| A | B |
|---|
| 10BaseT | Ethernet LAN designed to run on UTP cabling |
| 100BaseT | Generic term for an Ethernet cabling system designed to run at 100 megabits per second on UTP cabling. |
| Activity light | Small LED light, usually positioned on the front of the computer case, that lights up whenever the hard drive is being accessed |
| Administrator Account | User account, created when the OS is first installed, that is allowed complete. unfetered access to the system without restriction |
| Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) | Feature of Windows that automatically assigns an IP address to to the system when the client cannot obtain an IP address automatically |
| Bandwidth | Piece of the spectrum occupied by some form of signal, such as television, voice, and fax data. |
| Bus Topology | Network configuration wherein all computers connect to the network via a central bus cable |
| Client | computer program that uses the service of another computer program |
| Client/Server network | Network that has dedicated server machines and client machines. |
| Coaxial Cable | Cabling in which an internal conductor is surrouned by another, outer conductor, thus sharing the same axis. |
| Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) | Very accurate mathematicl method used to check for erros in long streams of transmitted data |
| Default Gateway | In a TCP/IP network, the nearest router to a particular host. |
| Destination Port | fixed, predetermined number that defines the function or session type. |
| Directory Service | Centralized index that each PC access to locate resources in the domain. |
| Domain-Based Network | Network that eliminates the need for logging in to multiple servers by using domain controllers to hold the security database for all systems. |
| Domain Name Service (DNS) | TCP/IP name resolution system that traslates a host name into an IP address |
| Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) | Protocol that enables a DHCP server to set TCP/IP settings automatically for DHCP client. |
| Ephemeral Port | Arbitrary number generated by the sending computer |
| Ethernet | Name coined by Xerox for the first standard of networking cabling and protocols. |
| Full-Duplex | Any device that can send and recieve simultaneously |
| Hardware Protocol | Defiens many aspects of a network, from the packet type to the cabling and connectors used |
| Hub | Electronic device that sits at the center of a star topology network, providing a common point for the connection of network devices |
| Hybrid topology | combines aspects of other topologies to capitalize on their strengths and minimize their weaknesses. |
| IP address | Numeric address of a computer connected to the Internet |
| IPCONFIG | Command line utility for Windows servers and workstations that displays the current TCP/IP configuration of the machine. |
| IPX/SPC | Internet Packet Exchange/ Sequenced Packet Exchange, speedy, works well with routers, and takes up relatively little RAM when loaded. |
| link lights | NIC light that gives off the informtion of the NIC's link to whatever's on the recieving end of the connection |
| loopback plug | Device used during loopback tests to check the female connector on a NIC |
| media access control (MAC) address | Unique 48-bit address assigned to each network card |
| Mesh Topology | Network topology where each com[uter has a dedicated line to every pther computer, most often used in Wireless Networks. |
| NET command | Command in Windows that allows users to view a network without knowing the names of the other computers on that network. |
| NetBIOS Extended User Interface (NETBEUI) | Offers small size, easy configuration, and relatively high speed but it cant be used for routing. |
| Network Interface Card (NIC) | Exapnsion Card that enables a PC to physically link to a network |
| Network Operating System (NOS) | Standalone operating system or part of an operating system that provides basic file and supervisory services over a network. |
| NSLOOKUP | Command-line program in Windows used to determine exaclty what information the DNS server is providing about a specific host name |
| Packets | Basic component of communication over a network. |
| Peer-to-peer network | Network in which each machine can act as both a client and a server |
| PING (Packet Internet Groper) | Slang term for a small network message sent by a computer to check for the presence and aliveness of another. |
| Port | Part of a connector in which a plug is inserted. |
| Resources | Data and services of a PC |
| RJ-11 | A connector for fout-wire UTP, usually found in telephone connections. |
| RJ-45 | Connector fou eight wire UTP, usually found in network connections |
| Ring topology | All computers on the network attach to a central ring of cable |
| Router | Device connecting seperate networks, fowards a packet from one netwok to another based on the network address for the protocol being used. |
| Server | Computer that shares its resources, such as printers and files. |
| Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) | Cabling for networks; composed of pairs of wires twisted around each other at specific intervals. |
| Start Topology | Network topology where the computers on the network connect to a central wiring point, usually called a hub |
| Static IP address | Manually set IP address that will not change |
| Subnet Mask | Value used in TCP/IP setting to divide the IP address of a host into its component parts |
| Switch | Device that filters and fowards traffic based on some criteria. |
| TCP/IP | Enables dissimilar computers to share information over a network. |
| TRACERT | Command-line utility used to follow the path a packet takes between two host. |
| Universal Naming Convention (UNC) | Distinguished by its use of double backslashes in front of the sharing system's name and a single backslash in front of the shared resources name. |
| Unshielded Twisted pair (UTP) | popular type of cabling for telephone and networks, composed of pairs of wires twisted around each other at specific intervals |
