Integrating Multiple Circuits for Production Traffic - Network Design

Technologies and Features for Optimizing Production Traffic across Multiple Metro Ethernet Circuits

Question

You have created a network design that has two point-to-point Metro Ethernet circuits extending a single production VLAN between two data centers.

Under normal circumstances, one circuit will carry traffic and spanning tree will block the other.

If the company wants you to make use of both circuits to carry production traffic, which two technologies and features will you investigate to integrate into your network design? (Choose two.)

Answers

Explanations

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A. B. C. D.

AC.

In the given scenario, the company wants to utilize both circuits to carry production traffic. To achieve this, we need to investigate the use of two technologies and features that can be integrated into the network design.

A. EtherChannel: EtherChannel is a technology that allows the bundling of multiple physical links into a single logical link. By using EtherChannel, we can combine the bandwidth of both circuits and create a single logical link between two data centers. This logical link can then be used to carry production traffic. EtherChannel provides link redundancy, load balancing, and increased bandwidth.

B. MST: Multiple Spanning Tree (MST) is a protocol that allows multiple VLANs to share a common spanning tree. By using MST, we can define multiple instances of spanning tree on a network and map multiple VLANs to each instance. In this scenario, we can configure MST to map the production VLAN to both circuits. This will allow both circuits to carry production traffic and eliminate the need for one circuit to be blocked by spanning tree.

C. Multichassis EtherChannel: Multichassis EtherChannel (MEC) is a technology that provides link redundancy and increased bandwidth by combining the links from multiple physical devices into a single logical link. In this scenario, we can configure MEC to combine the links from both circuits to create a single logical link between two data centers. This logical link can then be used to carry production traffic. MEC provides automatic failover and increased bandwidth.

D. PVST+: Per VLAN Spanning Tree Plus (PVST+) is a Cisco proprietary protocol that allows for the creation of a separate spanning tree instance for each VLAN. By using PVST+, we can configure two separate spanning tree instances for the production VLAN, one for each circuit. This will allow both circuits to carry production traffic and eliminate the need for one circuit to be blocked by spanning tree.

Therefore, the two technologies and features that we can investigate to integrate into our network design are EtherChannel and MST. Both of these options provide redundancy, load balancing, and increased bandwidth. However, MEC and PVST+ are also valid options depending on the network requirements and design.