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If you have a server you need a network or the word server is just the name of the computer. |
When you think about how you access the internet do you wonder how your data gets from your computer to the web site you need to access?
Basically a it is a series of
wires or frequencies (wireless) that connects two or more computers together to
share data.
Scenario:
You are considering a server for your use. (Business or home for now it doesn't make much difference).
To use a server you need to connect it to the other computers, the components are:
- NIC (Network Interface Card)
- Switch 100/1000 MBPS (Mega Bits Per Second)
- Wiring - Cat5e or Cat6
- Wireless
- Router (Optional)
That is about it.
They come in different topologies:
The main topology (design or layout) is star, the internet is a star network.
Think of a spider web where the switch or hub is the center of the web and
all the connecting points of the web are different computers. Each computer can
send data to another computer by sending it out through the
switch/hub. In essence the data for the other computer is sent from one computer
through the switch/hub to the other computer. How it gets there is another
article.
Scenario:
You need a connectivity in your house, which choice will you make for the connectivity? Wired or wireless?
Wired: If your house is older then you would have to install (pull is the term network engineers use) a wire from the switch/hub to each place a computer will be used. Now this can get expensive, the cost of the wire plus the cost of the labor to do the job. Even if you do the work yourself consider the cost of one continuous section of wire from the switch/hub to the wall plate (node) where the computer will connect. (The last 30 foot Cat5e cable I bought cost over fifteen dollars, not cheap!). Newer houses/apartments/town homes usually come with the Cat5e/Cat6 wiring in most rooms along with telephone and sometimes cable for TV.
So instead of pulling the Cat5e/Cat6 wire through the wall in to the attic and back down the wall to the node, you consider wireless, cheaper and faster.
Wireless: There is a very large risk to wireless, it is easily hacked. Because it is a radio signal anyone with in the reach of the signal can capture it. However if you take safeguards with strong passwords, change the signal channel and a few other things it can be fairly secure and reliable.
As you can see both wired and wireless connectivity have their drawbacks.
- If you need physical security and high speed for your data then use wired but it is costly.
- If the security of wireless is good enough then wireless will save you a lot of money.
Before buying anything plan out your connectivity wired or wireless. Planning will save you a lot of money and heartache later on when you do the actual
connections.
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