Whatever the size of your organization, a business-class network is within your reach. By understanding and taking some simple steps, you can implement a network infrastructure that provides your company with significant and substantive benefits. From empowering your employees to greatly improving customer service, networking technology can have a lasting impact on your business.
Building Your Network
Foundation: Routing and
Switching Made SimpleBuilding Your Network Foundation
Whatever the size of your organization, a business-class network is within yourreach. By understanding and taking some simple steps, you can implement anetwork infrastructure that provides your company with significant and substan-tive benefits. From empowering your employees to greatly improving customerservice, networking technology can have a lasting impact on your business.
This guide examines the critical issues of networking, how it works, and how itcan help you achieve a competitive edge. Topics include:
. The basics: What is a network and how does it work?
. What are routers and switches and what is their role in the network?
. How does a network help you control your costs?
. How does a network improve your operational efficiency?
. How does a network help provide complete security for your information?
From increasing efficiency to decreasing costs to boosting customer satisfaction,every small and medium-sized business (SMB) faces unique challenges. Let'sstart by understanding how networks are put together, and then examine howthey address your business needs.
Figure 1A Examples of Routers Moving Data Around: Routers and SwitchesThe Internet revolution is based on the ability to transport "packets" of data,where each packet is a unit of data sent between an origin and a destination.
Routers and switches transport data-in fact, they are the basis of the Internet,as well as all other networks. The movement of data permits one device (suchas your PC) to talk to another device (for example, another PC, an e-mail server,or a printer), whether the device is in the same building or on the other side ofthe world.
Figure 1B Examples of Switches At first glance, a router and switch may appear physically similar (see Figure 1).In reality, routers and switches have different functions that complement one another.Building Your Network Foundation
What Is a Network? WANs are helpful in many ways. Merchants use WANs toThere are two main types of networks: local area networks validate buyers' credit cards when performing a transaction.(LANs) and wide area networks (WANs). For many Virtual private networks (VPNs) employ WANs when creatingbusinesses, a LAN is typically used to communicate within secure connections between users on different privatea building or campus, and a WAN is used to connect networks. Companies provide traveling employees withmultiple LANs, and to communicate across a region, access to network resources via private dial-up links. Incountry, or the world. short, the WAN extends network resources beyond thelocal area. A more official definition of a LAN is a group of computersand associated devices that share a common communica- Figure 3 shows London and Paris offices communicatingtions line or wireless link within a small geographic area with one another using routers in a WAN.(for example, within an office building). The importance Figure 3 WAN Exampleof a LAN is that it enables PCs to talk to one another, and WAN is Used to ConnectLondonto share printers or servers. This sharing of data and the London and Paris LANsLANresources enables cost savings and increased productivity. WAN
Figure 2 shows a LAN within an office building that is set RouterPC in London in Londonup using a switch, so that desktop PCs and wireless laptops can access and share servers or printers.
A WAN is a network that links together multiple geographi- Routerin Pariscally dispersed LANs, usually via high-speed phone lines.(You may already be familiar with the various types of DSL ParisLANconnections that are used in homes and businesses, aswell as even faster technologies such as T1/E1 lines). A PC in ParisWAN covers a relatively broad geographic area (for example,communications between two countries) and often usestransmission facilities provided by telephone or cable Routing and Switching Form the Foundation companies. of the NetworkWe've seen that switches are used to connect multipledevices on the same network (the LAN), while routers areFigure 2 LAN Example used to connect multiple networks (on the WAN) to eachother. While both were originally designed just to transportdata, today they also do much more. Routers and switchesDesktop PCs have become the foundation for all business communica-iMac WirelessL... [download for more]
