Technology | Tagged 10 gig, 10GbE, 40 gig, 40GbE, bare metal provisioning, BMP, Brocade, Cisco, Dell, Dell Force10, Dell Force10 S4810, Dell Force10 S50N, Force10 Networks, Force10 S4810, Force10 S50N, FTOS, Juniper, LACP, Link Aggregation Control Protocol, MCT, MEC, mulipathing, Multi-Chassis Trunking, Multichassis EtherChannel, non-blocking, reload-type, S4810, S50N, Shortest Path Bridging, Spanning Tree Protocol, SPB, stack port, stack-group, STP, Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links, TRILL, Virtual Chassis, Virtual Link Trunk, Virtual Link Trunking, Virtual Port Channel, VLT, VLT interconnect, VLTi, vPC | 11 Comments

Networking: Spanning Tree Protocol Basics [Video]

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Humair

This video covers some of the basics of how Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) works in a network. To learn more about Spanning Tree Protocol see some of my prior blogs on STP.

Posted in Networking, Protocols, Technology | Tagged Loop Avoidance, loop prevention, network loops, Spanning Tree Protocol, STP | 1 Comment

Configuring PVST+ on Cisco Switches

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Humair

Per VLAN Spanning Tree Plus (PVST+) is a flavor of Spanning Tree Protocol (see prior blog, Default STP Behavior on Cisco Switches) which maintains a spanning tree instance for each VLAN in the network. This means certain VLAN trunks (using … Continue reading →

Posted in Cisco, Labs, Networking, Protocols, Technology | Tagged avoid loop, Cisco, Cisco 3560, Cisco 3560 switch, Cisco switch, dot1q, loop, Per VLAN Spanning Tree Plus, prevent loop, PVST+, Spanning Tree Protocol, STP, switch, vlan | 6 Comments

Default STP Behavior on Cisco Switches

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Humair

In a prior blog, Functionality of Layer 2 Switches/Bridges, I discussed the core functionality of layer 2 switches. In this blog, I hit upon the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) used on layer 2 switches to prevent loops. As mentioned before, … Continue reading →

Posted in Cisco, Labs, Networking, Protocols, Technology | Tagged Blocking, BPDUs, bridge ID, Bridge Protocol Data Units, broadcast storm, change root bridge, Cisco, Cisco 3560, designated port, device priority, Disabled, Forwarding, layer 2, layer 2 loop, Learning, Listening, loop, MAC address, prevent layer 2 loop, prevent loop, redundancy, root bridge, root port, Spanning Tree Protocol, STP | 1 Comment

Functionality of Layer 2 Switches/Bridges

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Humair

Layer 2 switches and bridges switch frames on a network while layer 3 routers route packets between networks. I once heard a network engineer being asked if a network can be made faster if the network is optimized to use … Continue reading →

Posted in Networking, Technology | Tagged Address Learning, application specific integrated circuits, ASICs, bridges, bridging technologies, broadcasts, Cisco, collision domain, collision domains, datalink layer, filter table, Forward/Filter Decisions, frame, frame filtering, frames, layer 2 broadcasts, Layer 2 Switching, Loop Avoidance, MAC, MAC address, MAC address table, MAC database, Media Access Control, Media Access Control Address, multicasts, network, network layer, network loops, networking, packet, packets, routers, slow convergence, Spanning Tree Protocol, STP, switches, switching | 1 Comment