3Com 3C16732 User Manual - Page 2

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A Network is a collection of workstations (for example,

IBM-compatible PCs) and other equipment (for

example, printers), connected for the purpose of

exchanging information or sharing resources.

Networks vary in size, some are within a single room,

others span continents.

A Local Area Network (LAN) is a network, usually in an

office, that spans no more than a single site.

Ethernet is a type of LAN, referring to the technology used

to pass information around the network. It operates

at 10Mbps (megabits per second).

Fast Ethernet is a type of LAN that runs up to ten times

faster than standard Ethernet. It operates at

100Mbps.

10BASE-T is the name given to the Ethernet protocol that

runs over Twisted Pair (TP) cable.

100BASE-TX is the name given to the Fast Ethernet protocol

that runs over Twisted Pair (TP) cable.

REATING

OUR

ETWORK

A Network Loop occurs when two pieces of network

equipment are connected by more than one path.

A Segment is the length of cable connected to a port.

Packets are the units of information your workstations and

other equipment send to each other over the

network. A Frame is the data part of the packet and

can be Unicast (sent to a single device), Multicast

(sent to multiple devices), or Broadcast (sent to all

devices).

Bandwidth refers to the amount of network traffic the

network can hold at any one time (information

capacity) measured in bits per second (bps) .

Workstations or applications that use the network

heavily are referred to as using high bandwidth (these

are usually users who do a lot of graphical or

multi-media work across the network). Fast Ethernet

has a higher bandwidth than Ethernet, so it can cope

with larger amounts of traffic, which results in faster

operation.

Full duplex operation allows information to be transmitted

and received simultaneously and, in effect, doubles

the potential throughput of a link.