| id | term | description |
|---|
| 101 |
DCE |
a) Data Circuit-terminating Equipment
b) See: Distributed Computing Environment |
| 103 |
DDN |
See: Defense Data Network |
| 104 |
DDN NIC |
See: Defense Data Network Network Information Center |
| 105 |
DECnet |
A proprietary network protocol designed by Digital Equipment Corporation. The functionality of each Phase of the implementation, such as Phase IV and Phase V, is different. |
| 106 |
default route |
A routing table entry which is used to direct packets addressed to networks not explicitly listed in the routing table. [Source: MALAMUD] |
| 107 |
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) |
An agency of the U.S. Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military. DARPA (formerly known as ARPA) was responsible for funding much of the development of the Internet we know today, including the Berkeley version of Unix and TCP/IP. [Source: NNSC] |
| 108 |
Defense Data Network (DDN) |
A global communications network serving the US Department of Defense composed of MILNET, other portions of the Internet, and classified networks which are not part of the Internet. The DDN is used to connect military installations and is managed by the Defense Information Systems Agency. See also: Defense Information Systems Agency. |
| 109 |
Defense Data Network Network Information Center (DDN NIC) |
Often called "The NIC", the DDN NIC's primary responsibility is the assignment of Internet network addresses and Autonomous System numbers, the administration of the root domain, and providing information and support services to the DDN. It is also a primary repository for RFCs. See also: Autonomous System, network address, Internet Registry, Network Information Center, Request For Comments. |
| 110 |
Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) |
Formerly called the Defense Communications Agency (DCA), this is the government agency responsible for managing the DDN portion of the Internet, including the MILNET. Currently, DISA administers the DDN, and supports the user assistance services of the DDN NIC. See also: Defense Data Network. |
| 111 |
DEK |
See: Data Encryption Key |
| 112 |
DES |
See: Data Encryption Standard |
| 113 |
dialup |
A temporary, as opposed to dedicated, connection between machines established over a standard phone line. |
| 114 |
Directory Access Protocol |
X.500 protocol used for communication between a Directory User Agent and a Directory System Agent. [Source: MALAMUD] |
| 115 |
Directory System Agent (DSA) |
The software that provides the X.500 Directory Service for a portion of the directory information base. Generally, each DSA is responsible for the directory information for a single organization or organizational unit. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 116 |
Directory User Agent (DUA) |
The software that accesses the X.500 Directory Service on behalf of the directory user. The directory user may be a person or another software element. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 117 |
DISA |
See: Defense Information Systems Agency |
| 118 |
Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) |
An architecture of standard programming interfaces, conventions, and server functionalities (e.g., naming, distributed file system, remote procedure call) for distributing applications transparently across networks of heterogeneous computers. Promoted and controlled by the Open Software Foundation (OSF), a consortium led by Digital, IBM and Hewlett Packard. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 119 |
distributed database |
A collection of several different data repositories that looks like a single database to the user. A prime example in the Internet is the Domain Name System. |
| 120 |
DIX Ethernet |
See: Ethernet |
| 121 |
DNS |
See: Domain Name System |
| 122 |
domain |
"Domain" is a heavily overused term in the Internet. It can be used in the Administrative Domain context, or the Domain Name context. See also: Administrative Domain, Domain Name System. |
| 123 |
Domain Name System (DNS) |
The DNS is a general purpose distributed, replicated, data query service. The principal use is the lookup of host IP addresses based on host names. The style of host names now used in the Internet is called "domain name", because they are the style of names used to look up anything in the DNS. Some important domains are: .COM (commercial), .EDU (educational), .NET (network operations), .GOV (U.S. government), and .MIL (U.S. military). Most countries also have a domain. For example, .US (United States), .UK (United Kingdom), .AU (Australia). It is defined in STD 13, RFCs 1034 and 1035. See also: Fully Qualified Domain Name. |
| 124 |
dot address (dotted decimal notation) |
Dot address refers to the common notation for IP addresses of the form A.B.C.D; where each letter represents, in decimal, one byte of a four byte IP address. See also: IP address. [Source: FYI4] |
| 125 |
DS1 |
A framing specification for T-1 synchronous lines. See also: T1 |
| 126 |
DS3 |
A framing specification for T-3 synchronous lines. See also: T3 |
| 127 |
DSA |
See: Directory System Agent |
| 128 |
DTE |
Data Terminal Equipment |
| 129 |
DUA |
See: Directory User Agent |
| 130 |
dynamic adaptive routing |
Automatic rerouting of traffic based on a sensing and analysis of current actual network conditions. NOTE: this does not include cases of routing decisions taken on predefined information. [Source: J. Postel] |
| 131 |
EARN |
See: European Academic and Research Network |
| 132 |
EBCDIC |
See: Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code |
| 133 |
Ebone |
A pan-European backbone service. |
| 134 |
EFF |
See: Electronic Frontier Foundation |
| 135 |
EFLA |
See: Extended Four Letter Acronym |
| 136 |
EGP |
See: Exterior Gateway Protocol |
| 137 |
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) |
A foundation established to address social and legal issues arising from the impact on society of the increasingly pervasive use of computers as a means of communication and information distribution. |
| 138 |
Electronic Mail (email) |
A system whereby a computer user can exchange messages with other computer users (or groups of users) via a communications network. Electronic mail is one of the most popular uses of the Internet. [Source: NNSC] |
| 139 |
email |
See: Electronic mail |
| 140 |
email address |
The domain-based or UUCP address that is used to send electronic mail to a specified destination. For example an editor's address is "gmalkin@xylogics.com". See also: bang path, mail path, UNIX- to-UNIX CoPy. [Source: ZEN] |
| 141 |
encapsulation |
The technique used by layered protocols in which a layer adds header information to the protocol data unit (PDU) from the layer above. As an example, in Internet terminology, a packet would contain a header from the physical layer, followed by a header from the network layer (IP), followed by a header from the transport layer (TCP), followed by the application protocol data. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 142 |
encryption |
Encryption is the manipulation of a packet's data in order to prevent any but the intended recipient from reading that data. There are many types of data encryption, and they are the basis of network security. See also: Data Encryption Standard. |
| 143 |
Ethernet |
A 10-Mb/s standard for LANs, initially developed by Xerox, and later refined by Digital, Intel and Xerox (DIX). All hosts are connected to a coaxial cable where they contend for network access using a Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) paradigm. See also: 802.x, Local Area Network, token ring. |
| 144 |
Ethernet meltdown |
An event that causes saturation, or near saturation, on an Ethernet. It usually results from illegal or misrouted packets and typically lasts only a short time. [Source: COMER] |
| 145 |
European Academic and Research Network (EARN) |
A network connecting European academic and research institutions with electronic mail and file transfer services using the Bitnet protocol. See also: Bitnet |
| 146 |
Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC) |
A standard character-to-number encoding used primarily by IBM computer systems. See also: ASCII. |
| 147 |
Extended Four Letter Acronym (EFLA) |
A recognition of the fact that there are far too many TLAs. See also: Three Letter Acronym. [Source: K. Morgan] |
| 148 |
Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP) |
A protocol which distributes routing information to the routers which connect autonomous systems. The term "gateway" is historical, as "router" is currently the preferred term. There is also a routing protocol called EGP defined in STD 18, RFC 904. See also: Autonomous System, Border Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol. |
| 149 |
eXternal Data Representation (XDR) |
A standard for machine independent data structures developed by Sun Microsystems and defined in RFC 1014. It is similar to ASN.1. See also: Abstract Syntax Notation One. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 150 |
FARNET |
A non-profit corporation, established in 1987, whose mission is to advance the use of computer networks to improve research and education. |
| 151 |
FAQ |
Frequently Asked Question |
| 152 |
FDDI |
See: Fiber Distributed Data Interface |
| 153 |
Federal Information Exchange (FIX) |
One of the connection points between the American governmental internets and the Internet. [Source: SURA] |
| 154 |
Federal Networking Council (FNC) |
The coordinating group of representatives from those federal agencies involved in the development and use of federal networking, especially those networks using TCP/IP and the Internet. Current members include representatives from DOD, DOE, DARPA, NSF, NASA, and HHS. See also: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, National Science Foundation. |
| 155 |
Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) |
A high-speed (100Mb/s) LAN standard. The underlying medium is fiber optics, and the topology is a dual-attached, counter- rotating token ring. See also: Local Area Network, token ring. [Source: RFC1208] |
| 156 |
file transfer |
The copying of a file from one computer to another over a computer network. See also: File Transfer Protocol, Kermit. |
| 157 |
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) |
A protocol which allows a user on one host to access, and transfer files to and from, another host over a network. Also, FTP is usually the name of the program the user invokes to execute the protocol. It is defined in STD 9, RFC 959. See also: anonymous FTP. |
| 158 |
finger |
A program that displays information about a particular user, or all users, logged on the local system or on a remote system. It typically shows full name, last login time, idle time, terminal line, and terminal location (where applicable). It may also display plan and project files left by the user. |
| 159 |
FIX |
See: Federal Information Exchange |
| 160 |
flame |
A strong opinion and/or criticism of something, usually as a frank inflammatory statement, in an electronic mail message. It is common to precede a flame with an indication of pending fire (i.e., FLAME ON!). Flame Wars occur when people start flaming other people for flaming when they shouldn't have. See also: Electronic Mail |
| 161 |
FNC |
See: Federal Networking Council |
| 162 |
For Your Information (FYI) |
A subseries of RFCs that are not technical standards or descriptions of protocols. FYIs convey general information about topics related to TCP/IP or the Internet. See also: Request For Comments, STD. |
| 163 |
FQDN |
See: Fully Qualified Domain Name |
| 164 |
fragment |
A piece of a packet. When a router is forwarding an IP packet to a network that has a maximum packet size smaller than the packet size, it is forced to break up that packet into multiple fragments. These fragments will be reassembled by the IP layer at the destination host. |
| 165 |
fragmentation |
The IP process in which a packet is broken into smaller pieces to fit the requirements of a physical network over which the packet must pass. See also: reassembly. |
| 166 |
frame |
A frame is a datalink layer "packet" which contains the header and trailer information required by the physical medium. That is, network layer packets are encapsulated to become frames. See also: datagram, encapsulation, packet. |
| 167 |
freenet |
Community-based bulletin board system with email, information services, interactive communications, and conferencing. Freenets are funded and operated by individuals and volunteers -- in one sense, like public television. They are part of the National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN), an organization based in Cleveland, Ohio, devoted to making computer telecommunication and networking services as freely available as public libraries. [Source: LAQUEY] |
| 168 |
FTP |
See: File Transfer Protocol |
| 169 |
Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) |
The FQDN is the full name of a system, rather than just its hostname. For example, "venera" is a hostname and "venera.isi.edu" is an FQDN. See also: hostname, Domain Name System. |
| 170 |
FYI |
See: For Your Information |
| 171 |
gross |
A dozen dozen (144). |
| 172 |
gated |
Gatedaemon. A program which supports multiple routing protocols and protocol families. It may be used for routing, and makes an effective platform for routing protocol research. The software is freely available by anonymous FTP from "gated.cornell.edu". Pronounced "gate-dee". See also: Exterior Gateway Protocol, Open Shortest Path First..., Routing Information Protocol, routed. |
| 173 |
gateway |
The term "router" is now used in place of the original definition of "gateway". Currently, a gateway is a communications device/program which passes data between networks having similar functions but dissimilar implementations. This should not be confused with a protocol converter. By this definition, a router is a layer 3 (network layer) gateway, and a mail gateway is a layer 7 (application layer) gateway. See also: mail gateway, router, protocol converter. |
| 174 |
Gopher |
A distributed information service that makes available hierarchical collections of information across the Internet. Gopher uses a simple protocol that allows a single Gopher client to access information from any accessible Gopher server, providing the user with a single "Gopher space" of information. Public domain versions of the client and server are available. See also: archie, archive site, Prospero, Wide Area Information Servers. |
| 175 |
GOSIP |
See: Government OSI Profile |
| 176 |
Government OSI Profile |
A subset of OSI standards specific to U.S. Government procurements, designed to maximize interoperability in areas where plain OSI standards are ambiguous or allow excessive options. [Source: BIG-LAN] |
| 177 |
hacker |
A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in particular. The term is often misused in a pejorative context, where "cracker" would be the correct term. See also: cracker. |
| 178 |
header |
The portion of a packet, preceding the actual data, containing source and destination addresses, and error checking and other fields. A header is also the part of an electronic mail message that precedes the body of a message and contains, among other things, the message originator, date and time. See also: Electronic Mail, packet. |
| 179 |
heterogeneous network |
A network running multiple network layer protocols. See also: DECnet, IP, IPX, XNS. |
| 180 |
hierarchical routing |
The complex problem of routing on large networks can be simplified by reducing the size of the networks. This is accomplished by breaking a network into a hierarchy of networks, where each level is responsible for its own routing. The Internet has, basically, three levels: the backbones, the mid-levels, and the stub networks. The backbones know how to route between the mid-levels, the mid-levels know how to route between the sites, and each site (being an autonomous system) knows how to route internally. See also: Autonomous System, Exterior Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol, stub network, transit network. |
| 181 |
High Performance Computing and Communications (HPCC) |
High performance computing encompasses advanced computing, communications, and information technologies, including scientific workstations, supercomputer systems, high speed networks, special purpose and experimental systems, the new generation of large scale parallel systems, and application and systems software with all components well integrated and linked over a high speed network. [Source: HPCC] |
| 182 |
High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI) |
An emerging ANSI standard which extends the computer bus over fairly short distances at speeds of 800 and 1600 Mb/s. HIPPI is often used in a computer room to connect a supercomputer to routers, frame buffers, mass-storage peripherals, and other computers. See also: American National Standards Institute [Source: MALAMUD] |
| 183 |
HIPPI |
See: High Performance Parallel Interface |
| 184 |
hop |
A term used in routing. A path to a destination on a network is a series of hops, through routers, away from the origin. |
| 185 |
host |
A computer that allows users to communicate with other host computers on a network. Individual users communicate by using application programs, such as electronic mail, Telnet and FTP. [Source: NNSC] |
| 186 |
host address |
See: internet address |
| 187 |
hostname |
The name given to a machine. See also: Fully Qualified Domain Name. [Source: ZEN] |
| 188 |
host number |
See: host address |
| 189 |
HPCC |
See: High Performance Computing and Communications |
| 190 |
hub |
A device connected to several other devices. In ARCnet, a hub is used to connect several computers together. In a message handling service, a hub is used for the transfer of messages across the network. [Source: MALAMUD] |
| 191 |
I-D |
See: Internet-Draft |
| 192 |
IAB |
See: Internet Architecture Board |
| 193 |
IANA |
See: Internet Assigned Numbers Authority |
| 194 |
ICMP |
See: Internet Control Message Protocol |
| 195 |
IEEE |
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers |
| 196 |
IEEE 802 |
See: 802.x |
| 197 |
IEN |
See: Internet Experiment Note |
| 198 |
IESG |
See: Internet Engineering Steering Group |
| 199 |
IETF |
See: Internet Engineering Task Force |
| 200 |
IINREN |
See: Interagency Interim National Research and Education Network |
| 201 |
IGP |
See: Interior Gateway Protocol |
