3. *Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP)*
**Purpose**: LACP is a protocol used to combine multiple physical network links into a single logical link, increasing bandwidth and providing redundancy. It's part of the IEEE 802.3ad standard.
**How it works**: LACP allows for the dynamic creation of "aggregated" links between switches. It ensures that traffic is distributed across the multiple links in the bundle, balancing load and providing fault tolerance in case one link goes down.
**Key Features**:
Supports automatic link negotiation.
If a link in the aggregation fails, the traffic is automatically redistributed across the remaining active links.
Can help improve bandwidth and network reliability.