Spanning tree protocol

How it is used

Usually called STP; faster versions are RSTP and MSTP. Engineers set the root bridge, check port states (forwarding, blocking) and investigate spanning tree events after a network slowdown. Without it, a single loop can cause a broadcast storm that brings down a whole LAN.

Example sentences

1. Someone plugged both ends of a cable into the same switch, but spanning tree protocol blocked the loop.

2. We moved from classic spanning tree protocol to RSTP to recover faster after link failures.

Common collocations

• spanning tree
• root bridge
• blocking port
• rapid spanning tree
• spanning tree loop

Related terms

• switchA device with many ports that connects computers, phones, printers and other equipment inside the same local network and forwards each frame only to the port where its destination is.
• broadcastA message sent to every device on the local network segment at once, instead of to a single address; routers do not forward broadcasts to other networks.
• redundancyHaving extra devices, links or power supplies in place so that the network keeps working if one of them fails.
• trunk portA switch port that carries traffic for several VLANs over one link, adding a tag to each frame so the device at the other end knows which VLAN it belongs to.
• VLANShort for virtual LAN: a separate logical network created on a switch, so that devices plugged into the same hardware, for example staff PCs, guests and cameras, can be kept apart.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

• spanning tree protocol · Software Engineering

More terms: Routing and Switching

• MAC address
• routing
• routing table
• BGP
• OSPF
• static route
• SD-WAN
• hop