Home > Glossary > Full Story

Terminologies Simplified

near-end crosstalk (NEXT) Interference that occurs close to a connector at either end of a cable. NEXT is usually measured near the source of a test signal.

Nearest Active Upstream Neighbor (NAUN) A Token Ring node from which another node receives packets and the token. Token Ring nodes receive transmissions only from a NAUN.

negotiable BIND A Request/Response Unit (RU) that enables two logical unit-to-logical unit (LU-LU) half sessions to negotiate the parameters of a network session when the Lus are activating a session.

neighboring router Two routers in the Open Shortest First (OSPF) protocol that share a route to the same network.

NetWare A local area network (LAN)/ wide area network (WAN) operating system from Novell that uses the NetWare Core Protocol (NCP), Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), and Sequenced Packet Exchange (SPX) protocols to share services transparently across dissimilar platforms. NetWare servers can support DOS, Windows, UNIX, and OS/2 clients, or Macintosh workstations. The Novell Directory Services (NDS) feature provides a scheme for arranging the entire network into a unified structure, as well as organizing network resources for easy access and centralized administration of the network.

Network Access Controller (NAC) A device that provides access to a network either for another network or for remote callers.

network adapter Hardware installed on workstations and servers that enables them to communicate on a network.

network address An eight-digit, hexadecimal number that uniquely identifies a network cable segment or a unique number that represents a network device.

network addressable unit (NAU) A logical unit (LU), physical unit (PU), or system services control point (SSCP) that is the origin or the destination of information transmitted through the path control network in a Systems Network Architecture (SNA).

network administration Management tasks (including assigning addresses to devices, maintaining network data files across a network, and setting up of internetwork routing) related to the software and hardware connecting a network. Network administration can also include system tasks related to server management (including starting up and shutting down the network system, adding or removing user accounts, and backing up and resorting network server data).

network analyzer

A software product, or a combination of software and hardware, that monitors the activity of a network and the workstations attached to the network and provides

summaries or long-term trends of network activity and performance. The software-hardware combination may include a Network Interface Card (NIC) used to test the network directly.

network architecture

A framework of principles that facilitates the operation, maintenance, and growth of a communications network by isolating user programs and applications from network details. Network architecture includes protocols and software that help to organize functions, data formats, and procedures for a network system. Common network architectures include Attached Resource Computer Network (ARCnet), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Ethernet, Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) and Token Ring.

network backbone A central cabling system that attaches servers and routers on a network and handles all network traffic. Because of its configuration (all servers connected to a central cable), the network backbone often decreases the time needed for transmission of packets and the amount of traffic on a network.

network board A circuit board installed in a NetWare network workstation computer to allow it to communicate with other workstations and with a NetWare server.