Network Topology

A Network Topology is the arrangement with which computer systems or network

devices are connected to each other. Topologies may define both physical and logical aspect
of the network. Both logical and physical topologies could be same or different in a same
network.

 Point-to-Point

Point-to-point networks contains exactly two hosts such as computer, switches or

routers, servers connected back to back using a single piece of cable. Often, the receiving
end of one host is connected to sending end of the other and vice-versa.

If the hosts are connected point-to-point logically, then may have multiple
intermediate devices. But the end hosts are unaware of underlying network and see each
other as if they are connected directly.
 Types of Topology

1. Bus Topology

In case of Bus topology, all devices share single communication line or cable. Bus
topology may have problem while multiple hosts sending data at the same time. Therefore,
Bus topology either uses CSMA/CD technology or recognizes one host as Bus Master to
solve the issue. It is one of the simple forms of networking where a failure of a device does
not affect the other devices. But failure of the shared communication line can make all other
devices stop functioning.
 Uses a trunk or backbone to which all of the computers on the network connect.
 Systems connect to this backbone using T connectors or taps.
 Coaxial cablings ( 10Base-2, 10Base5) were popular options years ago.
 Both ends of the shared channel have line terminator. The data is sent in only one
direction and as soon as it reaches the extreme end, the terminator removes the data from the
line.

2. Star Topology

All hosts in Star topology are connected to a central device, known as hub device, using a
point-to-point connection. That is, there exists a point to point connection between hosts and
hub. The hub device can be any of the following:
• All computers/devices connect to a central device called hub or switch.
• Each device requires a single cable
• point-to-point connection between the device and hub.
• Most widely implemented
• Hub is the single point of failure

 Layer-1 device such as hub or repeater

 Layer-2 device such as switch or bridge
 Layer-3 device such as router or gateway
 As in Bus topology, hub acts as single point of failure. If hub fails, connectivity of all
hosts to all other hosts fails. Every communication between hosts, takes place through only
the hub. Star topology is not expensive as to connect one more host, only one cable is
required and configuration is simple.

3. Ring Topology

In ring topology, each host machine connects to exactly two other machines, creating
a circular network structure. When one host tries to communicate or send message to a host
which is not adjacent to it, the data travels through all intermediate hosts. To connect one
more host in the existing structure, the administrator may need only one more extra cable.
• Logical ring
– Meaning that data travels in circular fashion from one computer to another on the
network.
– Typically FDDI, SONET or Token Ring technology are used to implement a ring
network
– Ring networks are most commonly wired in a star configuration
• Token Ring has multi-station access unit (MSAU),equivalent to hub or switch.
MSAU performs the token circulation internally

Failure of any host results in failure of the whole ring. Thus, every connection in the
ring is a point of failure. There are methods which employ one more backup ring.
 4. Mesh Topology

In this type of topology, a host is connected to one or multiple hosts. This topology
has hosts in point-to-point connection with every other host or may also have hosts which
are in point-to-point connection to few hosts only.
• Each computer connects to every other.
• High level of redundancy.
• Rarely used.
– Wiring is very complicated
– Cabling cost is high
– Troubleshooting a failed cable is tricky
– A variation hybrid mesh
– create point to point connection between specific network devices, often seen in
WAN implementation.

Hosts in Mesh topology also work as relay for other hosts which do not have direct point-
to-point links. Mesh technology comes into two types:

 Full Mesh: All hosts have a point-to-point connection to every other host in the
network. Thus for every new host n(n-1)/2 connections are required. It provides the
most reliable network structure among all network topologies.
 Partially Mesh: Not all hosts have point-to-point connection to every other host.
Hosts connect to each other in some arbitrarily fashion. This topology exists where we
need to provide reliability to some hosts out of all.
 5. Tree Topology

Also known as Hierarchical Topology, this is the most common form of network
topology in use presently. This topology imitates as extended Star topology and inherits
properties of bus topology.
This topology divides the network in to multiple levels/layers of network. Mainly in
LANs, a network is bifurcated into three types of network devices. The lowermost is access-
layer where computers are attached. The middle layer is known as distribution layer, which
works as mediator between upper layer and lower layer. The highest layer is known as core
layer, and is central point of the network, i.e. root of the tree from which all nodes fork.

All neigh boring hosts have point-to-point connection between them. Similar to the
Bus topology, if the root goes down, then the entire network suffers even. though it is not the
single point of failure. Every connection serves as point of failure, failing of which divides
the network into unreachable segment.

 Daisy Chain

This topology connects all the hosts in a linear fashion. Similar to Ring topology, all
hosts are connected to two hosts only, except the end hosts. Means, if the end hosts in daisy
chain are connected then it represents Ring topology.
 Each link in daisy chain topology represents single point of failure. Every link failure
splits the network into two segments. Every intermediate host works as relay for its
immediate hosts.

6. Hybrid Topology

A network structure whose design contains more than one topology is said to be
hybrid topology. Hybrid topology inherits merits and demerits of all the incorporating
topologies.

of
Functions
•devices
network
expanding
or
networks
(connecting)
Separating
switches
routers,
bridges,
hubs,
repeaters,
e.g.
network
The above picture represents an arbitrarily hybrid topology. The combining
topologies may contain attributes of Star, Ring, Bus, and Daisy-chain topologies. Most

•
WANs are connected by means of Dual-Ring topology and networks connected to them are
mostly Star topology networks. Internet is the best example of largest Hybrid topology.

 Network Devices
 More than two computers connected using a networking device.
of
Functions
•devices
•
network
expanding
or
networks
(connecting)
Separating
switches
routers,
bridges,
hubs,
repeaters,
e.g.
network
 Functions of network devices
•Separating (connecting) networks or expanding network
•e.g. repeaters, hubs, bridges, routers, switches

connecting
devices
Five
6.1
Repeaters
Hubs
Bridges
Switches
Routers


Six connecting devices
1. Repeaters
2. Hubs
3. Bridges
4. Switches
5. Routers
6. Gateway

Five categories of connecting devices

1. Repeaters
 A physical layer device the acts on bits not on frames or packets
 When a bit (0,1) arrives, the repeater receives it and regenerates it, the
transmits it onto all other interfaces
 Used in LAN to connect cable segments and extend the maximum cable
length  extending the geographical LAN range
 Repeaters do not implement any access method (If any two nodes on any two
connected segments transmit at the same time collision will happen)

A repeater connecting two segments of a LAN

2.Hubs
 Acts on the physical layer
 Operate on bits rather than frames
 Used to connect stations adapters in a physical star topology but logically bus
 Hub receives a bit from an adapter and sends it to all the other adapters
without implementing any access method.
 does not do filtering (forward a frame into a specific destination or drop it)
just it copy the received frame onto all other links
 Multiple Hubs can be used to extend the network length 6.10
 The entire hub forms a single collision domain, and a single Broadcast
domain
  Collision domain: is that part of the network when two or more nodes
transmit at the same time collision will happen.
 Broadcast domain: is that part of the network where each NIC can 'see' other
NICs' traffic broadcast messages.

 Interconnecting with hubs

 Backbone hub interconnects LAN segments
Advantage:
 Extends max distance between nodes
Disadvantages
 Individual segment collision domains become one large collision
domain  (reduce the performance)
 Can’t interconnect different Ethernet technologies because no
buffering at the hub

3.Bridges
 Acts on the data link layer (MAC address level)
 Used to divide (segment) the LAN into smaller LANs segments, or to connect LANs
that use identical physical and data link layers protocol
 Each LAN segment is a separate collision domain  Bridge does not send the
received frame to all other interfaces like hubs and repeaters, but it performs filtering
 A bridge has a table used in filtering decisions.

“Intelligent” - Decisions based on destination MAC address.

● Store and Forward.
● Number of ports - 2
● Splits collision domain.
4. Switches
 Usually used to connect individual computers not LANs like bridge.
 Allows more than one device connected to the switch directly to transmit simultaneously .
 Can operates in Full-duplex mode (can send and receive frames at the same time over the
same interface).
 Performs MAC address recognition and frame forwarding in hardware.
 “More Intelligent” - Multiport bridge. Decisions based on destination MAC address.
 Store and Forward.
 Number of ports - More than 2.
 Splits collision domain.

 Types of Switches
 Switches can use different forwarding techniques—two of these are store-and-
forward switching and cut-through switching.
 In store-and-forward switching, an entire frame must be received before it is
forwarded.
 Cut-through switching allows the switch to begin forwarding the frame when enough
of the frame is received to make a forwarding decision. This reduces the latency
through the switch.
 Store-and-forward switching gives the switch the opportunity to evaluate the frame
for errors before forwarding it.
 Cut-through switching does not offer this advantage, so the switch might forward
frames containing errors.

5. Routers

 Operates at network layer = deals with packets not frames.

 Connect LANs and WANs with similar or different protocols together.
 Switches and bridges isolate collision domains but forward broadcast messages to
all LANs connected to them. Routers isolate both collision domains and broadcast
domains.
 Acts like normal stations on a network, but have more than one network address (an
address to each connected network).
 Routers Communicate with each other and exchange routing information.
 Determine best route using routing algorithm by special software installed on them.
7. Gateway
  A gateway, as the name suggests, is a passage to connect two networks together that
may work upon different networking models.
 They basically works as the messenger agents that take data from one system,
interpret it, and transfer it to another system.
 Gateways are also called protocol converters and can operate at any network layer.
 Gateways are generally more complex than switch or router. A gateway can translate
information between different network data formats or network architectures.
 It can translate TCP/IP to AppleTalk so computers supporting TCP/IP can
communicate with Apple brand computers.
 Most gateways operate at the application layer, but can operate at the network or
session layer of the OSI model. Gateways will start at the lower level and strip
information until it gets to the required level and repackage the information and work
its way back toward the hardware layer of the OSI model.
 To confuse issues, when talking about a router that is used to interface to another
network, the word gateway is often used.
 This does not mean the routing machine is a gateway as defined here, although it
could be.

 Modems

• Modulator/Demodulator, convert digital signal generated by computer into analog signals

that can travel over conventional phone line.

• Connect to ISP

• Dialing up to a LAN

• Internal add-in expansion cards or external devices connect to serial or USB port –
PCMCIA cards for laptop

• Speed

– Modem itself

– Speed of the Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART) chip,

• UART 16950 has the speed of 921,600kbp

  Null modem
Null modem is a communication method to directly connect two DTEs (computer, terminal,
printer, etc.) using an RS-232 serial cable. The name stems from the historical use of RS-232
cables to connect two tele printer devices or two modems in order to communicate with one
another; null modem communication refers to using a crossed-over RS-232 cable to connect
the tele printers directly to one another without the modems. It is also used to serially connect
a computer to a printer, since both are DTE, and is known as a Printer Cable.
The RS-232 standard is asymmetric as to the definitions of the two ends of the
communications link, assuming that one end is a DTE and the other is a DCE, e.g. a modem.
With a null modem connection the transmit and receive lines are cross linked. Depending on
the purpose, sometimes also one or more handshake lines are cross linked. Several wiring
layouts are in use because the null modem connection is not covered by the RS-232 standard.