| 摘要 |
<p>A hybrid spanning tree protocol can be implemented in a hybrid communication network to prevent communication loops without disabling network interfaces of hybrid devices and redundant paths of the network, while preserving the advantages of the hybrid communication network. Each network interface of a hybrid device can be designated as a relay or non-relay interface. Each of the relay interfaces is independent of the other network interfaces of the hybrid device. The non-relay interfaces operate as a single virtual interface and do not forward packets between each other. Each network interface of the hybrid device may also be associated with a forwarding bit that indicates whether broadcast packets should be forwarded via the network interface. The hybrid device can determine whether/how to forward a packet depending on whether an ingress interface is a relay or non-relay interface and a forwarding bit value of the ingress interface.</p> |
