Date: Fri, 26 Mar 1999 15:37:01 -0600 (CST) From: Mike Jenkins <mjenkins@carp.gbr.epa.gov> To: mm@i.cz Cc: freebsd-net@freebsd.org Subject: Re: switch vs bridge (fwd) Message-ID: <199903262137.PAA06872@carp.gbr.epa.gov> In-Reply-To: <XFMail.990326090004.mm@i.cz>
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On Fri, 26 Mar 1999 Martin Machacek wrote: > Layer 4 switch is a pure marketing bullshit. If I understand layer 4 switches correctly, they switch at the tcp/udp port number layer. I could therefore slip a layer 4 switch between my router and my lan, and program it to redirect all incoming 25/tcp smtp connections to a mail filter host. I find that rather useful. I'm sure some folks use them for 80/tcp http redirection for web caching. Aren't these useful applicatons? I realize routers can be programmed to do this but who wants to load down (or misconfigure) the router for this chore. A dual-homed unix box such as FreeBSD can also do this using redirection in packet filtering but that usually requires splitting the network into 2 IP networks (yes i've heard of dummynet/bridge but that is work in progress). I think a network appliance like a layer 4 switch would be the right tool for the job. Mike To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-net" in the body of the message
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