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AUI (attachment unit interface)

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AUI (attachment unit interface)

The AUI (attachment unit interface) is the 15-pin physical connector interface between a computer's network interface card (NIC) and an Ethernet cable. On 10Base-5 ("thicknet") Ethernet, a short cable is used to connect the AUI on the computer with a transceiver on the main cable. In 10Base-2 or "thinnet" Ethernet networks, the NIC connects directly to the Ethernet coaxial cable at the back of the computer.

IEEE 802.3, the Ethernet standard, defines the AUI 15-pin physical layer interface. This interface is also called a DB-15 interface or a DIX interface (DIX refers to the three major companies who helped standardize Ethernet: Digital Equipment Corporation, Intel, and Xerox).

Related glossary terms: MDI/MDIX (medium dependent interface/MDI crossover), 802.3, Ethernet Glossary, Quad FastEthernet (QFE), 10BASE-2, coaxial cable (illustrated), Power over Ethernet (PoE), Ethernet point-of-presence (EPOP), DVMRP (Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol), 1000BASE-T

This was last updated in September 2005

Posted by: Margaret Rouse

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