When two MST instances (MST 1 and MST 2) are created on a switch, what is the total number of spanning-tree instances running on the switch?

When two MST instances (MST 1 and MST 2) are created on a switch, what is the total number of spanning-tree instances running on the switch?
A . 1
B . 2
C . 3
D . 4

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Answer: C

Explanation:

Unlike other spanning tree protocols, in which all the spanning tree instances are independent, MST establishes and maintains IST, CIST, and CST spanning trees:

An IST is the spanning tree that runs in an MST region. Within each MST region, MST maintains multiple spanning tree instances. Instance 0 is a special instance for a region, known as the IST. All other MST instances are numbered from 1 to 4094. In the case for this question, there will be the 2 defined MST instances, and the special 0 instance, for a total of 3 instances. The IST is the only spanning tree instance that sends and receives BPDUs. All of the other span- ning tree instance information is contained in MSTP records (M-records), which are encapsu- lated within MST BPDUs. Because the MST BPDU carries information for all instances, the number of BPDUs that need to be processed to support multiple spanning tree instances is signifi- cantly reduced. All MST instances within the same region share the same protocol timers, but each MST in- stance has its own topology parameters, such as root bridge ID, root path cost, and so forth. By default, all VLANs are assigned to the IST. An MST instance is local to the region; for example, MST instance 1 in region A is independent of MST instance 1 in region B, even if regions A and B are interconnected.

A CIST is a collection of the ISTs in each MST region.

The CST interconnects the MST regions and single spanning trees.

Reference: http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/switches/lan/catalyst6500/ios/12- 2SX/configuration/ guide/book/spantree.html