Advantages and Disadvantage of Bridge in Networking | Features of Bridge

Advantages and Disadvantage of Bridge in Networking | Features of Bridge

In this post, we will discuss about various Advantages and Disadvantages of Bridge in Networking. This article allows to get know several pros and cons of using bridges.

We are going to lets you know about brief summary of Network Bridge: Bridge is a networking hardware device that helps to split the LAN network into small units, and each unit the networking represented as collision domain which has individual bandwidth. So, bridge allows to improve the performance of entire network.

Advantages of Network Bridge

There are various benefits of network bridge; below explain each one –

Network Scalable: Sometimes, bridges play the role as repeaters for scaling the physical network. Bridge allows to support for making connection with each other of dissimilar network architectures.

Enhanced Bandwidth: Some nodes are existed on the network that helps to share the separate collision domain. So, these bridges are getting to enhance the bandwidth for those individual nodes.

Best Reliability: Bridges help to provide the higher reliability over the entire network that allows to get easy maintain the computer network. Due to small segments of LAN network, network congestion gets to decrease.

Frame Buffering: MAC protocols are used by different kinds of segments. So, it makes the frame buffers. Then Bridges are able to perform all activities into interconnect different segments.

High Protocol Transparency: Bridges perform all functions at the MAC layer, and it helps to create high level of protocol transparent.

Disadvantages of Network Bridges

In section, we will spread the light on few limitations and drawbacks of network bridge; below explain each one –

Higher Expensive: Overall average, bridge is a higher expensive network device compare to hub and repeaters. So, due to its high price, it is not used in the LAN network traffic load.

Less Speed: Bridge gets to make buffer of frames and then introduce more relays. So, this makes them low speed than repeater.

Down Performance: Bridges get to additional processing by monitoring of all MAC addresses. So, due to this, it gets to downgrade the entire performance in networking.

Broadcast Filtering: Bridges are not capable to individually filter the broadcast traffic. So, they forward broadcast packets.

Broadcast Storms: When forwarding broadcast traffic gets to downfall then this situation is called the “Broadcast Storms”.  Broadcast Storms means that huge amount of broadcast traffic.

Other Disadvantages of Network Bridges

  • Bridges are not able to fetch the specific IP address, because they concern with MAC addresses.
  • It is more complex to install and difficult to troubleshoot as well.

 Features and Characteristics of Bridges

  • Bridge helps to decrease the collisions.
  • It allows to increase the number of connected workstations and network segments.
  • It has ability to filter data packets and can also link several types of media at once time.
  • It is capable to amplify the signal and also increase the signal clarity as well.
  • No obstructions to decrease performance
  • It gets overload while making of high traffic.

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