Routing Information Protocol (RIP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), and Routing Convergence
A routing protocol advertises route information between routers. Dynamic routing protocols are available that allow a router's routing table to be updated as network conditions change. More ...
The OSI Data Link Layer
The Data Link layer uses MAC addresses is to pass data frames from the Physical layer to the Network layer and vice versa. The use of MAC addresses permits the direction of data within the same network, but not across routers. 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 ...
What is PPP, PPPoA and PPPoE?
PPP was designed to provide a connection between two devices. PPP comes with options including encryption, authentication and data compression. PPPoA is the standard for connection over an ADSL network. PPPoE is the standard for connection over an Ethernet network. More ...
Representation of IPv6 Addresses
IPv6 addresses are 128 bits in length and written as a string of hexadecimal digits. At first glance, these addresses can look overwhelming. RFC 2373 and RFC 5952 provide two helpful rules for reducing the notation involved in the standard format. More ...
RIP (Routing Information Protocol)
RIP is an Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) that uses hop count as a metric. RIP comes in versions 1, 2, and RIPng (RIP next generation) an extension of RIPv2 for support of IPv6. More ...
TCP/IP Protocol Suite
A good portion of the knowledge required to be a network technician relates to the TCP/IP protocol suite. This article describes the most important protocols in the TCP/IP protocol suite. Many other less frequently used protocols exist. 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 ...
Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs)
A Virtual LAN (VLAN) is a subgroup within a local network. VLANs make it easy for network administrators to separate a single switched network into subnetworks to match the functional and security requirements of their network without having to make major changes in the existing network infrastructure. More ...
OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) Protocol
OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) protocol is a protocol that handles routing for IP traffic. Because it is based on an open standard, OSPF is very popular in many corporate networks today and has many advantages. More ...
Network Cabling and Components
Although the power and sophistication of networking protocols and software is impressive, a network could not operate without physical cable and components. Even a wireless network needs physical components such as access points. 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 ...
WAN Network Protocols - DSL, SONET, HDLC, DWDM, DLSW+
This article discusses some of the most implemented Wide Area Networking (WAN) protocols in enterprise networking environments today including HDLC, DSL, SONET, DWDM, and DLSW+. HDLC is a Cisco proprietary protocol for designed for sending data across serial links. More ...
Introducing OpenStack
OpenStack is one of the most popular cloud computing management packages. OpenStack provides a common platform for controlling clouds of servers, storage, network, and even application resources. OpenStack is managed through a web-based interface, a command-line interface (CLI), and an application programming interface (API). More ...
The OSI Session Layer
The Session layer, layer seven of the OSI model, establishes, synchronizes, maintains and terminates sessions between computers on a network. It establishes a connection ID and authenticates security. More ...
