Module 7 Network Architecture

Load Balancer

A device that distributes traffic intelligently among multiple devices or connections.

BPDU filter

Disables STP on specific ports.

Defense in Depth

Layers of security implemented to protect a network from multiple attack vectors

Root guard

Prevents switches beyond the configured port from becoming the root bridge

broadcast storm

Redundant broadcast transmissions that flood a network in switching loops that are not limited by some protective system such as STP (Spanning Tree Protocol).

least cost path

The most efficient path from each switch to the root bridge in an STP (Spanning Tree Protocol) environment.

Access Layer or edge layer

Workgroup switches connected directly to hosts.

RSTP (Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol)

can detect and correct for link failures in milliseconds.

TRILL (Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links)

is a multipath, link-state protocol developed by the IETF

SPB (Shortest Path Bridging)

it keeps all potential paths active while managing the flow of data across those paths to prevent loops. By utilizing all network paths, SPB greatly improves network performance.

Layer 4 switch

A switch capable of interpreting Layer 4 data, which means it can perform advanced filtering, keep statistics, and provide security functions.

Unmanaged Switch

A switch that provides plug-and-play simplicity with minimal configuration options and has no IP address assigned to it.

STP (Spanning Tree Protocol)

A switching protocol defined by the IEEE standard 802.1D that functions at the data link layer and prevents traffic loops by artificially blocking the links that would complete a loop.

FCoE (Fibre Channel over Ethernet)

A technology that allows FC to travel over Ethernet hardware and connections.

iSCSI (Internet SCSI)

A transport layer protocol used by SANs that runs on top of TCP to allow fast transmission over LANs, WANs, and the Internet.

root port

The port on a switch designated as the interface facing the root bridge in an STP (Spanning Tree Protocol) switched environment.

Control Plane

The process of decision making, such as routing, blocking, and forwarding, that is performed by protocols.

Root Bridge

The single bridge on a network selected by STP (Spanning Tree Protocol) to provide the basis for all subsequent path calculations.

redundancy

The use of more than one identical component, device, or connection for storing, processing, or transporting data.

BPDU Guard

-Blocks BPDUs on any port serving network hosts -Ensures these devices aren't considered as possible paths

Core Layer

A group of highly efficient multilayer switches or routers that support the network's backbone traffic

Three-tiered architecture

A hierarchical network design that organizes switches and routers into three tiers: access layer or edge layer, distribution layer or aggregation layer, and core layer. This design increases both redundancy on the network and network performance.

Distribution Layer or aggregation layer

A highly redundant mesh of connections between multilayer switches or routers that provides routing within the corporate network as well as traffic filtering and the network's connection to one or more WANs

SDN controller

A product that integrates configuration and management control of all network devices, both physical and virtual, into one cohesive system that is overseen by the network administrator through a single dashboard.

EoR (end of row) switching

A rack architecture in which switches in a rack at the end of the row serve as the connection points to the network for all other devices in the row.

ToR (top of rack) switching

A rack architecture where one switch on each rack serves as the connection point to the network for all other devices on the rack.connects all other devices in the rack to the rest of the network

FC (Fibre Channel)

A storage networking architecture that runs separately from Ethernet networks to maximize speed of data storage and access

IB (InfiniBand)

A storage networking architecture that serves a few niche markets and falls on the difficult end of the installation and configuration spectrum.

Layer 3 switch

A switch capable of interpreting Layer 3 data and works much like a router in that it supports the same routing protocols and makes routing decisions.

Spine-Leaf Architecture

A two-layer network architectural design where spine switches organize traffic and network segments using OSI layer 3 technologies while leaf switches manage traffic by either layer 2 or layer 3 principles.

BPDUs (Bridge Protocol Data Units)

A type of network message that transmits STP information between switches.

Application plane

An SDN (software-defined networking) construct corresponding to the OSI model's application layer where network applications communicate with the network via APIs (application programming interface

Infrastructure plane (also called data plane)

An SDN (software-defined networking) construct made up of physical or virtual devices that receive and send network messages.

Management plane

An SDN (software-defined networking) construct sometimes considered part of the control plane that allows network administrators to remotely manage and monitor network devices

North-South Traffic

Messages that must leave the local segment to reach their destinations. Traffic from web clients on the Internet requesting information from a web server in the data center

East-west traffic

The flow of traffic between peers within a network segment.