Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NDP)
Neighbor Discovery Protocol is part of the new version of the Internet Protocol (IPv6). Its function is to resolve IPv6 addresses into valid MAC addresses. All addresses discovered by NDR are stored in a buffer known as the neighbor cache. More ...
IPv6 Address Types and Scopes
An IPv6 addresses have a size of 128 bits have three types, unicast, multicast, and anycast. Unicast addresses are for a one-to-one communication. Multicast addresses are for a one-to-many communication. Anycast addresses are for one node to nearest node of multiple nodes communication. More ...
IPv6 Dynamic Address Allocation
As with IPv4, IPv6 addresses can be statically assigned. However, when it comes to dynamic addressing, IPv6 has a different approach. IPv6 uses the ICMPv6 Router Advertisement message to suggest to devices how to obtain their IPv6 addressing information. More ...
What's the Difference Between a Packet and a Frame?
When speaking of the data in a network, people often call everything a packet. A more proper generic term would be protocol data unit or PDU. The specific name for a PDU depends on at what layer the data unit is in the OSI model. More ...
RADIUS Protocol
RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) is an application layer protocol that provides centralized Authorization, Authentication, and Accounting management for users who connect and use a network service. More ...
Major Protocols in the TCP/IP Suite
This is a chart of the layers of the TCP/IP Suite and the major protocols in each layer. As you move your mouse pointer over each protocol acronym, a brief description of the protocol appears. This is not a comprehensive list. More ...
Free eBook: IPv6 Addressing
All the IPv4 addresses are quickly being used up. The conversion to IPv6 is now underway. In this free eBook, Aaron Balchunas describes IPv6 and how to configure it to work along side IPv4. Learn which protocols will need to be updated to work with IPv6. Learn how to configure IPv6. More ...
The OSI Physical Layer
The Physical layer (OSI layer 1) deals with the mechanical and electrical specifications of the network hardware. Layer 1 specifications define connectors, pin-outs, signal voltages, and related software. More ...
T-Carrier - A Complete and Comprehensive Guide
T-carrier was introduced in 1962 by AT&T Bell Laboratories. A T1 line has the capacity of transmitting 1.544 Mbps and it can also be used to send 24 digitized voice channels. Dispite its age, because of its reliability, T-carrier is the most commonly used digital transmission service in the US, Canada, and Japan. More ...
NTP Server Systems - The Network Time Protocol
The Network Time Protocol (NTP) is utilized by NTP Server systems to distribute accurate time information to network time clients. The NTP protocol is widely used throughout the Internet to provide synchronization of computers and processes. This article discusses how NTP server systems utilize the Network Time Protocol to provide networks with an accurate reference of time. More ...
Kerberos Authentication Protocol
Kerberos is an authentication protocol which allows computers communicating over a non-secure network to prove their identity to one another. Windows 2000 and later use Kerberos as their default authentication method. More ...
Network Routing Protocols - IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, ISIS, BGP
The purpose of routing protocols is to learn of available routes on the network and make routing decisions. There are two primary routing protocol types; link state and distance vector. Some of the most common routing protocols include RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, IS-IS and BGP. More ...
VTP (VLAN Trunking Protocol)
A VLAN (Virtual LAN) allows a network administrator to partition a LAN to conform to the business functions of the organization without physically modifying the network. VTP (VLAN Trunking Protocol) is a Cisco proprietary protocol that allows an administrator to configure VLANs on a single VTP server, easing the administration of a network. More ...
Session Border Controllers - More Than Just a Voice Firewall
The migration from Time-Division Multiplexing to the more flexible IP based SIP networks brought an unexpected security challenge. Session Border Controllers focused primarily on SIP and H.323 session security. More ...
IP version 6 (IPv6) Advantages and Implementation
The Internet has, to all intents and purposes, run out of public IP version 4 addresses. The solution to this issue is new IP version 6. This would require a parallel IPv6 based Internet to be running until all IPv4 connections have been converted. More ...
