Reference articles on history, science, culture and more
Surprise meSurprise meSubscribe
Encyclopedia

Management plane

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
1 min read
Source updated June 23, 2024

In computer networking, the management plane of a networking device is the element of a system that configures, monitors, and provides management, monitoring and configuration services to, all layers of the network stack and other parts of the system. It should be distinguished from the control plane, which is primarily concerned with routing table and forwarding information base computation.

In system diagrams, the management plane is typically shown in three dimensions as overlapping the network stack, separated by a dimension that delineates the power plane, control plane, data plane, and management plane.

Watch videos about Management planeExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Management plane”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.

Continue exploring

Related topics

Control plane

In network routing, the control plane is the part of the router architecture that is concerned with establishing the network topology, or the information in a routing table that defines what to do with incoming packets. Control plane functions, such as participating in routing protocols, run in the architectural control element.

Data plane

In routing, the data plane, sometimes called the forwarding plane or user plane, defines the part of the router architecture that determines what to do with packets arriving on an inbound interface. Most commonly, it refers to a table in which the router looks up the destination address of the incoming packet and retrieves the information necessary to determine the path from the receiving element, through the internal forwarding fabric of the router, and to the proper outgoing interface.

Management interface

In computing, a management interface is a network interface dedicated to configuration and management operations. Management interfaces are typically connected to dedicated out of band management networks, and non-management interfaces are not allowed to carry device or network management traffic.