Other Network Technologies

Figure 1: Representation of network technologies.

• In addition to the popular TCP/IP protocol, many more protocols and combinations of protocols exist. Figure 1 shows different network technologies and their speed in relation to the network taxonomy.
• Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet; Fast Ethernet (100Base-T) is a highspeed LAN that allows a computer to transmit or receive data at 100 Megabits per second (100 Mbps). The demand for a bandwidth that is even higher than 100 Mbps has motivated the extension of Ethernet to a bit rate of 1 Gbps. Gigabit Ethernet (1000Base-T) has become an attractive choice for corporate backbone networks and high-performance clusters of workstations.
• The Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI); The FDDI specifies a 100 Mbps token-passing, dual-ring LAN using fiber-optic cable. The FDDI is frequently used as high-speed backbone technology because of its support for high bandwidth and greater distances than copper.
• High-Performance Parallel Interface (HiPPI); The HiPPI is a point-to-point communication channel and it does not support multidrop configurations. HiPPI is capable of transferring data at 800 Mbps using 32 parallel line or 1.6 Gbps over 64 parallel lines.
• Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM); The ATM is a connection-oriented scheme that is suitable for both LANs and WANs. It transfers data in small fixedsize packets called cells. It can handle multimedia in an integrated way. Cells are allowed to transfer using several different media such as both copper and fiberoptic cables. It is designed to permit high-speed data. The fastest ATM hardware can switch data at a gigabit rate.
• Scalable Coherent Interface (SCI); The SCI is an IEEE standard that is quite popular for PC clusters. It represents a point-to-point architecture with directory-based cache coherence. It provides a cluster-wide shared memory system. A remote communication in SCI takes place as just part of a simple load or store process in a processor.