The part of a network that handles the major traffic. It employs the highest-speed transmission paths in the network and may also run the longest distances. Smaller networks are attached to the backbone, and networks that directly connect to the end user or customer are called "access networks."
A backbone can span a geographic area of any size from a single building to an office complex to an entire country. Or, it can be as small as a backplane in a single cabinet. See collapsed backbone and ISP.
A backbone can span a geographic area of any size from a single building to an office complex to an entire country. Or, it can be as small as a backplane in a single cabinet. See collapsed backbone and ISP.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2010 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Cisco unveils new router to drive video; Big expectations ahead
- Cisco makes a major networking announcement, one that will drive future growth of the Internet by beefing up the backbone. by Sam Diaz
- Blog posts 2010-03-09
- The Open Source Innovation Backbone is SaaSy
- Free software offers benefits to SaaS providers, like other developersWhile I think SaaS providers should do what they want in terms of licensing, I think they would have a lot to gain by open-sourcing their software. They would keep all the advantages of SaaS vis-a-vis competitors (first mover, network effects,...
- Discussion threads 2010-02-25
- The Open Source Innovation Backbone is SaaSy
- Riding open source innovation, when your contributions to it are scant, is not a good deal for your fellow contributors. by Dana Blankenhorn
- Blog posts 2010-02-25
- Windows 7 European browser selection screen screenshot revealed
- This is thing is really stupidand the sad thing is that it won't benefit that much either Opera or Firefox. The big winner will be Google with Chrome, which didn't need it to begin with as it has enough money and advertising power to gain market share by itself.Why do...
- Discussion threads 2010-02-19
- Google buys reMail; kills iPhone application
- RE: Google buys reMail; kills iPhone applicationYou can't search email on an iPhone? Added to the list of deficiencies.Google showing their true colors?with the release of "Buzz" showing the world what Google actually thinks of the end user, no need to be subtle any longer, as the cat is...
- Discussion threads 2010-02-18
- Partnership Places Specialist Solution Provider at Cutting Edge of IT Implementation
- Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Dimension Data knows the value of working closely with Microsoft when deploying solutions for customers. This long-standing relationship is often the backbone of its implementations, inspiring customers and helping Dimension Data secure new business. So when the organisation learned of the Microsoft Services Ready Programme, an...
- Case studies 2010-02-18
- Why is cyberbullying different?
- AnonymityCyberbullying is often crueller than the run of the mill school ground spat. People can hide behind an avatar never having to face the consequences of the hurt they cause. People also hind behind a keyboard, it is far easier to type some nasties up than to say...
- Discussion threads 2010-02-03
- Lawn Tennis Association Boosts Membership With Advanced Customer Relationship Management Tools
- The Lawn Tennis Association LTA wanted to improve overall functionality of the LTA's backbone customer relationship management system, which holds key data, such as tournament schedules, match results, and player ratings and maintain strong relationships with members of British Tennis through tailored marketing initiatives. The challenge was to enable seamless...
- Case studies 2010-02-01
- Zebra Technologies Corporation Upgrades to e-Business Suite Release 12.1 for Process Efficiency
- Zebra Technologies Corporation wanted to solve IT challenges from rapid growth that resulted in having a number of applications that didn't communicate with each other and enable offshore supply chain and order-to-cash processes, so product assembly could take place in Asia. The challenge was to deploy a mature, robust, solid...
- Case studies 2010-02-01
- Internet attack defense: License and registration please...
- Good questionI agree that any registration system is fraught with problems, particularly global registration issues. I also forgot to add the network diagram, which I have now fixed. Take a look. Other problems with it are:1) Public computers2) Selling or giving away devices3) False informationBut the system would be able...
- Discussion threads 2010-01-29
- Understanding the Business Value of Unstructured Environments
- Following on from the core issues I discussed in 'Understanding Enterprise 2.0 Tolerances & Scale' last November, this is a post about another recurring theme during consulting conversations: the different values, needs and understanding of structured and unstructured information and data. We are...
- Blog posts 2010-01-11
- GOOG Is Quick To Appease China Compared With ROW
- When it comes to dealing with China, Google's backbone is as flexible as that of a Chinese circus contortionist... by Tom Foremski
- Blog posts 2010-01-11
- The Journey Along an Information-Led Transformation
- The cost of embedding information technology into every device we interact with is shrinking every single day. Given that reality, what wouldn't you put smart technology into? What service wouldn't you provide a customer, citizen, student or patient? What wouldn't you connect? What information wouldn't you mine for insight?...
- White papers 2010-01-11
- Samba4 release pushed back to late 2010, 2011?
- Those waiting for Samba 4 might have to wait a little longer -- but it will be well worth the wait, developers say. In a team blog posted on Christmas Day, the Samba team announced it will merge the existing Samba 3 backbone services, the file and...
- Blog posts 2010-01-04
- The Role of Network Trace Anonymization Under Attack
- In recent years, academic literature has analyzed many attacks on network trace anonymization techniques. These attacks usually correlate external information with anonymized data and successfully de-anonymize objects with distinctive signatures. However, analyses of these attacks still underestimate the real risk of publishing anonymized data, as the most powerful attack against...
- White papers 2010-01-01
- A Selection of 2009 Collaboration Posts
- Here's a selection of links to posts I've written in 2009 which I feel are worth rereading... Extraordinary Collaboration Delusions and the Madness of Crowds ...Comparing the 'Idiocy of Crowds' and groupthink to the South Sea Bubble & Madoff financial speculation disasters. Collaboration isn't automatically the...
- Blog posts 2009-12-28
- Flow Painter 1.0 (Mobile)
- Now free up your mind and start painting. Even one single stroke might produce effect that beyond your imagination. Here you're completely free and relaxed, just to watch how the spiral flow transform into an abstract painting - it's your moment of Zen.========================Coconut Islandcreators of Band Band Jump and iDragPaper...
- Software downloads 2009-12-18
- Microsoft in 2009: It was all about Windows
- ZDNet in 2009: It was all about Windows 7ZDNet in 2010: It will be all about Windows 7 8.SSDY :D^o^When Microsoft actually achieves success in searchmaybe there'll be more interest in news coverage of it.What did you expect from an OS with more than 1.2 BILLION users?Seriously, even though...
- Discussion threads 2009-12-17
- Famous, wealthy conservative favors clean energy
- Conservatives ARE in favor of clean energy.What they are not in favor of is taxing oil and coal until they're as expensive as clean energy. That is the standard liberal approach: Destroy a successful industry to force people to change to an industry that would otherwise be unable to succeed...
- Discussion threads 2009-12-05
- Pondering a rogue cloud; Will platform providers cave to business, government interests?
- Harvard law professor Jonathan Zittrain played the contrarian when it comes to cloud computing: Is the cloud really the backbone of the future we want? Do we all want to be slaves to a tethered device? by Larry Dignan
- Blog posts 2009-12-02
Neighboring Terms
Premier Vendor Content Whitepapers, webcasts & resources from our Power Center Sponsors
-
-
Smart Tech
Expert advice on innovations in healthcare and the green technologies that make it happen.
Find out more
-
Smart Business
Discussion and advice on management issues that revolve around making your world smarter and more useful.
More Smart Advice
-
Smart People
The best and worst moves in the management and strategy trenches.
Learn More
