Netopia 435 Reference Manual page 259

GL-4 Netopia ISDN Router Reference Guide
firmware: System software stored in a device's memory that
controls the device. The Netopia ISDN Router's firmware can be
updated.
gateway: A device that connects two or more networks that use
different protocols. Gateways provide address translation services,
but do not translate data. Gateways must be used in conjunction
with special software packages that allow computers to use
networking protocols not originally designed for them.
hard seeding: A router setting. In hard seeding, if a router that has
just been reset detects a network number or zone name conflict
between its configured information and the information provided by
another router, it disables the router port for which there is a
conflict. See also non-seeding, seeding , seed router, and soft
seeding .
header: In packets, a header is part of the envelope information
that surrounds the actual data being transmitted. In e-mail, a
header is usually the address and routing information found at the
top of messages.
hop count: The number of routers a packet has gone through. If
there are six routers between source and destination nodes, the
hop count for the packet will be six when it arrives at its destination
node. The maximum allowable hop count is usually 15.
hop count reduction: A feature of AURP supported by the Netopia
ISDN Router. Tunnels and point-to-point links over WANs can often
exceed the maximum allowable hop count of 15 routers. Network
administrators can use the hop count reduction feature to set up
tunnels and point-to-point links that exceed the 15-router limit.
host: A single, addressable device on a network. Computers,
networked printers, and routers are hosts.
internet: A set of networks connected together by routers. This is a
general term, not to be confused with the large, multi-organizational
collection of IP networks known as the Internet. An internet is
sometimes also known as an internetwork.