Patent ID: 6202114
Filing Date: 2001-03-13
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
A process operating on a bridge, said bridge having a plurality of ports, said bridge being either a root bridge or a designated bridge, said process rapidly reconfiguring a spanning tree after a link failure, each of said ports having a unique port state of ROOT port, DESIGNATED port, or BLOCKED port, only one of said ports on said bridge being in said ROOT state at a given time, said ports sending and receiving bridge protocol data units (BPDUs), said process comprising the steps:upon the receipt of an inferior BPDU on either a port in said BLOCKED state or a port in said ROOT state, sending a root-link-query to all said ports in said BLOCKED state and to said port in said ROOT state, but not to said port receiving said inferior BPDU;awaiting a root-link-query response from one of said ports in said BLOCKED state, or one of said ports in said ROOT state;upon receipt of an affirmative root-link-query response from one of said ports in said BLOCKED state, thereafter changing the port state of said port receiving said affirmative root-link-query response from BLOCKED to DESIGNATED.