Question 1: a) Compare and contrast between the functionality, pros (advantages) and cons (disadvantages) of Layer 2 (bridging) and

Layer 3 (pure routing) LAN switches. [Note: critical evaluation on which LAN switches suitable to suits organisations requirements can be provided in your answer] functionality in layer 2 and layer 3 : layer 2 : functionality :

1. Address learning - Layer 2 switches retain, in their filter tables, the source hardware address and port interface it was received on. 2. Forward/Filter decisions - When a frame is received, the switch looks at the destination hardware address and finds the interface it is on in the filter table. If the address is unknown, the frame is broadcast on all interfaces except the one it was received on. 3. Loop Avoidance - If multiple connections between switches exist for redundancy, network loops can occur. Spanning Tree Protocol is used to stop loops while still allowing redundancy.
A layer 2 switch is essentially a multiport transparent bridge. A layer 2 switch will learn about MAC addresses connected to each port and passes frames marked for those ports. It also knows that if a frame is sent out a port but is looking for the MAC address of the port it is connected to and drop that frame. Whereas a single CPU Bridge runs in serial, todays hardware based switches run in parallel, translating to extremly fast switching. layer 2 switch operates utilizing Mac addresses in it's caching table to quickly pass information from port to port.

Layer 3 :

Layer 3 switching refers to a class of high-performance routers optimized for the campus LAN or intranet, providing both wirespeed Ethernet routing and switching services. A Layer 3 switch router performs the following three major functions: Packet switching Route processing Intelligent network services

Compared to other routers, Layer 3 switch routers process more packets faster by using applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC) hardware instead of microprocessor-based engines. Layer 3 switch routers also improve network performance with two software functionsroute processing and intelligent network services.
layer 3 switch utilizes IP addresses in it's caching table to quickly pass information from port to port. Layer 3 switching is a hybrid, as one can imagine, of a router and a switch.

Advantages and disadvantages in layer 2 : disadvantages Layer 2 switches have the same limitations as bridge networks. Bridges are good if a network is designed by the 80/20 rule: users spend 80 percent of their time on their local segment. Bridged networks break up collision domains, but the network remains one large

broadcast domain.

Similarly, layer 2 switches (bridges) cannot break up broadcast domains, which can cause performance issues and limits the size of your network. Broadcast and multicasts, along with the slow convergence of

spanning tree, can cause major problems as the network grows. Because of these problems, layer 2 switches cannot completely replace routers in the internetwork.

Advantages Bandwidth Using a technique called microsegmentation, LAN switches provide increased performance for individual users because the switch allocates dedicated bandwidth to each switch port for each network segment. VLANs VLANs are created by LAN switches that group individual ports into logical switched workgroups. Communication between these ports requires a router.