3.21 MAC Address Table Configuration

The Ethernet Switch provides various options regarding the way MAC address learning should be processed, as well as how to process a packet with an unknown source MAC address, an unknown destination MAC address, and so on.

When a packet is received, it is classified by its Source-MAC, Destination-MAC, VLAN-ID, and Port number. As part of the Ethernet Switch forwarding algorithm, the switch looks for the Destination-MAC and VLAN inside the MAC learning table. If it is found, then the packet is forwarded to the specified port, otherwise, the packet is flooded to all ports on the same VLAN.