Switching Technology, Benefits of Switching

10/100 Fast Ethernet Switch User’s Guide

Switching Technology

Switching is fast becoming the industry standard for pushing the limits of existing Ethernet networks. A switch bridges Ethernet packets between Ethernet and Fast Ethernet LAN segments at the MAC address level of the Ethernet protocol.

The difference between switched Ethernet (10Mbps, 100Mbps, or both) and traditional Ethernet is analogous to the difference between a private phone line and a party line. With switched Ethernet, each workgroup has a “private line” so that transmitted packets don’t have to wait as long to gain access to the network. When connected to a switched port, each Ethernet segment has full “wire-speed” access, so a switch effectively divides a single Ethernet LAN into bridged multiple LAN segments. Each segment can support a workgroup or even provide a dedicated connection for a key workstation or server. The result of dividing an Ethernet LAN into multiple segments is a multiplication of internal bandwidth available to all stations on the LAN and a reduction in latency rates during peak-use periods.

Benefits of Switching

Ethernet switching technology drastically increases the total bandwidth of a LAN. It also provides configuration flexibility to local workgroups which allows the network administrator to better control how network resources are distributed against network load. Switching helps reduce the congestion problems inherent in the contention-oriented CSMA/CD protocol, thereby improving network response during high utilization periods.

Also, currently popular distributed client/server applications often require higher bandwidth and tighter client-to-server integration. Legacy 10Mbps Ethernet often is unable to provide a sufficiently sophisticated platform for users to be able to take full advantage of such client/server applications.

Fast Ethernet switching not only satisfies both technical and business needs, it also preserves the current investment in the huge 10BASE-T Ethernet

Overview