COMPUTER NETWORK DEVICES

Network interface card (NIC)

Network interface card or NIC, is also known as Ethernet card, network card, LAN
card, network adapter or network adapter card (NAC) or Network Interface Unit(NIU) or
Terminal Access Point (TAP). It is a physical and data link layer device used by
computers to connect to Ethernet LAN and communicate with other devices on the
LAN.
The earliest Ethernet cards were external to the system and needed to be installed
manually. In modern computer systems, it is an internal hardware component.
The NIC manufacturer assigns a unique physical address to each NIC card. This
physical address is called as MAC address or Media Access Control Address. MAC
address is a 6 byte unique hardware identification number that uniquely identifies each
device on a network. Because there are millions of networkable devices in existence,
MAC address helps to distinguish them on the network.
 Wi-Fi Card

Wi-Fi card is a card used to connect any device to the local network wirelessly. Wi-Fi is
the acronym for wireless fidelity. Wi-Fi technology is used to achieve wireless
connection to any network. They have a built in wireless radio and antenna. Most
common cards are PIC-Express WiFi card. It is very useful if you do not have hard line
network access available.
We have Wif Fi Access points which is the physical area of the network which provides
internet access through Wi-Fi. IT is also called as Wi-Fi hotspot . Hotspots can be set
up at home, office or any public space. Hotspots themselves are connected to the
network through wires. Every access point has a range of around 120 – 150 feet for
home or much larger for school or university and only devices within this range can
connect to network. There can also be limit on no of computing devices that can connect
to network.
So with NIC or WiFi card, your device is ready to talk to other device.

Now you need either hub, switch or router to connect to other computers.

Hub

Hub is a physical layer device which has multiple ports that are used to connect multiple
computers or segments of LAN together. The data is transferred in packets to entire
computer network. So when a host sends a data packet to a network hub, the hub
copies the data packet to all of its ports connected to. Like this, all the ports know about
the data and the port for whom the packet is intended, claims the packet.

Hubs can be passive or active. Passive hub allows the signal to be passed without any
change. Active Hubs amplify the signal as it moves from one device to another. That
helps to extend the range of network without using repeaters.
Disadvantages of hub is that because of its working mechanism, a hub is not so secure
and safe. Moreover, copying the data packets on all the interfaces or ports makes it
slower and more congested which led to the use of network switch.

Switch

Switch is more intelligent than a hub. While hub just does the work of data forwarding, a
switch does ‘filter and forwarding’ which is a more intelligent way of dealing with the data
packets. So, when a packet is received at one of the interfaces of the switch, it checks
the destination address and transmits the packet to the correct receiver. Before
forwarding, the packets are checked for collision and other network errors. This
technique is called packet switching technique. The switch also maintains a list of
network addresses of all the devices connected to it. Switch prevents traffic overloading
in LAN.
 Router

A router is the smartest or most complicated of the three. Router is mainly a Network
Layer device. It can work like a switch that routes data packets based on their IP
addresses It also maintains a dynamically updating routing table based on which they
make decisions on routing the data packets. What it does more than switch is
connecting multiple different networks together. Routers normally connect LANs with
internet or other WANs together. It has the capability to repackage the data and send
over another network. There are many different types of routers like WiFi router which
can act as a combination router and modem, converting an incoming broadband signal
from your ISP.
 Differentiate between hub, switch and routers
Sr.Nos Hub Switch Router
.
1. Hub is the least expensive, least Switches work The router is smartest
intelligent and least similarly like Hubs and most complicated
complicated of the three but in a more efficient out of these three. It
manner comes in all shapes and
sizes
2. It broadcasts all data to every It creates connections Routers are similar like
port which may cause serious dynamically and little computers
security and reliability concern provides information dedicated for routing
only to the requesting network traffic
port
3. In a network, Hub is a common Switch is a device in a Routers are located at
connection point for devices network which gateway and forwards
connected to the network. Hub forwards packets in a data packets
contains multiple ports and is network
used to connect segments of
Lan
Bridge

A bridge connects two or more LANs. It operates at data link layer. Bridges can
however handle network that follow the same protocol.
Like a hub, a modern bridge has multiple ports, but unlike hub, when a frame arrives, the
bridge extracts the destination address (for Ethernet, it is 48 bit) from the frame header
and looks it up in a table to see where to send the frame.

The bridge only outputs the frame on the port where it is needed and can forward
multiple frames at the same time.

Filtering, forwarding and blocking of frames are functions of bridges.

Bridges offer much better performance than hub

Gateway is a network device used to connect two or more dissimilar networks. That is
networks that use different protocols. It establishes an intelligent connection between a
local network and an external network. A gateway usually is a computer with
multiple NICs connected to different networks. At home it could be the ISP which
connects your computer to internet.
For a large enterprise, this computer can also act as proxy server, firewall or malware
protection.
 Repeater

In addition network also needs repeaters. Repeater are used to extend transmissions so
that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an
obstruction. It increases the power of a signal and retransmits it.
A gateway can also be configured completely using software. As networks connect to a
different network through gateways, these gateways are usually hosts or end points of
the network.
 Modem

Modem is a device that enables a computer to send or receive data over telephone or
cable lines. The data stored on the computer is digital whereas a telephone line or cable
wire can transmit only analog data.

The main function of the modem is to convert digital signal into analog and vice versa.
Modem is a combination of two devices − modulator and demodulator.
The modulator converts digital data into analog data when the data is being sent by the
computer. The demodulator converts analog data signals into digital data when it is
being received by the computer.
Modem can be categorized in several ways like direction in which it can transmit data,
type of connection to the transmission line, transmission mode, etc.

Depending on direction of data transmission, modem can be of these types −

 Simplex− A simplex modem can transfer data in only one direction, from digital
device to network (modulator) or network to digital device (demodulator).
 Half duplex− A half-duplex modem has the capacity to transfer data in both the
directions but only one at a time.
 Full duplex − A full duplex modem can transmit data in both the directions
simultaneously.