Hardware & Software Basics

Hardware Basics: Making Sense of All That Stuff

To create a network, you need to begin by adding certain types of hardware. If you're new to networks, you might find the various pieces a little confusing. In an effort to reduce the confusion level, the next sections explain the basics of network hardware.

Network Adapters

Each PC on the network needs a network adapter to enable it to connect to the network. In some cases, a network adapter is already built in to the PC; however, this is not always true. Unfortunately, in some cases, you might also find that your PC includes a network adapter but, not the correct type for your choice of network. For example, you might want to create a wireless network, it's but your PC contains a built-in Ethernet adapter. If so, you can still install a wireless home network—you'll simply have to add a wireless network adapter to your PC.

It's often difficult to tell, especially with notebook computers, which network adapters, if any, are present. Notebooks might contain built-in wired adapters, wireless adapters, neither, or both! You might have to check your owner's manual or the specification sheet that came with your system to determine what you have. Most modern PCs will include at least one type of network adapter.

Figure 2-3. Network Adapter for Your Desktop PC for Use on a Wired Network

Figure 2-4. Network Adapter for Your Desktop PC for Use on a Wireless Network

Hubs

The data that travels across a network generally goes through a central point to be redistributed as needed. The simplest device for this purpose is called a hub.
Your local office supply store might sell network hubs, but you will probably want to steer away from hubs because you pay a price in terms of network performance for that simplicity.

Software Basics: Details Only a Geek Could Love

Computers are tools, but they're unlike most other types of tools in a very important way. The difference between computers and other types of tools is that most tools are designed to do specific types of tasks, whereas computers can be reprogrammed for many different tasks simply by changing the software that they run.

PCs were not originally designed with networking in mind, but through the addition of a number of software components, networking is now a reality. This network software is what enables your PC to communicate with other computers and makes your home network possible. Networking software is packaged as an integral part of modern PC operating systems such as Windows—which is used for the examples in this book—as well as Mac OS and Linux.

Networking software is different from most of the software that you use on your PC because of the type of job that it does. When you use a spreadsheet program or a word processor, you're well aware of the application that you're using. With networking software, that's not the case, because the networking software runs in the background providing a service without coming to the foreground to say, "Here I am."

Two primary elements make up the networking software on your PC—the client and the protocols (the terminology you'll see when setting up a Windows-based network). The sections that follow provide more details on these two components.

Network Clients

The network client is a piece of software that provides your PC with access to the network's services. For a typical home network, this software is known as the Client for Microsoft Networks.

Protocols and Drivers

The next important piece of the networking software puzzle is known as a protocol. The protocol can be thought of as the language that the computers on the network use to communicate with each other. Over the years, hundreds of different protocols have been developed for computer networking, each for its own specific purposes.

Fortunately, in home networking today, things are generally simpler because the industry has standardized on a set of protocols called TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)). If TCP/IP sounds vaguely familiar, it's because TCP/IP is the protocol set most commonly used on the Internet (as well as your wired or wireless home network).

Even though having the proper network clients and protocols installed on your PC is vital to successfully creating your home network, the task of making sure the correct software is installed isn't nearly as ominous as it might sound because modern PC operating systems include wizards to automate the process.

Figure 2-7. Both the Proper Network Clients and Protocols Are Necessary for a Functioning Network