Glossary

PVC

Abbreviation for permanent virtual circuit, a virtual circuit that is

 

permanently available. The only difference between a PVC and a

 

switched virtual circuit (SVC) is that an SVC must be reestablished

 

each time data is to be sent. Once the data has been sent, the SVC

 

disappears. PVCs are more efficient for connections between hosts

 

that communicate frequently.

router

The central switching device of the Internet, corporate Intranets, and

 

WANs. A router is a highly intelligent device that connects like and

 

unlike local area networks. It connects to Metropolitan Area

 

Networks such as X.25, Frame Relay, and ATM. Routers are

 

protocol sensitive, typically supporting multiple protocols.

RS-232

A set of standards developed by the EIA (Electrical Industries

 

Association) that defines the mechanical and electrical

 

characteristics for connecting DTE and DCE communications

 

devices. It defines what the interface does, circuit functions and their

 

corresponding connector pin assignments. The most commonly used

 

RS-232 interface is ideal for the data transmission range of up to 20

 

Kbps for up to 50 feet.

SAN

See Storage Area Networking.

SFP

See Small Form-Factor Pluggable

Simple Network

A common method by which network management applications can

Management Protocol

query a management agent using a support MIB. SNMP operates at

 

the OSI Application layer.

Small Form-Factor

Optical modular transceivers that are hot-swappable. They offer

Pluggable

high speed and physical compactness, and are designed for use with

 

small form factor connectors.

SNMP

See Simple Network Management Protocol.

SONET

Synchronous Optical Network, a standard for connecting fiber-optic

 

transmission systems. SONET was proposed by Bellcore in the

 

middle 1980s and is now an ANSI standard. SONET defines

 

interface standards at the physical layer of the OSI seven-layer

 

model. The standard defines a hierarchy of interface rates that allow

 

data streams at different rates to be multiplexed. SONET establishes

 

Optical Carrier (OC) levels from 51.8 Mbps (about the same as a T-3

 

line) to 2.48 Gbps. Prior rate standards used by different countries

 

specified rates that were not compatible for multiplexing. With the

 

implementation of SONET, communication carriers throughout the

 

world can interconnect their existing digital carrier and fiber optic

 

systems. The international equivalent of SONET, standardized by

 

the ITU, is called SDH.

Static Route

A route that is manually entered into a routing table. Static routes

 

take precedence over routes chosen by dynamic routing protocols.

 

See Static Routing.

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McDATA 3000 manual Router, RS-232, Simple Network, Management Protocol, Small Form-Factor, Pluggable, Static Route