This read-only value, 0 to 255, reports the path cost assigned to this LAN port for the Spanning Tree algorithm, indicating the relative length of the path between this unit's port and the attached LAN, where a higher value is less preferred. It helps the automatic single-route bridge function and Spanning Tree computation choose the shortest, most preferred path through the network. For example, if this object reports a high cost value, the spanning tree algorithm will favor routing traffic through an alternate lower-cost port instead of this one whenever a choice exists.