This article is a part of a series on Network Address Translation (NAT). Use the navigation boxes to view the rest of the articles.
- Why NAT?
- NAT Terminology
- Static NAT
- Static PAT
- Dynamic PAT
- Dynamic NAT
- Policy NAT and Twice NAT
- NAT Terminology Disambiguation
If you’ve made it here, then at this point you should have a solid understanding of each of the four types of translation that can exist: Static NAT, Static PAT, Dynamic PAT, and Dynamic NAT. Moreover, you have an understanding of Policy NAT and Twice NAT, which are simply two different ways of implementing the four types of NAT.
The definitions and examples provided in this article series encompass every type of address translation that can possibly exist. That said, for marketing efforts, most vendors use their own distinct terminology to refer to each type of NAT we have discussed.
The purpose of this article is to provide a single page which lists all the types of address translation and what each vendor calls them. In the future, each vendor term will also link to a configuration guide for that specific vendor’s syntax and implementation.
NAT Disambiguation Table
| Static NAT | Static PAT | Dynamic PAT | Dynamic NAT | |
| RFC 2663 | Static Address Assignment | Realm Specific Address and Port IP | Network Address Port Translation (NAPT) | Basic NAT |
| Wikipedia | Full Cone NAT | Full Cone NAT | Symmetric NAT | Address Restricted Cone NAT |
| Cisco Routers | Static NAT | Static PAT | Dynamic PAT | Dynamic NAT |
| Cisco ASA/ASA-X | Static NAT | Static PAT | Dynamic PAT | Dynamic NAT |
| F5 LTM | NAT | Virtual Server | SNAT | n/a |
| Juniper | Static NAT | Static NAT with Port Mapping | Source NAT | Source NAT with Disable PAT Argument |
Know the terminology that another vendor uses?
Mention it in the comments below so they can be added to the table!
Hi Ed,
I came across your website, while looking for some answers. You have a wonderful way of explaining complex stuff in simple way. I have already read most of stuff on your site and looking forward for new series.
Nat also is wonderfully explained.
Regards,
RJ
Hi Reena, thank you for the kind words, I’m very glad you found the articles helpful. I hope to keep producing articles shedding clarity on the world of Network Engineering ;). All the best!
Hi ED,
Superb document on NAT and other basic networking documents, You have explained it very smoothly.
Regards,
Kamlesh
Wonderful blog you have here but I was wondering if you knew
of any message boards that cover the same topics talked about
in this article? I’d really like to be a part
of community where I can get feed-back from other knowledgeable people that share the same
interest. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.
Kudos!
Hi Apteka, here are the communities I tend to frequent. I’m sure there are others.
https://www.reddit.com/r/networking/
https://networkengineering.stackexchange.com/
I’d like to find out more? I’d care to find out some additional information.
Hello Ed,
Your website has the simplest presentation of network technology. Easy to grasp and understand.
I would like you to elaborate on DNS in detail the same way.
That would be really helpful.
Regards,
Hi Atma,
Glad you enjoyed the articles =). Thank you for the kind words. I’ll make note of your request for DNS articles / videos.
One could not possibly find any other resource that gives an elaborate and better explanation for these networking concepts. Thank you for explaining every concept in a detailed manner with simple and easy illustrations. This helped me a lot! Please keep posting new articles.
Thank you for the kind words, Sivakumar =). Glad you enjoyed the articles.
Ed, this is fantastic material. Lucid and clear. Thanks a lot.
Hi Gary. Glad you enjoyed the content. Thank you for the kind words. =)
All articles are veryyy AWESOME..!! If possible can you please create series on Cisco Nexus
Sharing this website with all my coworkers.
Your explanation technique is wonderfully simple as others have stated.
Thanks Joe. I appreciate the shares =). Sorry it took so long to get back to you!
As others said, your explanation is very good. Not too long but very to the point and VERY clear.
Also your graphics are very understandable…
This is how i like it.
Arend, The Netherlands
Thank you for the kind words, Arend. I’m glad you liked the articles and illustrations =)
Thank you so much for this series! I am confused about the wikipedia terminology. Wikipedia lists also four different names, including Port-restricted cone NAT, which is not in your table. Is it possible that this one is missing and that there is a mistake in the table?