Ethernet is a communication standard that was develops in the early 80’s to network computers and other device in a local environment such as home or a building. This local environment is defined as a LAN or Local Area Network and it connects multiple devices so that they can create, store and share information with others in the location.So, an Ethernet Controller is an integrated circuit chip that controls Ethernet communication. The Internet cable, which plugs into your computer, transfer data to the Ethernet controller which can decodes the data and puts it into a form your computer can use. It is usually either a circuit board which is an Ethernet card or it can be the part of computer’s motherboard which also includes the rest of the connection to the computer.
Ethernet is the most used technology for wireless networking where it is most commonly used computer networking technologies in offices, schools and similar environments. Especially since it getting faster and more reliable than Wi-Fi connection, now it is use in home technology also.
Ethernet is the wired system that started with using coaxial cable and has successfully progressed to now using twisted pair copper wiring and fiber optic wiring. In 1983, Ethernet was standardized into the standard IEEE 802.3 by the institute of electrical and electronic engineer or IEEE. This standard defines the physical layer and the MAC or Media Access Control portion of the data link layer of wired Ethernet. These two layers are defined as the first two layers in the OSI or Open Systems interconnection model. The “physical” layer consists of the following component:
- Cabling
- Devices
Ethernet cabling
- as mentioned earlier, Ethernet cable comes as coaxial cable, which is not very common except in order installations, twisted pair and fiber optic. The most commonly used cable is twisted cable with the latest being category 6 with speed up to 1Gbps and CAT 6a and CAT 7 with speeds up to 10 Gbps. Category 5 and 5e cables are both still used many existing applications but to handle the lower speeds between 10 Mbps to 100 Mbps but are more susceptible to noise. The Ethernet twisted pair utilizes RJ45 8 pin connectors at either end of the cable that is pinned for transmitting and receiving data in either half or full duplex mode. Half duplex transmit data in one direction at a time while full duplex allows data to be transmitted in both directions at the same time. Full duplex in Ethernet cab be achieved by using two pair of wire to allow data to travel both direction simultaneously.
- Fiber optic cable uses glass or plastic optical fiber as a conduit for light pulses to transmit data. It is allowed Ethernet to travel farther distances at higher speeds. Fiber optic cable uses several different types of connectors according to type of application needs.
- SFP connector (small form pluggable or small factor pluggable)
- SC connector (subscriber connector) also known as square connector or standard connector
Ethernet connecting device such as computer, printer or any device which either has an internal NIC (network interface card) or an external one that is USB or PCI based. Switchand router that act as the director of the network and connect multiple computers or even network together to enable communication between all the different devices.
Gateways and Bridges are used to connect multiple Ethernet networks together and allow communication across them. Gateways connect two dissimilar networks together while a bridge connects two similar networks together so that you only see one network.