Dell PowerConnect 5324 User's Guide - Page 245

Select a Port - Port on which STP is enabled. STP - Enables or disables STP on the port. Fast Link - When selected, enables Fast Link mode for the port. If Fast Link mode is enabled for a port, the Port State is automatically placed in the Forwarding state when the port link is up. Fast Link mode optimizes the time it takes for the STP protocol to converge. STP convergence can take 30-60 seconds in large networks. Port State - The current port STP state. If enabled, the port state determines what forwarding action is taken on traffic. Possible port states are: Disabled - The port link is currently down. Blocking - The port is currently blocked and cannot be used to forward traffic or learn MAC addresses. Blocking is displayed when Classic STP is enabled. Listening - The port is currently in the listening mode. The port cannot forward traffic nor can it learn MAC addresses. Learning - The port is currently in the learning mode. The port cannot forward traffic however it can learn new MAC addresses. Forwarding - The port is currently in the forwarding mode. The port can forward traffic and learn new MAC addresses. Speed - Speed at which the port is operating. Path Cost (1-200000000) - The port contribution to the root path cost. The path cost is adjusted to a higher or lower value, and is used to forward traffic when a path being rerouted. Default Path Cost - The default path cost of the port is automatically set by the port speed and the default path cost method. The default values for long path costs are: Ethernet - 2000000 Fast Ethernet - 200000 Gigabit Ethernet - 20000 The default values for short path costs (short path costs are the default) are: Ethernet - 100 Fast Ethernet - 19 Gigabit Ethernet - 4 Configuring Device Information 245