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The Physical and Link Layers 1: Ethernet

We shall now look at each layer in turn, starting at the bottom: the link layer, including the physical layer. The link layer carries IP packets and Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) packets. ARP is generally considered as part of the link layer, while IP is above in the Internet layer.

There are many popular link layers used out there in the real world as there are many different kinds of problem that need addressing. For example, Ethernet is popular for LANs; PPP and ADSL are used for connecting end users to ISPs; ATM is used in WANs; wireless is used in all kinds of situations.

In this tutorial:

  1. Ethernet
  2. CSMA/CDM
  3. Ethernet Hardware
  4. Further and Faster
  5. Physical Encodings
  6. An Alternative to Ethernet