Computer Science

Types of Network

In computer science, networks can be categorized into different types based on their geographical scope and the way they are structured. Local Area Networks (LANs) cover a small area, such as a single building, while Wide Area Networks (WANs) span larger geographical areas. Other types include Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), Personal Area Networks (PANs), and Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), each serving specific connectivity needs.

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  • Book cover image for: Computer Networks and Communications
    • Jocelyn O. Padallan(Author)
    • 2019(Publication Date)
    • Arcler Press
      (Publisher)
    Networking Types, Topologies and Security 65 • HTTP : The protocol which leads to a website while making use of the Internet and its IP address is known as HTTP (Figure 3.12). Figure 3.12: HTTP ( Source: https://pixabay.com/en/http-computer-hand-mo -bile-phone-895558/). 3.8. Types of Network TOPOLOGIES A layout for the devices which are connected is known as a topology for the network. These network topologies are very essential as they are used to make available an appropriate flow of data within the given network. Below-given are some of these network topologies: (Figure 3.13). Figure 3.13: Network topologies ( Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wiki -pedia/commons/9/97/NetworkTopologies.svg). • Bus : This is the type network topology which makes use of a single medium to connect the computer. • Ring : In order to transfer or share the data in this of network Computer Networks and Communications 66 topology, each computer is connected to another adjacent computer. All the networks could lead to a turn off when anyone network fails. • Star: Most common structure of network topology in homes is star. It makes use of a particular hub or a router in order to make the network possible. • Tree : A complex network which connects the star topologies into bus is Tree topology. It is most commonly used in the offices and cyber hubs. • Mesh : This type of network topology is ideal for routing large networks and various data transmissions are possible in it. 3.9. TYPES OF WIRELESS NETWORKS AND STANDARDS Since the wireless technology is more convenient, it is much more in use nowadays. Currently, this is being studied to make all computer networks wireless for the future. This type of network is identical to the standard type of connections for networks.
  • Book cover image for: CompTIA Network+ Certification Guide (Exam N10-008)
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    CompTIA Network+ Certification Guide (Exam N10-008)

    Unleash your full potential as a Network Administrator (English Edition)

    Networks can cover anything from a handful of devices within a single room to millions of devices spread across the entire globe. Here is an outline of network types. 50  CompTIA Network+ Certification Guide (Exam N10-008) Personal Area Network (PAN) A Personal Area Network (PAN), is a computer network arranged around an individual person within a single building. This could be inside a small office or home. A standard PAN would include one or more computers, telephones or smartphones, peripheral devices such as cameras or printers, video game consoles, and other personal entertainment systems, for example, sound bars or PDAs. If several individuals use the same network within a residence, the network is sometimes referred to as a home area network, or HAN. In a very typical setup, a residence will have a single wired internet connection to a modem. This modem then provides both wired and wireless connections for multiple devices. The network is typically maintained by a single computer, although it can be accessed from any device, especially with remote log-in capabilities to the modem/router via a browser. This type of network provides great flexibility. For example, it allows you to: • Send a document to the printer in the office upstairs while you are in a different room. • Upload a photo from your smartphone to your desktop computer. • Synchronize devices. • Watch movies from an online streaming service to your TV or screencast a favorite video from your phone or laptop to the TV. In today’s technology-based world, the likelihood is, we are in the presence of many PAN around us or in close approximation. Local Area Network (LAN) A Local Area Network (LAN) is a computer network that interconnects computers within a limited area such as a residence, school, library, or other small to medium organization. LANs are typically contained within a single building. Simple LANs generally consist of cabling and one or more switches.
  • Book cover image for: Guide to Network Security
    • Michael Whitman, Herbert Mattord, David Mackey, Andrew Green(Authors)
    • 2012(Publication Date)
    There are two dominant WANs: the public tele-phone network and the Internet. (Note that the Internet begins with an uppercase I, whereas an internet — an internetwork or network of networks — begins with a lowercase i.) There are a host of other WANs, usually associated with one of the dominant communications infra-structure providers. A WAN can comprise a collection of LANs and MANs. Since these definitions were developed, a host of variations has arisen, including: personal area networks, which typically connect a few devices owned by the same individual; file area networks, which connect a number of data storage technologies; campus area net-works, which are large LANs or small MANs that connect two or more LANs, typically within adjacent buildings; and body area networks, which are personal devices carried on one ’ s person that communicate with each other. Types of Networks 47 Copyright 2012 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s). Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it. Networks Categorized by Topology A topology is the pattern of associations among network components. The topology can be physical or logical. Physical topologies indicate how networks are cabled, whereas logical topologies indicate how they function. The most common physical topologies are ring, bus, star, hierarchy, mesh, and hybrid (see Figure 2-8), whereas the most common logical topolo-gies are bus and star. A bus is a linear communication channel and its associated nodes, the messages being transmitted one at a time from one station or node to another, with each node taking turns.
  • Book cover image for: The Role of communication in computer science
    • Jocelyn O. Padallan(Author)
    • 2023(Publication Date)
    • Arcler Press
      (Publisher)
    Source: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978–3-319–55606–2. Centralized network architecture is shown in Figure 3.2, while a fully distributed framework is depicted in Figure 3.3 (Kocaoglu et al., 2012). 3.3. TYPES OF COMPUTER NETWORK Computer systems originated in various dimensions. Every net is composed of a set of nodes in the network as well as the resources that go with it. The cluster size determines the network type. Local part networks (LAN) and wide-area networks (WAN) are the two kinds of networks (WAN) (Wilson et al., 2009). Figure 3.4. A LAN is a local area network. Source: https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Network-Security-Communica- tions-Networks/dp/1447145429. The Role of Communication in Computer Science 76 3.3.1. Local Area Networks (LANs) A local area network (LAN) is a system that links various computer systems or groupings of computers as well as their assets via a communications platform that wants to share protocols and is limited to a small geographic area, such as a concrete floor, a constructing, or another few surrounding buildings (LAN) (Kameda et al., 2000). A LAN’s advantage is that a few network components are near together, allowing for speedier data transfer across communication channels. Because the communication components are so close together, high-cost, high-quality communicating parts are employed to increase service and dependability. A LAN network is seen in Figure 3.4 (Tipper & Sundareshan, 1990).
  • Book cover image for: Cloud Computing Networking
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    Cloud Computing Networking

    Theory, Practice, and Development

    These virtual machines will be configured in a way that they can communicate with each other on the virtual network. Networking tools illustrated in the previous chapter are used to accomplish the configuration tasks. 3.2 Network Types Based on the network scales and technology used, networks can be categorized as a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), and the Internet. In addition to the fact that a WAN is a large-scale network, its network devices and network media may also be different from those of a LAN. Depending on where a WAN is 80 CLOUD COMPUTING NETWORKING implemented, a WAN may also be called a campus area network (CAN) or a met-ropolitan area network (MAN). When radio waves are used as network media, a network can be implemented as a wireless network. In the following, we will look into the details of the LAN, WAN, Internet, and the wireless networks. 3.2.1 Local Area Network Normally, a LAN is a small-scale network with each network hosts located in a build-ing or a room. The hosts in a LAN are usually linked with twisted-pair cables. The electrical pulses are delivered to other network hosts through the network media. The goal of the LAN is to allow a group of network devices and computers to share the resources in a room or in a building. The network devices in a LAN are relatively less expensive. A LAN mainly uses the Ethernet technology for data transfer. 3.2.1.1 Ethernet Ethernet is the most popular and most widely deployed LAN net-work technology. As a protocol, it is used to format frames and check errors in data transfer. The hardware built around Ethernet can be used to connect a network host to network media. For a wired network, the twisted-pair network cable is able to carry Ethernet frames. Ethernet can transmit data with various transmission rates over twisted-pair wires. Table 3.1 lists the Ethernet technologies and their transmis-sion rates.
  • Book cover image for: The Architecture of Computer Hardware, Systems Software, and Networking
    • Irv Englander, Wilson Wong(Authors)
    • 2021(Publication Date)
    • Wiley
      (Publisher)
    This is illustrated in Figure 12.10. In this figure, the makeup of the undefined cloud from Figure 12.1 is viewed as a large network of networks. For simplicity, each star-configured network in this figure consists of a number of branches attached to a central switch, labeled S. The switch can connect any pair of branches together to create a path between the pair. (This configuration might resemble that of the old-fashioned telephone system previously shown in Figure 12.2, when extended to multiple exchanges and long distance calling.) The components used to provide inter-network connections at nodes are gateways and routers, which we will describe at the end of this section, following the discussion of the different Types of Networks. For now, we shall just assume that each inter-network node provides a means for forwarding its data to the corresponding link in the next network in the chain. Local Area Networks A local area network (LAN) is a network that connects computers and other supporting devices over a relatively small localized area, typically a room, the floor of a building, a build- ing, or multiple buildings within close range of each other. Usually, most of the computers in a LAN are personal computers or workstations, although there may be larger server com- puters present, and, sometimes, mobile devices as well. It may be wired or wireless. Most commonly, a LAN will conform to a star or bus topology. Supporting devices might include printers, external storage devices, and routers. Routers, and perhaps gateways, will be used to connect the LAN to other networks. 335 12.4 Networks Some LANs are further limited in geographical scope by the particular medium in use. Wireless Ethernet, commonly identified by its trade name, Wi-Fi, for example, is limited to a maximum range of a few hundred feet under ideal conditions by the usable strength of the radio signal that is used to carry the data.
  • Book cover image for: Distributed Database Architecture
    • Jocelyn O. Padallan(Author)
    • 2020(Publication Date)
    • Arcler Press
      (Publisher)
    3.3. COMPUTER NETWORKING Computer networking is the practice by which two or more computing devices are interfaced with each other. The main objective of networking is sharing of data among the users. Computer networks comprises of hardware as well as software. There are several ways in which computer networks can be categorized. One approach for categorizing is according to the geographic area that it covers. Local area network (LAN) is limited to a small area such as a single school, home or a small office. WAN offers a wider coverage across spanning over several cities, states. The largest WAN is the internet which covers the world. These different Types of Networks are discussed in detail in the following sections. 3.3.1. Network Design Network design comprises of a category of system designs which is concerned with the data transport mechanism. Network design also has an analysis stage in which the requirements are generated. It occurs before the implementation stage in which the system or the relevant system component is constructed. Overview of Computer Networking 57 The main objective of network design is to satisfy the requirements if data communication and also minimize the expense of the same. The scope of the network design can vary from one network design project to another. It is determined by factors such as geographic peculiarities and the nature of the data that will be transported over the network. There are several computer networks each of which has its own design. There are two basic forms of network designs namely client-server and peer-to-peer (P2P). Client-server networks comprises of centralized server computers. These store email, web pages, files, and applications. These are accessed by the computers of the client and other devices as well. On the other hand, P2P network comprises of devices that support the same functions. Business use client-server networks which, P2P network is common in households.
  • Book cover image for: CompTIA Network+ Study Guide
    No longer available |Learn more
    • Todd Lammle(Author)
    • 2021(Publication Date)
    • Sybex
      (Publisher)
    Introduction to Networks THE FOLLOWING COMPTIA NETWORK+ EXAM OBJECTIVES ARE COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER: ✓ ✓ 1.2 Explain the characteristics of network topologies and network types. ✓ ■ Mesh ✓ ■ Star/hub-and-spoke ✓ ■ Bus ✓ ■ Ring ✓ ■ Hybrid ✓ ■ Network types and characteristics ✓ ■ Peer-to-peer ✓ ■ Client-server ✓ ■ Local area network (LAN) ✓ ■ Metropolitan area network (MAN) ✓ ■ Wide area network (WAN) ✓ ■ Wireless local area network (WLAN) ✓ ■ Personal area network (PAN) ✓ ■ Campus area network (CAN) ✓ ■ Storage area network (SAN) ✓ ■ Software-defined wide area network (SDWAN) ✓ ■ Multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) ✓ ■ Multipoint generic routing encapsulation (mGRE) ✓ ■ Service-related entry point ✓ ■ Demarcation point ✓ ■ Smartjack Chapter 1 ✓ ■ Virtual network concepts ✓ ■ vSwitch ✓ ■ Virtual network interface card (vNIC) ✓ ■ Network function virtualization (NFV) ✓ ■ Hypervisor ✓ ■ Provider links ✓ ■ Satellite ✓ ■ Digital subscriber line (DSL) ✓ ■ Cable ✓ ■ Leased line ✓ ■ Metro-optical You’d have to work pretty hard these days to find someone who would argue when we say that our computers have become invaluable to us personally and professionally. Our society has become highly dependent on the resources they offer and on sharing them with each other. The ability to communicate with others— whether they’re in the same building or in some faraway land—completely hinges on our capacity to create and maintain solid, dependable networks. And those vitally important networks come in all shapes and sizes—ranging from small and simple to humongous and super complicated. But whatever their flavor, they all need to be maintained properly, and to do that well, you have to understand networking basics. The various types of devices and technologies that are used to create networks, as well as how they work together, is what this book is about, and I’ll go through this critical information one step at a time with you.
  • Book cover image for: Guide to Networking Essentials
    A network topology describes how a network is physically laid out and how signals travel from one device to another. However, because the physical layout of devices and cables doesn’t necessarily describe how signals travel from one device to another, network topologies are categorized as physical and logical. The arrangement of cabling and how cables connect one device to another in a network are considered the network’s physical topology, and the path data travels between computers on a network is considered the network’s logical topology. You can look at the physical topology as a topographic map that shows just the lay of the land along with towns, with only simple lines showing which towns have pathways to one another. The logical topology can be seen as a street map that shows how people Certification 98-366 Understanding network infrastructures: Understand wireless networking Understand network topologies and access methods Copyright 2020 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s). Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it. CHAPTER 3 Network Topologies and Technologies 117 actually have to travel from one place to another. As you’ll see, a network can be wired with one physical topology but pass data from machine to machine by using a different logical topology. All network designs are based on four basic physical topologies: bus, star, ring, and point-to-point. A bus consists of a series of computers connected along a single cable segment. Computers connected via a central device, such as a hub or switch, are arranged in a star topology. Devices connected to form a loop create a ring topology.
  • Book cover image for: Networking Explained
    • Michael Gallo, William M. Hancock PhD CISSP CISM, William M. Hancock, PhD, CISSP, CISM(Authors)
    • 2001(Publication Date)
    • Digital Press
      (Publisher)
    Chapter 1 Fundamental Concepts of Computer Networks and Networking In this chapter, we provide an overview of the various topics and concepts surrounding computer networks and networking. We begin by discussing some of the key issues related to networking. We follow this discussion with a formal definition of computer networks along with a description of the various terms related to this definition. As part of this dis-cussion, we also introduce basic networking vocabulary as well as several key networking concepts. Much of the material we present here is done so from a general perspective and is elaborated in subsequent chapters. Understanding this material is important because it serves as the underlying foundation of the book. An outline of the terms and concepts we define and discuss follows: • Concepts and Related Issues of Computer Networking (Questions 1–2) • Definition and Components of Computer Networks (Questions 3–9) • Network Protocols (Questions 10–12) • Network Media (Questions 13–14) • Applications vs. Application Protocols (Questions 15–19) • Interoperability (Questions 20–21) • Internet, internet (Internetwork), Intranet, Extranet (Questions 22–24) • LAN, MAN, WAN, PAN, GAN, SAN (Questions 25–27) • Decentralized vs. Centralized vs. Distributed Systems (Questions 28–30) • Client/Server, Peer-to-Peer, Servent, and WWW Network Models (Questions 31–41) • Network Appliances (Questions 42–44) • Serial and Parallel Communications (Questions 45–48) • Synchronous, Asynchronous, and Isochronous Communications (Questions 49–53) • Simplex, Half-Duplex, and Full-Duplex Communications (Questions 54–55) • Network Standards (Questions 56–64) 1 2 Networking Explained, Second Edition 1. The title of this book is Networking Explained .
Index pages curate the most relevant extracts from our library of academic textbooks. They’ve been created using an in-house natural language model (NLM), each adding context and meaning to key research topics.