After restarting, many of our desktop PCs take nearly a full minute before the Ethernet connection becomes active. The network icon blinks for a while, briefly shows as disconnected, and then finally connects. Users often try to enter their passwords immediately, which can result in failed login attempts and occasional account lockouts.
The issue occurred with our HP EliteDesk systems and continues with newer Lenovo ThinkStations, so it does not appear to be limited to one computer model. I have already tried disabling the Ethernet adapter's power-saving option, replacing network cables, and applying a PowerShell registry change involving PlatformAoAcOverride, but none of those helped.
Our switches use spanning tree, and I have read that it can delay a port becoming active. Is this long delay expected with standard spanning tree, or is there a switch configuration that can allow workstation ports to connect much faster?
2 Answers
Standard spanning tree can take a noticeable amount of time while a port moves through its listening and learning states. Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol is designed to reduce that delay, but endpoint ports should still be configured as edge or PortFast ports when appropriate. That configuration should only be used for devices such as PCs, not for links to other switches.
Ask whoever manages the switches about enabling the edge-port setting for these workstation ports. It may be called PortFast on some vendors or Port Type Edge on others. This skips the normal spanning-tree transition delay for ports that connect to end devices, allowing them to enter the forwarding state almost immediately.
Thanks, I’ll bring this up with our network management provider.