Autosense

What Does Autosense Mean?

Autosense refers to a feature found in network adapters that allows them to automatically recognize the current local network’s speed and adjust its own setting accordingly. It is often used with Ethernet, fast Ethernet, switches, hubs and network interface cards.

Techopedia Explains Autosense

Autosense is a feature most often used with network adapters that adjusts settings according to network conditions and supports autoconfiguration.

Autosense for network adapters was first developed by National Semiconductor in 1994 using NWay telecommunications protocol. It was used with Ethernet devices such as a switch and router, which allowed devices to operate at different network speeds. The NWay automatically configured the best, highest speed and what mode the device should use by briefly controlling the cable to adjust the settings. NWay supports 10Base-T, 10Base-T duplex, 100Base-T, 100Base-TX duplex and 100Base-T4.

When an Ethernet 10/100 card is first connected to a network, the speed is automatically adjusted. The card will default to the highest speed (100) unless the network connection does not support it. A hub or switch can also autoadjust its speed by autosensing the speed that is required. Various hubs and switches use autosense on a port-to-port basis.

Autosense can automatically detect a current condition in several ways:

Automatic MDI/MDI-X: Detects whether a crossover cable is needed in gigabit Ethernet
Media Sensing: A feature found in a printer that detects paper size and type of paper and determines whether there is a connection to the network
Auto Negotiate or NWay: Recognizes settings such as line speed in Ethernet 10/100 cards and adjusts them appropriately
Medium Dependent Interface (MDI) port: Used to connect to other switches or hubs without requiring a crossover cable