What is the main advantage of a point-to point topology

Point to Point Topology in Networking – Learn Network Topology

In a point-to-point topology, two nodes (e.g computers) in a network connect to each other directly using a LAN cable or any other medium for data transmission. This is the simplest and low-cost option for creating a computer network.

Because only two parties are using the underlying network, the entire bandwidth of the connecting link is reserved between two nodes. The major disadvantage is that there can be a maximum of two nodes in the network.

One of the simplest examples is the remote control of the air conditioner in the home. Where a point-to-point connection works between.

Point to Point Network connection using a protocol:

There are other networks that also use point-to-point topologies, such as WAN or satellite links. In WAN although the endpoints (located at far places) do not connect with a direct cable, both set up a direct tunnel between. In a typical WAN, the two distance routers set up a tunnel using a point-to-point protocol(PPP). The connection works at the data link layer level as per the OSI model. Frames are directly transferred from source to destination.

Advantages of Point to Point Topology:

• Very easy to maintain, if a wire has a problem you can replace it within a few seconds.
• Maximum utilization of the underlying connecting link bandwidth.
• This is the most simple topology as compared to any other network topology type.
• Least delay in communication as compared to any other network connection type.
• Low-cost option when you have only two nodes to connect

Disadvantages of Point to Point Topology:

• The network performance depends on a single link only. If the common link is down, the entire network stop working.
• Because of the need for a direct connection, topology can not be expanded to a large area. E.g. if there is a multistory building, two computers may be far apart.
• There is only one server or client if anyone fails all will stop working. You can not take advantage of the network cluster. Not good for any database servers.
• Only applicable when the two devices are in proximity to each other such as connecting a printer.

Point to point connection type or application:

Other than cable there can be following some more types

1. Leased Line
2. Dedicated Fiber Lines.
3. E1/T1 links in Ss7

Introduction to Point to Point Topology

In the networking world, the word topology is widely used. Network topology means the arrangement of nodes and links of network elements to form the network. Network topology can be defined either physically or logically. It is used to define the structure of different telecommunication networks. Logical topology means how the data will actually flow in the network and physical topology means how the nodes are placed in the network. Point to point topology means the two nodes are directly connected through a wire or other medium.

Modes of Communication

It is the type of network topology which is used to connect to network nodes directly with each other through some link. And in between these two nodes, the data is transmitted using this link. Bandwidth is decided for the data transmission between these two nodes, for connecting two ends of the node this topology uses the wire which connects the two nodes directly to each other. These two nodes can also be connected through some other medium like a satellite link or any other medium. For example, the connection between the remote and the television present at home. When the user uses the remote to control the television there exists a point to point topology in between the television and the remote. Data transfer in between this topology can be in different modes like simplex mode, half-duplex mode, and full-duplex mode.

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1. Simplex Mode of Communication

Simplex mode of communication is a type of communication channel which sends the data in one direction only. For e.g. the radio and television is a simplex mode of communication as the information always flows in one direction only. Radio and television never gets the information from the user the information flow of direction is always from television and radio to the user end. One end of the simplex mode of communication is used for transmitting the signal and the other end of the communication channel is there for receiving signals. In simplex mode of communication, the entire bandwidth of the communication channel is used for transmitting the signals.

2. Half-Duplex Mode of Communication

The half mode of communication is a type of communication channel which sends the data in both directions. The single carrier is used to transmit signals in both directions. The only condition is that the data cannot be transmitted bi-directionally at the same time. It is like the simplex mode of communication where data is transmitted but the only difference is that the data can be transmitted in both directions. The best example of a half-duplex mode of communication is a walkie-talkie in which there is a transmitter and receiver button. The push to hear button is used to transmit the signal and when the button is ON and when the receiver button is OFF it allows the walkie- talkie to send a signal in one direction. And when the person speaks on walkie-talkie he cannot hear at the same time. The advantage of the walkie-talkie is that the device is cheaper compared to another mode of a communication device.

3. Full-Duplex Mode of Communication

The full-duplex mode of communication is a type of communication channel that can be used to send the information in both directions at the same time only. The same carrier can be used to transmit the signals at the same time. The full-duplex mode includes simple links that help to transmit the signals in bidirectional. The best example of a full-duplex mode is the telephone. When two users use the telephone they both can listen and talk at the same time. The full-duplex mode of communication is used in telephones and mobile phones. It is only possible because there are two communication paths between the ends. The advantage of full-duplex mode is communication efficiency.

Why Should We Use Point to Point Topology?

It should be used to transmit the signals and the information effectively across the network. As the topology connects the two nodes of the network directly by some wire or any medium it is very effective to transmit the data. The efficiency of the communication increases when the network uses the point to point topology and the data will be in flow in different modes of communication channels. The communication channel includes simplex mode, half-duplex mode and full-duplex mode of the communication channel. These different modes help to transmit the signals across the network very effectively.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of Point to Point Topology

It is used to transmit the information across the communication. The way of transmitting signals decides the efficiency of point to point topology. The advantages and disadvantages of this topology are discussed below:

Advantages

• It is the simplest network topology which is easy to understand and implement.
• The transfer of data can take multiple paths for transmitting the information. The data can be in flow in a single direction or bidirectional depending on the communication channel used.
• The maintenance of point to point topology is very easy and the implementation does not take time.

Disadvantages

• It supports only two nodes which make it less useful when there is a requirement of more than two nodes at the same time.
• As there are only two nodes included in the network, if any of the nodes goes down it makes the whole network down which create problem to transmit the information across the network.
• If any of the nodes go down the replacement of the node is a time-consuming process and also the process is very costly.

Conclusion

It is the simplest network topology to implement in the network. It includes two nodes which are directly connected to wires or some other medium like satellite network. The information flow between point to point topology has a different mode of communication channel i.e. simplex, half-duplex and full-duplex mode. It is easy to implement and maintain data transmission.

Recommended Articles

This is a guide to Point to Point Topology. Here we discuss the different modes of communication in point to point topology along with advantages and disadvantages.You may also look at the following articles to learn more –

1. Ethernet Topology
2. Zariski Topology
3. Star Bus Topology
4. Partial Mesh Topology

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Point to Point Topology

Introduction to Point to Point Topology:

In the world of networking, you’ll often hear the word “topology.” This networking term refers to the layout of a network. As you can imagine, there are many ways in which a network may be laid out, and each of these different methods has its own advantages.

Understanding which layout is best for you take time and a little research, so it’s best that you do a little sleuthing to find what you need. Here, we will discuss point-to-point topology.

Related:Types of Network Topology

Advantages of Point to Point Topology:

This network is the simplest layout for any network, and it is pretty easy to visualize. If you can imagine a network in which there are only two nodes (say, two computers, for instance), you can easily picture a point-to-point network.

As you can probably guess, information on this network goes from one point to another. This transfer of data can happen in multiple ways across the network: in a single direction (sending and receiving), in both directions (full duplex), or can only send or receive in a single direction (half duplex).

This simplistic topology is very easy to set up and maintain, and it is intended for very small networks. In fact, this type of network has a major drawback in that it can only support two nodes.

Related:What is Bus Topology? Advantages and Disadvantages of Bus Topology

Disadvantages of Point to Point Topology:

Though there are some situations in which this type of network may be useful, most networks will probably require more than two nodes. However, for networks that don’t, this point to point topology can be a great way to set up something simple. With only two nodes, it is very easy to maintain the layout.

However, there is another drawback in that since there are only two nodes, if either of the nodes stop working, information cannot be sent across the network. For example, if there are two computers in the network and one of them breaks, you cannot send or receive messages to the broken computer.

In order for the network to work effectively, you must replace the broken computer–and this can be both time consuming and costly. For this reason, it is important to note that while understanding how to fix a broken point to point topology can be fairly simple, the actual application of this solution can be a hindrance due to monetary and time issues.

However, because there are only two nodes, even if one of them breaks, it won’t affect that many people, so the effects are minimal.

Related:What is Ring Topology? Advantages and Disadvantages of Ring Topology

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Advantages and Disadvantages of Network Topologies

A network topology refers to the way in which nodes in a network are connected to one another. The network structure defines how they communicate. Each kind of arrangement of the network nodes has its own advantages and disadvantages. Here we tell you about the same.

Network Topologies

Network topologies describe the ways in which the elements of a network are connected. They describe the physical and logical arrangement of network nodes.

Let us look at the advantages different network topologies offer, and their shortfalls.

Bus Topology

Advantages of Bus Topology

1. It is easy to set up, handle, and implement.
2. It is best-suited for small networks.
3. It costs very less.

Disadvantages of Bus Topology

1. The cable length is limited. This limits the number of network nodes that can be connected.
2. This network topology can perform well only for a limited number of nodes. When the number of devices connected to the bus increases, the efficiency decreases.
3. It is suitable for networks with low traffic. High traffic increases load on the bus, and the network efficiency drops.
4. It is heavily dependent on the central bus. A fault in the bus leads to network failure.
5. It is not easy to isolate faults in the network nodes.
6. Each device on the network “sees” all the data being transmitted, thus posing a security risk.

Ring Topology

Advantages of Ring Topology

1. The data being transmitted between two nodes passes through all the intermediate nodes. A central server is not required for the management of this topology.
2. The traffic is unidirectional and the data transmission is high-speed.
3. In comparison to a bus, a ring is better at handling load.
4. The adding or removing of network nodes is easy, as the process requires changing only two connections.
5. The configuration makes it easy to identify faults in network nodes.
6. In this topology, each node has the opportunity to transmit data. Thus, it is a very organized network topology.
7. It is less costly than a star topology.

Disadvantages of Ring Topology

1. The failure of a single node in the network can cause the entire network to fail.
2. The movement or changes made to network nodes affect the entire network’s performance.
3. Data sent from one node to another has to pass through all the intermediate nodes. This makes the transmission slower in comparison to that in a star topology. The transmission speed drops with an increase in the number of nodes.
4. There is heavy dependency on the wire connecting the network nodes in the ring.