This application provides a table entry management method and apparatus, relating to the field of communication technology and applied to network devices. The method includes: setting a hardware
MAC address table to prevent aging; executing a
software table entry
polling task to poll each storage location of the
software MAC address table; the
software table entry
polling task performing a logical AND operation between the
authentication type of the first software
MAC address table entry at the polled storage location and an aging filter
bitmap mask; wherein the aging filter parameter bit of the aging filter
bitmap mask is set to a binary value of 1; determining that the corresponding bit of the aging filter parameter bit in the logical AND operation result has a binary value of 1, identifying that the first software MAC address table entry matches the aging filter parameter; and
polling the next storage location of the software MAC address table to skip the aging deletion process of the first software MAC address table entry. This solution can solve the problem of user terminals being online, but hardware MAC address table entries being aged, thus improving the user's internet experience.