Switch

Sources and Online Definitions

Web-o-pedia

"(n.) (1) In networks, a device that filters and forwards packets between LAN segments. Switches operate at the data link layer (layer 2) and sometimes the network layer (layer 3) of the OSI Reference Model and therefore support any packet protocol. LANs that use switches to join segments are called switched LANs or, in the case of Ethernet networks, switched Ethernet LANs."

Smart Computing

"...Quite simply, a switch is a deeply embedded piece of physical circuitry that governs signal flow within a network. It is just like a light switch, too. When the switch is open, it lets the signal flow through. And if the switch is closed, the flow stops, and the connection to the circuit is broken.

On a network, the switch is a device that forwards and filters packets of information between LAN (local-area network) segments, or nodes. When traffic backs up or jams on a network, it is because data is being forced to wander around the entire network looking for its ultimate destination. In fact, it’s the switch, when one is installed, that help a network stay on task when it receives a lot of traffic. A switch serves to correct traffic problems within a network and streamline data so that it goes directly from its origin to its destination without any time wasted wandering around. It does this partly by remembering the addresses of each of the nodes on the network and anticipating where data needs to be shuttled off to..."