

The concept of Ethernet has its roots in the late 1960s and the University of Hawaii's Aloha Network. Today it's the de facto protocol for IP-based networks. Ethernet has evolved dramatically since its first application. CSMA/CD defines when to transmit and what is to happen if a collision is detected, as well as endpoint addressing, transmission speeds, and media. More formally, Ethernet is a common name for the IEEE 802.3 standard based on the Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) protocol. Ethernet has the ability to use both wired and fiber cables, delivering not only data but also power, now up to 90W with UPOE+. Using a wired Ethernet cable, devices are connected to an Ethernet switch. If you hear someone talking while you're talking, stop, listen, and wait for the talking to end before you talk again."Įthernet is commonly associated with connected devices in a wired LAN or WAN. It provides network devices with a set of rules that essentially says: "Make sure no one else is talking before you talk. This jumbles the sequence of "on" pulses and "off" voids that are sent to indicate the bits and bytes of 1s and 0s that make up a packet.Įthernet was designed to solve the problem of packet collision. The pulses of electricity or photons that make up a packet overlap when sent at the same time over a shared copper or optical cable.

If two or more connected devices on a shared network attempt to transmit data packets at the same time, a packet collision occurs. This is amplified when, say, 10 people are talking at once. In a verbal conversation, when two people speak at the same time, each may have difficulty understanding what the other is saying. Ethernet technology provides rules that allow network-connected devices to talk to one another without talking over each other.
