Bit Definition A bit (short for "binary digit") is the smallest unit of measurement used to quantify computer data. It contains a single binary value of 0 or 1. While a single bit can define a boolean value of True (1) or False (0), an individual bit has little other use. Therefore, in computer storage, bits are often grouped together in 8-bit clusters called bytes. Since a byte contains eight bits that each have two possible values, a single byte may have 28 or 256 different values. The terms...

PDU Definition Stands for "Protocol Data Unit." A PDU is a specific block of information transferred over a network. It is often used in reference to the OSI model, since it describes the different types of data that are transferred from each layer. The PDU for each layer of the OSI model is listed below. Physical layer – raw bits (1s or 0s) transmitted physically via the hardware Data Link layer – a frame (or series of bits) Network layer – a packet that contains the source and destinati...

Data Transfer Rate Definition The data transfer rate is commonly used to measure how fast data is transferred from one location to another. For example, a hard drive may have a maximum data transfer rate of 480 Mbps, while your ISP may offer an Internet connection with a maximum data transfer rate of only 1.5 Mbps. Data transfer rates are typically measured in bits per second (bps) as opposed to bytes per second, which can be understandably confusing. Because there are eight bits in a byte, a s...

Gigabit Definition A gigabit is 109 or 1,000,000,000 bits. One gigabit (abbreviated "Gb") is equal to 1,000 megabits or 1,000,000 kilobits. It is one-eighth the size of a gigabyte (GB). Gigabits are most often used to measure data transfer rates of local networks and I/O connections. For example, Gigabit Ethernet is a common Ethernet standard that supports data transfer rates of one gigabit per second (Gbps) over a wired Ethernet network. Modern I/O technologies, such as USB 3.0 and Thunderbol...