Term
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Definition
| A group of connected computers located in a single geographic area, usually a building or office, that share data and services. |
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Term
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Definition
| A data communications network that serves users across a broad geographic area. |
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Term
| MAN (metropolitan area network) |
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Definition
| A network that spans a defined geographic location, such as a city or suburb. |
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Term
| PAN (personal area network) |
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Definition
| A network layout whereby devices work together in close proximity to share information and services, commonly using technologies such as Bluetooth or infrared. |
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Term
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Definition
| A network environment where communication occurs between similarly capable network nodes that act as both clients and servers. |
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Term
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Definition
| A networking architecture in which front-end, or client, nodes request and process data stored by the back-end, or server, node. |
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Term
| centralized computing model |
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Definition
| A networking model where one system provides both the data storage and processing power for client systems. |
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Term
| distributed network model |
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Definition
| A networking model where the processing power distributed between the client systems and the server. |
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Term
| VPN (virtual private network) |
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Definition
A network that uses a public network such as the Internet as a backbone to connect two or more private networks.
Can also be used as a means of establishing secure remote connectivity between a remote system and another network. |
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Term
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Definition
| The computer that intitates the connection to the VPN server. |
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Term
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Definition
| A system that authenticates connections from VPN clients. |
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Term
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Definition
1. Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP)
2. Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) |
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Term
| VLAN (virtual local area network) |
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Definition
| A group of connected computers that act as if they are on their own network segments, even thought they may not be. |
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Term
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Definition
| A network's physical or logical layout. |
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Term
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Definition
| The actual physical layout of the network. |
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Term
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Definition
| The appearance of the network to the devices that use it, even if the physical layout is different. |
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Term
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Definition
| A linear LAN architecture in which all devices are connected to a common cable, called a bus or backbone. |
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Term
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Definition
| A logical network design in which data travels in a circular fashion from one computer to another on the network. |
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Term
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Definition
| A physical network design in which all nodes connect to a centralized device; in most cases a network switch. |
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Term
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Definition
| A network design in which each node is connected to every other node. This provides a high-level of redundancy as it provides alternate routes for data to travel should a single route become unavailable. |
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Term
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Definition
| A managed wireless topology that describes a wireless network composed of an access point connected to a wired LAN. |
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Term
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Definition
| A wireless network layout where devices communicate directly between themselves without using an access point. |
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Term
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Definition
| A transmitter and receiver device used to facilitate communication between a wireless client or WLAN and a wired network. |
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Term
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Definition
| A wireless configuration where the communication link travels from one node directly to one other node. |
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Term
| point-to-multipoint (PtMP) |
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Definition
| A wireless configuration where signals travel from a central node, such as an access point. |
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Term
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Definition
| A wireless configuration where each node is interconnected to other nodes on the network. |
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Term
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Definition
| A combination of different network designs. |
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