Ethernet is a networking technology and as such it can allow all devices to talk to each other, or allow access to any device on the network from anywhere within that network. This mean that control concepts where devices must exchange information is more easily realised. As any device feature or information can be access by the Ethernet interface, it is possible to download firmware, upload status or manufacture information. In addition a support engineer could remotely access, diagnose and fix a problem from any where within that network. This can even be extended to provide world wide support remotely. Standard Ethernet security features such as firewalls can be used to ensure that unlawful access is prevented.
