For many years, you have had a computer in your 100 year old plaster-walled 10 f
ID: 3662562 • Letter: F
Question
For many years, you have had a computer in your 100 year old plaster-walled 10 foot high ceiling home for all members of the family to use. Recently, however, you added a second computer. You want to connect the two computers so they can share data, the Internet and a printer. Unfortunately, one computer is on the first floor and the second is upstairs.
How are you going to connect these devices together?
List as many possible solutions as you can, with advantages and disadvantages of each. For example, should you use wired or wireless and where? If wired, what kind of wires, where will they go? Can you use existing wiring? If you go wireless, what factors should you take into consideration?
Write a one or two page report containing your findings. Provide at least 2 references. APA format is not required.
Explanation / Answer
We can connect either by running a wire between two computers of by using wire less devices
wired network uses Ethernet cable to connect the computers to the network router. These are less expensive, faster, and more secure than wireless networks. . A wired network is simply a collection of two or more computers, printers, and other devices linked by Ethernet cables. Ethernet is the fastest wired network protocol, with connection speeds of 10 megabits per second (Mbps) to 100 Mbps or higher. Ethernet cables between rooms or floors can be a big challenge.
A wired network is simply a collection of two or more computers, printers, and other devices linked by Ethernet cables. Ethernet is the fastest wired network protocol, with connection speeds of 10 megabits per second (Mbps) to 100 Mbps or higher.. To connect a computer to a network with an Ethernet cable, the computer must have an Ethernet adapter (sometimes called a network interface card, or NIC). Ethernet adapters can be internal (installed in a computer) or external (housed in a separate case). Some computers include a built-in Ethernet adapter port
Star Network
The star network, a topology, has one central hub that connects to three or more computers and the ability to network printers. This type can be used for small businesses and even home networks. The star network is very useful for applications where some processing must be centralized and some must be performed locally.
Disadvantage is the star network
vulnerability. All data must pass through one central host computer and if that host fails the entire network will fail.
Bus Network:
Bus network topology has no central computer and all computers are linked on a single circuit. This type broadcasts signals in all directions and it uses special software to identify which computer gets what signal.
Disadvantage with this type of network is that only one signal can be sent at one time, if two signals are sent at the same time they will collide and the signal will fail to reach its destination.
Advantage is that there is no central computer so if one computer goes down others will not be affected and will be able to send messages to one another
Ring Network:
In this network,ring network does not rely on a central host computer either. . A ring network forms a closed loop and data is sent in one direction only and if a computer in the network fails the data is still able to be transmitted.
Typically the range of a wired network is within a 2,000-foot-radius.
Disadvantage of this network data transmission over this distance may be slow or nonexistent
Advantages of Wired Network:
. Wired networks are more secure and can be used in many situations; corporate LANs, school networks and hospitals.
Disadvantage of Wired Network:
The biggest drawback to this type of network is that it must be rewired every time it is moved
Wireless Network
A wireless network, which uses high-frequency radio waves rather than wires to communicate between nodes, is another option for home or business networking. Individuals and organizations can use this option to expand their existing wired network or to go completely wireless. Wireless allows for devices to be shared without networking cable which increases mobility but decreases range. There are two main types of wireless networking; peer to peer or ad-hoc and infrastructure. An ad-hoc or peer-to-peer wireless network consists of a number of computers each equipped with a wireless networking interface card. Each computer can communicate directly with all of the other wireless enabled computers. They can share files and printers this way, but may not be able to access wired LAN resources, unless one of the computers acts as a bridge to the wired LAN using special software.
An infrastructure wireless network consists of an access point or a base station. In this type of network the access point acts like a hub, providing connectivity for the wireless computers. It can connect or bridge the wireless LAN to a wired LAN, allowing wireless computer access to LAN resources, such as file servers or existing Internet Connectivity. (compnetworking.about.com)
There are four basic types of transmissions standards for wireless networking. These types are produced by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE). These standards define all aspects of radio frequency wireless networking. They have established four transmission standards; 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g.
The basic differences between these four types are connection speed and radio frequency. 802.11 and 802.11b are the slowest at 1 or 2 Mbps and 5.5 and 11Mbps respectively. They both operate off of the 2.4 GHz radio frequency. 802.11a operates off of a 5 GHz frequency and can transmit up to 54 Mbps and the 802.11g operates off of the 2.4 GHz frequency and can transmit up to 54 Mbps. Actual transmission speeds vary depending on such factors as the number and size of the physical barriers within the network and any interference in the radio transmissions. Wireless networks are reliable, but when interfered with it can reduce the range and the quality of the signal. Interference can be caused by other devices operating on the same radio frequency and it is very hard to control the addition of new devices on the same frequency
Wired vs. Wireless Networking
The biggest difference between these two types of networks is one uses network cables and one uses radio frequencies. A wired network allows for a faster and more secure connection and can only be used for distances shorter than 2,000 feet. A wireless network is a lot less secure and transmission speeds can suffer from outside interference. Although wireless networking is a lot more mobile than wired networking the range of the network is usually 150-300 indoors and up to 1000 feet outdoors depending on the terrain
The cost for wired networking has become rather inexpensive. Ethernet cables, hubs and switches are very inexpensive. Some connection sharing software packages, like ICS, are free; some cost a nominal fee. Broadband routers cost more, but these are optional components of a wired network, and their higher cost is offset by the benefit of easier installation and built-in security features.
Wired LANs offer superior performance. A traditional Ethernet connection offers only 10 Mbps bandwidth, but 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet technology costs a little more and is readily available
Wireless networks using 802.11b support a maximum bandwidth of 11 Mbps, roughly the same as that of old, traditional Ethernet. 802.11a and 802.11g LANs support 54 Mbps, that is approximately one-half the bandwidth of Fast Ethernet.
In theory, wireless LANs are less secure than wired LANs, because wireless communication signals travel through the air and can easily be intercepted Wireless networks protect their data through the Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) encryption standard that makes wireless communications reasonably as safe as wired ones.
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