The Different Types of Network Topology

Greek terms for "location" and "study," topo and logy, are the roots of the word
topology. Topology is used in computer networks to describe how a network is
physically connected and how information flows logically through the network.
A topology primarily outlines how devices are interconnected and
communicate with one another. Organizations frequently employ bus, ring,
star, tree, mesh, and hybrid topology networks as their physical network
topologies. Each type has its benefits and drawbacks and is made up of
various node and link configurations.

As the simplest design, a bus topology requires nodes to be in a linear order.

Each device in a bus topology system is connected to a single wire. It should
be noted that a bus and linear topology do not transport data bi-directionally.
In other words, the data can only travel from one end to the other. As with all
other topologies, a bus topology has advantages and disadvantages. The
most notable ones are the cost and ease of setup.

Ring topology is another simple design. A ring topology, as one might expect,
takes the shape of a circle, with each device having two adjacent nodes. A
normal ring topology will have four nodes, however, more may be added if
necessary. Ring topologies are adaptable and suitable for all sizes of
enterprises, and many do so because of their benefits. Arguably the most
important advantage is that the number of nodes doesn’t affect the
transmission data.

Interestingly, the setup of a star topology resembles, well, a star. A central

hub in the center of the star connects each node. Star topologies are more
dependable than prior systems due to the central hub and offer various
advantages. Troubleshooting is much easier because each node has its
connection to the central hub. Also, performance is improved because data
does not have to pass through each node before reaching its destination.
Lastly, if one node fails, the others will continue to function normally. There
are two drawbacks to consider: the expense and the central hub.
Many organizations like to use tree topology (sometimes referred to as
hierarchical topology) because it’s great for Wide Area Networks. A tree
topology requires what’s called a root node which then connects to a sub-root
node, and continues expanding to other nodes as a top-down effect. The
primary benefit of tree topologies is that you’re combining the reliability of the
bus and star topology.

A mesh topology is just a more advanced ring topology. The mesh topology is
one of the most popular corporate configurations for a variety of reasons, the
most important of which is its dependability. Because each node is connected
directly to other devices via point-to-point communications, a mesh
architecture is extremely dependable. Because the devices communicate with
other devices on the network, the data flow will cause few to no problems.

Althea Faye A. Olarte

Grade 10 - Ruby