Appendix D: Glossary - Linksys EFG120 User Manual

Appendix D: Glossary

10BaseT - An Ethernet standard that uses twisted wire pairs.
100BaseTX - IEEE physical layer specification for 100 Mbps over two pairs of
Category 5 UTP or STP wire.
Boot - To cause the computer to start executing instructions. Personal comput-
ers contain built-in instructions in a ROM chip that are automatically executed
on startup. These instructions search for the operating system, load it and pass
control to it.
Browser - A browser is an application program that provides a way to look at
and interact with all the information on the World Wide Web or PC. The word
"browser" seems to have originated prior to the Web as a generic term for user
interfaces that let you browse text files online.
Default Gateway - The routing device used to forward all traffic that is not
addressed to a station within the local subnet.
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) - A protocol that lets network
administrators manage centrally and automate the assignment of Internet
Protocol (IP) addresses in an organization's network. Using the Internet's set of
protocol (TCP/IP), each machine that can connect to the Internet needs a unique
IP address. When an organization sets up its computer users with a connection
to the Internet, an IP address must be assigned to each machine. Without DHCP,
the IP address must be entered manually at each computer and, if computers
move to another location in another part of the network, a new IP address must
be entered. DHCP lets a network administrator supervise and distribute IP
addresses from a central point and automatically sends a new IP address when a
computer is plugged into a different place in the network.
DHCP uses the concept of a "lease" or amount of time that a given IP address
will be valid for a computer. The lease time can vary depending on how long a
user is likely to require the Internet connection at a particular location. It's espe-
cially useful in education and other environments where users change frequent-
ly. Using very short leases, DHCP can dynamically reconfigure networks in
which there are more computers than there are available IP addresses.
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DHCP supports static addresses for computers containing Web servers that need
a permanent IP address.
DNS - The domain name system (DNS) is the way that Internet domain name
are located and translated into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. A domain name
is a meaningful and easy-to-remember "handle" for an Internet address.
Domain - A subnetwork comprised of a group of clients and servers under the
control of one security database. Dividing LANs into domains improves per-
formance and security.
Download - To receive a file transmitted over a network. In a communications
session, download means receive, upload means transmit.
Driver - A workstation or server software module that provides an interface
between a network interface card and the upper-layer protocol software running
in the computer; it is designed for a specific NIC, and is installed during the ini-
tial installation of a network-compatible client or server operating system.
Dynamic IP Address - An IP address that is automatically assigned to a client
station in a TCP/IP network, typically by a DHCP server. Network devices that
serve multiple users, such as servers and printers, are usually assigned static IP
addresses.
Ethernet - IEEE standard network protocol that specifies how data is placed on
and retrieved from a common transmission medium. Has a transfer rate of 10
Mbps. Forms the underlying transport vehicle used by several upper-level pro-
tocols, including TCP/IP and XNS.
Firmware - Code that is written onto read-only memory (ROM) or program-
mable read-only memory (PROM). Once firmware has been written onto the
ROM or PROM, it is retained even when the device is turned off.
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) - A protocol used to transfer files over a TCP/IP
network (Internet, UNIX, etc.). For example, after developing the HTML pages
for a Web site on a local machine, they are typically uploaded to the Web serv-
er using FTP.
FTP includes functions to log onto the network, list directories and copy files. It
can also convert between the ASCII and EBCDIC character codes. FTP opera-
tions can be performed by typing commands at a command prompt or via an
FTP utility running under a graphical interface such as Windows. FTP transfers
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