10base-t ieee 802.3 specification for 10 mbps ethernet over twisted pair wiring.

    100base-tx ieee 802.3 specification for 100 mbps ethernet over twisted pair wiring.

    3des3des (triple des) achieves a high level of security by encrypting the data three times using des with three different, unrelated keys.

    802.11bieee specification for wireless networking at 11 mbps using direct-sequence spread-spectrum (dsss) technology and operating in the unlicensed radio spectrum at 2.5ghz.

    adslsee asymmetric digital subscriber line.

    aesadvanced encryption standard, a symmetric 128-bit block data encryption technique. it is an iterated block cipher with a variable block length and a variable key length. the block length and the key length can be independently specified to 128, 192 or 256 bits.the u.s government adopted the algorithm as its encryption technique in october 2000, replacing the des encryption it used. aes works at multiple network layers simultaneously.

    denial of service dos. a hacker attack designed to prevent your computer or network from

    attack operating or communicating.

    desthe data encryption standard (des) processes input data that is 64 bits wide, encrypting these values using a 56 bit key. see also 3des.

    diffie-hellmandeffie hellman shared secret algorithm is a method for securely exchanging a shared secret between two parties, in real-time, over an untrusted network. a shared secret allows two parties, who may not have ever communicated previously, to encrypt their communications. as such, it is used by several protocols, including secure sockets layer (ssl) and internet protocol security (ipsec).

    dhcpsee dynamic host configuration protocol.

    dmza demilitarized zone is used by a company that wants to host its own internet services without sacrificing unauthorized access to its private network. the dmz sits between the internet and an internal network's line of defense, usually some combination of firewalls and bastion hosts. typically, the dmz contains devices accessible to internet traffic, such as web (http) servers, ftp servers, smtp (e-mail) servers and dns servers.

    dnssee domain name server.

    domain namea descriptive name for an address or group of addresses on the internet. domain names are of the form of a registered entity name plus one of a number of predefined top level suffixes such as .com, .edu, .uk, etc. for example, in the address mail.netgear.com, mail is a server name and netgear.com is the domain.

    domain name serverdns. a domain name server resolves descriptive names of network resources (such as www.netgear.com) to numeric ip addresses.

    dslsee asymmetric digital subscriber line

    asymmetric digital subscriber linea technology for sending data over regular telephone lines. adsl allows data rates up to 8 mbps downstream and 640 kbps upstream.

    dynamic host configuration protocol

    dhcp. an ethernet protocol specifying how a centralized dhcp server can assign network configuration information to multiple dhcp clients. the assigned information includes ip addresses, dns addresses, and gateway (router) addresses.

    espencapsulating security payload.

    essidthe extended service set identification (essid) is a thirty-two character (maximum) alphanumeric key identifying the wireless local area network.

    gatewaya local device, usually a router, that connects hosts on a local network to other networks.

    ietfinternet engineering task force. an open international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers concerned with the evolution of the internet architecture and the smooth operation of the internet. working groups of the ietf propose standard protocols and procedures for the internet, which are published as rfcs (request for comment) at www.ietf.org.

    ikeinternet key exchange. an automated method for exchanging and managing encryption keys between two vpn devices.

    ipinternet protocol. the main internetworking protocol used in the internet. used in conjunction with the transfer control protocol (tcp) to form tcp/ip.

    ip addressa four-position number uniquely defining each host on the internet. ranges of addresses are assigned by internic, an organization formed for this purpose. usually written in dotted-decimal notation with periods separating the bytes (for example, 134.177.244.57).

    ipsecinternet protocol security. ipsec is a series of guidelines for securing private information transmitted over public networks. ipsec is a vpn method providing a higher level of security than pptp.

    ispinternet service provider.

    lansee local area network.

    local area networklan. a communications network serving users within a limited area, such as one floor of a building. a lan typically connects multiple personal computers and shared network devices such as storage and printers. although many technologies exist to implement a lan, ethernet is the most common for connecting personal computers.

    mac addressmedia access control address. a unique 48-bit hardware address assigned to every ethernet node. usually written in the form 01:23:45:67:89:ab.

    mbpsmegabits per second.

    msbsee most significant bit or most significant byte.

    mtusee maximum transmit unit.

    maximum transmitunit

    the size in bytes of the largest packet that can be sent or received.

    most significant bit or most significant byte

    msb. the portion of a number, address, or field that is farthest left when written as a single number in conventional hexadecimal ordinary notation. the part of the number having the most value.

    natsee network address translation.

    netbiosnetwork basic input output system. an application programming interface (api) for sharing services and information on local-area networks (lans). provides for communication between stations of a network where each station is given a name. these names are alphanumeric names, 16 characters in length.

    netmaska number that explains which part of an ip address comprises the network address and which part is the host address on that network. it can be expressed in dotted-decimal notation or as a number appended to the ip address. for example, a 28-bit mask starting from the msb can be shown as 255.255.255.192 or as /28 appended to the ip address.

    network address translation

    a technique by which several hosts share a single ip address for access to the internet.

    packeta block of information sent over a network. a packet typically contains a source and destination network address, some protocol and length information, a block of data, and a checksum.

    pppsee point-to-point protocol.

    ppp over ethernetpppoe. ppp over ethernet is a protocol for connecting remote hosts to the internet over an always-on connection by simulating a dial-up connection.

    pptppoint-to-point tunneling protocol. a method for establishing a virtual private network (vpn) by embedding microsoft’s network protocol into internet packets.

    pstnpublic switched telephone network.

    point-to-point protocol

    ppp. a protocol allowing a computer using tcp/ip to connect directly to the internet.

    rfcrequest for comment. refers to documents published by the internet engineering task force (ietf) proposing standard protocols and procedures for the internet. rfcs can be found at www.ietf.org.

    ripsee routing information protocol.

    routera device that forwards data between networks. an ip router forwards data based on ip source and destination addresses.

    routing information protocol

    rip. a protocol in which routers periodically exchange information with one another so that they can determine minimum distance paths between sources and destinations.

    ssidservice set identification. a thirty-two character (maximum) alphanumeric key identifying the wireless local area network. for the wireless devices in a network to communicate with each other, all devices must be configured with the same ssid. this is typically the configuration parameter for a wireless pc card. it corresponds to the essid in the wireless access point and to the wireless network name. see also wireless network name and essid.

    subnet masksee netmask.

    upnpsee universal plug and play.

    universal plug and play

    upnp. a networking architecture that provides compatibility among networking equipment, software and peripherals of the 400+ vendors that are part of the universal plug and play forum. upnp compliant routers provide broadband users at home and small businesses with a seamless way to participate in online games, videoconferencing and other peer-to-peer services.

    urluniversal resource locator, the global address of documents and other resources on the world wide web.

    utpunshielded twisted pair. the cable used by 10base-t and 100base-tx ethernet networks.

    vpnvirtual private network. a method for securely transporting data between two private networks by using a public network such as the internet as a connection.

    wansee wide area network.

    web proxy servera web proxy server is a specialized http server that allows clients access to internet from behind a firewall. the proxy server listens for requests from clients within the firewall and forwards these requests to remote internet servers outside the firewall. the proxy server reads responses from the external servers and then sends them to internal client clients.

    wepwired equivalent privacy. wep is a data encryption protocol for 802.11b wireless networks. all wireless nodes and access points on the network are configured with a 64-bit or 128-bit shared key for data encryption.

    wide area networkwan. a long distance link used to extend or connect remotely located local area networks. the internet is a large wan.

    wi-fisee 802.11b. a trade name for the 802.11b wireless networking standard, given by the wireless ethernet compatibility alliance (weca, see http://www.wi-fi.net), an industry standard group promoting interoperability among 802.11b devices.

    windows internet wins. windows internet naming service is a server process for resolvingnaming service windows-based computer names to ip addresses. if a remote network contains a wins server, your windows pcs can gather information from that wins server about its local hosts. this allows your pcs to browse that remote network using network neighborhood.

    wireless network name (ssid)

    wireless network name (ssid). the name assigned to a wireless network. this is the same as the ssid or essid configuration parameter. there can be multiple wireless networks in a given area. you can connect to only one wireless network at a time. see also ssid and essid.

    winssee windows internet naming service.