Mstp Features; Mstp Basic Concepts - HP V1910 Switch Series User Manual

Although RSTP supports rapid network convergence, it has the same drawback as STP—All bridges
within a LAN share the same spanning tree, so redundant links cannot be blocked based on VLAN, and
the packets of all VLANs are forwarded along the same spanning tree.

MSTP features

Developed based on IEEE 802.1s, MSTP overcomes the shortcomings of STP and RSTP. In addition to
supporting for rapid network convergence, it also provides a better load sharing mechanism for
redundant links by allowing data flows of different VLANs to be forwarded along separate paths.
MSTP includes the following features:
MSTP supports mapping VLANs to MST instances (MSTIs) by means of a VLAN-to-MSTI mapping

table. MSTP can reduce communication overheads and resource usage by mapping multiple
VLANs to one MSTI.
MSTP divides a switched network into multiple regions, each containing multiple spanning trees

that are independent of one another.
MSTP prunes a loop network into a loop-free tree, avoiding proliferation and endless cycling of

packets in a loop network. In addition, it provides multiple redundant paths for data forwarding,
supporting load balancing of VLAN data.
 MSTP is compatible with STP and RSTP.

MSTP basic concepts

Assume that all the four devices in
concepts of MSTP based on the figure.
Figure 164 are running MSTP. This section explains some basic
180