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

Answer 1

A network hub is a dumb device that simply repeats any data which is sent to it. It makes no attempt to interpret the information passed and sends it to all the ports that it has simultaneously, which in turn generates lots of extra unnecessary network traffic.

A Switch on the other hand is intelligent and can decode packets of data sent to it and therefore can pass the information to the specific port that the device is attached to rather than sending to all connected devices. This optimizes network traffic.

A router is also an intelligent device like a switch but has the added ability to reroute packets over a network between differing sub-nets (IP address range classes).

Answer 2

They are almost the same except for one key difference. A switch transfers data only to the devices involved in the conversation. A hub on the other hand isn't dynamic enough for this, so it sends data to all devices connected instead of only the intended parties. Hubs are often refered to as "dumb switches".

Answer 3

A switch is more expensive ,a network built with switches is generally considered faster .

Answer 4

A network switch handles traffic better than a hub, which is a bit of a dumb device. Each is good for different situations.