Network Interface Card
[Network]
An I/O adapter that connects a node to a network.
A network interface card (NIC) is commonly a plug-in circuit board, however, the term is also used to denote an ASIC or set of ASICs on a computer system board that perform the network I/O adapter function. The term NIC is universally used in Ethernet context. In Fibre Channel contexts, the terms host bus adapter, HBA and adapter are used in preference to NIC. See host bus adapter, I/O adapter.