What is the Difference Between Flooding and Broadcasting?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚Flooding and broadcasting are two different networking concepts that serve distinct purposes.
Flooding is a technique used by switches at Layer 2 (data link layer) to send unknown unicast frames to all other interfaces. When a frame is not destined for a host that receives it, the host will ignore it and not be interrupted. Flooding is limited to a broadcast domain and is used to find a MAC address that the switch does not have in its Content Addressable Memory (CAM).
Broadcasting, on the other hand, is a method used in computer networking where every device in the network receives a packet. Broadcasting is done by specifying a special broadcast address on packets. It is a controlled process, unlike flooding, and is used when a device sends out controlled requests, such as during the ARP process or when seeking a DHCP server.
In summary, the main differences between flooding and broadcasting are:
- Flooding is used by switches at Layer 2 to send unknown unicast frames to all other interfaces, while broadcasting is a method used to ensure that every device in the network receives a packet.
- Flooding is used to find a MAC address that the switch does not have in its CAM, while broadcasting is a controlled process.
- Flooding may send the same packet along the same link multiple times, but broadcasting sends a packet along a link at most once.
Comparative Table: Flooding vs Broadcasting
Here is a table comparing the differences between flooding and broadcasting:
Feature | Flooding | Broadcasting |
---|---|---|
Purpose | To find an unknown MAC address within a network | To ensure every device in the network receives a packet |
Delivery | Sends all incoming packets through every outgoing edge | Sends a packet along a link at most once |
Duplicates | May send the same packet along the same link multiple times | Multiple copies of the same packet may reach nodes |
Addressing | Sends packets to all devices within a network segment | Addresses a specific broadcast address on packets |
In summary, flooding is a process used by switches to find unknown MAC addresses within a network by sending the packet out all ports, while broadcasting is a method used in computer networking to ensure every device in the network receives a packet.
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