Ethernet
Of all of the current Local Area Network (LAN) technologies available, Ethernet is the most popular industry standard. This networking standard is defined by the Institute for Electrical Engineers (IEEE) in a standard they created entitled IEEE Standard 802.3. The standard defines the rules for configuring Ethernet as well as the protocol that allow computers to communicate. A protocol is a standard that allows computers to communicate with each other by defining the following: how they identify each other, the form that the data should take in transit, how the information should be reconstructed once it reaches its final destination, and how damaged transmissions are handled. TCP/IP, IPX, AppleTalk, and NetBEUI are all examples of protocols that operate on the Ethernet standard.
Ethernet is typically deployed in two basic topologies called "bus" and "star". A bus topology consists of nodes connected together by a single long cable. The bus topology connections are made by using one of two different types of coax cable. The first is called Thickwire, also known as 10BASE5 and the second is called Thin coax, also know as 10BASE2. An advantage of a bus topology is the easy, low cost expandability because you do not need a hub, but a major disadvantage is that any break in the line will disable the entire line. A star topology links two nodes together on the network. It consists of a central point that each of the nodes is connected to. The advantage here is each connection is independent, so that if a line breaks, only that particular node is affected. The disadvantage is the need for central point equipment. This central point is called a hub or switch. The connections from the hub or switch to the nodes are made using a type of wire called unshielded twisted pair (UTP), commonly known as 10BASE-T. An advantage of this kind of cable over 10BASE5 or 10BASE2 is cost. It is much cheaper as well as easier to work with and install. A major disadvantage to UTP is the maximum cable length of 100 meters. This cable is a 4 wire-pair structure that is very similar to telephone cable in appearance and comes in a variety of grades, with level 1 being the lowest quality and level 6 being the highest, and thus the best. The speed at which data is transmitted over these lines is 10Mbps or 10 mega-bits per second.
There multiple LAN standards because there might be wide range of data rate and transmission that might need to support. For that reason there are a set of standard that are developed by IEEE 802 committee which are accepted and used by most of the product in the market today. Some may use the standard for Token ring, Ethernet and Wireless.
Compare and contrast between Information and network: Networking is often a combination of various services. Therefore, in order for various services to be effective, mutual services need to be organically associated. Network have bunch of information. People receive information through using network. It also spread out the data. Applications, which access databases, could save the data and also could manipulated it. Information is data, which comes from the network. So, information and network can never be separated. They are always together.
Meanwhile, the advent of early PC’s and the recognition of the value in networking devices together gave rise to Local Area Networks. These LAN’s were developed from a business customer perspective, which placed more emphasis on costs and ease of use over reliability. There were a number of different competing LAN technologies, two of the most common being Token Ring (IBM) and Ethernet (everyone else). The triumph of Ethernet in the marketplace, to the extent where it is included in every PC, game console and some refrigerators, provides a consistent and relatively inexpensive way to build internal networks with relative ease.
All computers are connected to a hub, switch or router. Require more cabling, but failure of one node does not break down the network.
Token ring networks had significantly superior performance and reliability compared to early shared-media implementations of Ethernet (IEEE 802.3), and were widely adopted as a higher-performance alternative to shared-media Ethernet.
... access to what and in which sequence. The router connects the LAN to other networks, which could be the Internet or another corporate network so that the LAN can exchange information with networks external to it. The most common LAN operating systems are Windows, Linux, and Novell. Each of these network operating systems supports TCP/IP as their default networking protocol. Ethernet is the dominant LAN standard at the physical network level, specifying the physical medium to carry signals between computers, access control rules, and a standardized set of bits used to carry data over the system. Originally, Ethernet supported a data transfer rate of 10 megabits per second (Mbps). Newer versions, such as Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet, support data transfer rates of 100 Mbps and 1 gigabits per second (Gbps), respectively, and are used in network backbones.
Ethernet cables or Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) cables usually connects Star topologies. The star is configured around a central wiring device or switching element, usually an intelligent hub. The hub interprets and routes electrical signals using a high-speed backplane or bus. Each device (workstation, server, etc.) is connected singly to a port on the hub. (Bloom, 1998). Star topologies can be expensive to install, however, quickly identified nodes on the network through the switches, or hubs, will drastically decrease downtime.
First, we have to understand how Ethernet works. For a nicely summarized history as well as an explanation of the type of media it can run on, you can click here.
LAN are distinguished from others type of networks by its transmission media and topology. Common topology used by LAN is ring, star and bus topology.
Protocol compatibility is an important issue. Since a protocol is like a language for computers on a network, it is important that the devices on a network speak the same language, or use the same protocol, so that data can be successfully delivered. For example, if a computer on a network needs to print a document, it is necessary for the computer and the network printer to have the same protocol. Once a standard is established, all the devices on a network will be able to work together in a network environment. If two devices on a network are not using the same protocol, the two devices will be unable to communicate (Whitehead 125).
LANs systems can be defined and connected in many different ways. This is the reason for the standardization for every one can have a common ground to start from. “The LANs described Herein are distinguished from other types of data networks in that they are optimized for a moderate size geographic area such as a single office building, warehouse, or a campus. The IEEE 802 LAN is a shared medium peer-to-peer communications network that broadcasts information for all stations to receive. As a consequence, it does not inherently provide privacy. The LAN enables stations to communicate directly using a common physical medium on a point-to-point basis without any intermediate switching node being required. There is always need for an access sublayer in order to arbitrate to access to the shared medium. The network is generally owned, used, and operated by a single organization. This is in contrast to Wide Area Networks (WANs) that interconnect communication facilities in different parts of a country or are used as a public utility. These LANs are also different from networks, such as backplane buses, that are optimized for the interconnection of devices on a desk top or components within a single piece of equipment.”(IEEE 802 Standard 1990) That is the standard definition for LANs by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer committee 802. They are the committee used to set the standard in workmanship and operations for technicians that set-up and perform maintenance on LANs systems. And through all the technical words what they are trying to say is a LAN is a small area network that distributes information among computer in a small work environment unlike WANs that distribute information across global areas.
rules, for computers to talk to one another. These protocols are carried out by sending
What does the network layer do? What is interior routing and what is exterior routing?
In determining the physical layout of the network, the decision of what type of cable to be used is also decided. When broken down to its simplest form, all types of cabling provide a medium across which network information can travel. The most popular types of network cabling in use today are Twisted-pair (TP) in both unshielded (UTP), and shielded (STP) varieties, and Fiber-optic cable. While the use of Coaxial cable has declined in the arena of Local Area Networking (LAN), it is still prominently featured by Cable Television firms, providing both Television, and Internet services.
People in the present society have turned from the use of the old means of communication to the more advanced and technological ways of communicating. Technology has made it easier for people to communicate in a faster, efficient, and cost saving means through the introduction of the communication channels. The world has turned out to be the centre for technology with different technologies emerging daily as the people continue to develop from time to time to cope with the growing technology. The benefits of adopting the communication technology are explained in this article which shows why people do not function without technology.