Routing And Switching Questions Medium
A switch is a networking device that operates at the data link layer (Layer 2) of the OSI model. Its primary role in a network is to connect multiple devices together within a local area network (LAN) and facilitate the communication between these devices.
Switches receive data packets from connected devices and use the destination MAC address in the packet header to determine the appropriate port to forward the packet to. This process is known as switching, where the switch builds a table called a MAC address table or CAM table that maps MAC addresses to specific ports. By doing so, switches can efficiently transmit data only to the intended recipient, reducing network congestion and improving overall network performance.
Additionally, switches can also support various features such as VLANs (Virtual Local Area Networks), which allow for logical segmentation of the network, and Quality of Service (QoS) mechanisms, which prioritize certain types of traffic over others. These features enable better network management, security, and optimization.
In summary, a switch acts as a central point of connectivity in a network, facilitating the efficient and secure transmission of data between connected devices.