In ISDN, the channel that carries the data.
A network segment that acts as a trunk between other network segments. Backbones are typically high-bandwidth implementations such as fiber-optic cable.
A document or another plan that defines the point at which backups are made, what backups are made, and what data is backed up.
The rated throughput capacity of a given network protocol or medium.
A term applied to any media that is capable of carrying only a single data signal at a time. Compare with broadband.
A measurement of performance of a device or system for the purposes of future comparison. Baselining is a common server administration task.
The speed or rate of signal transfer. The word baud is derived from the name of French telegraphy expert J. M. Baudot.
A Windows NT server that provides a backup of the PDC's user, group, and security information.
A base 2 numbering system that is used in digital signaling. It uses only the numbers 1 and 0.
The name of the user account information database on NetWare servers up to and including NetWare 3.x
The process of associating a protocol and an NIC.
The science and technology of measuring and analyzing biological data. Biometrics is increasingly being used for security purposes, to analyze and compare characteristics such as voice patterns, retina patterns, and hand measurements.
A basic set of instructions that a device needs to operate.
An electronic digit used in the binary numbering system. Bit is a contraction of the terms binary and digit.
A total loss of electrical power.
The term for the blue-screen STOP errors that occur and halt the system in Windows NT and Windows 2000.
A T-shaped connector that is used to connect a device to a thin coaxial Ethernet network.
A term used to describe any media that have physical constraints, such as coaxial, fiber-optic, and twisted pair. Compare with unbound media.
An ISDN digital communications line that consists of three independent channels: two B channels, each at 64Kbps, and one D channel, at 16Kbps. ISDN BRI is often referred to as 2B+D.
A device that connects and passes packets between two network segments that use the same communications protocol. Bridges operate at the data-link layer of the OSI model. A bridge filters, forwards, or floods an incoming frame based on the MAC address of that frame.
A list of MAC addresses that a bridge keeps and uses when it receives packets. The bridge uses the bridging address table to determine which segment the destination address is on before it sends the packet to the next interface or drops the packet (if it is on the same segment as the sending node).
A communications strategy that uses analog signaling over multiple communications channels.
A packet delivery system in which a copy of a packet is given to all hosts attached to the network.
An undesirable condition in which broadcasts become so numerous as to bog down the flow of data across the network.
A device that can be used to combine the benefits of both routers and bridges. Its common usage is to route routable protocols at the network layer of the OSI model and to bridge nonroutable protocols at the data-link layer.
A short-term decrease in the voltage level, usually caused by the startup demands of other electrical devices.
An area of memory in a device that is used to store data before it is forwarded to another device or location.
A path that is used by electrical signals to travel between the CPU and the attached hardware.
A bus accessing method in which the NIC takes control of the bus in order to send data through the bus directly to the system memory, bypassing the CPU.
A linear LAN architecture in which all devices are connected to a common cable, referred to as a bus or backbone.
A set of bits (usually 8 bits) that operate as a unit to signify a character.