elements of a network

We analyze the elements of a network, its graphic representation and its main function.

It is vitally important to know what communication through networks is and for this we are going to see the main elements that make up said network, as well as its function and its graphic representation.

Information networks vary in size and capacity but they all have a number of basic elements in common:

1. Devices within the network, which send or receive messages
2. Messages that are sent from one device to another.
3. A means to connect the devices, as well as to send the messages
4. Rules that govern the way messages are sent, received, and interpreted.

Note: For a network to function correctly, it is necessary to standardize all these elements.

The graphic layout of a network would be the following:

Devices

Within the devices we can mention the most important ones that would be:

• desktop pc
• Laptop
• Server
• router
• Printing machine
• Etc.

Its graphic representation would be the following:

Media

The most common media are network cables (LAN) and the air (WIFI).

Its graphic representation is the following:

Rules

They are the standards or protocols that we use for communications. Some examples of rules and protocols are as follows:

• TCP/IP protocol for message transmission
• HTTP for www
• SMTP for outgoing mail
• POP for incoming mail
• SIP for IP voice

Messages

We use the word “message” to refer to, for example, web pages, emails, phone calls, print documents, etc.

Now we only have to see the representation that we use to talk about the Internet or any network made up of several networks.

Once we know the elements that make up the network, we can move on to see other aspects such as the types of connections, that is, the physical elements that we can use in the “middle” element of our network.

Types of connections

For a network to work, devices have to be interconnected, either by wires or by wireless devices.

• Cable connections: The medium is usually copper cables that transmit electrical signals, or fiber optics that transmit light signals.
• Copper cable types are Twisted Pair or Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP).
• Wireless connections: The medium is air and the signals are microwaves.
• Wireless connections can be:
• Wireless router <-> computer
• ground device <-> ground device
• Earth device <-> satellite device

Note:

Note: Wireless networks, sometime, have a connection with some wired network.

In the next article we will see network communication, its main components and its properties.