Upgrading and Repairing Networks, Fifth Edition

CHAPTER 52. Upgrading from Bridges and Hubs to Routers and Switches

SOME OF THE MAIN TOPICS IN THIS CHAPTER ARE

Growing Beyond a Small LAN 974

From Bridges to Routers 977

From Bridges to Switches 981

You can use many kinds of network devices to expand a local area network (LAN) or to connect it to a wide area network (WAN). They range from simple repeaters to devices with more intelligence, such as bridges, routers, and switches. For the most part, traditional bridges have been replaced with switches. Both segregate network traffic to specific ports, but switches do so on a computer-by-computer basis, whereas traditional bridges do so based on LAN segments.

Note

Hubs, low-end repeaters, and simple bridges are generally not the best choice for ...