CHAPTER 7 Layer 2 Switching.ppt

CHAPTER 7: Layer 2 Switching Objectives Understand Switching vs Routing Distinguish between Switching and Bridging Explain how switches make forwarding decisions Describe the STP algorithm Explain the types of LAN Switching Basic switch configuration Layer 2 Switching Purposes for using switching Breaks up collision domains Security through VLAN implementation Cost-effective, resilient internetwork Purpose for Spanning-Tree Protocol (STP) Stops loops in layer 2 switched networks Before Layer 2 Switching Switched LANs Typical Switched Designs Switching Services Layer 2 switching provides: Hardware-based bridging (ASIC) Wire speed Low latency Low cost Broadcast and Collision Domains Layer 2 Switching Considerations Must break up the collision domains correctly. Make sure that users spend 80 percent of their time on the local segment. Switches do not break up broadcast domains by default. Bridging vs. LAN Switching Bridges are software based, switches are hardware based (they use ASIC chips) Switches have higher # of ports Both forward broadcasts Both learn MAC addresses by examining Source Address header Both make forwarding decisions based on layer-2 addresses – Destination MAC address A Tricky Point Bridged (switched) networks break up collision domains, but remember, the network is still one large broadcast domain Some major grief as your network grows: Broadcasts and multicasts Slow convergence time of spanning trees That’s why layer-2 switches bridges cannot completely replace routers (layer-3 devices) Switch Functions Learning and Forwarding Address Learning Layer-2 switches and bridges remember the source hardware address of each frame received on an interface they enter this information into a MAC database called a forward/filter table Forward/filter decisions When a frame is received on an interface the switch looks at the destination hardware address finds the exit interface in the MAC database the frame is forwarded out only the specified dest