Editing Channel access method (section)

{{Short description|Means for multiple terminals to communicate over one medium}}
{{Use American English|date = March 2019}}

In [[telecommunications]] and [[computer networks]], a '''channel access method''' or '''multiple access method''' allows more than two [[terminal (telecommunication)|terminal]]s connected to the same [[transmission medium]] to transmit over it and to share its capacity.<ref name="Miao">{{cite book |author1=Guowang Miao |author2=Jens Zander |author3=Ki Won Sung |author4=Ben Slimane |title=Fundamentals of Mobile Data Networks |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1107143210 |date=2016}}</ref> Examples of shared physical media are [[wireless network]]s, [[bus network]]s, [[ring network]]s and [[point-to-point link]]s operating in [[half-duplex]] mode.

A channel access method is based on [[multiplexing]], which allows several [[data stream]]s or signals to share the same [[communication channel]] or transmission medium. In this context, multiplexing is provided by the [[physical layer]].

A channel access method may also be a part of the multiple access protocol and control mechanism, also known as [[medium access control]] (MAC). Medium access control deals with issues such as addressing, assigning multiplex channels to different users and avoiding collisions. Media access control is a sub-layer in the [[data link layer]] of the [[OSI model]] and a component of the [[link layer]] of the [[TCP/IP model]].