CompTIA A+® Certification All-In-One For Dummies®, 2nd Edition

1.1. Identifying the Types of Networks

A network is a group of connected systems for sharing data or devices. This section provides an overview of the two major types of networks: peer-to-peer and server-based (client-server). I discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each type as well as how to implement them.

1.1.1. Peer-to-peer networks

In a peer-to-peer (P2P) network, all systems connected to the network can act as clients or servers. A client is a system that makes a request for a resource or service on the network; a server is the system providing the resource or service. In this type of networking environment, all systems are considered equal because they can all play the same roles on the network — either as client or server or as both client and server. The recommended number of systems in a P2P network usually involves ten or fewer systems because of the lack of centralized administration. As a network administrator working in a P2P environment, you will constantly run from machine to machine to perform administrative tasks. Typically, a P2P network involves each system running a desktop operating system, such as Windows XP, to provide network functionality (see Figure 1-1).

Figure 1.1. Peer-to-peer network environments.

In Figure 1-1, notice that client A provides a network resource — a printer — as does client D. This shows that client A is acting as both a server ...