| AAL | ATM application layer |
| ABR | associative-based routing |
| ACC | arriving- cell counter |
| AE | arbitration element |
| AES | Advanced Encryption Standard |
| AODV | Ad-Hoc On-Demand Distance Vector |
| ARP | Address Resolution Protocol |
| ARQ | automatic repeat request |
| ASN.1 | abstract syntax notation one |
| ATM | asynchronous transfer mode |
| BISDN | broadband integrated services digital network |
| BBC | buffer-control bit circuit |
| BCC | buffer control circuit |
| BCN | broadcast channel numbers |
| BER | bit error rate |
| BGMP | Border Gateway Multicast Protocol |
| BGP | Border Gateway Protocol |
| BPDU | bridge protocol data unit |
| BS | bit slice |
| BTC | broadcast translation circuit |
| CBR | constant bit rate |
| CCITT | International Consultative Committee for Telecom and Telegraphy |
| CD | column decoder |
| CDMA | code-division multiple access |
| CDN | content distribution network |
| CGSR | cluster-head gateway switch routing |
| CH | cluster head |
| CIDR | classless interdomain routing |
| CMOS | complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor |
| CN | copy network |
| CRC | cyclical redundancy check |
| CSMA | carrier sense multiple access |
| DEEP | decentralized energy-efficient cluster propagation |
| DQDB | distributed queue dual bus |
| DNS | domain name system |
| DRR | deficit round robin |
| DS | differentiated service |
| DSDV | destination- sequenced distance vector |
| DSF | distributed coordination function |
| DSSS | direct-sequence spread spectrum |
| DSR | dynamic source routing |
| DVMRP | distance vector multicast routing protocol |
| EDF | earliest deadline first |
| FCFS | first come, first served |
| FDM | frequency division multiplexing |
| FDMA | frequency division multiple access |
| FEC | forward equivalence class |
| FHSS | frequency- hopping spread spectrum |
| FIFO | first-in first-out |
| FOL | fiber optic link |
| FTP | file transfer protocol |
| GFC | generic flow control |
| GPS | global positioning system |
| GIF | graphics interchange format |
| GSS | grant signal selector |
| HEC | header error control |
| HD | header decoder |
| HDTV | high-definition television |
| HTTP | hyper-text transfer protocol |
| ICMP | Internet control message protocol |
| IID | independent and identically distributed |
| IGMP | Internet group management protocol |
| IPP | input port processor |
| IPv6 | Internet protocol version 6 |
| JPEG | joint photographic experts group |
| L2TP | layer 2 tunneling protocl |
| LBC | local buffer controller |
| LDP | label distribution protocol |
| LEACH | low-energy adaptive clustering hierarchy |
| LIB | label information base |
| LLC | logic link control |
| LSP | label switch path |
| LSR | label switch routers |
| MAC | medium access control |
| MBGP | multi-protocol extensions to BGP |
| MBC | multipath buffered crossbar |
| MIB | management information base |
| MOSPF | multicast open shortest path first |
| MPEG | moving pictures expert group |
| MPLS | multi-protocol label switching |
| MSDP | multicast source discovery protocol |
| MTU | maximum transmission unit |
| MSN | Manhattan street network |
| NDS | network data slices |
| NNI | network-node interface |
| NVT | network virtual terminal |
| OC | optical carrier |
| OCC | output control circuit |
| OD | output port decoder |
| OFDM | orthogonal frequency division multiplexing |
| OPP | output port processor |
| OSI | open systems interconnection |
| OSPF | open shortest path first |
| OXC | optical cross connect |
| PAM | pulse amplitude modulation |
| PCF | point coordination function |
| PDF | probability density function |
| PDU | protocol data units |
| PFC | priority field circuit |
| PIM | protocol independent multicast |
| PHB | per-hop behavior |
| PMF | probability mass function |
| P2P | peer to peer |
| PPP | point-to-point protocol |
| PPTP | point-to-point tunneling protocol |
| PPM | pulse position modulation |
| PWM | pulse width modulation |
| QAM | quadrature amplitude modulation |
| QoS | quality of service |
| QPSK | quadrature phase shift keying |
| RARP | reverse address resolution protocol |
| RCB | receive buffer |
| RCYC | recycling buffer |
| RED | random early detection |
| RIP | routing information protocol |
| RN | routing network |
| RNG | row number generator |
| RPC | request priority circuit |
| RPF | reverse path forwarding |
| RSA | Rivert, Shamir, and Aldeman |
| RSQ | resequencing buffer |
| RSVP | resource reservation protocol |
| RTCP | real-time control protocol |
| RTP | real-time protocol |
| RTT | round-trip time |
| RVC | request vector circuit |
| SBC | shared buffer crossbar |
| SCP | secure copy |
| SCTP | stream control transmission protocol |
| SDC | self-driven crosspoint |
| SIP | session initiation protocol |
| SHF | super-high frequency |
| SMI | structure of management information |
| SMTP | simple mail transfer protocol |
| SNMP | simple network management protocol |
| SNR | signal-to-noise ratio |
| SONET | synchronous optical nework |
| SSH | secure shell |
| TCP | transmission control protocol |
| TDM | time-division multiplexer |
| TDMA | time division multiple access |
| TOS | type-of-service |
| TORA | temporally ordered routing algorithm |
| TP | transport protocol |
| TRIP | telephone routing over IP |
| UDP | user datagram protocol |
| UGC | upstream grant circuit |
| UHF | ultra -high frequency |
| UNI | user-network interface |
| URL | uniform resource locator |
| VBR | variable bit-rate |
| VCI | virtual circuit identifier |
| VLSI | very large scale integration |
| VPI | virtual path identifier |
| VPN | virtual private network |
| VXT | virtual circuit translation table |
| WDM | wavelength division multiplexing |
| WEP | wired equivalent privacy |
| WFQ | weighted fair queuing |
| WiMAX | world-wide interoperability for microwave access |
| WIS | telephone switching office |
| WMN | wireless mesh networks |
| WRP | wireless routing protocol |
| WTG | waiting time generator |
| WWW | World Wide Web |
| XMB | transmit buffer |
