Difference between PACKETS and FRAMES

Question

Two words commonly used in networking world - Packets and frames.

Can anyone please give the detail difference between these two words?

Hope it might sounds sill

Answer 1

A packet is a general term for a formatted unit of data carried by a network. It is not necessarily connected to a specific OSI model layer.

For example, in the Ethernet protocol on the physical layer (layer 1), the unit of data is called an "Ethernet packet", which has an Ethernet frame (layer 2) as its payload. But the unit of data of the Network layer (layer 3) is also called a "packet".

A frame is also a unit of data transmission. In computer networking the term is only used in the context of the Data link layer (layer 2).

Another semantical difference between packet and frame is that a frame envelops your payload with a header and a trailer, just like a painting in a frame, while a packet usually only has a header.

But in the end they mean roughly the same thing and the distinction is used to avoid confusion and repetition when talking about the different layers.