What Is Systems Network Architecture (SNA)?

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Many think Systems Network Architecture (SNA) is just a way to connect mainframe computers. Well, yes, SNA did start as a way to connect mainframes. It's so much more than that! SNA is a 5-level design architecture developed by IBM in 1974 for mainframe computers. The 5-level design has evolved into a 7-level model closely corresponding to the internationally recognized Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model and now supports peer-to-peer networks of workstations. It doesn't end there! SNA can also be used for messaging between databases or distributed computing across multiple processors in the same machine and even for voice-over IP (VOIP) communications! So, stop worrying about it next time you're pulling your hair out trying to figure out how all this stuff works! Just remember: Systems Network Architecture (SNA) connects us all, no matter what part of the world we're from... or even if we're from different worlds entirely! SNA is a protocol stack used for interconnecting computers and their associated resources. It is a set of standards that enables data transfer between computer systems. SNA was first introduced in the 1970s and was used for mainframe-to-mainframe communication. The measures that makeup SNA have been implemented in many other computer systems, including minicomputers, workstations, and even some mainframes. Nowadays, SNA is mainly used in mainframes, and the communication is usually between terminals and the mainframe. Sometimes, the terminals are connected to the mainframe through SNA, while others connect directly. Imagine you're a mainframe computer and have to share your processing power with 16 customers. That's not much fun. If you're a communications company, it's child's play! Your job is to provide communication lines for all those companies to use, so they can do their own thing and let YOU take care of the heavy lifting. That's why Systems Network Architecture (SNA) was designed: It was meant to help communications companies make more money off terminal-based systems by increasing consumer spending on them at the expense of mainframe computers. SNA did this by limiting each CPU to 16 peripherals, and each communication line counted as a peripheral. So the number of terminals a powerful mainframe computer could handle could have been much higher.

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