Error Handling in the IEEE 802 Token-Passing Bus LAN

Abstract

We review the IEEE 1983 802.4 Token-Passing Bus LAN protocol design objectives and operation, and discuss the general error handling philosophy which guided the protocol design decisions. We discuss the types of errors which may occur on a bus LAN and their causal mechanisms. We then discuss the specific error handling mechanisms incorporated in the IEEE Token Bus LAN protocol design. Note that we are reporting only some of the results of several years of work by the members of the Token Bus Working Group of the IEEE Project 802, with necessary omissions and apologies for this lack of completeness.