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CGP Computer Science > 01 Section 2 - LANs, WANs and Hardware > Flashcards

01 Section 2 - LANs, WANs and Hardware Flashcards

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1
Q

Define a LAN:

A

LAN : Local area network

-a network which covers a small geographical area

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2
Q

What are the features of a LAN?

A
  • small geographical area
  • all hardware is owned by the organisation that uses it
  • they are wired or wireless
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3
Q

What are examples of places you would find LANs?

A
  • businesses, schools, universities

- homes can have LANs which connect various devices such as PCs, tablets, smart TVs and printers

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4
Q

Why would you use a network?

A
  • sharing files is easier
  • share peripherals (e.g. printers…)
  • internet connection can be shared between devices
  • can install and update software on all computers at once
  • can communicate with LAN users cheaply and easily
  • user accounts can be stored centrally
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5
Q

How is sharing files made easier by having a network?

A
  • network users can access the same files
  • users can work collaboratively on them
  • users can copy files between machines
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6
Q

Define a WAN:

A

WAN: Wide Area Network

-a network which covers a large geographical area, a network which connects LANs in different geographical locations

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7
Q

What are the features of a WAN?

A
  • large geographical area
  • organisations hire infrastructure from telecommunications companies (they own and manage the WAN)
  • WAN is much more expensive than a LAN
  • connected using fibre, copper telephone lines, satellite links, radio links
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8
Q

What are examples of places you would find WANs?

A
  • businesses with offices in multiple countries require a WAN to connect the devices
  • the Internet is the biggest WAN
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9
Q

What factors affect the performance of networks?

A
  • the amount available of bandwidth
  • wired connection are better than wireless (transmission media)
  • choice of hardware
  • choice of network topology
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10
Q

Define Bandwidth:

A

Bandwidth is the amount of data that can be transferred in a given time
-greater the bandwidth the higher the performance of the network

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11
Q

How can bandwidth affect the performance of a network?

A
  • the more available bandwidth, the higher the performance
  • too many users or heavy use may cause congestion and slow the network (to address this you can limit the available bandwidth to address this)
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12
Q

How can transmission media affect the performance of a network?

A
  • wired connections are faster and more reliable
  • fibre optic cables have better performance than copper cables
  • wireless performance depends on signal quality
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13
Q

What factors affect wireless performance?

A

-wireless performance depends on signal quality, this is affected by range of device, interference from other devices and physical obstructions

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14
Q

What hardware do you need to create a network?

A

NICs
Switches
Routers

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15
Q

What does NIC stand for?

A

Network Interface Card

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16
Q

What is an NIC?

A

An internal piece of hardware that allows a device to connect to a network

17
Q

Where is the NIC located on a computer?

A
  • used to be on separate cards

- now built into the motherboard (they exist for both wired and wireless networks)

18
Q

What is the purpose of a network switch?

A

To connect devices on a LAN

-switches receive data from one device and transmits this data to the device on the network with the correct MAC address

19
Q

What are the units called which switches receive data in?

A

receive data in units called frames

20
Q

What is the purpose of a router in a network?

A

They are responsible for transmitting data between networks (they are always connect to at least two different networks)
-they direct packets to their destination on the internet

21
Q

Where are routers used?

A

-homes and offices to connect the LAN to the internet

22
Q

Nowadays, what do most home routers consist of?

A

-router
-switch
-WAP
ALL IN ONE

23
Q

What types of cables can be used?

A

Ethernet cables
Coaxial cables
Fibre optic cables

24
Q

What are the two types of ethernet cables?

A

CAT 5e

CAT 6

25
Q

What are the uses of cables?

A

to connect devices on a network

  • Ethernet cables in a LAN
  • coaxial and fibre optic for WANs
26
Q

What are the features of ethernet cables?

A
  • ‘twisted pair’ cables, contain four pairs of copper wires

- THEY ARE TWISTED TOGETHER TO REDUCE INTERFERANCE

27
Q

What are the features of coaxial cables?

A
  • single copper wire surrounded by a plastic layer for insulation
  • metallic mesh provides shielding from outside interferance
28
Q

What are the features of fibre optic cables?

A
  • transmit data as light
  • high performance and expensive cables
  • don’t suffer interference
  • can transmit over very large distances without loss of signal quality
29
Q

What devices use radio waves to transmit data?

A

-mobile phones
-TVs
WIRELESS NETWORKS USE RADIO WAVES TO TRANSMIT DATA

30
Q

What do you need to set up a wireless network?

A

A WAP device

31
Q

What does WAP stand for?

A

Wireless Access Point

32
Q

What is a WAP?

A

A switch that allows devices to connect wirelessly

33
Q

What is a hotspot?

A

Hotspots are locations where you can connect to a WAP

34
Q

What do devices need to connect to a WAP?

A
  • need wireless capacity
  • usually are built in, if not you can use a USB dongle
  • HDMI dongles are popular for TVs
35
Q

What is Wi-Fi?

A

The standard used for wireless networks

36
Q

What are the two frequency bands of Wi-Fi?

A

2.4 GHz

5 GHz

37
Q

What are the frequency bands of Wi-Fi split into?

A

Number channels that each cover a small frequency range

-these channels overlap

38
Q

What affects the performance of a Wi-Fi network?

A

Interference
-interference between networks using adjacent channels affects performance
TO AVOID PROBLEMS, ONLY CERTAIN CHANNELS THAT ARE SPACED OUT TEND TO BE USED

CGP Computer Science (24 decks)

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