Configuring layer 2 forwarding, Configuring general layer 2 forwarding, Working mechanism – H3C Technologies H3C WX3000E Series Wireless Switches User Manual
Page 100: Configuration procedure, Configuring fast layer 2 forwarding
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Configuring Layer 2 forwarding
Layer 2 forwarding falls into general and fast forwarding.
Configuring general Layer 2 forwarding
Working mechanism
If the destination MAC address of an incoming packet matches the MAC address of the receiving Layer
3 interface, the device forwards the packet through that interface. If not, the device performs general
Layer 2 forwarding through a Layer 2 interface. The device looks up the MAC address table according
to the destination MAC address of the incoming packet, obtains the outgoing interface, and then
forwards the packet through the interface.
Configuration procedure
General Layer 2 forwarding is enabled by default.
Displaying and maintaining general Layer 2 forwarding
Task Command
Remarks
Display general and inline Layer 2
forwarding statistics.
display mac-forwarding statistics [ interface
interface-type interface-number ] [ | { begin |
exclude | include } regular-expression ]
Available in any view
Clear all general and inline Layer
2 forwarding statistics.
reset mac-forwarding statistics
Available in user view
Configuring fast Layer 2 forwarding
Working mechanism
Fast Layer 2 forwarding uses caches to process packets. Based on data flows, fast Layer 2 forwarding
can greatly improve forwarding efficiency. In fast Layer 2 forwarding, a data flow is described by a triple:
source MAC address, destination MAC address, and VLAN ID. After the packets of a data flow is
normally forwarded, the corresponding forwarding information is stored as a fast forwarding entry in the
cache, and the device forwards subsequent packets by searching the fast forwarding table, thus the
forwarding time is saved and forwarding efficiency is improved.
Configuration procedure
To configure fast Layer 2 forwarding: