We are living in an age where the network is everywhere and we use it regularly in the form of the INTERNET (The Ultimate Network), and the future will be more about the network. It is also possible, we might develop a massive network than the INTERNET. This makes the Computer Network an extremely important topic to have a grasp on.
Computer Networking also an important topic for one who wants to be a network expert, an ethical hacker, and a security expert.
Let me introduce you to what is Networking?
What is a Computer Network?
The formal answer to this question would be:
A Network is a set of hardware devices connected together, either physically or logically that allows the exchange of information between them.
Bookish Answer
The above definition of networking is what we have been reading in books. But have you ever thought about it what is networking and why we need it? Think for a second!
According to me, Computer Network is just a way to let two or more devices communicate(share information) with each other.
Networking is just a term that describes the process involved in designing, implementing, upgrading, managing, and working with computer networks and related network technologies.
If you don’t understand any of it. I would suggest you stick upon it, read ahead, and then it would make sense to you.
Advantages of Computer Network
When the computer was invented for the first time, there was no means to transfer or share data from one machine to another. This is the main problem that the computer network solved and led to its increase in popularity.
Computer Network advantages can be broadly classified into two categories: Connectivity and Sharing.
Connectivity and Communication
Networks connect computers and the users of those computers. This made distance communication between the machines easy, quick, efficient, and less expensive.
Data Sharing
This is one of the most important advantages of the computer network that allows one user to send or receive information from another user.
Hardware Sharing
Networks also allow sharing of hardware. A common example for this scenario, In a Company commonly only two or three printers are there that are connected to the network of the employees and they share the printer.
Internet Access
The Internet is just a massive network. So whenever you access the internet you are just using an enormous network. Many Computers and Servers act as a Source of information and we are clients using the internet for information.
Entertainment
As discussed earlier, Network allows us to get information from another machine. This information can be of different types like informative like books, blogs etc or entertaining like pictures, videos, movies, etc.
Disadvantages of Computer Network
Anything that has its advantages also has its disadvantages thus balancing the world.
Cost and Management – Network Setup Hardware & Software
Computers don’t communicate of their will, until and unless we want them to communicate. And to allow communication between two machines we need to set up a network that allows them to share information. However, the cost of setting up and maintaining a network is high.
Security Concerns
With the good comes the bad, though networking facilitates easy sharing of information, it also allows the sharing of undesirable data. If a network is not implemented properly data security may be at risk. This also invites bad guys to intercept your network and gain access to your valuable data.
Books on Networking
The TCP/IP Guide: A Comprehensive, Illustrated Internet Protocols Reference
Computer Networks by Andrew S. Tanenbaum
This is just an introduction to the computer network, Read further blogs to gain more knowledge about networking.
This Networking series on Divyanshu Shekhar’s Blog will cover all the layers of the OSI and TCP/IP Reference Model and also talk about future network technologies.
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