Glossary of Data Communications TermsCourtesy Enterprise-Wide Computing, Inc. |
Term:
contention
Definition: On a network, competition among stations for the opportunity to use a communications line or network resource. In one sense, contention applies to a situation in which two or more devices attempt to transmit at the same time, thus causing a collision on the line. In a somewhat different sense, contention also applies to a free-for-all method of controlling access to a communications line, in which the right to transmit is awarded to the station that wins control of the line. See also CSMA/CD. Compare token passing. |