Glossary - 22
FORE Systems ES-2810 Ethernet Switch User's Manual
Glossary
Media Interface Connector (MIC) - fiber optic connector that joins fiber to the FDDI controller.
Message Identifier (MID) - message identifier used to associate ATM cells that carry segments
from the same higher layer packet.
Metasignalling - an ATM Layer Management (LM) process that manages different types of sig-
nalling and possibly semipermanent virtual channels (VCs), including the assignment,
removal, and checking of VCs.
Metasignalling VCs - the standardized VCs that convey metasignalling information across a
User-to-Network Interface (UNI).
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) - network designed to carry data over an area larger than a
campus such as an entire city and its outlying area.
MicroChannel - a proprietary 16- or 32-bit bus developed by IBM for its PS/2 computers' inter-
nal expansion cards; also offered by others.
Minimum Cell Rate (MCR) - parameter defined by the ATM Forum for ATM traffic manage-
ment, defined only for ABR transmissions and specifying the minimum value for the ACR.
Most Significant Bit (MSB) - highest order bit in the binary representation of a numerical value.
Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG) - ISO group dealing with video and audio compression
techniques and mechanisms for multiplexing and synchronizing various media streams.
MPOA Client - A device which implements the client side of one or more of the MPOA proto-
cols, (i.e., is a SCP client and/or an RDP client. An MPOA Client is either an Edge Device
Functional Group (EDFG) or a Host Behavior Functional Group (HBFG).
MPOA Server - An MPOA Server is any one of an ICFG or RSFG.
MPOA Service Area - The collection of server functions and their clients. A collection of physi-
cal devices consisting of an MPOA server plus the set of clients served by that server.
MPOA Target - A set of protocol address, path attributes, (e.g., internetwork layer QoS, other
information derivable from received packet) describing the intended destination and its path
attributes that MPOA devices may use as lookup keys.
Mu-Law - The PCM coding and companding standard used in Japan and North America.
Multicasting - The ability to broadcast messages to one node or a select group of nodes.
Multi-homed - a device having both an ATM and another network connection, like Ethernet.
Multimode Fiber Optic Cable (MMF) - fiber optic cable in which the signal or light propagates in
multiple modes or paths. Since these paths may have varying lengths, a transmitted pulse of
light may be received at different times and smeared to the point that pulses may interfere
with surrounding pulses. This may cause the signal to be difficult or impossible to receive.
This pulse dispersion sometimes limits the distance over which a MMF link can operate.
Multiplexing - a function within a layer that interleaves the information from multiple connec-
tions into one connection (see demultiplexing).
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