Glossary
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## Glossary

acknowledge (Ack) packet

  The Ack packet informs the PE that initiated a message that the destination PE accepted the message.

autonegotiation

  The process by which two computers (or a computer and a switch) connected by Gigabit Ethernet determine the speed and other parameters with which they will communicate.

CD-ROM (CD)

  A flat metallic disk that contains information that you can view and copy onto your own hard disk; you cannot change or add to the disk. CD-ROM is an abbreviation for compact disc read-only memory.

Ethernet

  A communication network used to connect computers.

gigabit

  A communication rate of 2^30 bits per second.

host

  Any system connected to the network.

hostname

  The name that uniquely identifies each host (system) on the network.

IP address

  A number that uniquely identifies each host (system) on a TCP/IP network..

LED

  Light-emitting diode, a light on a piece of hardware that indicates status or error conditions.

MAC

  Medium access control, also called the physical layer.

MAC address

  The physical address of the Gigabit Ethernet board, which is distinct from the IP address.

MTU

  Maximum Transmission Unit is a configuration parameter that controls the size of the Ethernet frames that the Gigabit Ethernet board can transmit and receive.

man (manual) page

  An online document that describes how to use a particular Linux command. Also called reference page.

NIS

  Network Information Service, a distributed database mechanism for user accounts, host names, mail aliases, and so on.

PCI

  Peripheral Component Interconnect, a bus specification. The PCI bus is a high-performance local bus used to connect peripherals to memory and a microprocessor. Many vendors offer devices that plug into the PCI bus.

reference page

  See man (manual) page.

TCP/IP

  A standard networking protocol that is included in the Linux software.

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