Hub for network: What is network hub? | Definition from TechTarget

Опубликовано: October 29, 2023 в 11:01 am

Автор: alexxlab

Категории: Miscellaneous

What is network hub? | Definition from TechTarget

Networking

By

Jessica Scarpati

What is a network hub?
A network hub is a node that broadcasts data to every computer or Ethernet-based device connected to it. A hub is less sophisticated than a switch, the latter of which can isolate data transmissions to specific devices.

Network hubs are best suited for small, simple local area network (LAN) environments. Hubs cannot provide routing capabilities or other advanced network services. Because they operate by forwarding packets across all ports indiscriminately, network hubs are sometimes referred to as “dumb switches.”

With limited capabilities and poor scalability, network hubs had primarily one competitive advantage over switches: lower prices. As switch prices fell in the early to mid-2000s, hubs began getting phased out of use. Today, hubs are far less commonly deployed. But network hubs have some niche uses and continue to offer a simple means of networking.

Compare the difference between a hub and a switch.

How network hubs work
Network hubs are categorized as Layer 1 devices in the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model. They connect multiple computers together, transmitting data received at one port to all of its other ports without restriction. Hubs operate in half-duplex.

This model raises security and privacy concerns, because traffic could not be safeguarded or quarantined. It also presents a practical issue in terms of traffic management. Devices on a hub function as a network segment and share a collision domain. Thus, when two devices connected to a network hub transmit data simultaneously, the packets will collide, causing network performance problems. This is mitigated in switches or routers, as each port represents a separate collision domain.

See how a network hub works.

All devices connected to a network hub share all available bandwidth equally. This differs from a switch environment, where each port is allotted a dedicated amount of bandwidth.

Types of network hubs
There are two types of network hubs: active and passive. A third designation, intelligent hubs, is synonymous with a switch.

Active hubs repeat and strengthen incoming transmissions. They are also sometimes referred to as repeaters.

Passive hubs simply serve as a point of connectivity, without any additional capabilities.

An unrelated use of the word “hub” involves network topologies. In a star topology, sometimes called hub and spoke, each host connects to a central hub; the hosts, however, do not directly connect to each other. In this context, the “hub” is typically a switch.

This was last updated in October 2021

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What is Network Hub and How it Works?

Hub in networking plays a vital role in data transmission, and broadcasting. Hub is a hardware device used at the physical layer to connect multiple devices in the network. Hubs are widely used to connect LANs. A hub has multiple ports and it is a non-intelligent device.

Unlike a switch, a hub cannot filter the data, i.e. it cannot identify the destination of the packet, so it broadcasts or send the message to each port. This is why it is known as a non-intelligent or dumb device. Hub does not have any routing table to store the data of ports and map destination addresses., the routing table is used to send/broadcast information across all the ports.

How Does a Network Hub Work?

A hub is a multiport device, which has multiple ports in a device and shares the data to multiple ports altogether. A hub acts as a dumb switch that does not know, which data needs to be forwarded where so it broadcasts or sends the data to each port.

Suppose there are five ports in a hub A, B, C, D, and E. consider A wants to send any data frame, or let’s say A is acting as a sender, so the hub will forward the data transmitted by A to B, C, D, E. Now, if at the same time B also wants to send the data then data received from A and B will collide and can cause data loss. In this situation, the data gets destroyed, and the hosts send a jam signal to all the hosts informing them about the collision, and each sender needs to wait for a certain amount of time.

Note: In the hub, data is sent to all ports but each port accepts only that data whose destination address matches their MAC address.

Types of Network Hubs:

Networks hubs are of the following three types:

Active Hub: They have a power supply for regenerating, and amplifying the signals. When a port sends weak signaled data, the hub regenerates the signal and strengthens it, then send it further to all other ports. Active hubs are expensive in costs as compared to passive hubs.

Passive Hub: Passive hubs are simply used to connect signals from different network cables as they do not have any computerized element. They simply connect the wires of different devices in the star topology. Passive hubs do not do any processing or signal regeneration and that’s why do not require electricity the most they can do is they can copy or repeat the signal. It can’t clean the message, and it can’t amplify or strengthen the signal.

Intelligent Hub: Intelligent hubs as the name suggests are smarter than active and passive hubs. The intelligent hub comprises a special monitoring unit named a Management Information Base (MIB). This is software that helps in analyzing and troubleshooting network problems. Intelligent hubs work similarly to active hubs but with some management features. Like it can monitor the traffic of the network and the configuration of a port.

Features of Hubs:

Hubs are the hardware device that operates in the physical layer of the OSI model.

It supports half-duplex transmission

It works with shared bandwidth and broadcasting.

The hub can provide a high data transmission rate to different devices.

It can detect collisions in the network and send the jamming signal to each port.

Hub does not support VLAN and spanning tree protocol.

It is unable to filter the data and hence transmit or broadcast it to each port.

It cannot find the best route/ shortest path to send any data, which makes it an inefficient device.

Difference Between Network Hub And Switch:

Hub Switch

It works on the physical layer of the OSI model.

It works on the data link layer of the OSI model.

It performs frame flooding, which includes broadcast, multicast and unicast as well.

It mainly performs broadcasts and performs multicast, and unicast whenever required.

The transmission mode is half-duplex.

The transmission mode is full-duplex.

It cannot perform data filtering.

It can filter data and send the frame to the desired destination.

There is no spanning tree.

A switch may contain more than one spanning tree possible.

It can not store the MAC address of the ports and the destination address of the frame that arrived.

It can store the data in a routing table and it helps in further sending the data.

It is a passive device.

It is an active device.

Hub can operate at a speed of 10Mbps.

The switch can operate at a speed of 10-100Mbps and 1- 10 Gbps.

Advantages of Network Hubs:

Less expensive.

Does not impact network performance.

Support different network media.

Easily connects with different media.

Disadvantages of Network Hubs:

It cannot find the best/ shortest path of the network.

No mechanism for traffic detection.

No mechanism for data filtration.

Not capable of connecting to different network topologies like token, ring, ethernet, etc.

For more details please refer Advantages and Disadvantages of Hub article.

principles and features of work, its differences from switch

Building a local network between computers and enterprise servers requires specialized equipment. One such device used to organize a grid is a hub. From this article, you will learn what it is and how it differs from a switch network switch.

Translated from English hub (hub) means center, fork, branch or junction. Another name for this device is a network hub. It serves to combine computers and enterprise servers into a single local network. Moreover, the number of devices connected to the network directly depends on the number of ports / connectors of the hub.

How a network hub works

A HUB works by duplicating the incoming signal and transmitting it to devices connected to the network. In this case, the information is not sent to a specific computer, but becomes available to all users. To make it easier to understand, consider the principle of operation of a network hub using a specific example .

The enterprise has six computers and a server connected to a local network using a hub. It is necessary to transfer information (data packet) from computer No. 6 to computer No. 3. Computer No. 6 sends a signal to the hub, after which it is duplicated and simultaneously transmitted to all devices connected to the network. As soon as the addressee (computer No. 3) has received the sent information, the response is sent to the network hub, from where it is again transmitted to all devices in order to find computer No. 6.

HUB features

From the above example, it becomes clear that in the process of information exchange, it is sent twice to all equipment connected to the local network, regardless of who the data packet is addressed to. The first time at the time of the poll, the second – during the transmission of the response signal. As a result, the load on the network grows in direct proportion to the number of devices connected to it. Against the background of the information presented, it is easy to identify features of a local network organized with the help of a HUB.

increasing the number of ports/connectors reduces the throughput of the network hub;

data transfer takes place at the speed of the slowest node and is carried out to all devices, and not just to those for which

data is transferred to absolutely all ports, and not only to connected ones.

Important!
These properties significantly reduce the security level of the local network and allow third-party programs to access the logins and passwords used on the network.

Advantages of a network switch (switch)

Unlike a hub, a switch network switch sends data directly to the destination. The effectiveness of this process is ensured by the unique MAC addresses assigned by the manufacturer. Thanks to them, the switch determines a specific device on the local network and purposefully transmits information to it. Read what a switch, router is and how it works in the relevant articles on our website.

Key differences between network hub and switch

HUB splits the signal and transmits it to all devices included in the local network, and the switch sends it directly to the addressee;

Since the signal is transmitted to all devices, and not just to those to whom it is intended, the local network built on a network hub is much slower than on a switch;

Data transmitted over a local network created using a hub is particularly vulnerable to malware;

A network organized through a network hub does not need to fine-tune network cards, but a network built on a switch does;

Data transfer through the HUB is at the physical level, and through the switch – at the channel level;

The cost of a network hub is slightly less than the price of a switch;

Important!
With the help of a hub, it is impossible to build a full-fledged local network even in a small office. The best option for using this equipment is the organization of a home grid.

Need a local network, but you can’t decide on the equipment? Order a free consultation and our experts will help you choose the best option for solving your specific problems.

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Hub	Switch
It works on the physical layer of the OSI model.	It works on the data link layer of the OSI model.
It performs frame flooding, which includes broadcast, multicast and unicast as well.	It mainly performs broadcasts and performs multicast, and unicast whenever required.
The transmission mode is half-duplex.	The transmission mode is full-duplex.
It cannot perform data filtering.	It can filter data and send the frame to the desired destination.
There is no spanning tree.	A switch may contain more than one spanning tree possible.
It can not store the MAC address of the ports and the destination address of the frame that arrived.	It can store the data in a routing table and it helps in further sending the data.
It is a passive device.	It is an active device.
Hub can operate at a speed of 10Mbps.	The switch can operate at a speed of 10-100Mbps and 1- 10 Gbps.