© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Building a Simple Serial Network Exploring the Functions of Networking

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Outline Overview What is a Network? Common Physical Components of a Network Resource-Sharing Functions and Benefits Network User Applications Network Administration Applications Characteristics of a Network Summary

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v What Is a Network?

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Common Physical Components of a Network

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Resource-Sharing Functions and Benefits Data and applications Resources Network storage Backup devices

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Network User Applications Web browser Instant messaging Collaboration Database

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Network Administration Applications

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Characteristics of a Network Speed Cost Security Availability Scalability Reliability Topology

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Summary A network is a connected collection of devices that can communicate with each other. Networks carry data in many kinds of environments, including homes, small businesses, and large enterprises. There are four major categories of physical components in a computer network: the computer, interconnections, switches, and routers. The major resources that are shared in a computer network include: data and applications, peripherals, storage devices, and backup devices. The most common network user applications include , web browser, instant messaging, collaboration, and database.

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v Summary (Cont.) Network administration software allows people responsible for managing networks to see what is happening on the network. The two primary types of network administration software are network monitoring software (such as protocol analyzers and sniffing software) and network management software. The ways in which networks can be described include characteristics that address network performance and structure: speed, cost, security, availability, scalability, reliability, and topology.

© 2005 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.INTRO v