Which term refers to the memory structure used by switches to map MAC addresses to physical ports for efficient forwarding?

• A. CAM Table
• B. Transmission Control
• C. Content Addressable Memory (CAM) Table
• D. Sticky MAC

Answer: (C)

The main idea here is identifying the memory that a switch uses to map MAC addresses to the ports they can be reached through, so it can forward frames efficiently. This memory is CAM, which stands for Content Addressable Memory. In a switch, the MAC addresses learned from frames are stored in a CAM table, linking each MAC to the port where that device is reachable. When a frame needs to be forwarded, the switch rapidly checks the destination MAC against this CAM table to decide the correct egress port. CAM is different from ordinary RAM because the lookup is content-based: you search by the MAC address itself and the table returns the associated port, enabling fast forwarding decisions.

The full term “Content Addressable Memory (CAM) Table” is the precise label for this structure, which is why it’s the best choice. A CAM Table is the same concept in practice, but the option that expands the acronym and name explicitly aligns with the standard terminology used to describe this memory. The other options aren’t related to this mechanism: Transmission Control refers to TCP, not switch forwarding memory, and Sticky MAC is a security feature related to persisting learned MAC addresses rather than the memory structure used for forwarding decisions.