What does LACP stand for in networking?

LACP stands for Link Aggregation Control Protocol. This protocol is utilized in networking to combine multiple physical links into a single logical link. By doing so, LACP enhances bandwidth and provides redundancy; if one of the links fails, traffic can continue to flow through the remaining active links without interruption. LACP is defined in the IEEE 802.3ad standard and is primarily used in Ethernet networks to help manage traffic while ensuring efficient utilization of bandwidth.

The importance of LACP lies in its ability to offer load balancing and fault tolerance, which are critical in maintaining network performance and reliability. Each protocol option, aside from Link Aggregation Control Protocol, describes different concepts that are not associated with link aggregation in networking.