What parts does a computer network consist of?

What are the components of a computer network

Computer network consists of servers, workstations, communication equipment and transmission media.

From a hardware perspective, a computer network system mainly consists of the following components: computer system, data communication equipment and network system software.

(1) Terminal: Equipment used by users to access the network, such as teletypewriters, keyboard monitors, computers, etc. In a local area network, the terminal is usually a microcomputer, also called a workstation, through which users can share network resources.

(2) Host: It is a computer system used for data analysis, processing and network control. The host includes external devices, operating systems, and other software. In a local area network, the host is usually a high-performance computer (such as 486 and 586 machines) that plays the role of server. It should have abundant resources, such as large-capacity hard disks, sufficient memory, and various software.

(3) Communication processor: It is a communication control and processing device installed between the terminal and the host, used to share the control and management tasks of data exchange and various communications. In a local area network, a communication processor is usually not set up, but the host directly assumes the control and management tasks of communication.

(4) Local line: refers to the line that connects the terminal to the node server, including equipment such as concentrators or multiplexers. It is usually a slower, less expensive and less efficient line.

What are the functions of computer networks

Computer networks mainly realize their functions through three aspects: information exchange, resource sharing and distributed processing.

Information exchange

This is the core function of the computer network, mainly used to achieve system communication between various nodes. Users can send emails, publish news, conduct e-shopping, e-commerce, distance e-education and other activities through the network.

Resource sharing is an important way of cooperation that can promote information transfer, knowledge sharing and cooperative innovation.

The so-called resources refer to various elements in the system, including software and hardware resources, such as computing processing power, large-capacity disks, high-speed printers, plotters, communication lines, databases, files and other related information on the computer. Due to economic and other factors, these resources are not owned independently by all users. Therefore, computers on the network can not only use their own resources, but also share resources on the network. In this way, the processing capabilities of computers on the network are enhanced, and the utilization of computer software and hardware is also improved.

Distributed processing is a method of task division and parallel processing in a computer system.

A complex task can be decomposed into multiple parts, and then various computers in the network collaborate in parallel to complete their respective parts, thereby significantly improving the performance of the entire system.

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