Systems communicating over Ethernet divide a stream of data into shorter pieces called frames. Each frame contains source and destination addresses and error-checking data so that damaged data can be detected and re-transmitted. The Ethernet provides services up to and including the data link layer.
Since its commercial release, Ethernet has retained a good degree of compatibility. Features such as the 48-bit MAC address and Ethernet frame format have influenced other networking protocols.
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks, known as LANs. Ethernet was commercially introduced in 1980 and standardized in 1985. Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies such as a token.
The Ethernet standards comprise several wiring and signalling variants of the OSI physical layer in use with Ethernet. The original Ethernet used coaxial cable as a shared medium. Later the coaxial cables were replaced with twisted pair and fibre optic links in conjunction with hubs or switches. Data rates were periodically increased from the original 10 megabits per second to 100 gigabits per second.
In simple terms, Ethernet is a system for connecting a number of computer systems to form a local area network, with protocols to control the passing of information and to avoid simultaneous transmission by two or more systems.
Twisted-pair Ethernet cables consist of eight copper insulated wires in a plastic sleeve. Two wires are twisted together in a pair for a total of four pairs, and then the four pairs are twisted together to form the cable. The twists and pairs affect certain performance characteristics of the cable, such as crosstalk, attenuation, and electromagnetic interference (EMI).
Crosstalk occurs when an electrical signal transmitted over one wire negatively affects the electrical signal transmitted over another wire. Attenuation is the gradual loss of intensity of an electrical signal as it travels over