Types of Network Hubs

Study Notes

Network Devices

A network hub does not filter information, reduce network traffic, and broadcasts data to all ports.
There are two types of network hubs: active and passive.
Active hubs have their own power supply, clean and increase the signal, and transmit it to the network.
Active hubs act as a wiring center and repeater, extending the distance between nodes.
Passive hubs collect wiring from the power supply and different nodes of an active hub, transmitting signals without improving or cleaning them.

Repeater

A repeater reproduces the signal on a similar network before it gets weak or damaged.
Repeaters do not strengthen the signal, but reproduce it at the actual strength.
A repeater is a two-port device, with one port for incoming signals and one for outgoing signals.
Repeaters are effective in office buildings, schools, and factories where a single wireless router cannot reach all areas.

Bridge

A bridge unites two or more network segments.
Bridges store and transmit frames among various segments.
Bridges are used to connect two physical local area networks to a larger logical local area network.
Bridges aggregate partitioned network segments and control traffic that moves between them.
A transparent bridge interconnects LANs that use the same protocol suite, while a translation bridge joins LANs that use different protocols.
A bridge builds a lookup table of MAC addresses and port locations to determine whether to forward a frame along or discard it.

Router

A router is a hardware device that receives, analyzes, and forwards incoming packets to another network.
Routers examine incoming packets to determine the correct target IP address and send the packet to that address.
A routing table helps a router decide the best available route for a packet to reach its destination quickly and accurately.

Switch

A switch is a physical circuitry part that controls the flow of signals in networking.
A switch enables the opening or closing of a connection, allowing or stopping the flow of signals.
A network switch is more advanced than a hub, but less advanced than a router.
Unlike a hub, a switch allocates bandwidth for each port and filters and forwards data.
A switch sends information directly to the specific destination port.

Access Point

An access point (AP) is a wireless network device that acts as a portal for devices to connect to a local area network.
Access points can extend an existing network's wireless coverage and increase the number of users who can connect.
Wireless access points (WAPs) combine a transmitter and receiver to form a wireless LAN (WLAN).
Access points allow data transmission even when the user is moving, making it simple to extend to places where wires and cables are inaccessible.

Description

Learn about the two types of network hubs - active hub and passive hub. Understand the disadvantages of network hubs such as inability to filter information and inability to reduce network traffic. Explore how active hubs work to clean, increase, and transmit the signal in a network.