Chapter 39. IBM Systems Network Architecture Protocols

Objectives

  • Introduce the SNA protocol, used primarily by mainframe systems and terminals.

  • Describe the structures and functioning of this protocol, from its introduction in the early 1970s to its current form.

  • Describe IBM peer-based networking.

  • Describe the basic information unit (BIU) format.

  • Describe the path information unit (PIU) format.

Background

IBM networking today consists of essentially two separate architectures that branch, more or less, from a common origin. Before contemporary networks existed, IBM's Systems Network Architecture (SNA) ruled the networking landscape, so it often is referred to as traditional or legacy SNA.

With the rise of personal computers, workstations, and client/server ...

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