In a software-defined architecture, which plane handles packet forwarding on a Cisco router?

In a software-defined architecture, the data plane (also known as the forwarding plane) is responsible for the actual forwarding of network traffic. It processes packets based on the rules and policies pushed down by the control plane. This involves encapsulating, de-encapsulating, matching, and sending packets to their next hop. The control plane determines the best path and creates the forwarding tables, but the data plane executes those decisions. The management plane handles device configuration and monitoring. The application plane refers to the services and applications running over the network.