A bridge is used to join two network segments together, it allows computers on either
segment to access resources on the other. They can also be used to divide largenetworks into smaller segments. Bridges have all the features of repeaters, but can have
more nodes, and since the network is divided, there is fewer computers competing for
resources on each segment thus improving network performance.
Bridges can also connect networks that run at different speeds, different topologies, or
different protocols. But they cannot, join an Ethernet segment with a Token Ring
segment, because these use different networking standards. Bridges operate at both the
Physical Layer and the MAC sublayer of the Data Link layer. Bridges read the MAC
header of each frame to determine on which side of the bridge the destination device is
located, the bridge then repeats the transmission to the segment where the device is located.
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