Ethernet is a baseband LAN standard invented by Xerox. It adopts the Carrier Sense Multiple Access Protocol with collision detection (CSMA/CD), the rate is 10Mbps, and the transmission medium is coaxial cable. Ethernet was developed in the 1970s to solve the scattered and accidental blockages in the network, and the IEEE802.3 standard was successfully developed in 1980 on the basis of the original Ethernet technology. Now, the term Ethernet generally refers to all local area networks that use the CSMA/CD protocol. Ethernet version 2.0 is jointly developed by Digital Equipment Corporation, Intel Corporation and Xerox Corporation, and it is compatible with IEEE802.3.
Principle of operation
Ethernet and IEEE802.3 are usually implemented by an interface card (network card) or a circuit on the main circuit board. The Ethernet cable protocol specifies the use of transceivers to connect cables to network physical devices. The transceiver performs most of the functions of the physical layer, including collision detection and the transceiver cable to connect the transceiver to the workstation.
IEEE802.3 provides a variety of cable specifications, 10Base5 is one of them, it is the closest to Ethernet. In this specification, the connecting cable is called the connection unit interface (AUI), and the network connection device is called the media access unit (MAU) instead of a transceiver.
installation method
The Ethernet controller is also called the Ethernet adapter, which is what we usually call the "network card". The installation method is to insert it into the PCI expansion slot of the motherboard of the machine, usually white, and then install the driver CD attached to the purchased network card.
You cannot connect to the network without a network card. But now most motherboards have integrated network cards.