The purpose of spanning tree protocol (STP, 802.1d) is to eliminate loops in the switch network connections.
A NETGEAR fully managed switch supports the following spanning tree versions:
- CST: Common STP (CST), also referred to as classic STP or traditional STP. CST is an implementation of STP.
- MSTP: Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP, 802.1s), also referred to as MST, supports multiple instances of spanning tree to efficiently channel VLAN traffic over different interfaces. Each spanning tree instance is independent of other instances. This approach provides multiple forwarding paths for data traffic, enabling load balancing, and reducing the number of spanning tree instances required to support many VLANs. MSTP is compatible with both STP and RSTP. An MSTP bridge can be configured to behave entirely as an STP bridge or an RSTP bridge.
- RSTP: Rapid STP (802.1w). The difference between RSTP and common STP (802.1d) is the capability to configure and detect full-duplex connectivity and ports that are connected to end stations, resulting in rapid transitioning of a port to the forwarding state and the suppression of Topology Change Notification messages. While STP can take 30 to 50 seconds to respond to a topology change, RSTP typically can respond to changes within a few seconds. RSTP can revert to 802.1d to interoperate with legacy bridges on a per-port basis. However, this negates the benefits that RSTP introduces.
Current NETGEAR fully managed switches also support the following Cisco-proprietary spanning tree versions, which might not be supported on legacy fully managed switches:
- PVST: Per-VLAN Spanning Tree (PVST) provides a unique instance of spanning tree for each VLAN.
- RPVST: Rapid Per-VLAN Spanning Tree (RPVST) provides a unique instance of spanning tree for each VLAN with each instance behaving according to RSTP. Compared to PVST, RPVST provides a faster spanning tree convergence in response to Layer 2 topology changes.
On a NETGEAR fully managed switch, RSTP (802.1w) is globally enabled by default.
For more information, see the following support articles:
- How do I configure Classic Spanning Tree Protocol (STP, 802.1d) on a fully managed switch using the main user interface?
- How do I configure Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP, 802.1w) on a fully managed switch using CLI commands?
- How do I configure Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP, 802.1w) on a fully managed switch using the main user interface?
- How do I configure Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP, 802.1s) on a fully managed switch using CLI commands?
- How do I configure Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP, 802.1s) on a fully managed switch using the main user interface?
Last Updated:07/22/2025
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Article ID: 21946