Infolific » Network Dictionary

Extranet Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:10:46 +0000

An extranet is a private network that uses the Internet protocol and the public telecommunication system to securely share part of a business's information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other businesses. An extranet can be viewed as part of a company's intranet that is extended to users [...]

ARPANET Network Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 07:12:27 +0000

In the mid-1960s, at the height of the Cold War, the DoD wanted a command and control network that could survive a nuclear war. Traditional circuit-switch telephone networks were considered too vulnerable, since the loss of one line or switch would certainly terminate all conversations using them and might even [...]

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 02:17:20 +0000

Also known as a MAN, a metropolitan area network is basically a bigger version of a LAN and normally uses similar technology. It might cover a group of nearby corporate offices or a city and might be either private or public. A MAN can support both data and voice, and [...]

Broadcast Network Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 19:37:52 +0000

This type of network has a single communication channel that is shared by all the machines on the network. Short messages, called packets in certain contexts, sent by any machine are received by all the others. An address field within the packet specifies for whom it is intended. Upon receiving [...]

Wireless Network Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:51:02 +0000

Mobile computers, such as notebook computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs), are the fastest-growing segment of the computer industry. Many of the owners of these computers have desktop machines on LANs and WANs back at the office and want to be connected to their home base even when away from [...]

Wide Area Network (WAN) Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:43:03 +0000

This type of network spans a large geographical area, often a country or continent. IT contains a collection of machines intended for running user programs. These machines are called hosts or end systems. The hosts are connected by a communication subnet. The job of the subnet is to carry messages [...]

Internetwork Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:54:29 +0000

Many networks exist in the world, often with different hardware and software. People connected to one network often want to communicate with people attached to a different one. This desire requires connecting together different, and frequently incompatible networks, sometimes by using machines called gateways to make the connection and provide [...]

Point-to-Point Network Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:23:04 +0000

This type of network consists of many connections between individual pairs of machines. To go from the source to the destination, a packet of information on this type of network may have to first visit one or more intermediate machines. Often multiple routes, of different length are possible, so routing [...]

Network Protocol Hierarchy Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:16:14 +0000

To reduce their design complexity, most networks are organized as a series of layers or levels, each one built upon the on below it. The number of layers, the name of each layer, the contents of each layer, and the function of each layer differ from network to network. However, [...]

Local Area Network (LAN) Definition

Marios Alexandrou — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:06:43 +0000

This type of network is generally called a LAN and are privately-owned networks within a single building or campus of up to a few miles in size. They are widely used to connect personal computers and workstations in company offices and factories to share resources (e.g. printers) and exchange information. [...]