Jumbo frames and giant frames are both related to the maximum transmission unit (MTU) of a network. However, there is a difference between them:
- Jumbo frames are Ethernet frames that exceed the standard MTU of 1500 bytes, typically up to 9000 bytes. Jumbo frames can be used to reduce overhead and increase throughput in certain types of network traffic, such as large file transfers or high-definition video streaming.
- Giant frames, on the other hand, are Ethernet frames that exceed the maximum frame size allowed by the Ethernet standard, which is 1518 bytes. Giant frames are considered invalid frames and can cause network errors and performance issues. The term “giant frame” is usually used to refer to frames that are larger than 1518 bytes but smaller than the minimum transmission unit (MTU) supported by jumbo frames.
In summary, jumbo frames are frames that exceed the standard MTU size and can provide performance benefits, while giant frames are frames that are larger than the Ethernet standard allows and can cause network issues.