Explain the process of VLAN trunking.

VLAN trunking is the process of carrying multiple VLANs over a single physical link between switches. It allows for the efficient utilization of network resources by enabling the transmission of traffic from multiple VLANs across a single connection.

The process of VLAN trunking involves the use of a trunking protocol, such as IEEE 802.1Q or ISL (Inter-Switch Link), to encapsulate VLAN information within Ethernet frames. This encapsulation adds a VLAN tag to each frame, indicating the VLAN to which the frame belongs.

On the sending switch, the VLAN trunking protocol adds the VLAN tag to the frames before they are transmitted over the trunk link. On the receiving switch, the VLAN trunking protocol removes the VLAN tag and forwards the frames to the appropriate VLAN based on the VLAN ID.

VLAN trunking allows for the segregation and isolation of traffic between different VLANs, while still allowing them to communicate with each other over the trunk link. It also enables the efficient use of network bandwidth by consolidating multiple VLANs onto a single physical link.

Overall, VLAN trunking is a crucial process in network design and implementation, as it facilitates the flexible and efficient management of VLANs in a switched network environment.