Introduction; Gigabit Ethernet Technology - D-Link DGS-1224T User Manual

INTRODUCTION

This chapter describes the features of the DGS-1224T and provides
some background information about Ethernet/Fast Ethernet/Gigabit
Ethernet switching technology.

Gigabit Ethernet Technology

Gigabit Ethernet is an extension of IEEE 802.3 Ethernet utilizing the
same packet structure, format, and support for CSMA/CD protocol,
full duplex, flow control, and management objects, but with a tenfold
increase in theoretical throughput over 100-Mbps Fast Ethernet and a
hundredfold increase over 10-Mbps Ethernet. Since it is compatible
with all 10-Mbps and 100-Mbps Ethernet environments, Gigabit
Ethernet provides a straightforward upgrade without wasting existing
investments in hardware, software, and trained personnel.
The increased speed and extra bandwidth offered by Gigabit Ethernet
is essential to helping solve network bottlenecks that frequently
develop as more advanced computer users and newer applications
continue to demand greater network resources. Upgrading key
components, such as backbone connections and servers to Gigabit
Ethernet technology can greatly improve network response times as
well as significantly speed up the traffic between subnets.
Gigabit Ethernet enables fast optical fiber connections to support
video conferencing, complex imaging, and similar data-intensive
applications. Likewise, since data transfers occur 10 times faster than
Fast Ethernet, servers outfitted with Gigabit Ethernet NIC's are able to
perform 10 times the number of operations in the same amount of time.
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