portfast
 

Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
workstations?

Re: portfast
 

In article <edq1eo$1md$1@news.Stanford.EDU>, tony <none@none.com> wrote:
>Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
>workstations?

Only if you have a very strict change control procedure. If you have
more than one person who is allowed to reconfigure the cabling without
checking it carefully with the other people, then eventually you *will*
get unexpected devices connected.

Also, these days servers are increasingly acting as routers, and
increasingly supporting VLANs, so unexpected spanning trees
are likely to be generated.

Re: portfast
 

If you are the only plugging things in sure.
If not someone may plug in another switch at some point and cause some
grief.
Spanning tree storms aren't funny!

"Walter Roberson" <roberson@hushmail.com> wrote in message
news:q20Mg.528838$IK3.420030@pd7tw1no...
> In article <edq1eo$1md$1@news.Stanford.EDU>, tony <none@none.com> wrote:
>>Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
>>workstations?
>
> Only if you have a very strict change control procedure. If you have
> more than one person who is allowed to reconfigure the cabling without
> checking it carefully with the other people, then eventually you *will*
> get unexpected devices connected.
>
> Also, these days servers are increasingly acting as routers, and
> increasingly supporting VLANs, so unexpected spanning trees
> are likely to be generated.

Re: portfast
 

tony wrote:
> Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
> workstations?

Enabling PortFast is always good if the port connected to a server or
workstation only.
Even the server may act as a router, it is OK to enable PortFast,
because a router doesn't participate in STP.

To prevent human errors, you should always label the cable that has
enabled PortFast, and enable BPDU Guard on the switch.

Re: portfast
 

Enabling PortFast on access ports also prevents the Switch issuing STP
Topology Change Notifications. Excessive TCN's can have an impact on
network performance - a TCN is sent every time a port goes up or down
unless PortFast is used.

Basically always enable PortFast on user ports.

James


CCIE 15766 wrote:
> tony wrote:
> > Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
> > workstations?
>
> Enabling PortFast is always good if the port connected to a server or
> workstation only.
> Even the server may act as a router, it is OK to enable PortFast,
> because a router doesn't participate in STP.
>
> To prevent human errors, you should always label the cable that has
> enabled PortFast, and enable BPDU Guard on the switch.

Re: portfast
 

"tony" <none@none.com> wrote in message
news:edq1eo$1md$1@news.Stanford.EDU...
> Is it a good idea to enable portfast on ports connected to servers and
> workstations?
>
Yes and as a safeguard enable 'spanning-tree bpduguard'. When a bpdu is
received on a bpduguard enabled port it will be shutdown ... err-disabled.

BernieM