38

MAC Table

This chapter introduces the MAC Table.

38.1 Introduction to MAC Table

The MAC table lists device MAC addresses that are dynamically learned by the IES-612-51A. The table shows the following for each MAC address: the port upon which Ethernet frames were received from the device, to which VLAN groups the device belongs (if any) and to which channel it is connected (for devices connected to DSL ports).

The device uses the MAC table to determine how to forward frames. See the following figure.

Figure 126 MAC Table Filtering Flowchart

1The device examines a received frame and learns the port on which this source MAC address came.

2The device checks to see if the frame's destination MAC address matches a source MAC address already learned in the MAC table.

•If the device has already learned the port for this MAC address, then it forwards the frame to that port.

•If the device has not already learned the port for this MAC address, then the frame is flooded to all ports. Too much port flooding leads to network congestion.

 

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IES-612-51A User’s Guide