DCNSA Level II
Computer Networking glossary
Every term this guide defines, A to Z, each with the chapter that teaches it. Open it when a word in a question is unfamiliar, and test yourself on it in the last week: cover the definition and say it in one sentence.
12 terms from the free first chapter
C
- Cables
The physical medium carrying signals between devices, covered fully in the chapter on network features: twisted pair, fibre optic and, rarely now, coaxial.
Taught in Computing skills
- Computer
An electronic device that accepts data, processes it, and produces information as output.
Taught in Computing skills
D
- Data
Raw, unprocessed facts and figures with no context on their own.
Taught in Computing skills
- Drivers
Software that lets the operating system communicate with a specific hardware device, including the NIC; without the correct driver a network card is physically present but unusable.
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I
- Information
Data that has been processed into a meaningful, useful form.
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N
- Network card (NIC)
The hardware component that connects a computer to a network, converting the computer's internal data into signals suitable for the cable or radio medium, and carrying the device's own MAC address.
Taught in Computing skills
- Networking software
Applications and services specifically for managing and using network connections: a VPN client, network monitoring software, remote-desktop tools.
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O
- Operating system
Manages the computer and, in a network operating system, additionally coordinates network resources, user accounts and security policy across many machines (the subject of Network Operating Systems).
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P
- Peripheral devices
Input/output devices connected to a computer, some of which, a network printer or a network-attached scanner, are themselves network resources reachable by other devices rather than only by the one they are plugged into.
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- Ports
Physical connection points on a device: Ethernet (RJ45), USB, and the specialised console port on network equipment used for initial configuration. A device's number and type of ports decide what it can physically connect to.
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- Processing
A computer executing instructions on data to produce a result, the core activity every device on a network performs on the data it sends and receives.
Taught in Computing skills
S
- Sharing
Making data or resources accessible to other users or systems, the whole reason networks exist. A standalone computer processes data for one user; a networked computer processes and shares it for many.
Taught in Computing skills
The full glossary adds every term from the other 6 chapters, A to Z, each with the chapter that teaches it.