A method and apparatus for efficiently transferring a data packet on a network. The efficient transfer of data includes compressing the data as the data packet is transmitted from a repeater to a management unit by determining if a destination address of a received packet matches a stored management unit address. When the stored address does not match the destination address, the data packet is compressed. The apparatus includes a repeater, a management unit, and a packet compression mechanism. The apparatus further includes comparator circuit means for determining address comparisons and count comparisons to control data compression.