Computer Networking Fundamentals

Due to network vulnerabilities, cybersecurity is a high-demand, high-paying career field. Companies need professionals to protect their systems from hackers and data breaches. Police and teachers, while important, are not specifically tied to network vulnerability issues.

War Driving is the term for searching for wireless networks by driving around with a device.

PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) software uses encryption to scramble data so that only authorized parties can read it.

FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface) is a standard for data transmission on fiber optic lines, known for high speed and reliability.

Data packets are small units of data that are transmitted independently across a network and reassembled at the destination.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is the standard network protocol used for the transfer of computer files between a client and server.

HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is the secure version of HTTP, used for encrypted communication over a computer network.

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide Web.

A wired network uses physical cables to connect devices, which generally provides higher speed and better security compared to wireless alternatives.

A dedicated server is designed to perform a single, specific task, such as print serving or file serving, to optimize performance for that resource.

In a star topology, all devices are connected to a central hub or switch, which manages the traffic between them.

In a mesh topology, every device is connected to every other device, providing high redundancy and reliability.

The listed characteristics (reliability, scalability, redundancy, security, speed) collectively describe a well-designed network. A LAN is a network size, bus and token ring are specific topologies.

Fiber optic cables transmit data as pulses of light through glass or plastic strands, allowing for very high speeds over long distances.

A thin client is a lightweight computer that relies on a central server for processing and storage, having little or no local storage of its own.

In token ring networks, a small frame called a token is passed between nodes; only the node holding the token can transmit data, which prevents collisions.

In a star topology, the central connection point that links all the nodes is typically a hub or a switch.

A data collision occurs when two or more devices attempt to transmit data on the same communication channel simultaneously.

In a peer-to-peer network, each computer can act as both a client (requesting resources) and a server (sharing resources).

Servers are powerful computers dedicated to managing network resources and providing services to client machines.

A Wide Area Network (WAN) covers a large geographic area, such as a country or the entire globe, like the Internet.

A network is defined as a collection of computers and devices connected together to share information and resources.

A Local Area Network (LAN) is designed for small geographic areas, such as an office, a home, or a single building.

In a client-server model, computers that request services from a server are referred to as clients.

The Internet is the global system of interconnected computer networks that use the Internet protocol suite to link devices worldwide.