Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

Server Message Block
     
         (SMB) A {client/server} {protocol} that provides
        file and printer sharing between computers.  In addition SMB
        can share {serial ports} and communications abstractions such
        as {named pipes} and {mail slots}.  SMB is similar to {remote
        procedure call} (RPC) specialised for file system access.
     
        SMB was developed by {Intel}, {Microsoft}, and {IBM} in the
        early 1980s.  It has also had input from {Xerox} and {3Com}.
        It is the native method of file and print sharing for
        Microsoft {operating systems}; where it is called {Microsoft
        Networking}.  {Windows for Workgroups}, {Windows 95}, and
        {Windows NT} all include SMB clients and servers.  SMB is also
        used by {OS/2}, {Lan Manager} and {Banyan} {Vines}.  There are
        SMB servers and clients for {Unix}, for example {Samba} and
        {smbclient}.
     
        SMB is a {presentation layer} protocol structured as a large
        set of commands (Server Message Blocks).  There are commands
        to support file sharing, printer sharing, {user
        authentication}, resource browsing, and other miscellaneous
        functions.  As clients and servers may implement different
        versions ("dialects") of the protocol they negotiate before
        starting a session.
     
        The {redirector} packages SMB requests into a {network control
        block} (NBC) structure that can be sent across the network to
        a remote device.
     
        SMB originally ran on top of the lower level protocols
        {NetBEUI} and {NetBIOS}, but now typically runs over {TCP/IP}.
     
        Microsoft have developed an extended version of SMB for the
        {Internet}, the {Common Internet File System} (CIFS), which in
        most cases replaces SMB.  {CIFS} runs only runs over TCP/IP.
     
        {Just what is SMB?
        (http://samba.anu.edu.au/cifs/docs/what-is-smb.html)}.
     
        {IBM protocols
        (http://www.protocols.com/pbook/ibm.htm)}.
     
        {Microsoft SMB/CIFS documents
        (ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/developr/drg/CIFS/)}.
     
        (1999-08-08)