- ARP
This is an acronym for the Address Resolution
Protocol . It is how a network machine associates an
IP Address with a hardware address.
- ATM
This is an acronym for Asynchronous Transfer
Mode. An ATM network packages data into standard size
blocks which it can convey efficiently from point to
point. ATM is a circuit switched packet network technology.
- Client
This is usually the piece of software at the end
of a system where the user is located. There are exceptions.
For example, in the X11 window system, it is actually the
server with the user and the client runs on the remote
machine. The client is the program (or end) of a system that is
receiving the service provided by the server. In the case of
peer to peer systems such as slip or ppp, the
client is taken to be the end that initiates the connection.
The remote end being called is taken to be the server.
- Datagram
A datagram is a discrete package of data and
headers which contain addresses (which is the basic unit of
transmission across an IP network). You might also hear this
called a `packet'.
- DLCI
The DLCI is the Data Link Connection Identifier. It
is used to identify a unique virtual Point-to-Point connection
via a Frame Relay network. The DLCI's are normally assigned by
the Frame Relay network provider.
- Frame Relay
Frame Relay is a network technology ideally
suited to carrying traffic that is of bursty or sporadic in
nature. Network costs are reduced by having many Frame Relay
customer sharing the same network capacity (and relying on them
wanting to make use of the network at slightly different
times).
- Hardware address
This is a number that uniquely
identifies a host in a physical network at the media access
layer. Examples of this are Ethernet Addresses and
AX.25 Addresses.
- ISDN
This is an acronym for Integrated Services
Digital Network. ISDN provides a standardized means by
which Telecommunications companies may deliver either voice or
data information to a customers premises. ISDN is technically
a circuit switched data network.
- ISP
This is an acronym for an Internet Service
Provider. These are organizations or companies that provide
people with network connectivity to the Internet.
- IP address
This is a number that uniquely identifies a
TCP/IP host on the network. The address is 4 bytes long and is
usually represented in what is called the "dotted decimal
notation" (where each byte is represented in decimal from with
dots `.' between them).
- MSS
The Maximum Segment Size (MSS) is the
largest quantity of data that can be transmitted at one
time. If you want to prevent local fragmentation, MSS would
equal MTU-IP header.
- MTU
The Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) is a
parameter that determines the largest datagram than can be
transmitted by an IP interface (without it needing to be broken
down into smaller units). The MTU should be larger than the
largest datagram you wish to transmit unfragmented. Note: this
only prevents fragmentation locally. Some other link in the
path may have a smaller MTU: the datagram will be
fragmented at that point. Typical values are 1500 bytes for an
ethernet interface, or 576 bytes for a SLIP interface.
- Route
The route is the path that your datagrams
take through the network to reach their destination.
- Server
This is usually the piece of software or end of a
system remote from the user. The server provides some service
to one or many clients. Examples of servers include ftp,
Networked File System, or Domain Name Server. In the
case of peer to peer systems (such as slip or
ppp ), the server is taken to be the end of the link that is
called. The end calling is taken to be the client.
- Window
The window is the largest amount of data
that the receiving end can accept at a given point in time.