Different components of a network.

1. Communication Media

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Data is transferred from one computer to another computer using communication media. Low-cost LANs are connected with twisted wire pair. Many LANs use coaxial or fiber-optic cables. These cables are expensive but provide faster communication. Some LANs use wireless transmission media. It uses infrared or radio waves to connect computers. Wireless networks are easy to setup and maintain. However, they have low transmission rates and limited distance between two communication devices.

2. NIC

NIC stands for Network Interface Card (NIC). It is also called LAN adapter. It connects a computer to a network. It is a circuit board placed on the motherboard These days, a network card is installed in most computer systems inside the motherboard. Every computer of the network has to have a network card. Various types of network cards are present. Wireless network cards have an antenna that sends and receives data.

3. Bridge

A network bridge can be used in computer networks to interconnect two LANs and separate network segments. A segment is a part of a network.

When a bridge receives a signal, it figures out the segment the signal should send. It reads sending and receiving computer addresses. When sending and receiving computers are in the same segment the bridge does not pass t signal to the other segment. It cuts down network traffic and improves performance in the network.

4. Router

Router is a connection device that is used to interconnect several networks with similar protocols or different ones. It manages the best route between any two communication networks Routers are used when several networks are connected together. A router can be used on a network of any size. It can connect networks of different countries. They transfer data in less time. The router is an intelligent device. It uses algorithms to find out the best path to transier data to a network.

5. Gateway

Gateway is a device that connects two or more networks with different types of protocols. Two different types of networks require a gateway to communicate with each other. It receives data from one network and converts it according to the protocol 8/01/2025 city. network. For example, the computers on a LAN require gateway to access.