Computer Network Training

Computer Network Help

One of the most frustrating things that can happen to a business is when their computer network goes down and will not work. Computer networks are the lifeblood of many businesses, with the network being the connection to the rest of the office and to the rest of the world. When these networks have problems it can kill the productivity of the entire office and make life very difficult for those that are trying to get work done.

One of the best avenues for preventing the need for computer network help is installing a firewall on your computer network. Since all of the computers of a network are connected together and share programs and files, it makes it very easy for a virus to enter through one computer and quickly spread to the rest of the machines on the network. By installing a firewall and virus software on the network and all of the computers associated with it you will be able to save yourself and your company valuable time and money that would be wasted figuring out what the problem is and fixing it.

When the machines on a network do not work properly it may be cause to call a network specialist to offer computer networking help. Computer network technicians are specially trained to locate problems and find potential solutions. Many large companies actually hire full time computer network technicians to keep a close eye on their networks at all times. This may not make sense for a small business, however. A smaller company may want to outsource the work to a professional that they can call in whenever there are problems.

Since there are so many different components that make up a computer network, it is important to keep all of the different machines working properly. That means that the components of the network should be under regular maintenance to ensure that they don’t break or malfunction. The computers should be updated with the newest software updates as well as driver updates for the other parts of the network. Modems and cable connections should be checked regularly to make sure that they are not coming loose.

When your network is malfunctioning, don’t worry. Computer network help is available. All you need to do is search out for a reputable technician and they will most likely be able to get your network running in no time. When you have professional help you can get professional results.

The Computer Network Training website has additional information that you might find helpful.

Network Subnet Mask

A network subnet mask is needed in a network to tell the computer what part of the network address is network address and what part is host address. Network address is common to all the computers on a network, but host address is unique to each computer. It’s like a street address where every house on a street uses the same street name when addressing mail, but unique house numbers for each house.

Typical class C subnet mask is 32 bits where the first 24 bits are set to ones (or high) and the last 8 bits are set to zeros (or low). The last 8 bits are the host address part and are set to zero so the computer knows that these bits are unique to each computer. Without the subnet mask the computer would not know how to handle the IP address or how to route data.

Routers are the network devices that route data packets from network to network until the data is received by the computer that it was addressed to. The router examines the data packet using the network subnet mask to determine the destination network address. It then makes a decision on which port the send the data. The last router is the gateway router for the destination network where the host portion of the address is used to deliver the packet to the appropriate computer.

A typical network class C IP address might look like 192.168.1.0 in decimal or 1100 1010 0001 0000 in binary. The IP address when represented as a decimal number in divided in four 8-bit blocks separated by a dot. This is a type of shorthand convenience and allows us to easily convert 32 bit binary numbers as decimal 8-bit numbers. This way we only need to know 8 bit binary to decimal conversion. Otherwise a 32-bit number would be very large and cumbersome to convert.

The Computer Network Training website has additional information you might find useful.

VLAN Switches

Network VLAN switches are very popular and widely implemented in larger businesses and corporations. VLANs have the ability to group computers and network devices into their own common workgroup. These provide network user security and separate network functions common to the group. This also allows for separating network traffic for better bandwidth utilization. Also provides for priority traffic handling and isolating traffic that it using legacy or incompatible protocols.

VLANs can also duplicate company work groups over large or distant geographical areas. So workers in California and workers in New York would see the same network devices available to each group no matter where the worker is located. This provides easy transitions for workers or travelers between locations.

Data trunking for all work groups allows the transmission of trunked data over leased lines between geographic areas. (Trunked lines are lines that contain all the VLAN traffic.) The VLAN devices are then able to separate the trunked data back into separate company work groups. A problem using VLANs results when different workgroups need to communicate or receive data or mail from a common server. A router is needed to connect workgroups together or to connect workgroups to a common network device or common server.

VLANS or VLAN switches could also be used to provide Internet access for visitors with minimal network access. This provides needed Internet access for visitors and safety and security of company data and network drives. Also VoIP phone data can be prioritized and kept on its own VLAN to help provide better bandwidth for voice communication and prevent congestion of normal company data traffic.

The Computer Network Training website has additional information that you might find useful.

Network Routers

Computer network routers have certainly changed over the last few years, as technology has been forging ahead and making large headway. If you are looking into purchasing a new router, there are a few things to consider before doing so. The first thing to think about is the type of speed you need in a router. Too many people don’t realize that a router can usually handle blazing fast speeds, but the speed is completely limited on the type of network device on your computer. What we mean by this is that if you have a wireless 54mbit card on your computer, you will only be able to transfer at 54 Mbits /second even if the router can do a gigabyte a second. Just buying a faster router will not speed up your network unless you also upgrade the associated hardware on your devices that communicate with the router.

Network routers basically take the Internet signal that you have coming in and spreads it to devices within a business or within a home. The network router is essentially the brain that keeps track of which devices need information and spreads the Internet to all the devices when it needs it. A network router is actually amazing device, but they do require some initial setup. Most routers can be setup by accessing them through your web browser. Most network routers have a static IP that you can type into your browser to be able to change the settings. Network router settings give you the ability to change security codes and change the wireless security if your network router supports wireless communication.

Today, most routers support wireless capability. This is great because you can access the Internet or network files without the use of wires. Because most Internet signals are broadcast in a wireless format, it is important to make sure you set the security settings on the router. If you don’t password protect your router, anyone will be able to connect to your router and use your Internet. This will slow down your Internet speed as the Internet is being shared across more devices. To make sure you have optimum speed and better security with your network files, always password protect your network router if you are running it in a wireless type mode.

As you can see, network routers are amazing devices, but how well they work depends on you and your equipment. By changing the network router settings to make sure security is enforced, you will have a much greater experience using a router.

The Computer Network Training website has additional information you might find useful.

Computer Network Training

IT (Internet technology) jobs require computer network training and certification.

CompTIA Network+

Computer Network Certification

To begin you should obtain the CompTIA A+ certification. Most employers are very familiar with the A+ cert and require all new employees to have it. A+ cert is even more highly regarded for entry level computer tech work than college degrees. Employers know that individuals with A+ certification can work on and fix computers. The next certification you should consider is the CompTIA Network+ which is also highly regarded in the IT field. After obtaining those two certs you should consider either the Microsoft MSCE track or the Cisco CCNA track. Either of these two highly prized certs can move you along quickly to the higher paying positions.

Computer Network Security

Network security has become a major concern, especially with wireless networks. Wireless needs extra security controls to assure good security, such as, MAC filtering and good encryption.

Computer Network Support

Good support is essential for monitoring, maintenance, and management. Network techs, analysts, and administrators are need to assure proper performance.

Computer Network Services

There are many network services that should be provided, such as, email, file, data, and application sharing, print sharing, and Internet access are the basics.

Computer Network Management

A good administrator can manage the network to assure only authorized individuals and services are available to appropriate individuals. Access should be limited and authorized only with proper credentials.

Computer Network Repair

Network repair is an ongoing concern. Cabling, hardware, and software may need periodic updates and replacing. Scheduling repairs to minimize work interruptions is an important concern.

Computer Network Maintenance

Network maintenance needs to be scheduled and performed. This will help to optimize hardware life and performance. Cleaning helps to reduce heat buildup that can shorten component life.

OSI Model

The OSI Model is composed of seven layers that make up the model. Each layer is important to understand for proper understanding of network concepts of data packet creation and control. The layers start with Physical layer and end with the Application layer.

Physical Layer

The Physical layer is where the data is either put onto the media or received off the media. The media could be the network cable or wireless. The data is in the form of bits and is called Bits as the PDU (protocol data unit). These bits can be voltage levels that represent binary numbers of 1 or 0. They could also be light pules traveling on a fiber optic cable or radio wave pulses for a wireless network.

Data Link Layer

The Data Link layer is where framing of the data takes place. The Frame is the PDU name at this layer. The MAC (media access control) physical address is added or removed depending on which direction the data is traveling. The MAC address is used by switches to switch the data to the appropriate computer or node that it is intended for in a LAN (local area network).

Network Layer

The Network layer is where the IP (internet protocol) address is added or removed and the PDU at this layer is called a Packet. Routers operate at this level and use the IP (logical address) to route the data to the appropriate network. Network locations are found by the routers using routing tables to locate the appropriate networks.

Transport Layer

The Transport layer is where the data is segmented (broken into pieces) and used by the TCP protocol to ensure accurate and reliable data is transferred. The data segments are numbers so that proper sequencing can be determined on the receiving side in order to rebuild accurate files. The PDU name at this layer is called Segment.

Session Layer

The Session layer is where the session is created, maintained, and torn-down when finished.

Presentation Layer

The Presentation layer is where the data is formatted or decrypted into files that the user can understand.

Application Layer

The Application layer is the user interface to the network where that data is either being generated or received.

The study of Computer Network Training and the OSI Model can help you to prepare for certification and employment is this exciting field.

Network Topology

The study of Computer Network Training brings you first to the study of network topology which is the physical or logical way the networked computers are connected. You can have a physical Bus topology, physical or logical Ring Topology, physical Star Topology, or even a physical Mesh topology. The logical topology might be different than the physical topology in the way data packets are switched through the network.

Bus Topology

The Bus topology has a single cable that all the computers and devices are connected to. It is very simple to implement but not very fast or reliable. The maximum speed for Bus topology is 10 megabits per second using 10Base2 cabling. There is also a major draw back to the Bus because you create a single collision domain. When a computer trys to send packets on the Bus it will listen first to make sure the Bus is clear before sending oackets. However another computer could send packets at the same time creating a collison and no packets get through. The computers will time, count down, and then try again. Also if the cable breaks or a device is removed the signal traveling down the cable will reflect back and could interrupt the packets moving through the cable, which can bring down the entire network. Because of all the draw backs you will not see the Bus topology used with newer networks.

Ring Topology

The Ring topology was popularized by IBM and worked very well because using a token that traveled around the Ring eliminated collisions. Each computer would have an opportunity to use the token for sending or receiving data packets. There were two major problems with the Ring. First as you added more computers it would take longer to get the token and second the speed did not keep up with Ethernet so it lost popularity and you will rarely see it today.

Star Topology

The Star topology is by far the most popular and widely used for networks today. Switches are generally used as the central hub and provide individual collision domains between just 2 computers, which has reduced the packet collision problem and greatly increased the bandwidth and speed of the networks.

Mesh Topology

The Mesh topology is primarily used on the Internet. This allows several alternate paths for data to travel in case a segment or path goes down or becomes congested. The routers on the Internet are constantly measuring the speed of each segment or path and determining dynamically which is the better path for sending packets. This keeps the Internet very fast and responsive to changes that occur constantly each day as equipment is taken down for maintenance and repair and new equipment is installed to handle the growth.

Network topology is always a consideration when designing a new network. The Star topology will be the choice used and implemented for the LAN and possibly a Mesh topology for servers and other critical connecting devices, such as, routers that connect to other networks or the Internet.

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