Introduction to Local Area Networking
Local Area Networking (LAN) is the term used when connecting several computers together over a small area such as a building or group of buildings. LAN’s can be connected over large areas. A collection of LAN’s connected over a large area is called a Wide Area Network (WAN).
A LAN consists of multiple computers connected to each other. There are many types of media that can connect computers together. The most common media is CAT5 cable; UTP or STP twisted pair wire. Wireless networks don’t use wires; instead they communicate over radio waves. Each computer must have a Network Interface Card (NIC), which communicates the data between computers. A NIC is usually a 10Mbps network card, 10/100Mbps network card, or a wireless network card.
Most networks use hardware devices such as hubs or switches that each cable can be connected to in order to continue the connection between computers. A hub simply takes any data arriving through each port and forwards the data to all other ports. A switch is more sophisticated, in that a switch can determine the port that each piece of data is supposed to be delivered to. A switch minimizes network traffic and speeds up the communication over a network.
Networks take some time in order to plan and implement correctly. There are many types of scenarios to consider which could affect the operability of a network. Some of these issues are discussed in this manual under the Networking Basics section.
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