There are several common network topologies for LANs and WANs. Common LAN topologies include bus, star, ring, switched, daisy chain, and hierarchical topologies. Bus topology is easy to implement but has limited cable length. Star topology is easy to manage and scale but a failure of the central device takes down the whole network. Ring topology provides better performance than bus but a single failure affects the whole network. WAN topologies include peer-to-peer, ring, star, full mesh, partial mesh, multi-tiered, and hybrid configurations with different tradeoffs around cost, performance, redundancy, and scalability.
2. LAN topologies
Physical
Describes the geometric arrangement of
components that make up the LAN
Logical
Describes the possible connections
between pairs of networked end-points
that can communicate
2
4. Bus topology
All networked nodes are
interconnected, peer to peer, using a
single, open-ended cable
Both ends of the bus must be
terminated with a terminating resistor
to prevent signal bounce
4
6. Advantages of Bus topology
1) Easy to implement and extend
2) Well suited for temporary networks
that must be set up in a hurry
3) Typically the least cheapest topology
to implement
4) Failure of one station does not affect
others
6
7. Disadvantages of Bus
topology
1) Difficult to administer/troubleshoot
2) Limited cable length and number of
stations
3) A cable break can disable the entire
network; no redundancy
4) Maintenance costs may be higher in
the long run
5) Performance degrades as additional
computers are added
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8. Ring topology
started out as a simple peer-to-peer
LAN topology
Each networked workstation had two
connections: one to each of its nearest
neighbors
Data was transmitted unidirectionally
around the ring
Sending and receiving of data takes
place by the help of TOKEN
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9. Token Passing
Token contains a piece of information
which along with data is sent by the
source computer
This token then passes to next node,
which checks if the signal is intended
to it
If yes, it receives it and passes the empty
to into the network
otherwise passes token along with the
data to next node
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11. Advantages of Ring topology
1) This type of network topology is very
organized
2) Performance is better than that of Bus
topology
3) No need for network server to control
the connectivity between workstations
4) Additional components do not affect the
performance of network
5) Each computer has equal access to
resources
11
12. Disadvantages of Ring
topology
1) Each packet of data must pass
through all the computers between
source and destination, slower than
star topology
2) If one workstation or port goes down,
the entire network gets affected
3) Network is highly dependent on the
wire which connects different
components
12
13. Star topology
Have connections to networked
devices that radiate out form a
common point
Each networked device in star
topology can access the media
independently
Have become the dominant topology
type in contemporary LANs
Stars have made buses and rings
obsolete in LAN topologies 13
15. Advantages of star topology
1) Compared to Bus topology it gives
far much better performance
2) Easy to connect new nodes or
devices
3) Centralized management. It helps in
monitoring the network
4) Failure of one node or link doesnt
affect the rest of network
15
16. Disadvantages of star topology
1) If central device fails whole network
goes down
2) The use of hub, a router or a switch
as central device increases the
overall cost of the network
3) Performance and as well number of
nodes which can be added in such
topology is depended on capacity of
central device
16
17. Switched topology
A switch is a multiport, Data Link Layer device
A switch learns Media Access Control
addresses and stores them in an internal
lookup table
Temporary, switched paths are created
between the frames originator and its
intended recipient, and the frames are
forwarded along the temporary path
Switched topology features multiple
connections to a switching hub/Switch
Each port, and the device to which it
connects, has its own dedicated bandwidth
17
19. Advantages/Disadvantages of a
Switched topology
Advantage:
Can improve LAN performance:
increase the aggregate bandwidth
available throughout the network
reducing the number of devices forced
to share each segment of bandwidth
Disadvantage:
Large switched implementations do not
isolate broadcasts
19
20. Daisy chains
Developed by serially interconnecting
all the hubs of a network
This simple approach uses ports on
existing hubs for interconnecting the
hubs
Daisy chains are easily built and dont
require any special administrative
skills
Daisy chains were, historically, the
interconnection method of choice for 20
22. Disadvantage of Daisy chain
Increases the number of connections,
and therefore the number of devices,
on a LAN. Too many devices
competing for the same amount of
bandwidth can create collisions and
quickly incapacitate a LAN
22
23. Hierarchies
Hierarchical topologies consist of more
than one layer of hubs. Each layer
serves a different network function
The bottom tier is reserved for user
station and server connectivity. Higher-
level tiers provide aggregation of the
user-level tier
A hierarchical arrangement is best
suited for medium-to-large-sized LANs
that must be concerned with scalability
of the network and with traffic 23
24. Hierarchical rings
Ring networks can be scaled up by
interconnecting multiple rings in a
hierarchical fashion
User station and server connectivity can
be provided by as many limited size
rings as are necessary to provide the
required level of performance
A second-tier ring, either Token Ring or
FDDI, can be used to interconnect all the
user level rings and to provide
aggregated access to the Wide Area
Network (WAN) 24
26. Hierarchical stars
Star topologies, can be implemented
in hierarchical arrangements of
multiple stars
Hierarchical stars can be implemented
as a single collision domain or
segmented into multiple collision
domains using switches, routers or
bridges
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28. Hierarchical combinations
Overall network performance can be
enhanced by not force-fitting all the
functional requirements of the LAN
into a single solution
Todays high-end switching hubs
enable you to mix multiple
technologies
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30. WAN Topologies
The topology of a WAN describes the
way the transmission facilities are
arranged relative to the locations that
they interconnect
Numerous topologies are possible,
each one offering a different mix of
cost, performance and scalability
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31. WAN Topologies
1) Peer-to-peer WANs
2) Ring WANs
3) Star WANs
4) Full-mesh WANs
5) Partial-mesh WANs
6) Two-tiered
7) Three-tiered
8) Hybrids
31
32. Peer-to-peer topology
A peer-to-peer WAN can be
developed using leased private lines
or any other transmission facility
This WAN topology is a relatively
simple way of interconnecting a small
number of sites
Represents the least-cost solution for
WANs that contain a small number of
internetworked locations
32
34. Advantage/Disadvantage of
Peer-to-peer
Advantage:
It is inexpensive relative to other options
Disadvantages:
They dont scale very well. As additional
locations are introduced to the WAN, the
number of hops between any given pair of
locations remains highly inconsistent and
has an upward trend
An equipment or facility failure anywhere
in a peer-to-peer WAN can split the WAN
34
35. Ring topology
Can be developed fairly easily from a
peer-to-peer network by adding one
transmission facility and an extra port on
two routers
A ring-shaped WAN constructed with
point-to-point transmission facilities can
be used to interconnect a small number
of sites and provide route redundancy at
a potentially minimal incremental cost
Can use dynamic routing protocols
35
37. Advantages/Disadvantages of
Ring topology
Advantages:
It provides alternative routes
It is less expensive than all but the peer-
to-peer WAN
Disadvantages:
Depending on the geographic dispersion
of the locations, adding an extra
transmission facility to complete the ring
may be cost prohibitive
Rings are not very scalable
37
38. Star network Topology
constructed by homing all locations
into a common location
The star topology can be constructed
using almost any dedicated
transmission facility including frame
relay and point-to-point private lines
38
39. Advantages/Disadvantages of
star topology
Advantages:
More scalable than a peer-to-peer or ring
network
Improved network performance. Hop
count of three
Disadvantages:
It creates a single point of failure
There is no route redundancy
39
41. Full-mesh topology
This topology features the ultimate reliability and fault
tolerance
Every networked node is directly connected to every
other networked node
Redundant routes to each location are plentiful, hence
static routing impractical.
Use dynamic routing protocols
One application would be to provide interconnectivity
for a limited number of routers that require high
network availability
Another potential application is to fully mesh just parts
of the WAN, such as the backbone of a multitiered
WAN or tightly coupled work centers
41
42. Advantages/Disadvantages of
full-mesh
Advantages:
Minimizes the number of hops between
any two network-connected machines
Can be built with virtually any
transmission technology
Disadvantages:
These WANs can be fairly expensive to
build
A finite (although substantial) limit on the
scalability of the network
42
44. Partial-mesh topology
Partial meshes are highly flexible
topologies that can take a variety of very
different configurations
The routers are much more tightly
coupled than any of the basic topologies
but are not fully interconnected, as
would be the case in a fully meshed
network
A partially meshed WAN topology is
readily identified by the almost complete
interconnection of every node with every
44
46. Advantages of partial-mesh
Partial meshes offer the capability to
minimize hops for the bulk of the
WANs users
Unlike fully meshed networks, a partial
mesh can reduce the startup and
operational expenses by not
interconnecting low-traffic segments of
the WAN, hence more affordable and
scalable
46
47. Two-tiered topology
A two-tiered topology is a modified
version of the basic star topology.
Rather than single concentrator
routers, two or more routers are used
A two-tiered WAN constructed with
dedicated facilities offers improved
fault tolerance over the simple star
topology without compromising
scalability
47
48. Two-tiered topology
T1 T1
User Location B
User Location D User Location F
T1
User Location E
T1 T1
User Location A
User Location C
48
49. Three-tiered topology
WANs that need to interconnect a very
large number of sites, or are built
using smaller routers that can support
only a few serial connections, may find
the two-tiered architecture
insufficiently scalable.
Therefore, adding a third tier may well
provide the additional scalability they
require
49
50. Three-tiered
T1
T1
User Location A
User Location B
User Location D
T1
User Location C
56Kb T1
T1
56Kb T1
User Location E User Location F User Location G User Location H
User Tier
Concentrator tier
Backbone tier
50
51. Advantage/Disadvantage of
three-tiered
Advantage:
A three-tiered WAN constructed with
dedicated facilities offers even greater
fault tolerance and scalability than the
two-tiered topology
Disadvantage:
Three-tiered networks are expensive to
build, operate and maintain
51
52. Hybrid topologies
Hybridization of multiple topologies is
useful in larger, more complex networks
Multitiered networks, in particular, lend
themselves to hybridization. A multitiered
WAN can be hybridized by fully or
partially meshing the backbone tier of
routers
An effective hybrid topology may be
developed in a multitiered WAN by using
a fully meshed topology for the
backbone nodes only 52
53. Hybrid topology
T1
T1
User Location B
User Location D
T1
User Location C
56Kb T1
T1
56Kb T1
User Location E User Location F User Location G User Location H
User Tier
Concentrator tier
Backbone tier
T3 T3
T3
53