VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP)

VTP (VLAN Trunking Protocol) is a Layer 2 messaging protocol

that manages the addition, deletion, and renaming of VLANs
on a network-wide basis.

VLAN trunking protocol (VTP) is an automated method of

distributing VLAN configuration information throughout a
management domain. The use of this tool can have adverse
effects, if a reassigned switch that houses a newer VTP
database number is installed in a management domain while
in server mode. All switches that are running VTP could potentially lose their VLAN
information if much caution isn't observed when first installing a new switch. Unless
there is a great need for this service, disabling VTP to reduce the risk of configuration
loss is recommended.

The VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP) is an interesting Layer 2 feature switch line and one
that is definitely useful, especially in large, switched environments that include
multiple Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs). The purpose of configuring VLAN tagging
was to allow traffic from multiple VLANs to cross a trunk link used to interconnect
switches. While this capability is great in large environments, VLAN tagging does
nothing to help ease the burden of configuring individual VLANs on multiple switches.
This is where VTP steps in to help.

The main purpose of VTP is to provide a facility by which individual switches can be
managed as a group for VLAN configuration purposes. For example, if VTP is enabled on
all switches, the creation of a new VLAN on one switch makes that VLAN available on all
switches with the same VTP management domain. A VTP management domain is simply
a group of switches that participate in sharing VTP information. A given switch can be
part of only one VTP management domain at a time and is part of no VTP management
domain by default.

It should be immediately obvious why VTP is so beneficial. Imagine an environment in

which a network administrator must manage 20 or more switches. Without VTP, the
creation of a new VLAN would require the administrator to define that new VLAN on all
necessary switches individually, a process that is unnecessarily time-consuming.
Instead, with VTP, the administrator could define that VLAN once, and have VTP worry
about propagating the information to all other switches in the same domain
automatically. The main benefit of VTP is the efficiency that it provides in terms of
adding and deleting VLANs, as well as making changes to VLAN configurations in large
environments.

In general, configuring VTP on a switch is not a difficult task. In fact, once a VTP
management domain name is defined on each switch, the process by which switches
exchange VTP information is automatic and requires no further configuration or day-to-
day management. However, in order to full appreciate how VTP works within a given
VTP domain, one must first understand the different VTP modes for which a switch can
be configured.

VTP Modes
If the user intends to make a switch part of a VTP management domain, each switch
must be configured in one of three possible VTP modes. The VTP mode assigned to a
switch will determine how the switch interacts with other VTP switches in the
management domain. The three VTP modes that can be assigned to a switch include
server mode, client mode, and transparent mode. Each of these roles is outlined below:

• Server Mode Once VTP is configured on a switch, the default mode used is
Server Mode. In any given VTP management domain, at least one switch must be
in Server Mode. When in Server Mode, a switch can be used to add, delete, and
modify VLANs, and this information will be passed to all other switches in the
VTP management domain.
• Client Mode When a switch is configured to use VTP Client Mode, it is simply the
recipient of any VLANs added, deleted, or modified by a switch in Server Mode
within the same management domain. A switch in VTP client mode cannot make
any changes to VLAN information.
• Transparent Mode A switch in VTP Transparent Mode will pass VTP updates
received by switches in Server Mode to other switches in the VTP management
domain, but will not actually process the contents of these messages. When
individual VLANs are added, deleted, or modified on a switch running in
transparent mode, the changes are local to that particular switch only, and are
not passed to other switches in the VTP management domain.

Based on the roles of each VTP mode, the use of each should be more or less obvious.
For example, if there are 15 switches on your network, the administrator could
configure each of them to be in the same VTP management domain. Although each
could theoretically be left in the default Server Mode, it would probably be easier to
leave only one switch in this configuration and then configure all remaining switches for
VTP Client Mode. Then, when a VLAN needs to be added, deleted or modified, that
change can be carried out on the VTP Server Mode switch and passed to all Client Mode
switches automatically. In cases where the administrator needs a switch to act in a
relatively standalone manner or don't want it to propagate information about its
configured VLANs, Transparent Mode may be used.

Dax Product Offering:

Some of the Dax products that support “VLAN Trunking Protocol” are listed below:

Dax Megastack:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DaxMegastack.htm
DX-5726T:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DX5726GT.htm
DX-5744GS:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DX5744GS.htm
DX-5026MG:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DX-5026MG.htm
DX-5018MG:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DX-5018MG.htm
Dax BTI-T5C-24GT / Dax BTI-0524G:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DTS_T5C_24G_24GT.htm
Dax BTI-0524T/0548T/ 0548T-D-L3:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DTS_T5C_24T_48T.htm
Dax BTI-0530 RN -L3:
https://www.daxnetworks.com/Dax/Products/Switch/DTS_T5R.htm

For complete Dax Product information, please visit:

https://www.daxnetworks.com/PFF.htm

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