User’s Manual
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Appendix C. Glossary
Authentication:
The procedure to verify user identity as a security measure.
Passwords and digital signatures are the most popular forms.
DHCP:
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
. A method for automatically as-
signing IP addresses to computers on a local area network. With dynamic ad-
dressing, a device can have a different IP address each time it connects to the
network. Without DHCP, a network administrator would need to manually as-
sign and track static IP addresses for each device on the network. The official
specification is defined by RFC 2131.
Dialup:
The procedure that activates an analog modem to connect to the ISP.
DNS:
Domain Name System.
An Internet service that maps alphabetic names
into IP addresses. For example,
asante.com
is a domain name that resolves to
the IP address
205.227.167.5
.
FTP:
File Transfer Protocol
. Allows a user on one computer to transfer files to
and from another computer over a TCP/IP network. Requires software on both
the client and the server. A computer that runs FTP Server software and is used
to store files for downloading is called an FTP site or FTP server.
HTML:
HyperText Markup Language
– a text-based language used to build web
pages and interpreted by web browsers. Because the files are not restricted to a
single type of operating system, this allows websites to be platform-
independent; that is, to be viewed by computers regardless of their platform.
HTTP:
HyperText Transmission Protocol
. The protocol that computers use for
accessing web pages on the Internet.
Internet:
A global network of interconnected computers and networks. Users
access the Internet via web browsers, e-mail, and other applications.
Intranet:
A private network offering services similar to those offered by the
Worldwide public Internet, but for internal use by an organization.
IP Address:
Internet Protocol Address
. It is a unique number used to identify
computers in an IP network. The format of the IP address is 4 fields separated
by dots (for example:
192.168.132.250
).
