Home and small office Networking Guide

The Network2pc Home and small office Networking Guide provides information on how to select the right equipment for setting up a home network, internet connection sharing, wireless, faq, Windows networking, networking, network, Windows 2000, Windows 98, windows xp, software, network software, home, business, LAN, lans, 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11b, HomeRF, HomePNA, Wi-Fi, How To, How To

WHAT IS NETWORK?
A computer network is simply computers wired together in a way that lets them share data and/or devices such as hard drives, CD-ROMs, fax-modems, printers, etc. Since you can share hard drives on a computer network, a smaller drive can reside on each computer with a single large drive on the system that shares the data area with all users.

If you own multiple PCs, you have probably thought about how great it would be if your computers could talk to each other. With your computers connected, you could:

1. Share a single printer between computers


2. Share a single Internet connection among all the computers in your home and small office.


3. Access shared files such as photographs, MP3s, spreadsheets and documents on any computer in the house and small office.


4. Play games that allow multiple users at different computers


5. Send the output of a device like a DVD player or Web cam to your other Computer(s)

Networking Basics
To install a network in your home or small office, there are three steps:

1. Choose the technology you will use for the network. (Standard Ethernet, Phone –line –based, power-line-based and wireless).


2. Buy and install the hardware.


3. Configure the system and get everything talking together correctly.

Note: Step 3 is extremely important. It is also very educational, if you understand the configuration process; you understand everything a home and small office Network is capable of doing for you.

In today's business world, reliable and efficient access to information has become an important asset in the quest to achieve a competitive advantage. File cabinets and mountains of papers have given way to computers that store and manage information electronically. Coworkers thousands of miles apart can share information instantaneously, just as hundreds of workers in a single location can simultaneously review research data maintained online.

Computer networking technologies are the glue that binds these elements together. The public Internet allows businesses around the world to share information with each other and their customers. The global computer network known as the World Wide Web provides services that let consumers buy books, clothes, and even cars online, or auction those same items off when no longer wanted.

In this guide, we will take a very close look at networking, and in particular the Ethernet networking standard, so you can understand the actual mechanics of how all of these computers connect to one another.

Advantages of Networks:

1. Being easy to set up new users and equipment


2. Allowing the sharing of resources


3. Ease of administering users


4. Ease of administering software licenses


5. Allowing electronic mails to be sent between users


6. Allowing simple electronic access to remote computers and sites


7. Allowing the connection of different types of computers, which can communicate with each other.

Disadvantages of Networks:

1. One server breaking down may affect a number of computers.


2. Vulnerable to hackers and viruses.


3. Cabling and installation may be expensive.


4. A network manager may need to be employed to run the network.

Types of Network

1. Peer-to-peer networks: All computers are of equal importance. Software and data are stored on each computer. Peer-to-peer networks have workstations connected to each other but do not have servers. Files can be shared between workstations, and a printer connected to one workstation can be accessed by another workstation. Peer-to peer networks are often much simpler to set up than client/server networks. However, they lack some of the advantages normally associated with networks such as centrally managed security and ease of backing up files. Peer-to-peer networks would really only be set up among a few computers within an office or single room.

1. Client/Server network Software and data are held on a file server and may be used by other computers on the network. Client/server networks consist of two kinds of computer. The clients are usually computer workstations sitting on the desks of employees in an organisation. The servers are usually more powerful computers and are held in a central location or locations within an organization.

Ways to Connect (Technology).You can connect your home computers in a variety of ways:

1. Run cables across the floor between computers in the same room.


2. Install some form of wireless networking.


3. Link your computers through your phone lines.


4. Link your computers through your power lines.

If you have a network in your home or office, there are several different ways to connect the computers on your network together.

• WiFi Network: WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart.

• Phone-Line Network: Phone-line networking is one of several ways to connect the computers in your home. If your computers are in different rooms, then phone line networking could be a good solution for you.

Power-Line Network: Power-line networking is one of several ways to connect the computers in your home. It uses the electrical wiring in your house to create a network.

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