6-36
6
Smart Link Configuration
This chapter includes these sections:
z
z
Configuring a Smart Link Device
z
Configuring an Associated Device
z
Displaying and Maintaining Smart Link
z
Smart Link Configuration Examples
Smart Link Overview
Background
To avoid single-point failures and guarantee network reliability, downstream devices are usually dual
uplinked to upstream devices. That is, a downstream device connects to two different upstream
devices, as shown in
Figure 6-1
Diagram for a dual uplink network
Device A
Device E
Device D
Device C
Device B
Core network
Po
rt1
Por
t2
Po
rt1
Por
t1
Por
t2
Po
rt2
Port3
Port1
Port2
Port3
Port3
Port3
Port1
Port2
Port3
User network
User network
Master link
Slave link
Smart link group
A dual uplink network demonstrates high reliability, but it may contain network loops. In most cases,
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) or Rapid Ring Protection Protocol (RRPP) is used to remove network
loops. The problem with STP, however, is that STP convergence time is long, which makes it not