3Com 7000 Switch User Manual


 
130
G
LOSSARY
ATM
Asynchronous Transfer Mode. A transfer method used for LAN and
WAN. ATM carries voice, video, and data at speeds up to 2.2 Gbps
and can integrate geographically distant disparate networks. Also called
cell relay.
ATM Adaptation
Layer (AAL)
A set of protocols that translate user traffic from higher-layer protocols
into ATM format.
ATM Address
Defined in the UNI Specification as 3 formats, each having 20 bytes in
length including country, area and end-system identifiers.
ATM Forum
A consortium of vendors, carriers, and users formed to expedite
industry agreement on ATM interfaces.
ATM Layer
The part of the BISDN protocol stack that handles most of the ATM
routing and processing.
ATM Member
An alias given to an ATM address on a specific port in order to avoid
typing in the ATM address 20 octets long, proprietary implementation.
B
backbone
The main segment of a campus network, to which are attached
department networks, or ribs.
border node
A logical node that is in a specified peer group, and has at least one
link that crosses the peer group boundary.
broadcasting
A common method of information transmission in which every port on
the network receives the packet being sent, though only the port with
the proper address passes it on to the user.
bridge
Device connecting two networks which filters and forwards data
between the networks according to their destination address.
BUS
Broadcast and Unknown Server. A BUS is that set of functions
implemented in an ATM network that provides LAN-to-LAN
transmission support while a LAN connection is being established.