Layer 2 switches are commonly used for transporting data on a physical layer and performing error checks on each transmitted and received frame. A layer 2 switch must have a MAC address of NIC on each network node to transmit data. Layer 2 switching uses information in the Ethernet headers to make traffic forwarding decisions. Intelligent switches learn which ports have which end stations attached by recording the Ethernet MAC addresses of packets ingressing the switch. Layer 2 is the network layer used to transfer data between adjacent network nodes in a wide area network or between nodes on the same local area network.

An IP address is a 32-bit number that finds a network interface on a piece of technology. An IP address is typically written in decimal digits, formatted as four 8-bit fields separated by periods. Each 8-bit field represents a byte of the IP address. This is commonly known as IPv4 addresses.

Top-level domains are of the highest levels of hierarchy when it comes to the domain name system of the internet. What this means is that they identify as the last string of identity that has control or authority over networking contexts and the internet. To distinguish between the types and hierarchy of domains, domains are installed in different places based on their domain name. The domain name is used for many things such as identifying networks domain, addressing purposes, and application-specific naming. Top-level domains are installed in the root zone which is the highest of the hierarchical namespace. Top-level domains are installed to be higher than other domains due to a system created called DNS or Domain name system. The Domain Name System is a naming system that creates a hierarchy for the computers, networks, and the internet. It translates memorized domain names to the IP addresses needed for locating internet services and network protocols. In general, the Domain Name System is a service that directs names of the network resources to their respected network addresses.