September 1985
Radia Perlman publishes spanning tree protocol
Radia Perlman's spanning tree protocol was published in September 1985 in ACM SIGCOMM Computer Communication Review — keeping EthernetA wired local networking standard — the dominant way offices and homes connect devices to a LAN. networks loop-free and becoming the basis for IEEEInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers — a professional body that publishes many technical standards. 802.1D.
What it was for
STP runs in virtually every enterprise switch and datacenter — invisible infrastructure developers depend on when deploying services. Perlman is often called the 'mother of the internet' for bridging and routing contributions.
People
- Radia Perlman — researcher
Why it's here
Spanning tree is foundational networking math behind every LANLocal area network — a network covering a building or campus, as opposed to wide-area links..
Why it mattered
It prevented broadcast storms in redundant EthernetA wired local networking standard — the dominant way offices and homes connect devices to a LAN. topologies.
What it solved
Redundant network links caused loops without an automatic disabling algorithm.
Media
ImageRadia PerlmanScientist-100 at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons