Networking Basics (2.2, 2.4, 2.7, 2.8 and 3.1) Flashcards
What is a switch?
A smart hub that remembers the ports that are connected to it
What is a hub, and how many ports can it have?
A network hardware device for connecting multiple Ethernet devices together and making them act as a single network segment. It can have between 4 and 48 ports.
Difference between a managed and unmanaged switch?
Performs functions with configuration; performs functions without configuration
What is a router used for?
Connecting different networks together.
What is a wireless access point?
A device that allows wireless devices to connect to a wired network.
What does a firewall do?
Scans and blocks traffic that enters or leaves a network. Can be based on preconfigured rules.
What is a patch panel?
A device that allows cable network jacks to go from a wall into a central area.
What is PoE?
Electrical power from a switch port over an ordinary data cable to a power device.
What does a power injector do?
Plugs into a wall outlet to get power
What does a cable modem do?
Translates coaxial cable signals into radio frequency waves .
What does a DSL modem do?
Translates coaxial cable signals into phone lines
What does an Optical Network Terminal (ONT) do?
Terminates fiber connection.
What is software defined networking?
A way of virtualising the network hardware
What does a LAN do?
Connects components within a limited distance; up to a few hundred feet
Define a campus area network.
Connects LANs that are building-centric across a university, industrial park or business park; up to a few miles
What does a metropolitan area network do?
Connects scattered locations across a city or metro area (up to about 25 miles)
What does a wide area network do?
Connects geographically disparate internal networks and consists of leased lines or VPNs; worldwide coverage
What is a wireless LAN?
A wireless distribution method for two or more devices that creates a LAN using wireless frequencies
What does a storage area network do?
Provisions access to configurable pools of storage devices that can be used by application servers
How does a SoHo LAN work?
Uses a centralised server or simply provides clients access to local devices
What is the Internet of Things?
A global network of appliances and personal devices that have been equipped with sensors, software, and network connectivity to report state and configuration
What does a registered jack do?
Carries voice or data which specifies the standards a device needs to meet in order to connect to the phone or data network
What is bandwidth?
The theoretical measure of how much data could be transferred from a source to its destination
How far can keep cable run?
Under 70m, from the IDF to the office
Define throughput.
The actual measure of how much data is successfully transferred from a source to its destination
What is Ethernet Standard?
A designation given to a particular category that provides the ability to understand the bandwidth and the cable type to be used
What is a Straight-through cable (patch cable)?
Contains the exact same pinouts on both ends of the cable
What is the standard that is preferred when wiring jacks inside of buildings?
568b
What special ability does a crossover cable have?
The ability to take send and receive pins from one cable and swap those on the other end
What is a medium dependent interface crossover?
An automated way to electronically simulate using a crossover cable
What is direct burial?
A cable rating that specifies that a cable has a stronger sheathing and jacket that can withstand more extreme weather conditions
What does it mean if a cable is plenum rated?
It is more fire resistant and minimises the amount of dangerous fumes that are released
How does fiber optic cable trasmit information?
Name two benefits of using fiber optic.
By using light from an LED or laser through a thin glass fiber
Greater usable range and greater data capacity
List three possible hardware types that can become a limitation on fiber optic
Switches, routers and end-user devices
When would you use single mode fiber (SMF), and how is it different to normal fiber optic?
You would use it for longer distances; it has a smaller core size which allows for only a single mode of travel for the light signal
What is the diameter of the core size of SMF?
8.3^-10 u
Give some characteristics of multimode fiber (MMF).
Used for shorter distances; larger core size which allows for multiple modes of travel for the light signal
50-100u core size diameter
2km or less
Is SMF or MMF more expensive?
SMF
What is twinaxial cable?
Similar to coaxial cable but uses two inner conductors to carry the data instead of just one.
What is coaxial cable?
A type of electrical cable consisting of an inner conductor surrounded by a concentric conducting shield, with the two separated by a dielectric (insulating material)
When would you use a snip/cutter?
To cut a piece of cable off a larger spool or run of cable
When would you use a cable stripper?
When preparing the end of a cable for attachment to a connector
What is a cable crimper used for?
Attaching the connector to the end of the cable
What is a wire mapping tool?
Works like a cable tester, but specifically for twisted pair ethernet cables
List six problems that might occur in twisted pair cable configurations.
- Open pairs
- Shorted pairs
- Short between pairs
- Reversed pairs
- Crossed pairs
- Split pairs
What tool is used to determine a cable’s category or data throughput?
A cable certifier
What does a punch-down block do?
Terminates the wires and strips off excess installation and extra wires that are no longer needed
How would you use a tone generator and toner probe?
Generate a tone on one end of the connection and use the probe to audibly detect the wire connected on the other side
What does a loopback adapter/device do?
Facilitates the testing of simple networking issues
What does a tap do?
Connects directly to the cable infrastructure and splits or copies those packets for analysis, security, or general network management
What does a wireless analyser do?
Ensures proper coverage and prevents overlap between WAP coverage zones and channels
Name the first three layers of the OSI model.
- Physical layer
- Data link layer
- Network layer
Name layers 4-7 of the OSI model.
- Transport layer
- Session layer
- Presentation layer
- Application layer
Name the OSI layer fitting this description: “Decides which physical path the data will take.”
- Network layer
What does the OSI presentation layer do?
Ensures that data is in a usable format; encrypts data
Describe what the OSI application layer does.
It provides protocols that allow software to send and receive information and present meaningful data to users.
