Layer-specific functionality
While switches may learn about topologies at many layers, and forward at one or more layers, they do tend to have common features. Other than for computer-room very high performance applications, modern commercial switches use primarily Ethernet interfaces, which can have different input and output speeds of 10, 100, 1000 or 10000 megabits per second. Switch ports almost always default to full-duplex operation, unless there is a requirement for interoperability with devices that are strictly half duplex. Half-duplex means that the device can only send or receive at any given time, whereas full-duplex can send and receive at the same time.
At any layer, a modern switch may implement power over Ethernet (PoE), which avoids the need for attached devices, such as an IP telephone or wireless access point, to have a separate power supply. Since switches can have redundant power circuits connected to uninterruptible power supplies, the connected device can continue operating even when regular office power fails.