Ethernet is a wired data transmission technology used to build local area networks (LANs). It defines the standards for physical connections, frame formats, and methods of access to the transmission medium. Ethernet has become the primary networking standard for most corporate, industrial, and home networks due to its reliability, flexibility, and high speed.
Principle of Operation
Ethernet transmits data in the form of frames, which include the sender and receiver addresses, the type of transmitted data, and a checksum for verifying integrity. Devices on an Ethernet network share a common transmission medium — typically twisted-pair cable (UTP) or fiber optics.
Each device has a unique MAC address used for identification within the local network. When a computer needs to send data, it encapsulates the data into an Ethernet frame and passes it to the network interface, which sends it to the recipient.
Originally, Ethernet used the CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection) method to control access to the transmission medium and avoid collisions. In modern switched networks, this method is rarely used, as each switch port operates on a dedicated communication channel.
Applications
Ethernet is widely used in:
- office and corporate networks — for connecting workstations, servers, and network devices;
- data centers — to interconnect server racks and storage systems;
- industrial networks — for equipment control and automation systems;
- home networks — for stable Internet connections and multimedia streaming.
Modern Ethernet standards support speeds from 10 Mbps to 400 Gbps and beyond. Common variants include Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps), Gigabit Ethernet (1 Gbps), 10/25/40/100 Gigabit Ethernet, and newer generations under development.
Advantages
Ethernet has gained broad adoption thanks to several key advantages:
- high bandwidth and stable connectivity;
- scalability — easy speed and node expansion;
- compatibility with a wide range of devices and standards;
- affordability and low deployment cost;
- reliability and predictable network performance.