How Smart Link Works; Smart Link Collaboration Mechanisms - HP A5830 series Configuration Manual

How Smart Link works

Link backup mechanism
As shown in
C is the subordinate link. Typically, Port1 is in the forwarding state, and Port2 is in the standby state.
When the master link fails, Port2 takes over to forward traffic and Port1 is blocked and placed in the
standby state.
For more information about STP and RRPP, see Layer 2—LAN Switching Configuration Guide and the
chapter "RRPP configuration."
Topology change mechanism
Because link switchover can outdate the MAC address forwarding entries and ARP/ND entries on all
devices, you need a forwarding entry update mechanism to ensure proper transmission. By far, the
following two update mechanisms are provided:
Uplink traffic-triggered MAC address learning, where update is triggered by uplink traffic. This
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mechanism is applicable to environments with devices not supporting Smart Link, including devices
of other vendors'.
Flush update where a Smart Link-enabled device updates its information by transmitting flush
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messages over the backup link to its upstream devices. This mechanism requires the upstream
devices to be capable of recognizing Smart Link flush messages to update its MAC address
forwarding entries and ARP/ND entries.
Role preemption mechanism
As shown in
C is the subordinate link. Once the master link fails, Port1 is blocked automatically and placed in the
standby state, and Port2 takes over to forward traffic. When the master link recovers, one of the
following occurs:
If the smart link group is not configured with role preemption, to keep traffic forwarding stable,
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Port1 that has been blocked due to link failure does not immediately take over to forward traffic.
Rather, it stays blocked until the next link switchover.
If the smart link group is configured with role preemption, Port1 takes over to forward traffic as
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soon as its link recovers, and Port2 is blocked automatically and placed in the standby state.
Load sharing mechanism
A ring network may carry traffic of multiple VLANs. Smart Link can forward traffic of different VLANs in
different smart link groups, implementing load sharing.
To implement load sharing, you can assign a port to multiple smart link groups (each configured with
different protected VLANs), making sure that the state of the port is different in these smart link groups. In
this way, traffic of different VLANs can be forwarded along different paths.
You can configure protected VLANs for a smart link group by referencing MSTIs.

Smart Link collaboration mechanisms

Collaboration between Smart Link and Monitor Link
Smart Link cannot sense by itself when faults occur on the uplink of the upstream devices, or when faults
are cleared. To monitor the uplink status of the upstream devices, you can configure the Monitor Link
function to monitor the uplink ports of the upstream devices. Monitor Link adapts the up/down state of
24, the link on Port1 of Device C is the master link, and the link on Port2 of Device
Figure
24, the link on Port1 of Device C is the master link, and the link on Port2 of Device
Figure
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