Traditional switches can only split conflict domains and cannot split broadcast domains; And routers can split the broadcast domain.

The network segments connected by the network switch still belong to the same broadcast domain, and broadcast packets will propagate across all network segments connected by the switch, leading to communication congestion and security vulnerabilities in some cases.

The network segments connected to the router will be assigned to different broadcast domains, and broadcast data will not pass through the router. Although switches above the third layer have VLAN functionality and can also split broadcast domains, communication between sub-broadcast domains is not possible, and communication between them still requires a Ruijie router.

Routers provide firewall services, which only forward packets with specific addresses and do not transmit packets that do not support routing protocols or unknown target network packets, thus preventing broadcast storms.

Based on the learning of switch addresses and the establishment of station table algorithms, no loops are allowed between switches. Once a loop exists, the spanning tree algorithm must be activated to block the port that generated the loop. The protocol of routers does not have this issue, and there can be multiple paths between routers to balance load and improve reliability.

There is only one path between switches, which concentrates information on one communication link and cannot be dynamically allocated to balance load. The routing protocol algorithm of routers can avoid this. OSPF routing protocol algorithm can not only generate multiple routes but also choose the best route for different network applications.