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.