- A network switch is a small hardware device that links multiple computers together within one local area network, wide area network and different network topology.
- Network switches work at Data Link Layer of OSI model.
- Network switch forwards data only to one or multiple devices that need to receive it.
- Some switches can also process data at the network layer 3 by additionally incorporating routing functionality that most commonly uses IP addresses to perform packet forwarding that is called multi-layer switches.
Types of Switches:
1. Unmanaged Network Switch:
- These switches have no configuration interface.
- They are typically least expensive switches.
- They are used in a small office and home environment.
- These can be desktop or rack mounted.
2. Managed Network Switch:
- These switches have one or more methods to modify the operation of the switch.
Smart Switches:
- These are managed switches with a limited set of management features.
- These switches are used as middle product which provides offering between a unmanaged and managed switch.
- price much lower than the fully managed switch.
- They provide a web interface and allow configuration of basic settings , such as VLANs, Port bandwidth and duplex.
Fully Managed Switches:
- These have a full set of management features, including CLI, SNMP agent, and Web interface.
- They may have additional features to manipulate configurations, such as ability to display, modify, backup and restore configurations.
- A stackable switch is a version of enterprise managed switch.
Features:
- Turn particular port range on or off.
- Link bandwidth and duplex settings.
- Priority setting for ports.
- Creating VLANs can serve security and performance goals by reducing the size of the broadcast domain.
Advantages:
- Switches increase network bandwidth.
- Reduce the workload on individual computers.
- Increase network performance.
- Switches connect directly to workstations.
Disadvantages:
- Significantly more expensive than bridges.
- Broadcast traffic may be trouble.
- Network connectivity problems can be difficult to trace through switches.
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