Ethernet Switch

An Ethernet switch is a networking device that is used in almost all data networks to provide connectivity for our networking devices. The basic Ethernet switches for home networks and office networks can support up to 4 computers, a printer, and an Internet router. The most common commercial Ethernet switches allow 4 - 8 machines to be linked to the network.

If you are connecting in to an Ethernet switch or networking port on something like a home broadband router then a copper cable will be required to provide the physical medium over which your data communications protocols will run. Before Ethernet Switches, a lot of networks used coaxial cable for local network connections, in a network topology that became known as a bus network. 

The first Ethernet switch was introduced in 1990, by Kalpana, a computer networking equipment manufacturer in Silicon Valley. This article contains What Is an Ethernet Switch? Tips on how to install an Ethernet switch? And Guide on buying best Ethernet switchs.


The two segments are in the same subnet and look like two ethernet switches connected by a cable to all computers on the subnet. Basically the Ethernet Switch is a LAN interconnection device that works as the data link layer of the OSI reference model. Most cables will be found with an RJ-45 modular connector on both ends to facilitate connection to the computer and Ethernet switch.

Ethernet switches have evolved since the first simple devices were introduced, and some have a lot of additional features and support a wide range of ever increasing network protocols. The Hub was eventually replaced by the Ethernet switch as the most common device in Local Area Networks. Prior to the invention of the Ethernet switch, our Ethernet data networks used either Repeaters or Hubs to build Local Area Networks.


An Ethernet switch is used as the connection between the various computers. This feature of Ethernet switches and bridges reduces bandwidth from getting wasted which results from sending the packet to parts of the network which do not need to receive the data. The connection between the various computers in the cluster is typically an Ethernet switch.


With POE technology, Ethernet switch provides current needed to run your handsets over the same data Ethernet connection. There are occasions when you might want to connect two computers or two Ethernet switches together. The older hubs and Ethernet switches used to support half-duplex systems, whereas, now, full-duplex is the preferred option.

Popular D-Link network switches include models like the D-Link 16-Port Gigabit Switch (DGS-1016A) Sixteen (16) 10/100/1000Mbps ports. Aggregated bandwidth of 32Gbps

The bottom line is that white box switches have the prospective to disrupt the customary Ethernet switch market. There are several different Ethernet switches, and found that some are definitely better than other.

A lot of the latest broadband routers use a combination of broadband routers and the Ethernet switch. In the case of the best-selling Cisco 2960 switch, a reliable enterprise-grade Ethernet switch with a lifetime warranty, the quality does come with a price. A brilliant example of unmanaged switches is the NETGEAR 8-Port Gigabit Ethernet Unmanaged Switch which is a high speed Ethernet switch solution.

The rapid advancements in technology mean the Ethernet switch will become more powerful. Normally a Layer 3 Ethernet switch will be more expensive than a comparable Layer 2 device, so it would be an unnecessary expense to employ a Layer 3 switch when a Layer 2 switch would suffice. When purchasing an Ethernet switch, you need to determine what its role will be in the network, and whether or not Layer 3 functions will be required. A Layer 3 Ethernet Switch combines the features and functions of a basic Layer 2 switch, with features normally associated with a Router. The Destination MAC Address is therefore used by the Ethernet Switch to forward data out of the correct port to reach the correct physical interface.

When a data frame enters through a port on a switch, the Ethernet Switch reads the Source MAC Address and adds that address to a MAC Address Table.

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