VLANs create isolation. Inter-VLAN routing creates controlled doors through those walls—through router-on-a-stick configurations or wire-speed Layer 3 switching.
Every network will eventually be breached somewhere. Segmentation determines whether that breach stays contained or spreads everywhere. Here's how to build the compartments.
How switches mark Ethernet frames with VLAN identity, allowing one physical cable to carry traffic for dozens of separate networks without mixing them up.
VLANs break the rule that physical location determines network identity. Two devices on the same switch can be strangers; two devices across a building can be neighbors.
VLANs draw invisible walls through your physical network—isolating traffic, containing breaches, and letting you reorganize everything without touching a single cable.
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