1.5 Communication Hardware

1.5 Communication Hardware

1. Hub

   • what it is?
     • join multiple computers or other network devices together to form a single network segment
   • characteristics
     • They are slower as they cannot send and receive information at the same time.
     • Hubs broadcasts to every port and place a lot of traffic on the network, leading to poor network response times.
   • purpose
     • Join multiple computers or other network devices together to form a single network segment.
     • Useful for replacing a broken network switch temporarily or when performance is not a critical factor on the network.
     • Used to connect segments of a LAN.

2. Switch

   • what it is?
     • A device that receives packets, processes them and forwards them onto the specific device.
   • Characteristics
     • Learns where particular addresses are.
     • Networks are faster.
     • Network traffic goes where it needs to rather than to every port.
   • Purpose
     • Does the same as a hub but more efficiently.
     • Does the same as a hub but more efficiently. Channels incoming data from multiple input ports to the specific output port.

3. Wireless access point

   • Characteristics
     • Can be known as a hotspot.
     • Featured radio transmitters and antennae enabling connectivity between devices and the internet or network.
   • Purpose
     • A hardware device or configured node on a LAN that allows wireless-capable devices and wired networks to connect through a wireless standard, including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
   • What it is?
     • It is a configured device on wireless local area network.
     • It features a transceiver and antenna that help it in transmitting and receiving wireless signals even Wi-Fi.
     • It is commonly used to support the public internet hot spot and is also used by businesses to extend their networks.

4. Modem

   • What it is?
     • Connects to the internet service provider either through a cable, digital subscriber line or fibre-optic internet service.
   • Characteristics
     • Different modems have different BPS rates.
     • Connected using RS-232 connectors.
     • Can come as an expansion board.
     • Support a switch to change between voice and data modes.
   • Purpose
     • Converts digital signals generated by the computer to analogue signals that can be transmitted over a telephone; transforms incoming

5. Router

   • What it is?
     • Forwards packets between networks.
   • Characteristics
     • Multi-port devices with high-speed backbones.
     • Supports filtering and encapsulation.
     • Self-Learning.
     • Less susceptible to catastrophic failure.
   • Purpose
     • Constantly monitors the condition of the network to adapt to changes.
     • Routes traffic by considering the network as a whole.
     • Used to connect similar and dissimilar LANs.

6. Combined/hybrid devices

   • What it is?
     • Includes internet access, wireless and wired LANs.
   • Charcteristics
     • A device that combines the functionality of a number of communication hardware devices.
   • Purpose
     • They have a fixed number of Ethernet ports for wired devices and also broadcast a Wi-Fi signal.