SwitchReference

Switch Reference

The following pages show which analysis features are present on different managed switches. See also: HubReference, CaptureSetup.

As noted in the Ethereal FAQ, capturing in a switched network environment can prove to be challenging. An individual switch port will receive broadcast, multicast, and unicast traffic destined for that particular port. In most cases it won't receive unicast traffic for other ports, which is what you're probably trying to capture.

Most midrange and high-end switches have port analysis or port monitoring features that will let you mirror the traffic from one port to another.

• 3Com

  Allied Telesyn

  Avaya

  Cisco Systems

  Dell

  D-Link

  Extreme Networks

  Foundry Networks

  HP

  Linksys

  NetGear

  Nortel Networks

  OvisLink

  Riverstone

  SMC

The EffeTech HTTP Sniffer FAQ gives some information on switch manufacturers and switch models that support port mirroring. They don't give details, however.