An enterprise has high-bandwidth multicast sources and occasional receivers. To minimize PIM Register traffic across the network when sources start sending, where is the best place to locate the RP?

Placing the Rendezvous Point (RP) near the multicast sources minimizes PIM Register traffic. When a source starts sending, its Designated Router (DR) encapsulates the first few multicast packets in a PIM Register message and sends them to the RP. If the RP is close to the source, this Register traffic is localized to that segment of the network, preventing it from traversing the entire network. This is crucial for high-bandwidth sources to avoid congesting links with unnecessary Register messages. While receivers eventually join the shortest path tree (SPT) directly from the source, the initial Register process benefits from RP proximity to the source. Placing the RP near receivers or equidistant from both does not offer the same benefit for initial source registration. A distribution switch performing only IGMP queries is not a suitable location for an RP, which requires full PIM functionality.