Definition
A jumbo frame is an Ethernet frame (data packet) with a bigger maximum transmission unit (MTU) than the standard size of 1,500 bytes.
While a more significant data package can improve your network’s performance, all connected devices must have specialized hardware and be appropriately configured.
Jumbo Frames Real Facts
- Jumbo frames were introduced in 1998 in ACEnic Gigabit Ethernet adapters by Alteon WebSystems.
- Many Ethernet equipment can support a jumbo frame of up to 9,216 bytes.
Jumbo Frames Pros
- Less protocol overheads: Each data packet has header information, including MAC addresses, IP addresses and protocol information, to describe its source and destination. This can take up to 5% of the total transmission in a standard frame. However, the header size reduces to about 1% in a 9,000-byte jumbo frame, resulting in more useful data transmitted.
- Less CPU processing: Each device in the network path must inspect each packet. Fortunately, jumbo packets have fewer total packets, meaning each device requires less inspection time. However, with modern high-speed CPUs and NIC offloading, this isn’t a major concern anymore.
Jumbo Packets Cons
- Configuration mismatch: Since most devices default to the standard packet sizes and MTU, jumbo packets must be configured manually. This can create inconsistencies across the network, resulting to performance issues that are difficult to troubleshoot.
- Packet fragmentation and drops: Packet fragmentation happens when networking equipment cannot transmit larger packets. As a result, the network packet must be split into two or more packets during transmission, which can cause additional networking overhead and longer transmission time.