Network Devices
Network devices, or networking hardware, are physical devices that are required for communication and
interaction between hardware on a computer network.
Hub
Hubs connect multiple computer networking devices together. A hub also acts as a repeater in that it amplifies
signals that deteriorate after traveling long distances over connecting cables. A hub is the simplest in the family
of network connecting devices because it connects LAN components with identical protocols.
A hub can be used with both digital and analog data, provided its settings have been configured to prepare for
the formatting of the incoming data. For example, if the incoming data is in digital format, the hub must pass it
on as packets; however, if the incoming data is analog, then the hub passes it on in signal form.
Hubs do not perform packet filtering or addressing functions; they just send data packets to all connected
devices. Hubs operate at the Physical layer of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. There are two
types of hubs: simple and multiple port.
Switch
Switches generally have a more intelligent role than hubs. A switch is a multiport device that improves network
efficiency. The switch maintains limited routing information about nodes in the internal network, and it allows
connections to systems like hubs or routers. Strands of LANs are usually connected using switches. Generally,
switches can read the hardware addresses of incoming packets to transmit them to the appropriate destination.
Using switches improves network efficiency over hubs or routers because of the virtual circuit capability.
Switches also improve network security because the virtual circuits are more difficult to examine with network
monitors. You can think of a switch as a device that has some of the best capabilities of routers and hubs
combined. A switch can work at either the Data Link layer or the Network layer of the OSI model. A
multilayer switch is one that can operate at both layers, which means that it can operate as both a switch and a
router. A multilayer switch is a high-performance device that supports the same routing protocols as routers.
Router
Routers help transmit packets to their destinations by charting a path through the sea of interconnected
networking devices using different network topologies. Routers are intelligent devices, and they store
information about the networks they’re connected to. Most routers can be configured to operate as packet-
filtering firewalls and use access control lists (ACLs). Routers, in conjunction with a channel service unit/data
service unit (CSU/DSU), are also used to translate from LAN framing to WAN framing. This is needed because
LANs and WANs use different network protocols. Such routers are known as border routers. They serve as the
outside connection of a LAN to a WAN, and they operate at the border of your network.
Routers are also used to divide internal networks into two or more subnetworks. Routers can also be connected
internally to other routers, creating zones that operate independently. Routers establish communication by
maintaining tables about destinations and local connections. A router contains information about the systems
connected to it and where to send requests if the destination isn’t known. Routers usually communicate routing
and other information using one of three standard protocols: Routing Information Protocol (RIP), Border
Gateway Protocol (BGP) or Open Shortest Path First (OSPF).
Routers are your first line of defense, and they must be configured to pass only traffic that is authorized by
network administrators. The routes themselves can be configured as static or dynamic. If they are static, they
can only be configured manually and stay that way until changed. If they are dynamic, they learn of other
routers around them and use information about those routers to build their routing tables.
Routers are general-purpose devices that interconnect two or more heterogeneous networks. They are usually
dedicated to special-purpose computers, with separate input and output network interfaces for each connected
network. Because routers and gateways are the backbone of large computer networks like the internet, they have
special features that give them the flexibility and the ability to cope with varying network addressing schemes
and frame sizes through segmentation of big packets into smaller sizes that fit the new network components.
Each router interface has its own Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) module, its own LAN address (network
card address) and its own Internet Protocol (IP) address. The router, with the help of a routing table, has
knowledge of routes a packet could take from its source to its destination. The routing table, like in the bridge
and switch, grows dynamically. Upon receipt of a packet, the router removes the packet headers and trailers and
analyzes the IP header by determining the source and destination addresses and data type, and noting the arrival
time. It also updates the router table with new addresses not already in the table. The IP header and arrival time
information is entered in the routing table. Routers normally work at the Network layer of the OSI model.
Bridge
Bridges are used to connect two or more hosts or network segments together. The basic role of bridges in
network architecture is storing and forwarding frames between the different segments that the bridge connects.
They use hardware Media Access Control (MAC) addresses for transferring frames. By looking at the MAC
address of the devices connected to each segment, bridges can forward the data or block it from crossing.
Bridges can also be used to connect two physical LANs into a larger logical LAN.
Bridges work only at the Physical and Data Link layers of the OSI model. Bridges are used to divide larger
networks into smaller sections by sitting between two physical network segments and managing the flow of data
between the two.
Bridges are like hubs in many respects, including the fact that they connect LAN components with identical
protocols. However, bridges filter incoming data packets, known as frames, for addresses before they are
forwarded. As it filters the data packets, the bridge makes no modifications to the format or content of the
incoming data. The bridge filters and forwards frames on the network with the help of a dynamic bridge table.
The bridge table, which is initially empty, maintains the LAN addresses for each computer in the LAN and the
addresses of each bridge interface that connects the LAN to other LANs. Bridges, like hubs, can be either
simple or multiple port.
Modem
Modems (modulators-demodulators) are used to transmit digital signals over analog telephone lines. Thus,
digital signals are converted by the modem into analog signals of different frequencies and transmitted to a
modem at the receiving location. The receiving modem performs the reverse transformation and provides a
digital output to a device connected to a modem, usually a computer. The digital data is usually transferred to or
from the modem over a serial line through an industry standard interface, RS-232. Many telephone companies
offer DSL services, and many cable operators use modems as end terminals for identification and recognition
of home and personal users. Modems work on both the Physical and Data Link layers.
Network Interface Cards (NICs)
A network interface card (NIC) is a hardware component without which a computer cannot be connected over a
network. It is a circuit board installed in a computer that provides a dedicated network connection to the
computer. It is also called network interface controller, network adapter or LAN adapter.
NIC allows both wired and wireless communications.
NIC allows communications between computers connected via local area network (LAN) as well as
communications over large-scale network through Internet Protocol (IP).
NIC is both a physical layer and a data link layer device, i.e. it provides the necessary hardware circuitry
so that the physical layer processes and some data link layer processes can run on it.
