Connecting 10Base-T And 100Base-Tx Networks - 3Com OfficeConnect 140M User Manual

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HAPTER NTRODUCTION
Using the source addresses, the switch can learn
which workstations are connected to each of its ports.
This information is stored in a switching database,
which is a list containing each source address
together with the port (through which the device with
that address is attached to the switch).
Using this database, the switch can then act on future
packets that it receives:
If the destination device is connected to the same
port as the source device, the packet is discarded
(called filtering), reducing unnecessary traffic.
If the destination device is connected to a
different port as the source device, the packet is
transmitted through that port (called forwarding).
If the destination device is unknown (in other
words, not in the switching database), the packet
is transmitted through all of the other ports (called
flooding).
The above operation is affected by any security that
you configure for the switch. For example, if you
disable a port (through management), packets will not
be learnt, forwarded or flooded through that port.

Connecting 10BASE-T and 100BASE-TX Networks

This switch enables you to connect 10BASE-T and
100BASE-TX networks together. This means that if
you have both types of network, you can connect
them so all of your workstations can communicate.
Alternatively, if you want to improve performance by
introducing 100BASE-TX (using the OfficeConnect
Fast Ethernet hubs for example), the switch protects
your investment by allowing your existing equipment
to work with the new equipment.