NETWORKS AND

THE EFFECTS OF
USING THEM
 Internet, which effectively allows any computer
connected to it to communicate with any other
computer similarly connected. This chapter
considers the types of network that exist and
many of the features Most computer systems are
now connected together in some way form what is
known as a networks. This ranges from basic
school/home network computers (often set up to
share resources such as printers or software) to
large networks that are available because of
networking.
• You will learn that devices such as hubs
and switches are needed to distribute
data within a network that local area
networks (LANs) can be connected
together using “BRIDGES” and that
devices such as MODEMS and ROUTERS
are needed to connect the LANs or
single computers to external network,
such as the internet
• Modern broadband or “ADSL” (asymmetric
digital subscriber line) modems operate at up
to 100 Megabits per second (12.5
Mbytes/second) when using fiber-optic cables
(although the old technology copper cables
can usually only offer a maximum of 20
Mbytes/second). The term 'asymmetric'
actually means that the modem is faster at
“DOWNLOADING“ data (Le. receiving data)
than it is are “UPLOADING“ DATA(i.e. sending
data).
 Modems

• “MODEM” means "modulator demodulator' and is a

device that converts (modulates) a computer's
digital signal into an analogue signal for
transmission over an existing telephone line. It also
does the reverse process, in that it converts
analogue signals from a telephone line into digital
signals (demodulates), to enable the computer to
process the data. DIAL-UP MODEMS operate at
transmission speeds of about 60 kilobits per second,
which is extremely slow by today's standards.
• Although ADSI modems still use the existing telephone
network, unlike dial-up modems they do not tie up the
line while accessing the internet - they can always be
on, so internet access is available 24 hours if
necessary, and the landline telephone can be used at
the same time ADSL modems can allow telephone
conversations and internet traffic to occur at the same
time because of the wide bandwidth signal used
(different frequencies are used to transmit internet
signals so they don't interfere with normal telephone)
Cable modems also exist, which allow cable television
providers to offer internet access as well as receiving
television signals.
 Hubs

• Hubs are hardware devices that can have a

number of devices or computers connected to
them. They are often used to connect together a
number of devices to form a LAN-for example, a
star network (see later). Its main task is to take
any data packet (this is a group of data being
transmitted) received at one of its ports and
broadcast it to every computer in the network.
This essentially means that using a hub is not a
 Switches

• Switches are similar to hubs but are much more

efficient in the way that they distribute data
packets. As with hubs, they connect a number of
devices or computers together to form a LAN,
 Switches

• However, unlike a hub, the switch checks the data packet

received and works out its destination address (or
addresses) and sends the data to the appropriate
computer(s) only. This makes using a switch a more secure
way of distributing data.

• Each device or computer on a network has a media access

control (MAC) address that uniquely identifies it. Data
packets sent to switches will have a MAC address
identifying the source of the data and additional addresses
identifying each device that should receive the data (see
Section 4.1.2 for more on MAC addresses).
 Bridge

• Bridges are devices that connect one LAN to another

LAN that uses the same protocol (communication
rules). They are often used to connect together
different parts of a LAN so that they can function as a
single LAN computer
• Bridges tend to be used to interconnected LANs (or parts of
LANs) since sending out every data packet to a all possible
destinations would quickly flood larger networks with
unnecessary traffic. For this reason a router is used to
communicate with other networks, such as the internet
• “ROUTERS” enable data packets to be
routed between the different networks,
for example to join a LAN to a wide
area network (WAN).A router would
typically have an internet cable
plugged into it and several cables
connecting to computers and other
devices on the LAN
 Routers

• Routers enable data packets to be routed between the

different networks, for example to join a lan to a wide area
network (WAN). A router would typically have an internet cable
pugged into it and several cables connecting to other
computers and devices on the IAN.

• Broadband routers sit behind a firewall. The firewall protect

the computers on a network. The router's main function is to
transmit internet and transmission protocols between two
networks and also allow private networks to be connected
together.
 Routers

• Routers inspect the data packets (see below) sent to it from

any computer on any of the networks connected to it. Since
every computer on the same network has the same part of an
“internet protocol” (IP) address, the router is able to send the
data packet to the appropriate switch and it will then be
delivered using the MAC destination address (see Section
4.1.2). If the MAC address doesn't match any device on the
network, it passes on to another switch on the same network
until the appropriate device is found.
 Data packets

The data is carried in the packet according to which

protocol set of rules is used. Packets of data usually
contain the following information

• some form of header to identify the data packets

• the sender's IP address
• the receiver's IP address
• how many data packets make up the whole
"message"
• the identity number of each packer.
• This information allows the router to route a packet
across a network to its correct destination and allows
the data packets to be reassembled in their correct
order according to identity number at the receiving
vision
• When a router receives a packet of data, it checks the
destination IP address against the stored routing table.
The routing table stores the MAC address of the device,
the assigned IP address and the lease time the IP
address is assigned for. The bits forming the destination
IP address in the data packet are used to point to the
correct route. The packet is sent to a number of routers
until it reaches its final destination.
 Other hardware

Gateway

A gateway is a network point (or node) that acts as an entrance

to another network. It is a key point for data on its way to or
from other networks. All networks will have boundaries so that
all communication within the network is conducted using
devices such as switches or routers. If a network node needs to
communicate outside its network, it needs to use a gateway.
 Other hardware
Network interface card (NIC)

• A network interface card (NIC) is needed to allow a device to

connect to a network (for example, the internet). It is usually
part of the device hardware and frequently contains the MAC
address generated at the manufacturing stage
 • Network cables

• Even though many computer systems use Wi-Fi,

network cables are still used because they have the
following advantages over Wi-Fi.

• faster data transfer rates

• can be more secure than wireless networks.

• The cables can be either copper or fibre optics - the

latter offers higher data transfer rates and also better
security.
 Internet protocol (IP) and media access control (MAC)
addresses

Each device on the internet is given a unique address known as

its internet protocol (IP) address. This is a 32-bit number that is
usually written in the form:

A home computer is given an IP address when it connects to the

internet. This is assigned by the ISP and is unique for that
particular internet session. The only IP addresses that remain
fairly unchanged are the web servers. An IP address can be used
instead of typing in the full URL; for example, http://109.108.158.)
would take you straight to the device containing web page
corresponding to this address
Differences between IP addresses and MAC addresses

• As indicated in Section 4.1.1, a MAC address is a unique

number that identifies a device connected to the internet. So
what is the difference between an IP address and a MAC
address? The IP address gives the location of a device on the
internet, whereas the MAC address identifies the device
connected to the internet You can think of the IP as the
address of the house you live in (it will have some unique way
of identifying it, such as a postcode or zone code).
• Using this example, the MAC address can be thought of
as a way of uniquely identifying each person living in
that house. It is possible to move house (so your IP
address will change) but the same people will be living in
the new house (so their MAC address will remain
unchanged)
 Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

Both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth offer wireless

communication between devices. They both use
radio frequencies as the carrier of data transmission
 How computers use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to connect to
networks

Wi-Fi
• A wireless transmitter (WAP) receives information from a
network via its connection (e.g. a broadband connection
if the internet is used). This transmitter converts the
received information into radio waves and then transmits
them. A device (e.g. a computer) receives the radio
waves via an installed wireless adaptor which allows it to
download the information from the data source
 How computers use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to connect to
networks

• This, of course, works in reverse when the device wishes

to transmit data over the network. Wi-Fi is best suited to
operating full-scale networks since it offers much faster
data transfer rates, better range and better security than
Bluetooth. A Wi-Fi- enabled device (such as a computer
or smartphone) can access, for example, the internet
wirelessly at any access point (AP) or hot spot up to
100m away.
 Bluetooth

• Bluetooth sends and receives radio waves in a band of 79

different
• frequencies (known as channels). These are all centered
on a 2.45 GHz frequency. Devices using Bluetooth
automatically detect and connect to each other, but they
don't interfere with other devices since each
communicating pair uses a
different channel (from the 79 options). When a device
wants to communicate, it picks one of the 79 channels at
random. If the channel is already being used, it randomly
picks another channel. This is known as spread-spectrum
• To further minimize the risks of interference with other
devices, the communication pairs constantly change the
frequencies (channels) they are using (several times a
second). Essentially, Bluetooth is useful:

• when transferring data between two or more devices

that are very close together (<30 meters distance)
• when the speed of data transmission is not critical
• for low-bandwidth applications (for example, when
sending music files from a mobile phone to a headset).
 Bluetooth creates a secure wireless personal
area network (WPAN) based on

How to set up and configure a small network

• Suppose you were asked to set up and configure a small

network of 10 computers. You would need to consider the
following points:
• Apart from all the hardware and software, you would also
have to think about doing the following
• setting up an IP account if internet access is required

• setting up the system (or buying appropriate hardware

correctly configured) to allow for wireless connectivity
configuring all the hardware and software so that they work
correctly

• together if internet is required, ensuring that a high-speed

broadband connection exists
• putting all the common software onto a server and also making sure
that a

network licence has been acquired so that all network users can
make use of the

software

• setting up privileges so that each user can only access their own
area
shared area

• setting up a network-manager-level of privilege do that they can

monitor network usage, change passwords, etc.
 Internet, intranets and extranets

The main features of the internet, intranets and extranets, and the
differences between them, are covered at length in Chapter 10.
Read Chapter 10 if you wish to cover this topic in some depth
before carrying on with the rest of this chapter.
 Local area networks (LANs) and wide area networks (WANs)
Local area networks (LANs)

These systems are usually within one building, or certainly not

very far away from each other geographically. A typical LAN will
consist of a number of computers and devices (for example,
printers) that are connected to hubs or switches.

One of the hubs or switches will usually be connected to a router

and a modem (usually broadband to allow the LAN to connect to
the internet; in doing so it
then becomes part of a WAN.
 Advantages

• The sharing of resources (such as expensive peripherals and

applications software).

• Ease of communication between users.

• A network administrator to control and monitor all aspects of

the network (for example, changing passwords, monitoring
internet use and so on).
 Disadvantages

• Easier spread of viruses throughout the whole network.

• Printer queues developing, which can be frustrating.

• Slower access to external networks, such as the internet.

• Increased security risk when compared to stand-alone computers.

• If the main server breaks down, in most cases the network will no
longer function
 Wide area networks (WANs)

Wide area networks (WANs) are used where computers or networks are
situated a long distance from each other geographically (e.g. in a
different city or country). As mentioned earlier, if a number of LANs are
joined together using a router or modem, then they can form a WAN.
The most common examples of WAN include the internet and the
network of ATMs (automated teller machines) used by banks. Because
of the long distances between devices, WANs usually make use of
some public communications network (such as telephone lines or
satellites) but they can use dedicated or leased communication lines
which can be less expensive and also more secure (less risk of
hacking).
 Wide area networks (WANs)

Figure

A typical WAN will consist of end systems and intermediate systems

(see diagram).

1, 3, 7 and 10 are known as end systems and the remainder are known
as intermediate systems. The distance between each system can be
considerable, especially if the WAN is run by a multinational company
 Wireless LANs (WLANs)

• Wireless LAN (WLANs) are similar to LANs but there are no

wires or cables. In other words, they provide wireless
network communications over fairly short distances (a few
meters) using radio or infrared signals instead of cables.
 • Wireless LANs (WLANs)

• Devices, known as access points (APs) or wireless nodes, are

connected into the wired network at fixed locations. Because
of the limited range, most commercial LANs (for example, at
a college campus or at an airport) need several APs to permit
uninterrupted wireless communications. The AP's use either
spread spectrum techmology (which is a wideband radio
frequency with a range of about 30-50m) or infrared (which
has a very short range, about 1-2m, and is easily blocked; it
therefore has a limited use).
 The AP receives and transmits data between the WLAN and the wired network
structure. End-users access the WLAN through wireless LAN adapters that are built into
the devices or are a plug-in module
Advantages
• All computers can access the same services and resources such
as printers, scanners, internet access) from anywhere within range
of the APs.

• As there is no cabling there is a safer improvement and increased

flexibility

(since the user no longer has to remain at their desk)

• Adding new computers and devices is very easy (all that is

required is a WLAN adapter) and the costs are reduced since extra
cabling isn't needed
 Disadvantages

• Security can be a big issue since anyone with a WLAN-enabled

laptop can access a network if it can pick up a signal, it is therefore
necessary to adopt complex data encryption techniques.

• There may be problems of interference, which can affect the signal

• The data transfer rate is slower than in a wired LAN

 Accessing the internet

• The relative advantages and disadvantages of

using mobile phones, tablets, laptops and
desktop computers were discussed in Chapter 1.
Some of the advantages and disadvantages of
using these devices to access the internet are
summarized below.
 Mobile phones and
tablets
• The same comments also refer to tablets (and
phablets) , as they usually have bigger screens and
keyboards, they have an advantage in that respect
when compared to mobile phones. The other
advantages and disadvantages are similar to mobile
phones - it all depends on the screen size of the tablet
being used,