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4 Token Ring Interface Processor (TRIP) Installation and Configuration
Product Description
Figure 3 Token Ring Type 3 Lobe Cable Connectors, DB-9 and RJ-11 Types
Token Ring Physical Connections
The term Token Ring refers to both IBM’s Token Ring Network, which IBM developed in the 1970s,
and to IEEE 802.5 networks. The IEEE 802.5 specification was modeled after, and still closely
shadows, IBM’s network. The two types are compatible, although the specifications differ slightly.
Token Ring and IEEE 802.5 are token passing networks, which move a small frame, called a token,
around the network. Possession of the token grants the right to transmit; a station with information
to transmit must wait until it detects a free token passing by.
The IBM Token Ring specifies a star topology, with all end stations connected through a device
called a multistation access unit (MSAU). IEEE 802.5 does not specify any topology, although most
implementations are based on a star configuration with end stations attached to a device called a
media access unit (MAU). Also, IBM Token Ring specifies twisted-pair cabling, whereas IEEE
802.5 does not specify media type. Most Token Ring networks use shielded twisted-pair cabling;
however, some networks that operate at 4 Mbps use unshielded twisted-pair cable. Table 1 shows a
comparison of the two types.
Table 1 IBM Token Ring and IEEE 802.5 Comparison
Network Type Data Rates Stations/ Segment Topology Media Signaling
Access
Method Encoding
IBM Token Ring
network
4, 16 Mbps 260 shielded twisted-pair
72 unshielded twisted-pair
Star Twisted
pair
Baseband Token passing Differential
Manchester
IEEE 802.5 network 4, 16 Mbps 250 Not
specified
Not
specified
Baseband Token passing Differential
Manchester
H2055
TRIP end
MAU end