A Network Topology is a visual representation of how pieces of hardware, nodes, or connections are arranged in relation to one another. Often this Topology can give critical insight into how devices are connected and can give some general insight into how the overall network is performing.

Knowing how to make a Network Topology is often the key to building a secure, resilient, and easy-to-maintain network.

Nodes, or Network Nodes, are the connection points among network devices. This can include devices such as routers, printers, switches, servers, and any other device that can send and receive data from one endpoint to the other. Often times the definition of a node can depend on the network and the protocol layer.

While there is no one-size-fits-all option when it comes to creating a Network Topology, there are different types of configurations that are suitable for different purposes depending on the size of your network and the objectives you are trying to fulfill.

Point to Point is the simplest network Topology that connects one node directly with another. Often times this type of Topology is used to connect two independent systems together. The connection can be anything from a physical connection through a Wide Area Network (WAN) or a connection made through a satellite line.

A Bus Topology is a network setup that sees multiple nodes connected through a single cable which is referred to as a Bus. Any signal that is generated from a source node travels through the Bus cable and to all workstations that are connected to the one Bus cable to find the intended recipient with a specific IP address.

Single-Ring Topology is where all the nodes are arranged in a ring, where each device node has two neighbors. This kind of network is half-duplexed, meaning that the data travels in one direction through each node to reach its destination IP.

Dual-Ring Topologies still feature the same node arrangement of Single-Ring Topologies, where each device has two neighboring nodes, but the key feature is that each node has a second connection between each node. This type of Topology has full duplexing, which allows data to move in both directions.

One of the most common Topologies, Star Topologies are arranged so that all nodes are connected to a network hub. This hub acts as means of managing data transmission as any information that is sent from any node that is on the network will pass through the central hub to reach its destination.

Tree Topologies get their name from how the central hub acts as a base, or trunk, of the network. the network nodes would extend outwards in a branch-like way. Unlike the Star Topology, a Tree Topology has a parent-child hierarchy with how the nodes are arranged.

Mesh Topologies are interconnected structures where nodes have multiple connections to one another. Mesh Topologies can either be Partial-Mesh Topologies, where a few nodes have two or three connections, or Full-Mesh Topologies where all the nodes are fully interconnected.

Hybrid Topologies combine multiple topology structures into one network structure. An example of this is the Tree Topology as it combines both the Bus and Star Topologies. Often times Hybrid Topologies are found in networks that need to support a large number of users and need to meet organization-specific requirements.

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