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E

Ethernet

A LAN specification developed jointly by Xerox, Intel and Digital Equipment Corporation. Ethernet

networks transmit packets at a rate of 10 Mbps.

G

Gateway

A local device, usually a router, that connects hosts on a local network to other networks.

I

Infrastructure Mode

An 802.11 networking framework in which devices communicate with each other by first going through an

Access Point (AP). In infrastructure mode, wireless devices can communicate with each other or can

communicate with a wired network. When one AP is connected to wired network and a set of wireless

stations it is referred to as a Basic Service Set (BSS). An Extended Service Set (ESS) is a set of two or more

BSSs that form a single subnetwork. Most corporate wireless LANs operate in infrastructure mode because

they require access to the wired LAN in order to use services such as file servers or printers.

Internet Protocol

The method or protocol by which data is sent from one computer to another on the Internet. Each computer

(known as a host) on the Internet has at least one IP address that uniquely identifies it among all other

computers on the Internet. When you send or receive data (for example, an e-mail note or a Web page), the

message gets divided into little chunks called packets. Each of these packets contains both the sender's

Internet address and the receiver's address. Any packet is sent first to a gateway computer that understands a

small part of the Internet. The gateway computer reads the destination address and forwards the packet to an

adjacent gateway that in turn reads the destination address and so forth across the Internet until one gateway

recognizes the packet as belonging to a computer within its immediate neighborhood or domain. That

gateway then forwards the packet directly to the computer whose address is specified.

Because a message is divided into a number of packets, each packet can, if necessary, be sent by a different

route across the Internet. Packets can arrive in a different order than they were sent. The Internet Protocol

just delivers them. It's up to another protocol, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) to put them back in

the right order. IP is a connectionless protocol, which means that there is no continuing connection between

the end points that are communicating. Each packet that travels through the Internet is treated as an

independent unit of data without any relation to any other unit of data. (The reason the packets do get put in

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the right order is because of TCP, the connection-oriented protocol that keeps track of the packet sequence in

a message.) In the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) communication model, IP is in Layer 3, the

Networking Layer. The most widely used version of IP today is IP version 4 (IPv4). However, IP version 6

(IPv6) is also beginning to be supported. IPv6 provides for much longer addresses and therefore for the

possibility of many more Internet users. IPv6 includes the capabilities of IPv4 and any server that can

support IPv6 packets can also support IPv4 packets.

IP

See “Internet Protocol”

IP Address

A four-byte number uniquely defining each host on the Internet, usually written in dotted-decimal notation

with periods separating the bytes (for example, 134.177.244.57). Ranges of addresses are assigned by

Internic, an organization formed for this purpose.

ISP

Internet service provider.

L

LAN

See “Local Area Network”

Local Area Network

A communications network serving users within a limited area, such as one floor of a building. A LAN

typically connects multiple personal computers and shared network devices such as storage and printers.

Although many technologies exist to implement a LAN, Ethernet is the most common for connecting

personal computers and is limited to a distance of 1,500 feet. LANs can be connected together, but if

modems and telephones connect two or more LANs, the larger network constitutes what is called a WAN or

Wide Area Network.

M

MAC

(1) Medium Access Control. In LANs, the sublayer of the data link control layer that supports

medium-dependent functions and uses the services of the physical layer to provide services to the logical

link control (LLC) sublayer. The MAC sublayer includes the method of determining when a device has

access to the transmission medium. (2) Message Authentication Code. In computer security, a value that is a

part of a message or accompanies a message and is used to determine that the contents, origin, author, or

other attributes of all or part of the message are as they appear to be. (

IBM Glossary of Computing Terms

)

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MAC address

The Media Access Control address is a unique 48-bit hardware address assigned to every network interface

card. Usually written in the form 01:23:45:67:89:ab.

Mbps

Megabits per second.

MDI/MDIX

In cable wiring, the concept of transmit and receive are from the perspective of the PC, which is wired as a

Media Dependant Interface (MDI). In MDI wiring, a PC transmits on pins 1 and 2. At the hub, switch,

router, or access point, the perspective is reversed, and the hub receives on pins 1 and 2. This wiring is

referred to as Media Dependant Interface - Crossover (MDI-X).

N

NAT

See “Network Address Translation”

netmask

Combined with the IP address, the IP Subnet Mask allows a device to know which other addresses are local

to it, and which must be reached through a gateway or router. A number that explains which part of an IP

address comprises the network address and which part is the host address on that network. It can be

expressed in dotted-decimal notation or as a number appended to the IP address. For example, a 28-bit mask

starting from the MSB can be shown as 255.255.255.192 or as /28 appended to the IP address.

Network Address Translation

Sometimes referred to as Transparent Proxying, IP Address Overloading, or IP Masquerading. Involves use

of a device called a Network Address Translator, which assigns a contrived, or logical, IP address and port

number to each node on an organization's internal network and passes packets using these assigned

addresses.

NIC

Network Interface Card. An adapter in a computer which provides connectivity to a network.

P

packet

A block of information sent over a network. A packet typically contains a source and destination network

address, some protocol and length information, a block of data, and a checksum.

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Protocol

A set of rules for communication between devices on a network.

Q

QoS

See “Quality of Service”

Quality of Service

QoS is a networking term that specifies a guaranteed level of throughput. Throughput is the amount of data

transferred from one device to another or processed in a specified amount of time - typically, throughputs are

measured in bytes per second (Bps).

R

router

A device that forwards data between networks. An IP router forwards data based on IP source and

destination addresses.

S

SSID

A Service Set Identification is a thirty-two character (maximum) alphanumeric key identifying a wireless

local area network. For the wireless devices in a network to communicate with each other, all devices must

be configured with the same SSID. This is typically the configuration parameter for a wireless PC card. It

corresponds to the ESSID in the wireless Access Point and to the wireless network name.

See also

Wireless

Network Name and ESSID.

Segment

A section of a LAN that is connected to the rest of the network using a switch, bridge, or repeater.

Subnet Mask

Combined with the IP address, the IP Subnet Mask allows a device to know which other addresses are local

to it, and which must be reached through a gateway or router.

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T

TCP/IP

The main internetworking protocols used in the Internet. The Internet Protocol (IP) used in conjunction with

the Transfer Control Protocol (TCP) form TCP/IP.

U

Universal Plug and Play

UPnP. A networking architecture that provides compatibility among networking technology. UPnP

compliant routers provide broadband users at home and small businesses with a seamless way to participate

in online games, videoconferencing and other peer-to-peer services.

UTP

Unshielded twisted pair is the cable used by 10BASE-T and 100BASE-Tx Ethernet networks.

W

WAN

See “Wide Area Network”

Web

Also known as World-Wide Web (WWW) or W3. An Internet client-server system to distribute information,

based upon the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP).

WEB Proxy Server

A Web proxy server is a specialized HTTP server that allows clients access to the Internet from behind a

firewall. The proxy server listens for requests from clients within the firewall and forwards these requests to

remote Internet servers outside the firewall. The proxy server reads responses from the external servers and

then sends them to internal client clients.

WEP

Wired Equivalent Privacy is a data encryption protocol for 802.11b wireless networks.

All wireless nodes and access points on the network are configured with a 64-bit or 128-bit Shared Key for

data encryption.