About Gigabit Ethernet; About Auto-Negotiation - D-Link dge-560t Ethernet Adapter

About Gigabit Ethernet

Gigabit Ethernet is a network technology specified by IEEE Standard 802.3ab.
It extends the traditional 100Mbps (100 megabit/sec) Fast Ethernet technology
to achieve 1000Mbps (1000 megabit/sec) transmission and reception. Because
Gigabit Ethernet retains the traditional Ethernet CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense,
Multiple Access, and Collision Detect) protocol, it remains wholly compatible
with 100Mbps Ethernet while providing a tenfold increase in network capacity.
The D-Link DGE-560T provides full-duplex 1000Base-T operation (in
Category 5 twisted-pair cable environments utilizing all 4 pair). To provide for
traditional 10 or 100Mbps Ethernet operation in twisted-pair cable
environments, the D-Link DGE-560T also offers 10 or 100Mbps Ethernet
operation, in full-duplex and half-duplex modes. The D-Link DGE-560T's
auto-negotiation capability provides for automatic selection of the best
operation mode.

About Auto-Negotiation

The basic idea of auto-negotiation can be understood by reflecting for a
moment on the familiar process of making a dial-up connection between two
modems. You have probably heard some exchanges between your local
modem and a modem at the other end of a telephone line. (These exchanges
are ordinarily played out through a speaker in your local modem.) As irritating
as those few seconds of noise may be, they do let you know that your modem
and the remote modem are on the job, preparing for your intended
communication with the remote computer.
The preparatory work of the two modems during those few seconds before you
see the "connect" message is to negotiate the best data communication scheme
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