kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013
(Main)Environmental Engineering (EE) - Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment
- Abstract
Write a deliverables contains methods for power consumption measurement, efficiency indicator. The document should be in line with similar published document from NIPP TEE especially on measurement methods
- Status
- Not Published
- Technical Committee
- SPN - Services and Protocols for Networks
- Current Stage
- 5020 - Formal vote (FV) (Adopted Project)
- Start Date
- 04-Apr-2013
- Due Date
- 23-May-2013
- Completion Date
- 16-Jul-2013
Buy Documents
ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03) - Environmental Engineering (EE); Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment
ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05) - Environmental Engineering (EE); Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is the SIST reference for ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1, an Environmental Engineering standard from ETSI Technical Committee EE. It specifies how to measure power consumption and calculate the Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio (EEER) for router and Ethernet switch equipment, using defined test conditions, traffic loads and configuration rules.
What does kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 specify?
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 specifies the methodology and test conditions for measuring the power consumption of router and switch equipment. It applies to core, edge and access routers, and it excludes home gateways.
The document is organized into scope, references, definitions and abbreviations, equipment classification, EEER definitions, measurement methods, and history. Clause 4 separates routers and switches by their network role, Clause 5 defines the efficiency metric, and Clause 6 gives the test method and an alternative calculation method.
What are the key requirements of kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013?
Measurement conditions and instruments
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 requires laboratory testing under controlled ambient conditions, fixed supply voltages, and calibrated instruments. This matters because the result depends on temperature, humidity, supply stability and measurement accuracy.
For DC-powered equipment, the test voltage is tied to the nominal -48 V DC interface defined by EN 300 132-2. For AC-powered equipment, the test uses 230 V AC at 50 Hz. Power sources must be able to supply at least 1.5 times the equipment rating, and the power meter must have at least 0.5 % resolution. For AC measurements, the instrument also needs sufficient sample rate, bandwidth and tolerance for waveforms with high peak-to-average ratio.
Equipment configuration and traffic setup
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 requires the equipment under test to be configured in either aggregation mode or core mode, with the traffic pattern chosen to match the intended use. In practice, this means the test configuration should reflect how the router or switch is actually deployed.
All redundancies must be installed and active. PoE power modules are disabled, optical ports use 10 km optical modules for FE, GE and 10 GE, and electrical ports are used for electrical and optical multiplexing ports. The traffic model uses a Simple IMIX mix, and the maximum data rate is the maximum NDR supported by the equipment, not the sum of all port bandwidths.
Power, throughput and EEER calculation
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 defines EEER as throughput forwarded per watt, with higher values indicating better energy efficiency. The calculation combines weighted throughput and weighted power, so the reported value reflects performance at several traffic levels instead of one point only.
For core equipment, the test uses 100 %, 30 % and 0 % traffic loads. For edge/access equipment, it uses 100 %, 10 % and 0 % traffic loads, with 10 % represented by a burst pattern and 0 % meaning linked ports ready to pass traffic. The procedure includes stabilization, capacity measurement, 5-minute average power readings at each load, weighted power calculation, and final EEER calculation.
Alternative measurement method
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 also gives an alternative method for modular systems with different service boards. It measures a base configuration and then estimates the contribution of each service board and the common system. This reduces test time and equipment needs, but a direct measurement on a defined configuration takes precedence if there is a dispute.
What terms does kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 define?
- EEER (Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio) - The throughput forwarded per watt, expressed in Gbps/Watt.
- EUT (Equipment Under Test) - The router or switch being measured.
- IMIX (Internet MIX traffic) - The traffic mix used in the test setup.
- NDR (Non Drop Rate) - The maximum data rate the equipment can carry without packet loss.
- aggregation mode - A mode where a few high-bandwidth ports act as uplinks and most ports are user ports.
- core mode - A mode where all ports are treated similarly and can communicate with one another.
- PoE (Power over Ethernet) - A power-delivery function that is disabled during the test.
- QoS (Quality of Service) - A traffic-handling function associated with buffering and traffic engineering.
Who uses kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013?
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is used by equipment manufacturers, test laboratories, and engineers who need a repeatable method for energy-efficiency measurement. It is also useful for quality managers and procurement teams comparing router and switch products on a consistent basis.
Operators can use it to assess equipment in core, edge and access roles, while design teams can use it when setting up configurations, redundancy, traffic loads and reporting for energy-efficiency data.
Which standards are used with kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013?
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 relies on two normative ATIS documents and one informative ETSI document.
- ATIS-0600015.03.2009 - Gives the methodology and reporting rules for router and Ethernet switch requirements.
- ATIS-0600015.2009 - Provides the general measurement and reporting requirements used by the procedure.
- ETSI EN 300 132-2 - Supplies the -48 V DC power interface conditions referenced for DC-powered equipment.
What does the kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 document contain?
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 contains the classification of router and switch equipment, the EEER definitions, and the measurement workflow used to obtain power and throughput data. It includes the test conditions, the configuration rules, and the traffic and load model used for the calculations.
The document also contains Figure 1 and Figure 2 for aggregation mode and core mode, Table 1 for load weighting, and Table 2 for the Simple IMIX traffic model. Clause 6 lays out the step-by-step procedure for stabilization, capacity measurement, power measurement, weighted power calculation and EEER calculation, plus an alternative board-based method for modular systems.
Buy Documents
ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03) - Environmental Engineering (EE); Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment
ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05) - Environmental Engineering (EE); Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment
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Frequently Asked Questions
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is a standard published by the Slovenian Institute for Standardization (SIST). Its full title is "Environmental Engineering (EE) - Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and switch equipment". This standard covers: Write a deliverables contains methods for power consumption measurement, efficiency indicator. The document should be in line with similar published document from NIPP TEE especially on measurement methods
Write a deliverables contains methods for power consumption measurement, efficiency indicator. The document should be in line with similar published document from NIPP TEE especially on measurement methods
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is classified under the following ICS (International Classification for Standards) categories: 19.040 - Environmental testing; 27.015 - Energy efficiency. Energy conservation in general; 33.040.01 - Telecommunication systems in general. The ICS classification helps identify the subject area and facilitates finding related standards.
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is associated with the following European legislation: Standardization Mandates: M/462, M/495. When a standard is cited in the Official Journal of the European Union, products manufactured in conformity with it benefit from a presumption of conformity with the essential requirements of the corresponding EU directive or regulation.
kSIST prES 203 136 V1.1.1:2013 is available in PDF format for immediate download after purchase. The document can be added to your cart and obtained through the secure checkout process. Digital delivery ensures instant access to the complete standard document.
Standards Content (Sample)
Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
ETSI Standard
Environmental Engineering (EE);
Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and
switch equipment
2 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
Reference
DES/EE-00024
Keywords
configuration, EEER, router, switch
ETSI
650 Route des Lucioles
F-06921 Sophia Antipolis Cedex - FRANCE
Tel.: +33 4 92 94 42 00 Fax: +33 4 93 65 47 16
Siret N° 348 623 562 00017 - NAF 742 C
Association à but non lucratif enregistrée à la
Sous-Préfecture de Grasse (06) N° 7803/88
Important notice
Individual copies of the present document can be downloaded from:
http://www.etsi.org
The present document may be made available in more than one electronic version or in print. In any case of existing or
perceived difference in contents between such versions, the reference version is the Portable Document Format (PDF).
In case of dispute, the reference shall be the printing on ETSI printers of the PDF version kept on a specific network drive
within ETSI Secretariat.
Users of the present document should be aware that the document may be subject to revision or change of status.
Information on the current status of this and other ETSI documents is available at
http://portal.etsi.org/tb/status/status.asp
If you find errors in the present document, please send your comment to one of the following services:
http://portal.etsi.org/chaircor/ETSI_support.asp
Copyright Notification
No part may be reproduced except as authorized by written permission.
The copyright and the foregoing restriction extend to reproduction in all media.
© European Telecommunications Standards Institute 2013.
All rights reserved.
TM TM TM
DECT , PLUGTESTS , UMTS and the ETSI logo are Trade Marks of ETSI registered for the benefit of its Members.
TM
3GPP and LTE™ are Trade Marks of ETSI registered for the benefit of its Members and
of the 3GPP Organizational Partners.
GSM® and the GSM logo are Trade Marks registered and owned by the GSM Association.
ETSI
3 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
Contents
Intellectual Property Rights . 4
Foreword . 4
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 References . 5
2.1 Normative references . 5
2.2 Informative references . 5
3 Definitions and abbreviations . 5
3.1 Definitions . 5
3.2 Abbreviations . 6
4 Equipment Classification . 6
4.1 Router . 6
4.2 Switch . 7
5 Definitions of the Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio for Router and Switch . 7
6 Measurement Methods . 10
6.1 Measurement conditions . 10
6.2 Equipment Configuration . 10
6.3 Measurement Procedures . 11
6.4 Alternative Measurement Method . 12
History . 14
ETSI
4 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
Intellectual Property Rights
IPRs essential or potentially essential to the present document may have been declared to ETSI. The information
pertaining to these essential IPRs, if any, is publicly available for ETSI members and non-members, and can be found
in ETSI SR 000 314: "Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs); Essential, or potentially Essential, IPRs notified to ETSI in
respect of ETSI standards", which is available from the ETSI Secretariat. Latest updates are available on the ETSI Web
server (http://ipr.etsi.org).
Pursuant to the ETSI IPR Policy, no investigation, including IPR searches, has been carried out by ETSI. No guarantee
can be given as to the existence of other IPRs not referenced in ETSI SR 000 314 (or the updates on the ETSI Web
server) which are, or may be, or may become, essential to the present document.
Foreword
This final draft ETSI Standard (ES) has been produced by ETSI Technical Committee Environmental Engineering (EE),
and is now submitted for the ETSI standards Membership Approval Procedure.
Introduction
The present document defines the energy consumption metrics and measurement methods for router and Ethernet
switch equipment.
ETSI
5 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
1 Scope
The present document defines, the methodology and the test conditions to measure the power consumption of router and
switch equipment.
The present document is applicable to Core, edge and access routers.
Home gateways are not included in the present document.
2 References
References are either specific (identified by date of publication and/or edition number or version number) or
non-specific. For specific references, only the cited version applies. For non-specific references, the latest version of the
reference document (including any amendments) applies.
Referenced documents which are not found to be publicly available in the expected location might be found at
http://docbox.etsi.org/Reference.
NOTE: While any hyperlinks included in this clause were valid at the time of publication, ETSI cannot guarantee
their long term validity.
2.1 Normative references
The following referenced documents are necessary for the application of the present document.
[1] ATIS-0600015.03.2009: "Energy Efficiency for Telecommunication Equipment: Methodology for
Measurement and Reporting for Router and Ethernet Switch Requirements".
[2] ATIS-0600015.2009: "Energy Efficiency for Telecommunication Equipment: Methodology for
Measurement and Reporting General Requirements".
2.2 Informative references
The following referenced documents are not necessary for the application of the present document but they assist the
user with regard to a particular subject area.
[i.1] ETSI EN 300 132-2: "Environmental Engineering (EE); Power supply interface at the input to
telecommunications and datacom (ICT) equipment; Part 2: Operated by -48 V direct current (dc)".
3 Definitions and abbreviations
3.1 Definitions
For the purposes of the present document, the following terms and definitions apply:
aggregation mode: mode in which, a few (typically higher bandwidth) ports on the equipment are considered UPLINK
ports; while majority (typically lower bandwidth) ports are considered user ports
NOTE: In this configuration the data flow is strictly from user ports to uplink ports and vice versa. User ports do
not communicate with each other through this equipment.
core mode: mode in which all ports are considered similar and have similar bandwidth
NOTE: In this configuration the data flow is so that each port communicate with one another.
ETSI
6 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
maximum configuration: configuration with maximum capacity whole slots of the equipment are configured with
maximum interface bandwidth line cards, all of the interfaces can work at the maximum data rate
3.2 Abbreviations
For the purposes of the present document, the following abbreviations apply:
AC Alternating Current
ATM Asynchronous Transfer Mode
DC Direct Current
EE Energy Efficiency
EEER Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio
EER Energy Efficiency Rating
EUT Equipment Under Test
FDDI Fibre Distributed Data Interface
FE Fast Ethernet
GE Giga Ethernet
IMIX Internet MIX traffic
IP Internet Protocol
MPU Main Processing Unit
NDR Non Drop Rate
OSI Open System Interconnection Reference
PAR Peak to Average Ratio
PoE Power other Ethernet
QoS Quality of Service
4 Equipment Classification
4.1 Router
Routers are typical packet switching equipment running at the network layer of OSI layer 3. The router selects the
optimal route according to the destination address of the received packet through a network and forwards the packet to
the next router. The last router is responsible for sending the packet to the destination host.
Routers connect different physical networks and manually configure and run standard protocols to obtain the
information of each subnet such as label, number of devices, names and addresses, etc. and thus generate and maintain a
live forwarding routing table. Based on this table, each IP packet passing these routers will be assigned an optimal path
according to the longest matching rules and be forwarded to the right path, if the path searching of the packet fails, this
packet will be abandoned.
The router can connect two or more independent and flexible logical networks using different data packets method and
media access method. Routers have not any requirements for hardware in each subnet but shall run the software using
the same network layer protocol.
In light of the router different application scenarios, it can be classified into core routers, service routers, broadband
access routers, and aggregation routers (Core, Edge, access routers in ATIS 0600015.03.2009 [1] classification).
Routers have the following typical features:
1) Provide multiple protocols on network layer to connect different types of networks.
2) Provide multiple types of interfaces so as to realize the conversion between the packets with different
encapsulations and transmission across different networks.
3) Support packet fragmentation and reassembly.
4) Provide large-scale packet buffers so as to support QoS and traffic engineering.
5) Provide large-scale routing tables and support large-scale Layer 3 services within intra-networks or
inter-networks.
ETSI
7 Final draft ETSI ES 203 136 V1.0.0 (2013-03)
4.2 Switch
Switches generally refer to equipments that exchange information in a communications system. They include Ethernet
switches, ATM switches, FDDI switches, and token ring switches, Ethernet switch is widely used because of fast
development of Ethernet technologies and its low costs, therefore, switches in the present document refer to Ethernet
switches.
Switches are typical packet switching devices at the data link layer of OSI layer 2. Based on the destination data link
layer addresses in the Layer 2 switching tables, each received packet, will be assigned an optimal path according to the
accurate matching rule and be forwarded to the right path, if the path searching of the packet fails, this packet will be
sent to the broadcast domain to which it belongs. The Layer 2 switching table is generated by switch network
self-learning.
The main function of switches is packet switching at the data link layer, but with the development of network
technologies, the relationship between network hierarchy and hardware equipment has become ambiguous, it is not
limited to Layer 2 services, the routing function is also integrated into most switches to support Layer 3 services, if the
path searching of packets entering the switch fails in Layer 2, then it will be delivered to the routing module for path
searching and forwarding in Layer 3. For example, some high-level switches also have the routing function, the little
differences between switch and router lie in routing items and performance specifications.
Swi
...
ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
ETSI Standard
Environmental Engineering (EE);
Measurement methods for energy efficiency of router and
switch equipment
2 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
Reference
DES/EE-00024
Keywords
configuration, EEER, router, switch
ETSI
650 Route des Lucioles
F-06921 Sophia Antipolis Cedex - FRANCE
Tel.: +33 4 92 94 42 00 Fax: +33 4 93 65 47 16
Siret N° 348 623 562 00017 - NAF 742 C
Association à but non lucratif enregistrée à la
Sous-Préfecture de Grasse (06) N° 7803/88
Important notice
Individual copies of the present document can be downloaded from:
http://www.etsi.org
The present document may be made available in more than one electronic version or in print. In any case of existing or
perceived difference in contents between such versions, the reference version is the Portable Document Format (PDF).
In case of dispute, the reference shall be the printing on ETSI printers of the PDF version kept on a specific network drive
within ETSI Secretariat.
Users of the present document should be aware that the document may be subject to revision or change of status.
Information on the current status of this and other ETSI documents is available at
http://portal.etsi.org/tb/status/status.asp
If you find errors in the present document, please send your comment to one of the following services:
http://portal.etsi.org/chaircor/ETSI_support.asp
Copyright Notification
No part may be reproduced except as authorized by written permission.
The copyright and the foregoing restriction extend to reproduction in all media.
© European Telecommunications Standards Institute 2013.
All rights reserved.
TM TM TM
DECT , PLUGTESTS , UMTS and the ETSI logo are Trade Marks of ETSI registered for the benefit of its Members.
TM
3GPP and LTE™ are Trade Marks of ETSI registered for the benefit of its Members and
of the 3GPP Organizational Partners.
GSM® and the GSM logo are Trade Marks registered and owned by the GSM Association.
ETSI
3 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
Contents
Intellectual Property Rights . 4
Foreword . 4
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 References . 5
2.1 Normative references . 5
2.2 Informative references . 5
3 Definitions and abbreviations . 5
3.1 Definitions . 5
3.2 Abbreviations . 6
4 Equipment Classification . 6
4.1 Router . 6
4.2 Switch . 7
5 Definitions of the Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio for Router and Switch . 7
6 Measurement Methods . 10
6.1 Measurement conditions . 10
6.2 Equipment Configuration . 10
6.3 Measurement Procedures . 11
6.4 Alternative Measurement Method . 12
History . 14
ETSI
4 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
Intellectual Property Rights
IPRs essential or potentially essential to the present document may have been declared to ETSI. The information
pertaining to these essential IPRs, if any, is publicly available for ETSI members and non-members, and can be found
in ETSI SR 000 314: "Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs); Essential, or potentially Essential, IPRs notified to ETSI in
respect of ETSI standards", which is available from the ETSI Secretariat. Latest updates are available on the ETSI Web
server (http://ipr.etsi.org).
Pursuant to the ETSI IPR Policy, no investigation, including IPR searches, has been carried out by ETSI. No guarantee
can be given as to the existence of other IPRs not referenced in ETSI SR 000 314 (or the updates on the ETSI Web
server) which are, or may be, or may become, essential to the present document.
Foreword
This ETSI Standard (ES) has been produced by ETSI Technical Committee Environmental Engineering (EE).
Introduction
The present document defines the energy consumption metrics and measurement methods for router and Ethernet
switch equipment.
ETSI
5 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
1 Scope
The present document defines the methodology and the test conditions to measure the power consumption of router and
switch equipment.
The present document is applicable to Core, edge and access routers.
Home gateways are not included in the present document.
2 References
References are either specific (identified by date of publication and/or edition number or version number) or
non-specific. For specific references, only the cited version applies. For non-specific references, the latest version of the
reference document (including any amendments) applies.
Referenced documents which are not found to be publicly available in the expected location might be found at
http://docbox.etsi.org/Reference.
NOTE: While any hyperlinks included in this clause were valid at the time of publication, ETSI cannot guarantee
their long term validity.
2.1 Normative references
The following referenced documents are necessary for the application of the present document.
[1] ATIS-0600015.03.2009: "Energy Efficiency for Telecommunication Equipment: Methodology for
Measurement and Reporting for Router and Ethernet Switch Requirements".
[2] ATIS-0600015.2009: "Energy Efficiency for Telecommunication Equipment: Methodology for
Measurement and Reporting General Requirements".
2.2 Informative references
The following referenced documents are not necessary for the application of the present document but they assist the
user with regard to a particular subject area.
[i.1] ETSI EN 300 132-2: "Environmental Engineering (EE); Power supply interface at the input to
telecommunications and datacom (ICT) equipment; Part 2: Operated by -48 V direct current (dc)".
3 Definitions and abbreviations
3.1 Definitions
For the purposes of the present document, the following terms and definitions apply:
aggregation mode: mode in which, a few (typically higher bandwidth) ports on the equipment are considered UPLINK
ports; while majority (typically lower bandwidth) ports are considered user ports
NOTE: In this configuration the data flow is strictly from user ports to uplink ports and vice versa. User ports do
not communicate with each other through this equipment.
core mode: mode in which all ports are considered similar and have similar bandwidth
NOTE: In this configuration the data flow is so that each port communicate with one another.
ETSI
6 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
maximum configuration: configuration with maximum capacity whole slots of the equipment are configured with
maximum interface bandwidth line cards, all of the interfaces can work at the maximum data rate
3.2 Abbreviations
For the purposes of the present document, the following abbreviations apply:
AC Alternating Current
ATM Asynchronous Transfer Mode
DC Direct Current
EE Energy Efficiency
EEER Equipment Energy Efficiency Ratio
EER Energy Efficiency Rating
EUT Equipment Under Test
FDDI Fibre Distributed Data Interface
FE Fast Ethernet
GE Giga Ethernet
IMIX Internet MIX traffic
IP Internet Protocol
MPU Main Processing Unit
NDR Non Drop Rate
OSI Open System Interconnection Reference
PAR Peak to Average Ratio
PoE Power other Ethernet
QoS Quality of Service
4 Equipment Classification
4.1 Router
Routers are typical packet switching equipment running at the network layer of OSI layer 3. The router selects the
optimal route according to the destination address of the received packet through a network and forwards the packet to
the next router. The last router is responsible for sending the packet to the destination host.
Routers connect different physical networks and manually configure and run standard protocols to obtain the
information of each subnet such as label, number of devices, names and addresses, etc. and thus generate and maintain a
live forwarding routing table. Based on this table, each IP packet passing these routers will be assigned an optimal path
according to the longest matching rules and be forwarded to the right path, if the path searching of the packet fails, this
packet will be abandoned.
The router can connect two or more independent and flexible logical networks using different data packets method and
media access method. Routers have not any requirements for hardware in each subnet but shall run the software using
the same network layer protocol.
In light of the router different application scenarios, it can be classified into core routers, service routers, broadband
access routers, and aggregation routers (Core, Edge, access routers in ATIS 0600015.03.2009 [1] classification).
Routers have the following typical features:
1) Provide multiple protocols on network layer to connect different types of networks.
2) Provide multiple types of interfaces so as to realize the conversion between the packets with different
encapsulations and transmission across different networks.
3) Support packet fragmentation and reassembly.
4) Provide large-scale packet buffers so as to support QoS and traffic engineering.
5) Provide large-scale routing tables and support large-scale Layer 3 services within intra-networks or
inter-networks.
ETSI
7 ETSI ES 203 136 V1.1.1 (2013-05)
4.2 Switch
Switches generally refer to equipments that exchange information in a communications system. They include Ethernet
switches, ATM switches, FDDI switches, and token ring switches, Ethernet switch is widely used because of fast
development of Ethernet technologies and its low costs, therefore, switches in the present document refer to Ethernet
switches.
Switches are typical packet switching devices at the data link layer of OSI layer 2. Based on the destination data link
layer addresses in the Layer 2 switching tables, each received packet, will be assigned an optimal path according to the
accurate matching rule and be forwarded to the right path, if the path searching of the packet fails, this packet will be
sent to the broadcast domain to which it belongs. The Layer 2 switching table is generated by switch network
self-learning.
The main function of switches is packet switching at the data link layer, but with the development of network
technologies, the relationship between network hierarchy and hardware equipment has become ambiguous, it is not
limited to Layer 2 services, the routing function is also integrated into most switches to support Layer 3 services, if the
path searching of packets entering the switch fails in Layer 2, then it will be delivered to the routing module for path
searching and forwarding in Layer 3. For example, some high-level switches also have the routing function, the little
differences between switch and router lie in routing items and performance specifications.
Switches have the following typical features:
1) Support dat
...







