SNA

Abstract

This chapter focuses on Systems Network Architecture (SNA) which is IBM's blueprint for constructing information processing networks from IBM products. It consists of three elements. First, SNA describes the logical structure used in configuring IBM networks. Second, it specifies the formats, protocols, and operational sequences used for transmitting data through a network. Third, it consists of a set of products that conform to the structure and implement the rules. The need for network architecture arose out of the distributed data processing trend of the mid-70s. By putting intelligence in terminals and workstations, computing networks became much more complex and difficult to work with. IBM was the first of the major computer manufacturers to introduce network architecture, launching SNA in 1974, and billing it then as its most important single announcement since the launch of the 360 mainframe series a decade earlier. This claim recognized the growing importance of the distributed data processing market.