[c-nsp] Two Questions - ME3600 ERPS and MSTP

[Eric Van Tol]

Hi all,
I've got two separate questions here that I'm hoping someone can help me with.

First, G.8032 ERPS.  The documentation on this is next to non-existent and the docs that are out there are confusing and littered with inconsistencies, as confirmed by a helpful Cisco rep.  I figured it out well enough in the lab, but I would like to attempt to deploy it in production at some point.  The problem is, I can't find a decent way to do it without blocking all the VLANs on the two ports involved in the ring configuration.  Seeing's how some of our sites do not have console access, is there a specific procedure to go through that will get the ring working without blocking everything and locking me out of the switch?  Would I have to configure a VLAN in an exclusion list on every switch and use that for connectivity during the configuration?  FYI, I've tried following the entry for "Creating a Ring Instance" on this page (http://docwiki.cisco.com/wiki/G.8032_Ethernet_Ring_Protection_%28ERP%29_Administrative_Procedures), but either I don't know how to follow directions or it's not incredibly clear.

Second question is about MSTP and EVCs/EFPs.  In a ring that has EVC-enabled interfaces interconnecting the switches, is it necessary to have an untagged EFP configured around the ring for the passing of MSTP BPDUs, along with the 'l2protocol peer stp' command in the EFP?  My testing has been...inconclusive.  It seems to work with and without it.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
evt