Computer and Communication Networks

Chapter 5. Local Area Networks and Networks of LANs

A local area network (LAN) is a small interconnection infrastructure that typically uses a shared transmission medium. Because of such factors as the volume of traffic, the level of security, and cost, the network structure in a local area network can be significantly different from that for a wide area network. This chapter focuses on the fundamentals of local area networks and describes the internetworking concept at the LAN level. major topics are as follows:

• Basic LAN topology

• LAN protocols

• MAC and IP addresses

• Classification of MAC protocols

• Contention-access MAC

• Round-robin-access MAC

• Network of LANs

First, we explore some simple topologies of local area networks and see ...