IEEE Standards

IEEE 802 refers to a family of IEEE standards dealing with local area networks and metropolitan area networks.

More specifically, the IEEE 802 standards are restricted to networks carrying variable-size packets. By contrast, in cell relay networks data is transmitted in short, uniformly sized units called cells. Isochronous networks, where data is transmitted as a steady stream of octets, or groups of octets, at regular time intervals, are also out of the scope of this standard. The number 802 was simply the next free number IEEE could assign, though “802” is sometimes associated with the date the first meeting was held — February 1980.

The services and protocols specified in IEEE 802 map to the lower two layers (Data Link and Physical) of the seven-layer OSI networking reference model. In fact, IEEE 802 splits the OSI Data Link Layer into two sub-layers named Logical Link Control (LLC) and Media Access Control (MAC), so that the layers can be listed like this:

• Data link layer
• LLC Sublayer
• MAC Sublayer
• Physical layer

The IEEE 802 family of standards is maintained by the IEEE 802 LAN/MAN Standards Committee (LMSC). The most widely used standards are for the Ethernet family, Token Ring, Wireless LAN, Bridging and Virtual Bridged LANs. An individual Working Group provides the focus for each area.

IEEE developed a set of 802 network standards. They include:

• IEEE 802.1: Standards related to network management.
  
• IEEE 802.2: General standard for the data link layer in the OSI Reference Model. The IEEE divides this layer into two sub-layers -- the logical link control (LLC) layer and the media access control (MAC) layer. The MAC layer varies for different network types and is defined by standards IEEE 802.3 through IEEE 802.5.
  
• IEEE 802.3: Defines the MAC layer for bus networks that use CSMA/CD. This is the basis of the Ethernet standard.
  
• IEEE 802.4: Defines the MAC layer for bus networks that use a token-passing mechanism (token bus networks).
  
• IEEE 802.5: Defines the MAC layer for token-ring networks.
  
• IEEE 802.6: Standard for Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs).

Ethernet–Introduction

In today's business world, reliable and efficient access to information has become an important asset in the quest to achieve a competitive advantage. File cabinets and mountains of papers have given way to computers that store and manage information electronically.

Computer networking technologies are the glue that binds these elements together. Networking allows one computer to send information to and receive information from another. We can classify network technologies as belonging to one of two basic groups. Local area network (LAN) technologies connect many devices that are relatively close to each other, usually in the same building. The library terminals that display book information would connect over a local area network. Wide area network (WAN) technologies connect a smaller number of devices that can be many kilometers apart.

In comparison to WANs, LANs are faster and more reliable, but improvements in technology continue to blur the line of demarcation. Fiber optic cables have allowed LAN
technologies to connect devices tens of kilometers apart, while at the same time greatly
improving the speed and reliability of WANs.

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1. Ethernet
2. IEEE Standards

Ethernet

Ethernet has been a relatively inexpensive, reasonably fast, and very popular LAN technology for several decades. Two individuals at Xerox PARC -- Bob Metcalfe and D.R. Boggs -- developed Ethernet beginning in 1972 and specifications based on this work appeared in IEEE 802.3 in 1980. Ethernet has since become the most popular and most widely deployed network technology in the world. Many of the issues involved with Ethernet are common to many network technologies, and understanding how Ethernet addressed these issues can provide a foundation that will improve your understanding of networking in general.

The Ethernet standard has grown to encompass new technologies as computer networking has matured. Specified in a standard, IEEE 802.3, an Ethernet LAN typically uses coaxial cable or special grades of twisted pair wires. Ethernet is also used in wireless LANs. Ethernet uses the CSMA/CD access method to handle simultaneous demands. The most commonly installed Ethernet systems are called 10BASE-T and provide transmission speeds up to 10 Mbps. Devices are connected to the cable and compete for access using a Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) protocol. Fast Ethernet or 100BASE-T provides transmission speeds up to 100 megabits per second and is typically used for LAN backbone systems, supporting workstations with 10BASE-T cards. Gigabit Ethernet provides an even higher level of backbone support at 1000 megabits per second (1 gigabit or 1 billion bits per second). 10-Gigabit Ethernet provides up to 10 billion bits per second.

The Ethernet standard has grown to encompass new technologies as computer networking has matured. Specified in a standard, IEEE 802.3, an Ethernet LAN typically uses coaxial cable or special grades of twisted pair wires. Ethernet is also used in wireless LANs. Ethernet uses the CSMA/CD access method to handle simultaneous demands. The most commonly installed Ethernet systems are called 10BASE-T and provide transmission speeds up to 10 Mbps. Devices are connected to the cable and compete for access using a Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) protocol. Fast Ethernet or 100BASE-T provides transmission speeds up to 100 megabits per second and is typically used for LAN backbone systems, supporting workstations with 10BASE-T cards. Gigabit Ethernet provides an even higher level of backbone support at 1000 megabits per second (1 gigabit or 1 billion bits per second). 10-Gigabit Ethernet provides up to 10 billion bits per second.