DSA Factory
Free The data link layer lessonsThe data link layer · Stage 2 · Sharing the wire · Step 2

ARP and how switches learn

Find the MAC address that goes with an IP address, and see how a switch builds its table from the frames it sees. About 13 minutes.

Quick check

Host A wants to send to a server on a different network. Whose MAC address does A use as the frame's destination?

  1. AThe default gateway's (the router's)
  2. BThe server's, found by ARP across the Internet
  3. CThe broadcast address
Show the answer

The default gateway's (the router's). The frame has to reach the router; the packet inside still carries the server's IP address.

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4 questions on this idea

Short questions that apply the idea to new cases: trace it, work out a number, put steps in order. A wrong answer explains itself.

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