NetworkBits.NET - A Useful Guide to the Network Itself

Filed under:General    

This site is about IT data networks including the hardware, software, and knowledge used to build, upgrade and maintain them. There is a lot to it. There are many types of devices, switches, routers, firewalls, load balancers, UPS’s and access points. There is a horrendous amount of bandwidth installed when networking a LAN and a very small but comparatively expensive internet connection. If there is a WAN involved then there is a great deal of involvement on managing the providers.

Connectivity is about what enables (and protects) the flow of information. Telephone communications networks work in a similar manner, and often share components. There are still cables and patch panels but it doesn’t have the wide variety of equipment and standards that there is with internetworking. The communication is what allows the internet to exist. Without networks there would be no shared printers, e-mail, web, customer database, or shared drives. All of use a server as well, but that too uses this to connect the users to the computer systems.

Networking is (or can be) a specialty just like people specialize as a webmaster, UNIX admin, windows admin, DBA, or whatever other specialty they happen to have spent the time to learn. There is a great deal of advancement and it has to be supported just like the rest of the infrastructure. Understanding it furthers one’s ability to identify if and where something failed and therefore what has to happen to resolve a failure. It also helps one understand what to look for when upgrading or considering upgrading the network.

Those that know how bits flow really well started by knowing nothing about it. For those who would like to know about it better this site is for you. A LAN can be found at any company with a computer and there are a lot of components to know about. There are security considerations, installation and upgrade costs, wireless coverage, configuration, and the internet access the business is constantly being billed for. Hopefully you find this site useful and can learn something worthwhile here.