Layer 3 Switch

A Layer 3 Switch is a network device that combines traditional switching capabilities with routing functions. In addition to forwarding Ethernet frames based on MAC addresses, it can route IP packets between different networks or VLANs. This routing functionality operates at the Network Layer, the third layer of the OSI model. Typical use cases include inter-VLAN routing and connecting different network segments within enterprise environments. Depending on the model, Layer 3 switches can support static routes as well as dynamic routing protocols such as OSPF or BGP. Specialised hardware enables switching and routing tasks to be processed at high speed. Layer 3 switches are therefore commonly used in high-performance LAN, campus and data centre networks that require segmentation, scalability and efficient communication between different subnets.