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network switch

By Kinza Yasar

What is a network switch?

A network switch connects devices in a network to each other, enabling them to talk by exchanging data packets. Switches can be hardware devices that manage physical networks or software-based virtual devices.

A network switch operates on the data-link layer, or Layer 2, of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. In a local area network (LAN) using Ethernet, a network switch determines where to send each incoming message frame by looking at the media access control (MAC) address. Switches maintain tables that match each MAC address to the port receiving the MAC address.

Why are network switches valuable?

Switches are responsible for relaying information between different endpoints and offer a plethora of benefits:

How does a network switch work?

All switches transmit data from one location to another, but their hardware and software configurations can vary greatly. A network switch can be deployed in the following ways:

A data frame is flooded to all ports in the switching domain if it is forwarded to a MAC address that the switch infrastructure is not familiar with. Data frames for multicast and broadcast are also flooded. This is known as broadcast, unknown unicast and multicast flooding. This capability makes a switch a Layer 2 device in the OSI communications model.

Many data centers adopt a spine-leaf architecture, which eliminates the aggregation layer. In this design, servers and storage connect to leaf switches (edge switches). Every leaf switch connects into two or more spine (core) switches. This reduces the number of hops data takes to get from source to destination, therefore reducing latency.

Some data centers establish a fabric or mesh network design that makes every device appear to be on a single, large switch. This approach reduces latency to its minimum. High-demanding applications that use high-performance computing (HPC) often use this approach.

For small business and home networking, network switches provide the benefit of additional Ethernet ports for connecting to Gigabit Ethernet.

Not all networks use switches, however. A network might be organized in a token ring or connected via a bus, hub or repeater. In these networks, every network-connected device sees all traffic and reads the traffic addressed to it. A network can also be established by directly connecting computers to one another without a separate layer of network devices. This approach is mostly for HPC, which requires sub-5-microsecond latencies and is quite complex to design, wire and manage.

What are the types of switches?

There are several types of switches in networking:

How to set up a network switch

Depending on the type of network, different types of switches can be used. For a small office LAN or a home network, a network switch is typically plugged into one of the ports on a router. A switch expands the number of wired internet-connected devices in a small network, including desktops, laptops and printers.

The typical steps involved in setting up a network switch are the following:

  1. The switch is purchased based on the needs and requirements of the network.
  2. The port on the switch is connected to the router using a straight-through cable. Most switches contain uplink ports, which are used for connecting to devices such as routers. However, if an uplink port is not present on a switch, any port can be used to connect to the router.
  3. Once the switch is physically connected to the router, the IP addresses of the devices are configured.

What are different uses of network switches?

A switch plays a crucial role in delivering internet connectivity and network communication across a network.

The following are the various use cases of network switches:

Network switch vs. router

Network switches can be easily confused with routers. However, they have different functions and operate on separate layers.

Here are the main differences between a switch and a router:

Network switch vs. hub

Here are the main differences between a switch and a hub:

Network components, such as switches, routers and hubs, all send data in different ways. Learn about the primary characteristics and distinctions of each of the three devices.

07 Mar 2023

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