Intel makes Ethernet solutions that conform to the industry standard for a packet-based computer networking technology for local area networks (LANs) that has become the foundation of most wired-communications technology. Over the last 30 years, it's become the network of choice for wiring homes and enterprises around the world. Today around 85 percent of the world's LANs are Ethernet-based.

The term "ether" in "Ethernet" is said to have come from "luminiferous aether," the medium that 19th century physicists thought responsible for the propagation of light.

The rapid growth in Internet Protocol (IP) traffic and the convergence of sophisticated voice, data and media applications continue to drive the demand for greater network bandwidth. At present, Gigabit Ethernet provides a competitive edge in corporate data centers and industries such as cable television where Gigabit Ethernet's high bandwidth gives zip to streaming video and real-time data applications.

Strictly speaking, the term "Ethernet" refers to the product that predated the general standard IEEE 802.3. Conventional usage has blurred this distinction and any 802.3-compliant network is commonly referred to as "Ethernet." Other technologies that are not 802.3-based also attempt to cash-in on Ethernet's broad acceptance; for example, wireless Ethernet was the early marketing pitch for Wi-Fi*.

For metro area networking (MAN), data centers, and access networks, 10 Gigabit Ethernet is the answer. It offers lower cost of ownership, higher bandwidth, and interoperability with existing Ethernet networks.

Today, Intel makes Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet solutions that provide networks with cost-effective, high performance solutions for PCs, servers, routers, switches, networked storage, and telecom networks. The relentless progress of Moore's Law will increasingly move systems toward 10 Gigabit Ethernet as processor power exceeds the capacity of Gigabit Ethernet. What's down the road? Even greater Ethernet speeds, cost reductions and power efficiencies through future Intel innovations in process technology and architecture.

Ethernet was invented in 1973 when Robert Metcalfe, a researcher at Xerox, wrote a memo to his superiors about the possibilities of a networking solution he was developing.

This diagram was hand drawn by Robert M. Metcalfe and photographed by Dave R. Boggs in 1976 to produce a 35mm slide used to present Ethernet to the National Computer Conference in June of that year. On the drawing are the original terms for describing Ethernet.

It wasn't until 1976 though that Metcalfe and David Boggs, Metcalfe's co-worker, published a paper titled, "Ethernet: Distributed Packet-Switching for Local Computer Networks." A key innovation in Metcalfe's solution was that all nodes on a network would be required to "listen" before transmission and to stop and retry if a collision occurred. This became known as Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection. It allows hundreds of computers to be connected and share the same resources, such as a printer or server. At the time, Metcalfe envisioned data moving at 1 megabit per second (Mbps). (For perspective, consider that in the same year Intel was releasing its 8080 processor running at 4.77 MHz.)

The first Ethernet network connected the computers at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) to each other, Xerox's groundbreaking laser printers, and the lab's central minicomputer at 2.94 Mbps. Impatient to see Ethernet commercialized, Metcalfe left Xerox in 1978 to consult and promote Ethernet. Recognizing the importance of communications technology and standards in the fledging desktop computer market, Intel joined mini-computer maker DEC and Xerox to lead in developing the Ethernet standard. In 1980 the DIX (DEC, Intel, Xerox) "blue book" Ethernet specification was published. It was the basis for the development of IEEE 802.3, the Ethernet standard published in 1985.

Ethernet wasn't the only networking solution being developed at the time. A host of competing proprietary LAN technologies were coming out as well. Chief among them was IBM's Token-Ring*.

A big factor in Ethernet's favor and eventual win over Token-Ring and other competitors was its establishment as an open standard. Having a standard that's developed and supported by a group of companies (an ecosystem) instead of a single company gives assurance to customers that there's competition and a healthy supply of products. Intel's efforts to standardize the technology touched off a massive cycle of high growth fueled by dropping prices. Networking costs dropped because vendors and integrators could concentrate on one uniform, interoperable technology. Interoperability became the rule, enabling businesses to deploy larger and larger networks using any manufacturer's products. All this led to the wide-scale deployment of the networks that drive the Internet and applications we use today.

Another factor that helped launch Ethernet was it reaching market before Token-Ring. The reason? Ethernet started as a simple concept that both clearly worked and had the potential for continuing improvements. This enabled manufacturers of Ethernet products to get to market quickly and deliver a consistent string of product advancements. Intel helped lead the way, shipping the world's first high-volume 10-Mbps Ethernet controller in 1982.

Since the inception of Ethernet, Intel has continued to drive Ethernet technology through a series of technological advances. Intel has also been extremely active in standards committees and special interest groups (SIGs). The result has been faster standards adoption, architectural

While a throughput of 1 Gbps to the desktop is still in its early days, many companies are installing network interface cards for 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet on their PCs and servers, because the price points are so low ... The delivery of a DVD-quality, full-length Hollywood movie at 1 Gbps could take as few as 30 seconds, depending on network conditions, compared with several hours over a typical Internet broadband connection. – CNET News, March 15, 2004

innovations, and continuing product growth into new market segments. Intel became a founding member of the Fast Ethernet Alliance (100 Mbps) in 1993, the Gigabit Ethernet Alliance (1000 Mbps) in 1996, and the 10 Gigabit Ethernet Alliance in 2000.

• Scalable performance
• Scalable reach to meet a variety of networking applications from short-range LANs (~100 meters) to MANs (40+ kilometers)
• Low cost
• Flexibility and interoperability
• Ease of use and administration

Recent Ethernet Developments The following IEEE Ethernet activities (July 2004) testify to Ethernet's diversity, ability to evolve, and how it is expanding into new markets: P802.3REVam — revision of the ~2600 page Ethernet standard (IEEE Std 802.3) P802.3an, 10GBASE-T — 10 Gigabit Ethernet over twisted pair cabling P802.3ap, Backplane Ethernet — defining Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet operation over electrical backplanes P802.3aq, 10GBASE-LRM — a new PHY for 10 Gigabit Ethernet over installed multimode fiber Congestion Management Study Group — working on improving Ethernet operation in modular computing and storage applications Frame Format Enhancements Study Group — supporting higher-layer protocols like MAC Security and Provider Bridging Residential Ethernet Study Group — investigating Ethernet additions for application to consumer electronics

As the leading supplier of Ethernet components worldwide, Intel continues to invest heavily in Ethernet research and development to help increase speeds and proliferate Ethernet into new applications. Some Intel achievements include the world's first 10/100 network interface card (NIC) in 1994, the first single-chip 10/100 controller in 1997, and the first single-chip 10/100/1000 controller in 2001. In 2002, Intel shipped the first XPAK Multimode Optical Transceiver delivering 10-Gigabit Ethernet and 10-Gigabit Fibre Channel transport for storage systems at half the cost, a third less power consumption and a third of the size of earlier solutions.

Sophisticated new applications, routine sharing of large data files, and more powerful PCs equipped with PCI Express will continue to drive demand for faster Ethernet speeds at the desktop. New wireless standards such as 802.11n and 802.16 (WiMAX) provide an alternate means of connecting to networks that will continue to be dominated by Ethernet for high bandwidth interconnections. The continued growth of e-mail and e-commerce will dramatically increase data moving across the public Internet and enterprise IP networks every year, driving the evolution of data storage outside the traditional

In comparison to paper, telephone, radio and television, the Internet is the fastest growing new medium for information flows of all time. In 2002, nearly 170 terabytes of information were available on its surface (fixed pages as opposed to database-driven content). This is 17 times the size of the Library of Congress print collections. In the same year, instant messaging accounted for 274 terabytes and email generated 400,000 terabytes of new information worldwide. Source: How Much Information, University of California, Berkeley

direct-attached storage (DAS) model and into the infrastructure of the network itself. The continuing migration to Gigabit Ethernet on the desktop will intensify the need for 10 Gigabit Ethernet in servers and enterprise backbones, and make it a necessity for metro area networking (MAN). Moore's Law scaling will also create smaller Ethernet networks as blade servers are connected over backplane Ethernet links, enabling very efficient cluster and grid computing systems.

If all these pressures on today's networks aren't enough, looming just ahead is the era of tera. A terabyte is 1,024 gigabytes and the equivalent of 50,000 trees manufactured into paper and filled with text. The rapid growth in wireless communications and the implementation of data collection devices such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags will give enterprises their biggest data-handling challenge yet. It's been estimated, for instance,

"There will be always room for invention as Ethernet expands its scope and adds new capabilities." – Bob Grow, chairman of the IEEE 802.3 Working Group and principal architect in the Intel Communications Group

that Wal-Mart would need to process 7.7 million terabytes alone per day if all items in its U.S. retail stores today had RFID tags.

All these developments add up to even greater urgency for continued innovation and industry cooperation in evolving Ethernet to meet the demands of tomorrow. At the center of this effort will be Intel. Working with others in the industry, standards groups and SIGs, Intel will continue to promote Ethernet technology and product growth to meet the demands of tomorrow with faster standards, new technologies, and architectural innovations that will push Ethernet speeds up and costs down.