Chapter 1 - Intro to Networks

Question 1

the term network means two or more connected computers that can share resources such as data and applications, office machines, an Internet connection, or some combination of these,

Answer 1

a local area network (LAN) is usually restricted to spanning a particular geographic location such as an office building, a single department within a corporate office, or even a home office.

Question 2

hosts “talk” to each other using a computer language called binary code , which consists of lots of 1s and 0s in a specific order that describes exactly what they want to “say.”

Answer 2

it’s still best to split a big LAN into smaller logical zones known as workgroups to make administration easier.

Question 3

hub and switch these are just connectivity devices that allow hosts to physically connect to resources on an LAN.

Answer 3

a router to connect the two LANs,

Question 4

A client machine is any device on the network that can ask for access to resources like a printer or other hosts from a server or powerful workstation.

Answer 4

The term host is used to describe pretty much anything that takes an IP address.

Question 5

Dedicated servers are file servers, mail, print, web, fax, application, telephony, and proxy servers.

Answer 5

host means any network device with an IP address.

Question 6

for the Network+ exam, stick to the definition being network devices, including workstations and servers, with IP addresses.

Answer 6

WANs usually need a router port or ports.

WANs span larger geographic areas and/or can link disparate locations.

WANs are usually slower.

Question 7

We can choose when and how long we connect to a WAN. A LAN is all or nothing—our workstation is connected to it either permanently or not at all, although most of us have dedicated WAN links now.

Answer 7

WANs can utilize either private or public data transport media such as phone lines.

Question 8

The Internet is a prime example of what’s known as a distributed WAN an internetwork that’s made up of a lot of interconnected computers located in a lot of different places.

Answer 8

Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) advantages are:

Physical layout flexibility, Prioritizing of data, Redundancy in case of link failure, and One-to-many connection.

Question 9

MPLS is a switching mechanism that imposes labels (numbers) to data and then uses those labels to forward data when it arrives at the MPLS network,

Answer 9

The labels are assigned on the edge of the MPLS network, and forwarding inside the MPLS network (cloud) is done solely based on labels through virtual links instead of physical links.

Question 10

Prioritizing data is a huge advantage; for example, voice data could have priority over basic data based on the labels.

Answer 10

Computers connected together in peer-to-peer networks do not have any central, or special, authority—they’re all peers , meaning that when it comes to authority, they’re all equals.

Question 11

Client-server networks are pretty much the polar opposite of peer-to-peer networks because in them, a single server uses a network operating system for managing the whole network.

Answer 11

the bus topology consists of two distinct and terminated ends, with each of its computers connecting to one unbroken cable running its entire length.

Question 12

fault tolerance is the capability of a computer or a network system to respond to a condition automatically, often resolving it, which reduces the impact on the system.

Answer 12

A star topology’s computers are connected to a central point with their own individual cables or wireless connections.

Question 13

Star topology offers a lot of advantages over bus topology, making it more widely used even though it obviously requires more physical media.

Answer 13

Another great thing about a star topology is that it’s a lot more scalable—all you have to do if you want to add to it is run a new cable and connect to the machine at the core of the star.

Question 14

Disadvantages of a Star:
The total installation cost can be higher because of the larger number of cables, even though prices are becoming more competitive.

It has a single point of failure—the hub or other central device.

Answer 14

Advantages of a star:

New stations can be added or moved easily and quickly.

A single cable failure won’t bring down the entire network.

It’s relatively easy to troubleshoot.

Question 15

hybrid mesh topology networks will have quite a few connections between certain places to create redundancy (backup).

Answer 15

A full mesh physical topology is least likely to have a collision, which happens when the data from two hosts trying to communicate simultaneously “collides” and gets lost.

Question 16

a point-to-multipoint topology consists of a succession of connections between an interface on one router and multiple destination routers—one point of connection to multiple points of connection.

Answer 16

hybrid topology means just that—a combination of two or more types of physical or logical network topologies working together within the same network.

Question 17

when you’re faced with coming up with the right topology for the right network:

Cost 
Ease of installation 
Ease of maintenance 
Fault-tolerance requirement 
Security requirement

Answer 17

When we refer to a segment, we can mean any small section of the network that may be connected to, but isn’t actually a piece of, the backbone.

Question 18

A campus area network (CAN) refers to a network that encompasses several buildings.

Answer 18

Classic Storage area networks (SANs) are comprised of high-capacity storage devices that are connected by a high-speed private network (separate from the LAN) using a storage-specific switch.

Question 19

What are the three basic LAN topologies?

Answer 19

What common WAN topology often results in multiple connections to a single site (leading to a high degree of fault tolerance) and has one-to-many connections?

Question 20

What is the term for a device that shares its resources with other network devices?

Answer 20

What network model draws a clear distinction between devices that share their resources and devices that do not?

Question 21

Which network topology or connection type can be implemented with only two endpoints?

Answer 21

What device is generally implemented as a star topology?

Question 22

What does MPLS stand for?

Answer 22

What does WAN stand for?

Question 23

Will a computer that shares no resources most likely be connected to the backbone or to asegment?

Answer 23

Which LAN topology is characterized by all devices being daisy-chained together with the devices at each end being connected to only one other device?

Question 24

You need a network that provides centralized authentication for your users. Which of the following logical topologies should you use?

A client-server logical topology allows you to have a centralized database of users so that authentication is provided in one place.

Answer 24

You need a topology that is scalable to use in your network. Which of the following will you install?

To install a physical topology that provides ease of scalability, use a star network. This is a hub or switch device, and this is the most common LAN network today.

Question 25

Which of the following physical topologies has the most connections and is the least popular for LANs?

Only a mesh physical topology has point-to-point connections to every device, so it has more connections and is not a popular LAN technology.

Answer 25

In a physical star topology, what happens when a workstation loses its physical connection to another device?

In a star topology, each workstation connects to a hub, switch, or similar central device but not to other workstations. The benefit is that when connectivity to the central device is lost, the rest of the network lives on.

Question 26

Which type of WAN technology uses labels, which enables priority of voice though the network?

Multiprotocol Label Switching has as many advantages as a LAN protocol. When labels are used, voice can have priority over basic data, for example.

Answer 26

What is a logical grouping of network users and resources called?

A logical grouping of hosts is called a LAN, and you typically group them by connecting them to a hub or switch.

Question 27

Which of the following is a concern when using peer-to-peer networks?

It is easy to relax about security in a peer-to-peer environment. Because of the trouble it takes to standardize authentication, a piecemeal approach involving users’ personal preferences develops. There are no dedicated servers in a peer-to-peer network, and such a network can be created with as few as two computers.

Answer 27

Which of the following is an example of when a point-to-multipoint network is called for?

When a central office, such as headquarters, needs to communicate directly with its branch offices but the branches do not require direct communication with one another, the point-to-multipoint model is applicable. The other scenarios tend to indicate the use of a point-to-point link between sites.

Question 28

Which of the following is an example of a LAN?

LANs generally have a geographic scope of a single building or smaller. They can range from simple (two hosts) to complex (with thousands of hosts).

Answer 28

Which of the following is a disadvantage of the star topology?

The only disadvantage mentioned is the fact that there is a single point of failure in the network. However, this topology makes troubleshooting easier; if the entire network fails, you know where to look first. The central device also ensures that the loss of a single port and the addition of a new device to an available port do not disrupt the network for other stations attached to such a device.

Question 29

What is a difference between a LAN and a WAN?

A typical WAN connects two or more remote LANs together using someone else’s network (your ISP’s) and a router. Your local host and router see these networks as remote networks and not as local networks or local resources. Routers use proprietary serial connections for WANs.

Answer 29

Which of the following provides the most physical layout flexibility in a very large, geographically dispersed enterprise network?

Multiprotocol Label Switching provides logical links between sites, so branch offices can be easily and quickly added.

Question 30

In what type of network are all computers considered equal and do not share any central authority?

In a peer-to-peer network, all computers are considered equal. It is up to the computer that has the resource being requested to perform a security check for access rights to its resources.

Answer 30

What advantage does the client-server architecture have over peer-to-peer?

In client-server networks, requests for resources go to a main server that responds by handling security and directing the client to the resource it wants instead of the request going
directly to the machine with the desired resource (as in peer-to-peer).

Question 31

Which of the following is an example of a hybrid network?

The best answer to this question is an Ethernet switch, which uses a star physical topology with a logical bus technology.

Answer 31

You have a network with multiple LANs and want to keep them separate but still connect them together so they can all get to the Internet. Which of the following is the best solution?

Routers are used to connect different networks together.

Question 32

Which type of topology has the greatest number of physical connections?

In the mesh topology, there is a path from every connection to every other one in the network. A mesh topology is used mainly because of the robust fault tolerance it offers—if one connection goes on the blink, computers and other network devices can simply switch to one of the many redundant connections that are up and running.

Answer 32

What type of topology gives you a direct connection between two routers so that there is one communication path?

As its name implies, in a point-to-point topology you have a direct connection between two routers, giving you one communication path. The routers in a point-to-point topology can either be linked by a serial cable, making it a physical network, or be far away and only connected by a circuit within a Frame Relay network, making it a logical network.

Question 33

Which network topology is a combination of two or more types of physical or two or more types of logical topologies?

A hybrid topology is a combination of two or more types of physical or logical
network topologies working together within the same network.

Answer 33

When designing a network and deciding which type of network topology to use, which item(s) should be considered? (Select all that apply.)

Each topology has its own set of pros and cons regarding implementation, so it’s important to ask the right questions and consider cost, ease of installation, maintenance, and fault tolerance.