What is a key difference between a network switch and a hub?

What is a key difference between a network switch and a hub?

• A. A hub broadcasts to all ports; a switch forwards to the specific destination.
• B. A switch broadcasts to all ports; a hub forwards to the specific destination.
• C. Both devices broadcast identically but at different speeds.
• D. Switches and hubs both forward in unicast only.

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is how traffic is handled differently by hubs and switches. A hub is a simple repeater: when it receives a signal, it sends that signal out to all other ports, so every device on that network segment hears the frame. A switch, however, is intelligent. It learns which devices are connected to which ports and, for most traffic, forwards frames only to the specific port that leads to the destination device. This targeted forwarding reduces unnecessary traffic and helps avoid collisions on the network. So the best description is that a hub broadcasts to all ports while a switch forwards to the specific destination. Note that switches can flood broadcast or unknown-unicast frames to all ports in some cases, but for standard unicast traffic they send it to the exact port associated with the destination MAC address.

The idea being tested is how traffic is handled differently by hubs and switches. A hub is a simple repeater: when it receives a signal, it sends that signal out to all other ports, so every device on that network segment hears the frame. A switch, however, is intelligent. It learns which devices are connected to which ports and, for most traffic, forwards frames only to the specific port that leads to the destination device. This targeted forwarding reduces unnecessary traffic and helps avoid collisions on the network.

So the best description is that a hub broadcasts to all ports while a switch forwards to the specific destination. Note that switches can flood broadcast or unknown-unicast frames to all ports in some cases, but for standard unicast traffic they send it to the exact port associated with the destination MAC address.