Name: Katrina Mae C.

Villaluna Date: October 2, 2021

Year/Course: BSCS IV Instructor: Sir John Paul Dimatulac

Activity 1
1. What is computer networks?

A computer network is a system of interconnected computers and peripheral devices.

For example, it may connect computers, printers, scanners and cameras.
A computer network can be defined as an interconnected collection of autonomous
computers. It is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network
nodes. The computers use common communication
protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. These
interconnections are made up of telecommunication network technologies, based on
physically wired, optical, and wireless radio-frequency methods that may be arranged in
a variety of network topologies.
The nodes of a computer network may include personal computers, servers, networking
hardware, or other specialized or general-purpose hosts. They are identified by network
addresses, and may have hostnames. Hostnames serve as memorable labels for the
nodes, rarely changed after initial assignment. Network addresses serve for locating and
identifying the nodes by communication protocols such as the Internet Protocol.
Computer networks may be classified by many criteria, including the transmission
medium used to carry signals, bandwidth, communications protocols to organize
network traffic, the network size, the topology, traffic control mechanism, and
organizational intent.
Computer networks support many applications and services, such as access to
the World Wide Web, digital video, digital audio, shared use of application and storage
servers, printers, and fax machines, and use of email and instant messaging applications.

2. Computer Networks communication.

 Transmit information or data by using two types of signals, namely analog and
digital.
 Computers communicate with digital signals.
 The older forms of communications technology, such as telephones and radios,
use analog signals.
 3. Types of Computer Networks and their functions.

-The vital computer network is divided into four types based on their size and functions.
They are LAN, MAN, PAN, and WAN. Here LAN stands for Local Area Network, MAN stands
for Metropolitan Area Network, Personal Area Network is abbreviated into PAN whereas
WAN is expanded as Wide Area Network. PAN is further divided into Wired Personal Area
Network and Wireless Personal Area Network. There are many applications based on the
computer network and each of the broadly divided networks has unique features that are
to be applied accordingly for effective purpose.

Types of Computer Network

A computer network is mainly of four types:

 LAN(Local Area Network)

 PAN(Personal Area Network)
 MAN(Metropolitan Area Network)
 WAN(Wide Area Network)

These four types are explained below:

 LAN(Local Area Network)

LAN is expanded as Local Area Network where the pool of computers are linked to each other
in limited ranges like apartment and office premise. This computer network connects the pool
of computers via a communication device like coaxial cable, routers and switches and twisted
pairs.

It is available at low cost and built with cheaply available hardware such as ethernet cables,
network adapters, and hubs. Here the transfer rate of data is high with minimal response time.
This is a highly safe network less prone to hacks and data loss.

 PAN(Personal Area Network)

PAN is expanded as Personal Area Network is configured in a person in range of approximately

ten meters and is mostly employed for connecting internet range for personal usage. It has the
coverage range to thirty meters. Personal equipment includes desktop, laptop, smartphones,
game stations, electronic gadgets, and music players.

There are two types of Personal Area Network:

 Wireless Personal Area Network

 Wired Personal Area Network
Wireless Personal Area Network: Wireless Personal Area Network is configured is based on
wireless technologies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi which falls over a limited range network.

Wired Personal Area Network: Wired Personal Area Network is deployed by using USB.

Examples Of Personal Area Network

Body Area Network: Body Area Network moves along with a person like a smartphone or a
watch that moves with a person. He can also connect with other people to interlink the device
for sharing the data.

Offline Network: The offline network can be deployed inside the house which is also called a
home network. It is planned to connect with television, printers which are not accessible to the
internet.

Small Home Office: Small Home office is used to link the devices to cyberspace via a VPN that is
a virtual private network.

 MAN(Metropolitan Area Network)

Metropolitan Area Network is called MAN which covers huge geographical areas by connecting
to various local area networks united to form a large network. The government uses MAN to
link private firms and people via websites or applications. In the Metropolitan Area network,
different LANs are interconnected via telephone communication technology.

Here mostly telephone cables are used to connect LAN to form MAN. The protocols applied
widely in MAN are Frame Relay, ISDN, ATM, ADSL, and RS-232. MAN is deployed mostly in
Airline reservation and establish communication between banking sectors in a city. It is also
deployed in the Military range for effective communications. It can also be deployed inside the
collages within that town.

 WAN(Wide Area Network)

Wireless Area Network provides services for the user to connect to wireless using remote or
public or private access. The connection is established in a huge geographic range like a
complete city that uses the current network structure of mobile operators. The WAN started
with a standard of 802.20 and is the goal is to achieve optimization of Mobile Broadband
Wireless Access which is called MBWA. This 802.20 standard stands as a tough competitor for
classical models of 2.5 and 3G.

The WWAN successfully made the possibility of superficial voice transfer. It is also measured in
GPS is Global positioning system, General Packet Radio Service is called as GPRS is, EDGE is
abbreviated from Enhanced Data rates for global evolution, Universal mobile
telecommunication system is known as UMTS, HSUPA is a high-speed uplink packet and HSPDA
is a high-speed downlink packet access.

4. Compare Computer Networks.

Computer Networks is nothing but many computers linked together. These are multiple
computers having connections. In today’s world, all computers can be accessed through this
network and can be accessed as per the user’s requirement. Hardware, in simple terms, can be
said as parts of a computer system. These can be devices that are used to form a network.
Hardware includes graphics cards, routers, mouse, CPU, etc. The hardware of a computer
mainly consists of components that make the processing of data possible
 5. Network Architecture and their functions.

Network architecture includes their associated hardware, software, and connectivity within the
facilities of the company and to external communications service providers, as well as plans for
monitoring and assessing the various components and touch points to external service
providers

Peer-to-Peer Architecture

In a peer-to-peer network, tasks are allocated to every device on the network. Furthermore,
there is no real hierarchy in this network, all computers are considered equal and all have the
same abilities to use the resources available on this network. Instead of having a central server
which would act as the shared drive, each computer thats connected to this network would act
as the server for the files stored on it.

Advantages of a peer-to-peer network

 Does not require a dedicated server which means its less costly.
 If one computer stops working, the other computers connected to the network will
continue working.
 Installation and setup is quite painless because of the built-in support in modern
operating systems.

Disadvantages of a peer-to-peer network

 Security and data backups are to be done to each individual computer.

 As the numbers of computers increases on a P2P network... performance, security, and
access become a major headache.
Client/Server Architecture

In a client/server network, a centralized, really powerful computer(server) acts as a hub in

which other computers or workstations(clients) can connect to. This server is the heart of the
system, which manages and provides resources to any client that requests them.

Advantages of a client/server network

 Resources and data security are controlled through the server.

 Not restricted to a small number of computers.
 Server can be accessed anywhere and across multiple platforms.

Disadvantages of a client/server network

 Can become very costly due to the need of a server as well as networking devices such
as hubs, routers, and switches.
 If and when the server goes down, the entire network will be affected.
 Technical staff needed to maintain and ensure network functions efficiently.

6. Network topology and their function.

Network topology can be used to define or describe the arrangement of various types of
telecommunication networks, including command and control radio networks,
industrial fieldbuses and computer networks. Network topology is the topological
structure of a network and may be depicted physically or logically.
Physical Topologies
Physical Topology define the cabling and the type of physical connection and the
arrangements of those physical connections. The logical topology will be more of a
definition of how data and traffic flows through the physical topology. It will contain
logical paths, and not necessarily the physical path. These are examples of physical
topologies, and they have been historically linked to the type of cabling we use to build
the physical topology. For example, twisted pair versus coaxial versus fiber. In early bus
topologies, devices would be connected or cabled together in a line using coaxial cable.
This would result in a shared environment in terms of bandwidth. In a ring topology,
machines would be cabled to each other, where the first machine and the last machine
would complete the loop or the ring. A failed link would affect the ring and connectivity,
and would cause longer roundtrip times. And that is why some people designed dual
rings in the form of dual attachments between machines. In the star topology, a central
device would connect the other devices and provide connectivity between them. And
this resolved some of the issues in terms of reliability with the ring topologies. Star
topologies typically use twisted-pair cables.

Logical Topologies
The logical topology, again, is the definition of how signals and information travel from
point to point within the network. You may see a different logical topology then the
physical topology, although they could be the same. For example, in a physical bus. Also,
signals will use a logical line to travel from one point to the other. However, you may
have a physical star like that. And still, machines are interconnected as if they were in
the same cable. And so, the logical topology would be a logical bus. This is the case for
Ethernet, and this is by far the most common architecture and physical logical topology
in LAN scenarios in today’s networks.

Bus Topology
In a physical bus topology, machines are effectively connected to a single cable. This is
typically using coaxial cable. Termination at the end of that cable is important to prevent
signals from bouncing back into the cable and causing network errors. Early local area
networks would use this topology, but this is mostly seen in Internet access provided by
cable companies nowadays. If you think of all devices being able to speak at the same
time, then you will require another protocol or another method of access to the cable to
prevent collisions and prevent network errors.

Star Topology
The physical star topology uses that central device to connect all other devices. In
typical LANs, this device is a hub or a switch, and all transmissions go through that
central point. Although, this improves reliability because the failure of one of those links
would only affect that machine and not the rest of the network. Failure of the switch
would represent a single point of failure and affect all of the network. That is why, if that
is an issue and requirement, then some redundancy needs to be built into this topology.
 Extended-Star Topology
The redundancy levels can be accomplished by following different strategies. For
example, you could create more branches in the topology. In this example, that switch
failing would only affect those three devices and not the rest of the network. You could
also think about dual central switches and dual connections between each machine and
the central switches. If one of the central switches goes down, then the other one will
take over and allow for connectivity.

Ring Topology
In a ring topology, all devices are connected to each other in the form of a loop or ring;
this is still different than a bus topology, although it looks like one or may look like one.
Because they are not connected to a single line or cable, they are connected to each
other, and those are different cables right there. Signals travel around the ring,
sometimes in only one direction. Failure of one machine will affect the ring completely,
representing a single point of failure, so you either have two-way transmissions or go to
a dual ring for more redundancy and availability. Ring topologies can be in the form of a
physical topology, but also logical topologies. For example, token ring is a physical star,
typically, but with the use of a token, the machines will form a logical ring in terms of
transmission of information.

Dual-Ring Topology
In a single ring, a failure of link or device will affect the whole ring. That is why we build
redundancy. Then, you can allow for transmissions one way through one ring and
building a second ring transmission the other way. This is better in terms of availability
and reliability, but it goes at the expense of more cost in terms of connections, cabling,
and links in general.

Full-Mesh Topology
The ultimate connectivity option is a full mesh. In this topology, all devices are
connected to one another, resulting in the highest levels of redundancy and fault
tolerance. This is expensive to implement though, and it is typically seen in WAN
environments in connectivity between branch offices and central locations. There is no
single point of failure, but it will still be sometimes too expensive to implement, and
that is why there are other options that include partial mesh.

Partial-Mesh Topology
Partial mesh is a trade-off between fault tolerance and cost. You will probably pick and
choose the most critical branches, or the most critical devices, and build more links and
more redundancy to them while leaving the appropriate levels of redundancy for the
less critical nodes. Most of the time, the defining factor here is cost and budget.
7. Differences of Network topology.

8. Application of computer networks.

 File sharing.
 Printer sharing.
 Communication and collaboration.
 Remote access.
 Data protection.
 Centralized Support and Administration.