Thread: Switch Layers
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Old 06-22-2006, 06:40 PM
Innovative2001
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Layer 2 switch only inspects the Ethernet frame (i.e. MAC source/dest address) when 'routing' traffic to other ports. Suitable for connecting devices in a LAN. Layer 2 work on Data Link Layer.

Layer 3 switch inspects IP header (i.e. IP source/dest address) to determine routing. Suitable for connecting a larger network to segment traffic between LANs. More expensive and difficult to configure than Layer 2 switch. Layer 3 on Network Layer.

A switch works with MAC addresses at layer 2 of the OSI 7 layer model, and a router works with IP addresses at layer 3 of the model.

Thanks
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