Switching

Switching is a method of transferring data from one computer network to another. Messages are sent over the network of transmission media when a person accesses the internet or another computer network from outside their immediate location.

Switches are used to perform switching in a computer network. A switch is a small piece of technology that connects several computers to a single local area network (LAN).

• In the OSI model, network switches function at layer 2 (Data link layer).
• Switching is transparent to users and does not require any configuration to the home network.
• Packets are forwarded using switches based on MAC addresses.
• A switch is used to only send data to the device that has been given the address.
  It checks the destination address to ensure that the packet is routed correctly.
• It’s set up to work in full-duplex mode.
• Because it interacts directly between source and destination, packet collisions are rare.
• Because of the limited bandwidth, it does not broadcast the message.

The switching concept is created for the following reasons:

• Bandwidth: The maximum transfer rate of a cable is known as bandwidth. It is a very important and costly resource.
  As a result, switching strategies are utilized to make the best use of a network’s bandwidth.
• Collision: Collision is the effect that occurs when multiple devices send the same message over the same physical medium and clash. To solve this problem, switching technology is used to prevent packets from colliding with one another.

Advantages of Switching:

• The switch expands the network’s bandwidth.
• It decreases the amount of work that individual PCs have to do because it only transmits information to the device that has been designated.
• It improves the network’s overall performance by lowering traffic on the network.
• Because the switch provides a collision domain for each connection, there will be fewer frame collisions.

Disadvantages of Switching:

• A switch costs more than a network bridge.
• The network connectivity issues cannot be easily determined by a switch.
• To handle multicast packets, the switch must be properly designed and configured.