1) In networking terms, the structure you are planning to connect the computers to, is called network topology.
2) Network topology is also referred to as the configuration of a network.
3) It usually refers to the physical arrangement of the omputers and other networking devices that are linked together.
4) According to the needs, there are three main types of network topology.
They are bus topology, star topology and ring topology.
Bus Topology
1) In communications technology, you think of a bus as a common “highway” on which data is transmitted.
2) A bus refers to the main physical pathway or central cable where all other devices are connected to it. Like a major motor highway, all traffic flow will be affected if this main “road” is broken.
Ring Topology
1) A ring topology consists of all computers andother devices that are connected in a loop.
2) Ring topology is also known as a ring network. A ring network can be found in Local Area Networks. In a ring network each node directly connect to two neighbouring nodes.
3) A server may exist in a ring network, but it will not connect to all the nodes in the network.
Star Topology
1) In the early days of computer networking, all computers were connected to a centralised mainframe computer.
2) All resources and management of information were centred in this main computer.
The idea of a centralised mainframe computer is where the basic concept of a star topology comes from.
3) A star topology consists of a central host which acts as the centre, and all nodes connect to the host. A star topology is also known as star network.
