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Physical layer

The first layer of the OSI model. Provides the hardware means of transmitting electrical

signals on a data carrier

Ping

A utility program that verifies that a given Internet address exists and can receive

messages. The utility sends a control packet to the given address and waits for a

response.

PoE

Power over Ethernet is the means of transmitting electricity over the unused pairs in a

category 5 Ethernet cable

POP3

Post Office Protocol 3 is used for receiving email

Port

A logical channel endpoint in a network. A computer might have only one physical

channel (its Ethernet channel) but can have multiple ports (logical channels) each

identified by a number.

PPP

Point-to-Point Protocol is used for two computers to communicate with each over a serial

interface, like a phone line

PPPoE

Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet is used to connect multiple computers to a remote

server over Ethernet

PPTP

Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol is used for creating VPN tunnels over the Internet

between two networks

Preamble

Used to synchronize communication timing between devices on a network

Q

QoS

Quality of Service

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R

RADIUS

Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service allows for remote users to dial into a central

server and be authenticated in order to access resources on a network

Reboot

To restart a computer and reload it's operating software or firmware from nonvolatile

storage.

Rendezvous

Apple's version of UPnP, which allows for devices on a network to discover each other

and be connected without the need to configure any settings

Repeater

Retransmits the signal of an Access Point in order to extend it's coverage

RIP

Routing Information Protocol is used to synchronize the routing table of all the routers on

a network

RJ-11

The most commonly used connection method for telephones

RJ-45

The most commonly used connection method for Ethernet

RS-232C

The interface for serial communication between computers and other related devices

RSA

Algorithm used for encryption and authentication

S

Server

A computer on a network that provides services and resources to other computers on the

network

Session key

An encryption and decryption key that is generated for every communication session

between two computers

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Session layer

The fifth layer of the OSI model which coordinates the connection and communication

between applications on both ends

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol

Used for sending and receiving email

Simple Network Management Protocol

Governs the management and monitoring of network devices

SIP

Session Initiation Protocol. A standard protocol for initiating a user session that involves

multimedia content, such as voice or chat.

SMTP

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol

SNMP

Simple Network Management Protocol

SOHO

Small Office/Home Office

SPI

Stateful Packet Inspection

SSH

Secure Shell is a command line interface that allows for secure connections to remote

computers

SSID

Service Set Identifier is a name for a wireless network

Stateful inspection

A feature of a firewall that monitors outgoing and incoming traffic to make sure that only

valid responses to outgoing requests are allowed to pass though the firewall

Subnet mask

Determines what portion of an IP address designates the Network and which part

designates the Host

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Syslog

System Logger -- a distributed logging interface for collecting in one place the logs from

different sources. Originally written for UNIX, it is now available for other operating

systems, including Windows.

T

TCP

Transmission Control Protocol

TCP Raw

A TCP/IP protocol for transmitting streams of printer data.

TCP/IP

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol

TFTP

Trivial File Transfer Protocol is a utility used for transferring files that is simpler to use

than FTP but with less features

Throughput

The amount of data that can be transferred in a given time period

Traceroute

A utility displays the routes between you computer and specific destination

U

UDP

User Datagram Protocol

Unicast

Communication between a single sender and receiver

Universal Plug and Play

A standard that allows network devices to discover each other and configure themselves

to be a part of the network

Upgrade

To install a more recent version of a software or firmware product

Upload

To send a request from one computer to another and have a file transmitted from the

requesting computer to the other

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UPnP

Universal Plug and Play

URL

Uniform Resource Locator is a unique address for files accessible on the Internet

USB

Universal Serial Bus

UTP

Unshielded Twisted Pair

V

Virtual Private Network

VPN: A secure tunnel over the Internet to connect remote offices or users to their

company's network

VLAN

Virtual LAN

Voice over IP

Sending voice information over the Internet as opposed to the PSTN

VoIP

Voice over IP

W

Wake on LAN

Allows you to power up a computer though it's Network Interface Card

WAN

Wide Area Network

WCN

Windows Connect Now. A Microsoft method for configuring and bootstrapping wireless

networking hardware (access points) and wireless clients, including PCs and other

devices.