Switch - L3 Routing

[diablo24]

Hi,

Is routing defined on a switch when an L3 interfaces is configured? This doc: https://documentation.meraki.com/MS/Layer_3_Switching/MS_Layer_3_Switching_and_Routing#Configuring_S...

states that once an L3 interface is configured that routing is enabled. However, it also states: "Only VLANs with a routed interface configured will be able to route traffic locally on the switch, and only if clients/devices on the VLAN are configured to use the switch's routed interface IP address as their gateway or next hop." What is meant by "locally"? Is this routing only referring to inter-vlan traffic?

Thanks in advance,

-Jerome

[PhilipDAth · Accepted solution]

A switch can only route traffic for a client if the client is sending their L3 traffic to a L3 switch interface.  Otherwise, the traffic is going to some other device.

When the switch receives the traffic it will consult its routing table to decide where to send it.  It could be sent out the same interface, or a different interface.  The next-hop could be a router, MX or something else that then forwards the traffic on somewhere else (like the Internet).  It could also be a local machine.

[diablo24]

Thanks @PhilipDAth!