Glossary r

A term that refers to a TCP/IP host that is asking for help in resolving a host name to its IP address.

Each RFC defines some protocol or standard that is important to the TCP/IP model. An RFC has been through several reviews by the IETF. The term RFC comes from the fact that anyone can comment on the protocol while it is being reviewed. In fact, the document is posted on the Internet so that anyone can look at it and comment before it becomes an RFC.

Legal term that refers to the right to disrupt normal access to some physical location to do some work. For example, the telephone company can dig up the street to put in new cables because it has the right-of-way.

An IP routing protocol, defined in RFCs.

A DNS server that lists domain names and their corresponding DNS server IP addresses. They are used to refer DNS requests to the authoritative DNS server for a domain.

A networking device with multiple network interfaces, whose purpose is to forward IP packets from one physical network to another. Routers provide an important packet-forwarding function for the TCP/IP internetworking layer to perform end-to-end delivery of IP packets.

The process of receiving IP packets, making a decision of where to send the packet next, and forwarding the packet.

A type of networking protocol designed to allow routers to exchange routing information with each other, with the end goal of having all the routers eventually learn routes to all IP subnets and networks in an internetwork.

A table that routers use so that they know where to forward packets.

A message defined by a routing protocol that contains the routing information that a router wants to share with other routers.