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How do IP addresses work on Layer 2 switches?

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QUESTION POSED ON: 30 September 2007

How does an IP address work on a Layer 2 switch?

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EXPERT RESPONSE

Layer 2 switches can "read" only Layer 2 information, which means they can understand the source and destination MAC address of a frame, but are unable to process any Layer 3 (IP header) information.

When a Layer 2 switch receives a frame, it will lookup its MAC address table and forward the frame out the correct port, based on the frame's destination MAC address.

Layer 3 switches work in a similar way, but are also able to process Layer 3 information effectively. This means they can perform IP routing between subnets or virtual LANs (VLANs).

For more information:
Read Chris Partsenidis' article on switches and bridges.

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RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS
Terms from Whatis.com − the technology online dictionary
32-bit IP addressing  (SearchNetworking.com)
fixed-length subnet mask  (SearchNetworking.com)
GARP (Generic Attribute Registration Protocol)  (SearchNetworking.com)
route aggregation  (SearchNetworking.com)
route summarization  (SearchNetworking.com)
routing table  (SearchNetworking.com)
subnet  (SearchNetworking.com)
subnet mask  (SearchNetworking.com)
variable-length subnet mask  (SearchNetworking.com)
wildcard mask  (SearchNetworking.com)

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Whatis.com, the online computer dictionary



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