700 Series Managed Switch User’s Guide for Software v2.1

Ranges of addresses are assigned by Internic, an organization formed for this purpose.

IP multicast

Sending data to distributed servers on a multicast backbone. For large amounts of data, IP Multicast is more efficient than normal Internet transmissions, because the server can broadcast a message to many recipients simultaneously. Unlike traditional Internet traffic that requires separate connections for each source-destination pair, IP multicasting allows many recipients to share the same source. This means that just one set of packets is transmitted for all the destinations.

ISP

Internet service provider.

Internet Protocol

The main internetworking protocol used in the Internet. Used in conjunction with the Transfer Control Protocol (TCP) to form TCP/IP.

LAN

A communications network serving users within a limited area, such as one floor of a building.

Load balancing

The ability to distribute traffic across various ports of a device, such as a switch, to provide efficient, optimized traffic throughout the network.

local area network

LAN. A communications network serving users within a limited area, such as one floor of a building. A LAN typically connects multiple personal computers and shared network devices such as storage and printers. Although many technologies exist to implement a LAN, Ethernet is the most common for connecting personal computers.

Loop

An event that occurs when two network devices are connected by more than one path, thereby causing packets to repeatedly cycle around the network and not reach their destination.

MAC

Media Access Control. A protocol specified by the IEEE for determining which devices have access to a network at any one time.

MAC address

The Media Access Control address is a unique 48-bit hardware address assigned to every network interface card. Usually written in the form 01:23:45:67:89:ab.

Mbps

Megabits per second.

6

Glossary

SM-10004-02

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NETGEAR 700 Series manual Internet service provider