PLANET WGSD-1022 - Manual (Page 50)

4.5. Spanning Tree
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) provides tree topography for any arrangement of bridges. STP also
provides one path between end stations on a network, eliminating loops.
Loops occur when alternate routes exist between hosts. Loops in an extended network can cause
bridges to forward traffic indefinitely, resulting in increased traffic and reducing network efficiency.
The device supports the following Spanning Tree versions:
• Classic STP, by which provides a single path between end stations, avoiding and eliminating loops.
• Rapid STP, which detects and uses network topologies that provide faster convergence of the
spanning tree, without creating forwarding loops.
• Multiple STP, which provides full connectivity for packets allocated to any VLAN. Multiple STP is
based on the RSTP. In addition, Multiple STP transmits packets assigned to different VLANs through
different MST regions. MST regions act as a single bridge.
4.5.1 STP Config
The STP Config screen (see figure 4-15) contains parameters for enabling STP on the device.
STP Config Spanning Tree State, which indicates if STP is enabled on the device.
Figure 4-15 STP Config screen