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Basic Questions About Computer Networks
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A) |
What is a computer network? |
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A simple computer network is composed of three things:
- Computers
- Network Cards
- Electronic Cables (and sometimes a Hub)
Network cards enable a computer to send and receive signals over the electronic cables. In some networks, one cable ties together all of the computers. In other networks, each computer has its own cable, and these cables are joined at a central point, called a hub.
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B) |
What are the benefits of a computer network? |
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If your business has two or more computers, at some point you will need to transfer information from one computer to another. Rather than swapping floppy disks - this is often called sneaker-net - a network allows computer users to access the information they need with only a few clicks of the mouse.
Some other benefits of a network include peripheral sharing, centralized data storage, and electronic mail. |
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Peripheral Sharing: |
Connect a printer, fax modem, CD-ROM drive, or other device to one computer and access it from all the other computers on the network. |
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Centralized Data Storage: |
Keep all of your business information in one central place, and assign access to the records according to who needs to access what information. With centralized data storage it is easier to backup all of your business records. |
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Electronic Mail: |
E-mail is becoming a business standard. Many companies use it for internal communications, and more and more businesses are using it to communicate with other businesses. |
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C) |
What is client/server? |
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Client/server describes the relationship of two networked computers. When one computer is accessing resources on another computer, one computer is the client and the other is the server:
- The Client is the computer asking for and using the resource.
- The Server is the computer providing the resource.
Some examples of shared resources are an electronic mail database, a printer, a word processing file, a program, et cetera. All of the benefits of a computer network (listed above) stem from one computer accessing a resource on another computer. |
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D) |
What is a peer-to-peer network? |
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In a peer-to-peer network, all of the computers are acting both as clients and servers. (For definitions of clients and servers, please see the above question "What is client/server?") Here's an example of a two-computer peer-to-peer network with computers A and B: computer A can access the resources of computer B, and computer B can access the resources of computer A. |
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E) |
What is a server-based network? |
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In a server-based network, some computers are clients and others are servers. (For definitions of clients and servers, please see the above question "What is client/server?") For example, client computers X and Y access the resources of server computer Z. Computer Z does not access the resources of computers X and Y, and computers X and Y don't access each other's resources. |
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