New Computers and such... just complaining — OZONE Asylum, home of the Mad Scientists

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New Computers and such... just complaining

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Your Text: Insert Slimies » Insert UBB Code » Close Last Tag \| All Tags UBB Help	EDIT: answering DL-44. A bit of info on technical terms (though I'm a bit rusty, and would welcome clarification). Seems the info. might be pertinent to WJ's post too, though. :) There's quite a difference between them. There are passive hubs, switching hubs, and manageable hubs. There are also routers. The difference between a passive hub and a switching hub is as great as the difference between a switching hub and a router. A passive hub is basically a component of a network allowing the dumb duplication of packets from one network port to its other ports. A passive hub simply allows network traffic to flow through it; effectively a bunch of network ports wired to each other. A powered hub is like a passive hub that 'amplifies' packets over longer distances; a powered hub can be used when cable runs are just too long for reliable connection between computers or network devices (which is about 100m for Cat5 cables). It is still, essentially, a passive hub. A switching hub keeps the term 'hub' despite being a more advanced hybrid device with internal 'lookup tables'; it keeps tabs on the MAC address of attached devices, and selectively forwards data packets to intended recipients. Whereas passive/powered Hubs divide bandwidth regardless of throughput (ten machines will experience one tenth of overall bandwidth even if demands on the network are minimal), passively duplicating all received data to all other network ports, a switch forwards data to the most appropriate port so that each machine may communicate up to the maximum bandwidth of the network (or at the bandwidth of the slowest computer's interface). A manageable hub allows basic routing of packets between specific ports, and includes traffic monitoring and filtering facilities. Technically, it is a switching hub with configurable rules. A router is like a manageable hub with knobs on, but the term 'router' stems from its function as a connectivity medium between different networks. High-end routers (multiprotocal routers) are highly specialised computers (usually with multiple processors) used in high-end networks to filter and route data between various networks and protocols. They connect more than one type of network to another at a specific protocol layer and facilitate communication between them. At home, or in the office, the item you call a router is more technically termed a 'residential gateway', allowing the interconnectivity of your LAN (local area network) to the internet (WAN; wide-area network) on the Internet Protocol (IP). It is more like a manageable hub built for specific networks than an actual router, but the term is not entirely incorrect. A residential gateway uses NAT (network address translation) rather than truly 'routing', but utilises routing tables to determine where traffic should be sent on the LAN. At home I have a cable 'modem' (as it does no MOdulation or DEModulation, this term [i]is[/i] technically incorrect) that simply allows IP connectivity between the WAN (ie- internet) and a network device. It doesn't distribute IP addresses, so I use a residential gateway (ie- wireless router) between the cable modem and my home computers. The residential gateway acts as my DHCP server, home firewall, and router (between wireless and wired LAN, and the internet). I have a switching hub in my room (different floor) so that I can connect more than one computer in my room (ie- my PC, and an old laptop I use for network-access storage and as a media server). Without my residential gateway, the cable modem would only be any good for connecting one computer. That computer would have to provide some sort of internet connection sharing service (essentially, routing software) before any other computer could also connect to the internet. It would be slow and inefficient because all network traffic would have to pass through the computer, which would have to be powered all the time. Without this, and with the cable modem connected directly to a switch, only one machine would have access to the internet at any time - the first connected. My wireless router is a very essential part of my network, and is a very effective firewall between my wireless/wired LAN and the internet. With this in mind, technically, a residential gateway or manageable hub is more like a 'router lite' - a residential gateway has basic routing functionality, incorporating a switching hub and inter-network connectivity. ;) Addendum: the closest to a 'true' router in home or office network today would be a gateway that supports both IPv4 and IPv6 protocols. I would love to think that was interesting information, but I make that mistake a lot... :o [small](Edited by [url=http://www.ozoneasylum.com/user/4663]White Hawk[/url] on 03-15-2008 18:27)[/small] Loading...
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