NIBI - Network Topologies Lesson

Network Topologies

The Internet is the world's largest computer network.

Let's break that down:

A computer network is any group of interconnected computing devices capable of sending or receiving data. A computing device isn't just a computer—it's any device that can run a program, such as a tablet, phone, or smart sensor.

The simplest computer network is two devices. A network like that only has to worry about a few things, like how to physically connect the two devices and how to send data over the physical connection in a format they both understand.

As connections are added, so is the complexity. How can each device know whether incoming data is meant for them or for their neighbor? This simple network will need an addressing scheme.

Each physical arrangement is a different network topology.

Network Topology refers to the physical layout of interconnection between the network devices. Computers linked to one another are called a network and the mapping of these computers and hardware elements which ensures easy data flow comes under Network Topology.

 The Network Topologies presentation below provides details on the various layouts.

As you may have noticed, a spider web is used in some instances to provide a visual representation of what a network looks like because a network includes several interconnecting points.  Each connection point typically contains a computer or network device.

 Now let’s do a quick check of what you have learned in the Network Topologies learning object.

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