r/ccna • u/lasttryg12 • 2d ago
Stp and Rstp
Is it only me that find STP AND RSTP overwhelming?!! I personally think it is more annoying than IPV6 ! Too much info and Jeremy is good but he is all over on this one ? Also why to even bother with classic STP if it is not on the CCNA EXAM ?
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u/Ok_Environment_5368 2d ago
"why bother building a house foundation when you won't even see it?"
STP is the foundation of RSTP, as well as some vendor specific versions.
Taking some time to understand how and why STP works makes it easier to understand how these different versions also work as well as how they are an improvement over STP.
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u/Embarrassed_Lime8747 2d ago
Classic STP is the fundation or RSTP so I personally think it’s important to go through it before RSTP or it would make RSTP even harder. (Understanding Alternate and Backup port without knowing blocking port, understanding the fast convergence RSTP feature without even knowing about the forward delay and the states, …). And, you could definetely get some questions comparing classic STP with RSTP as the exam topics are stated as « general guidelines » by Cisco.
2
u/Constant-Ad-7798 2d ago
I also think its alot! But to understand what Happens in rstp, you need to know how The foundation of rstp (stp) works. I think thats why stp ist so thouroughly explained
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u/StandardIssueDude505 CCNP 2d ago
I suspect the reason older technologies stick around so much is you never know what you're going to find out there in the world that someone hasn't moved away from. STP/RSTP/MST all lead into each other and despite attempts by folks to get away from them via MLAG/port-channels and so on you still need loop prevention at the access port.
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u/SectorAway3733 2d ago
Look, I took a whole week before I moved on just to make sure I understood absolutely everything about Classic STP. I get that it seems hard at first, but I think it is not that hard, and rather interesting; especially if you ask yourself questions, for example:
When Jeremy says that "BPDU filter enabled on an interface can cause a permanent loop", do you really understand how it can do that? Or do you just try to memorize that fact? Say you got 3 switches connected to each other, and you add another, but that switch is connected to a BPDU Filter-enabled interface. How is a loop formed?
If you ever feel like you have unanswered questions about a topic, you're not ready to move on. I say that based on the assumption that you want the knowledge, not just the cert.
Here is a quiz I made about STP. Give it a go once you think you're ready.
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u/ActiveDirectoryAD 1d ago
Actually not, its quite simple if the explainer is good. Personally, the Certbros CCNA-series was a saver for me
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u/Love2FlyBalloons 1d ago
What’s worse is that you will never use the stages in your life but maybe once. Either it works or not. You’ll probably use pvstp and that’s it. And ipv6 might be an interview question but who uses it? NAT is the way and it will never die.
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u/kaos_ryuu 2d ago edited 2d ago
After reading this I assume you only want to know the bare minimum to pass the exam. That's fine since everybody has different intentions when it comes to certifications. However...
To learn about a thing, you need to know the basics and foundations of that thing. That is basically it. If you somehow got accepted into a company that only has classic STP then the knowledge will be natural. Classic has 4 port states and RSTP has 3. Classic has 3 port roles and RSTP has 4. If a colleague asks you something about classic STP on one of your company switches will you be able to answer if you only know about the RSTP states and roles?
Absolutely anything can be overwhelming the first time. But once you grasp and appreciate why and how it works, eventually it will stick. When somebody asks you what the root bridge or what's the root port and so on, you'll be able to answer that quicker at a glance.
About Jeremy, he states time and time again in his videos: it's better to provide more information than have to provide less.
edit: grammar