Load Balancing in a Smart Link Group
Smart Link prevents loops in dual-homing networking. However, because only one uplink is active at any given time, the link utilization is only 50%. Smart Link provides the load balancing function to improve link utilization.
In Figure 1, a load balancing instance is configured and associated with VLAN 300 to VLAN 400. Data packets of VLAN 300 to VLAN 400 are forwarded through the backup link of SwitchD. VLAN 100 to VLAN 200 are not associated with the load balancing instance, so packets of these VLANs are forwarded through the primary link. In this way, traffic from different VLANs is shared between the two links, improving link utilization.