Network Organization
Students must be able to outline the features of PAN, LAN, WLAN, VLAN, VPN, SAN, WAN, and P2P networks.[edit]
Here is a brief summary of the features of each type of network:
- PAN (Personal Area Network): A PAN is a small network that is used to connect personal devices, such as computers, tablets, and smartphones, within a small area, such as a single room or an individual's home. It typically uses Bluetooth or NFC (Near Field Communication) technology to establish connections between devices.
- LAN (Local Area Network): A LAN is a network that is used to connect devices within a limited geographical area, such as a single building or a campus. It allows devices to communicate with each other and share resources, such as printers and internet connections.
- WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network): A WLAN is a type of LAN that uses wireless technology, such as WiFi, to connect devices. It allows devices to connect to the network without the need for physical cables.
- VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network): A VLAN is a logical network that is created within a larger network. It allows devices to be grouped together, even if they are physically located in different parts of the network. This can be useful for creating separate networks for different departments or teams within an organization.
- VPN (Virtual Private Network): A VPN is a private network that is created over a public network, such as the internet. It allows users to securely connect to the network from remote locations and access resources as if they were on the same local network.
- SAN (Storage Area Network): A SAN is a network that is dedicated to storing and managing data. It allows multiple servers and devices to access shared storage resources and can be used to improve the performance and availability of data in an organization.
- WAN (Wide Area Network): A WAN is a network that spans a large geographical area, such as a city, a country, or even the entire world. It allows devices to communicate with each other over long distances and can be used to connect multiple LANs together.
- P2P (Peer-to-Peer) Network: A P2P network is a type of network in which each device is able to act as both a client and a server. In a P2P network, there is no central server, and devices can communicate directly with each other to share resources and information.
Students must be able to explain the role of common protocols (TCP and IP) to ensure network hardware and software interoperability, how they are implemented (by hardware, software or a combination of both), and outline their role in the management of data integrity, flow control, deadlock, congestion and error checking.[edit]
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and IP (Internet Protocol) are two of the most commonly used protocols in computer networking. Together, they form the foundation of the internet and are responsible for ensuring interoperability between different hardware and software systems on a network.
TCP is a transport layer protocol that is responsible for establishing and maintaining connections between devices on a network. It provides a reliable means of transmitting data by breaking it up into smaller units called "packets" and reassembling it at the destination. TCP also provides flow control and error checking to ensure that data is transmitted correctly and efficiently.
IP is a network layer protocol that is responsible for routing packets of data from one device to another. It does this by assigning each device on the network a unique IP address and using this address to direct packets to their destination. IP is an "unreliable" protocol, which means that it does not guarantee the delivery of packets. However, it does provide a way for devices to detect when packets are lost and request that they be retransmitted.
Both TCP and IP can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of both. For example, network adapters and routers often have hardware support for TCP and IP, while software protocols can be implemented in the operating system or as part of an application.
In summary, TCP and IP play a crucial role in ensuring network hardware and software interoperability by providing a standardized way for devices to communicate and transmit data. They are also responsible for managing various aspects of data transmission, such as integrity, flow control, and error checking, to ensure that data is transmitted accurately and efficiently.
Students must be able to explain how Packet switching works and why digital networks encapsulate and de- encapsulate packets routed through ethernet, wireless, and Bluetooth communication standards.[edit]
Packet switching is a method of transmitting data across a network by dividing it into smaller units called "packets" and sending each packet individually to its destination. Each packet is labeled with a destination address and is routed through the network to its destination, where it is reassembled with other packets to form the original message.
Packet switching has several benefits over other methods of data transmission, such as circuit switching. One benefit is that it is more efficient, because it allows multiple packets to be transmitted simultaneously over the same network connection. This can be especially useful in networks that have high traffic volumes, as it allows more data to be transmitted in a given amount of time.
Another benefit of packet switching is that it is more flexible, because packets can be routed through different paths to their destination. This means that if one path is unavailable or congested, packets can be redirected through another path, which can help to improve the reliability and performance of the network.
Digital networks encapsulate and de-encapsulate packets to add additional information that is used to transmit the packets over the network. When a packet is encapsulated, extra information is added to the packet in the form of headers and trailers. This extra information can include the source and destination addresses of the packet, as well as other information that is used to route the packet through the network.
Ethernet, wireless, and Bluetooth are all communication standards that use packet switching to transmit data. Ethernet is a wired networking standard that is commonly used in local area networks (LANs) to connect devices. Wireless networking standards, such as WiFi, use radio waves to transmit data wirelessly over short distances. Bluetooth is a wireless technology that is commonly used to connect personal devices, such as smartphones and tablets, to each other and to other devices, such as printers and speakers.