What is MDI/MDIX (medium dependent interface/MDI crossover)? - Definition from Whatis.com

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MDI/MDIX (medium dependent interface/MDI crossover)

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MDI/MDIX (medium dependent interface/MDI crossover)

MDI/MDIX is a type of Ethernet port connection using twisted pair cabling. The MDI (for medium dependent interface) is the component of the media attachment unit (MAU) that provides the physical and electrical connection to the cabling medium. An MDIX (for MDI crossover) is a version of MDI that enables connection between like devices. MDI ports connect to MDIX ports via straight-through twisted pair cabling; both MDI-to-MDI and MDIX-to-MDIX connections use crossover twisted pair cabling.

Related glossary terms: 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, Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detect (CSMA/CD)

Contributor(s): Robert Kuilman

This was last updated in December 2001

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