A sending device puts a signal out onto the bus system that travels in both

directions and is received by all devices.

Ethernet was originally designed to operate on a bus network using a technique
called carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD), which
helped to reduce data loss by stopping different computers sending data onto the
bus at the same time.
Disadvantages:

Performance is dramatically reduced when more devices try to communicate at the

same time.
A single break in the bus causes the network to fail.

Ring topology
Features:

Devices are connected in a circular fashion, either directly or through the

provision of units called multi-station access units (MAUs).
The signal passes in one direction, with each receiving station reading and
repeating the signal back onto the ring.
Ring-connected devices use token-passing protocols, for example token ring and
fibre distributed data interface(FDDI), which avoid the possibility of simultaneous
signals being transmitted and therefore allowing network performance to be
maintained.
Disadvantages:

The network cards are relatively expensive.

Mesh topology
Features:

Every device is connected to every other device.

There is greater resiliency through redundant routes from every device to every
other device.
Partial mesh networks, where some but not all of the possible connections are made,
are more common than full mesh networks.
Disadvantages:

Every device needs multiple network cards.

It requires more cabling.
The logic needed to manage the choice of route is more complex.

Star topology
Features:

Each device is connected back to a central switch.

New devices can be added easily.
The switch manages the data transmission.
Disadvantages:

It requires more cable back to the central point.

Wide area network
A wide area network (WAN) can link devices, users and organisations together over a
communication infrastructure wherever they are in the world.

WANs can be private to an organisation, or they can be public. Due to the distances
involved, WANs are often provided across public operator networks, such as BT, and
require careful planning to ensure that data remains secure.
There are two main different types of WAN in use, intranets and extranets, to meet
different applications:

An intranet is a network belonging to an organisation and accessible only by the

organisation's members, employees or others with authorisation.