Layer 2 Flags

The meanings of flags in the Layer 2 view depend the pane in which they appear.

Flags in Device Filter and Endpoints Panes

In the Filter and Endpoints panes, flags indicate the following:

	Switch-to-Switch connection - connected to another switch
or	Interior device - the device is attached to a hub or switch that is connected between ports of two managed switches. The left or right arrow points away from the spanning tree root.
	Down - this port is not operating.
	Multi-homed device - a single MAC address has multiple IP addresses. Each IP addresses is shown as a separate row in the Endpoints pane.
	Ghost- indicates that the port is not active, and the endpoint (device with this MAC address) has not been seen elsewhere in the network. It was last seen on the indicated switch port.
	Not present on Map - indicates that the port is connected to a managed switch, but that switch is not present on a Layer 2-enabled map.
or or	Fuzzy - the Layer 2 process cannot determine the exact port where the device is attached. See Understanding Fuzzy Devices below.
	Duplicate MAC address detected - the Layer 2 process has found the same MAC address on two separate switch ports.
	IP conflict - the Layer 2 process has found the same IP address on two separate switch ports.
	Spanning tree root - this switch is the root of the spanning tree.
	Loop - a port is connected to another port on the same switch.
	Wireless (assigned manually) - a port or VLAN is tagged as Wireless. The Wireless flag is displayed next to the port in the Filters and Endpoints panes. For more information, see Manual Tagging.
	Virtual machine (assigned manually) - all NICs from this manufacturer with this OUI (organizationally unique identifier) are virtual machines. The Virtual Machine flag is displayed next to the OUI and any endpoints that use NICs with that OUI. For more information, see Manual Tagging.

Flags in the Connections Pane

The following flags might be present in the Flags column of the Connections pane:

	Confirmed connection - specifies that a connection is confirmed and will be exported to a map.
or	Not present on Map - specifies that the port is connected to a device that is not present on a Layer 2-enabled map.
	Loop - specifies that a direct port-to-port connection on this switch.
	specifies that both ends see each other's CDP/LLDP advertisements.
	the left end of the connection sees the right end's CDP/LLDP advertisements.
	the right end of the connection sees the left end's CDP/LLDP advertisements.
	connected to a device that is not present on any map.
	confirmed connection specifies that a connection is confirmed and will be exported to a map.

STP column: In the STP column of the Connections Pane, arrows indicate the direction of travel of STP bridge information.

	Right switch is the left switch’s path to root for one or more of the left switch’s spanning trees. (Right switch's port might be in blocking state, if there are loops.)
	Left switch is the right switch’s path to root for one or more of the right switches’ spanning trees. (Left switch's port might be in blocking state, if there are loops.)
	Right switch is left switch's path to root for one or more spanning trees and left switch is right switch's path to root for other spanning trees. (Either switch's port may be in blocking state for one or more spanning trees, if there are loops.)

Fuzzy Devices

A device with a MAC address whose location in the Layer 2 topology cannot be completely determined is considered to be a fuzzy device by Intermapper.

Fuzzy devices are quite common and can occur for a number of reasons. The Layer 2 engine attempts to collect information from all the switches nearly simultaneously. However, some time can elapse between the times that two switches finishes collecting Layer 2 information. During this time period, a MAC address collected from one switch can age out of another switch. Alternatively, a device can connect to the network during Layer 2 collection, so its MAC address is reported in one switch's forwarding tables, but not in the edge switch (due to the difference in scan times for the two switches).

Devices can also be classified as fuzzy due to bugs in certain switch models. For example, Fortra has a small managed desktop switch that doesn't report its complete forwarding table via SNMP. The extra un-reported devices are displayed as fuzzy, because the upstream switch reports the MAC address, but the downstream switch never reports them (even though the switch is otherwise perfectly functional).

Fuzzy devices are distinct from Interior devices. A fuzzy device appears to be in the middle of the network (between two switches) because Intermapper does not have complete information. An interior device appears to be in the middle of the network because there is actually another switch or hub located there, but it is not part of the Layer 2 information.

Manual Tagging

For certain kinds of connections, you can tag a port or endpoint device so you can see easily what kind of device it is.

The following tagging options are available:

	Wireless (assigned manually) - right-click a switch port or VLAN in the Filters pane and select as Wireless from the Tag submenu. The Wireless icon is displayed next to the port or VLAN.
	Virtual machine (assigned manually) - right-click a port in the NIC manufacturer's section of the Filters pane (one that is associated with a virtual machine ) and select as Virtual Machine from the Tag submenu. The Virtual Machine icon is displayed next to the OUI and any endpoints that use NICs with that OUI.