3Com OfficeConnect User Manual - page 17
Network Terminology
1-3
Bandwidth
refers to the amount of network traffic
the network can carry at any one time (information
capacity) measured in
bps
(bits per second).
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.
A
Network Loop
occurs when two pieces of network
equipment are connected by more than one path
(an illegal configuration in Ethernet and Fast
Ethernet).
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).
Device
is a term that is usually used to refer to a
piece of network equipment. Every device has a
unique address (called a
MAC address
) that is used
to identify it on the network.
Collisions
are a part of normal Ethernet and Fast
Ethernet operation and occur if two or more devices
attempt to transmit at the same time. A sudden
sustained increase in the number of collisions can
indicate a problem with a device, particularly if it is
not accompanied by a general increase in traffic.
SNMP
(Simple Network Management Protocol) is a
protocol that controls how a management station
gains information from a device. SNMP provides:
■
A set of rules that define how a management
station can communicate with a device.
■
A
MIB
(Management Information Base) that
defines what information can be obtained from the
device by the management station. Every
SNMP-manageable device has a MIB, which is a list
of information about it.
■
Unsolicited messages called
Traps
, which work
differently to the usual request/reply management
communication. You can configure a device so that
it generates a trap if a certain condition occurs, for
example a port changing state. The trap is sent to
the management station to inform it of the
occurrence.