What do you mean by Computer Network? Explain its advantages and disadvantages.

Definition

Two or more computers that are linked in order to share resources such as printers and CD-ROMs, exchange files, or allow electronic communications are called as networked computers. The computers on a computer network may be linked through cables, telephone lines, radio waves, satellites, or infrared light beams.

 Computer network can be classified on the basis of following features :

•  By Scale: Computer networks may be classified according to the scale :  
•     Local Area Network (LAN)

•     Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

•     Wide Area Network (WAN)

•  By Connection Method: Computer networks can also be classified according to the hardware technology that is used to connect the individual devices in the network such as Optical fibre, Ethernet, Wireless LAN.

• By Functional Relationship (Network Architectures) : Computer networks may be classified according to the functional relationships which exist between the elements of the network. This classification also called computer architecture. There are two type of network architecture :
•  Client-Server

•     Peer-to-Peer Architecture

• By Network Topology: Network Topology signifies the way in which intelligent devices in the network see their logical or physical relations to one another. Computer networks may be classified according to the network topology upon which the network is based, such as :

•     Bus Topology

•     Star Topology

•     Ring Topology

•     Mesh Topology

•     Star-Bus Topology

•     Tree or Hierarchical Topology

Advantages of Network

The following are the distinct notes in favor of computer network.

1. The computers, staff and information can be well managed
2. A network provides the means to exchange data among the computers and to make programs and data available to people
3. It permits the sharing of the resources of the machine
4. Networking also provides the function of back-up.
5. Networking provides a flexible networking environment. Employees can work at home by using through networks ties through networks into the computer at office.

Disadvantages of Computer Network

Following are the disadvantages of computer network:

• Security issue: It is done for service sharing which can bring lots of security issues.
• Prone to virus, hacker
• Difficult to mange traffic and congestion control
• Some networks are sophisticated that requires huge time and money

Network Services

Network services are the thing that a network can do. The major networking services are

1. File Services: This includes file transfer, storage, data migration, file update, synchronization and achieving.
2. Printing Services: This service produces shared access to valuable printing devices.
3. Message Services: This service facilitates email, voice mails and coordinate object oriented applications.
4. Application Services: This services allows to centralize high profile applications to increase performance and scalability
5. Database Services: This involves coordination of distributed data and replication.