Fully connected topology Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages and disadvantages of full-mesh topology in networking

In full-mesh topology, each device is connected to every other device in the network.

Advantage and Disadvantage of Mesh Topology

Prerequisite – Types of Network Topology

Mesh Topology :

In mesh, all the computers are interconnected to every other during a network. Each computer not only sends its own signals but also relays data from other computers. The nodes are connected to every other completely via a dedicated link during which information is travel from nodes to nodes and there are N[N-1]/2 links in mesh if there are N nodes. Every node features a point-to-point connection to the opposite node. The connections within the mesh are often wired or wireless.

There are two types of Mesh topologies –

1. Fully-connected Mesh Topology
2. Partially-connected Mesh Topology

1. Full Mesh Topology :

All the nodes within the network are connected with every other If there are n number of nodes during a network, each node will have an n-1 number of connections. A full mesh provides an excellent deal of redundancy, but because it is prohibitively expensive to implement, it’s usually reserved for network backbones.

2. Partial Mesh Topology :

The partial mesh is more practical as compared to the full mesh. In a partially connected mesh, all the nodes aren’t necessary to be connected with one another during a network. Peripheral networks are connected using partial mesh and work with a full-mesh backbone in tandem.

Advantages of Mesh Topology :

• Failure during a single device won’t break the network.
• There is no traffic problem as there is a dedicated point to point links for every computer.
• Fault identification is straightforward.
• This topology provides multiple paths to succeed in the destination and tons of redundancy.
• It provides high privacy and security.
• Data transmission is more consistent because failure doesn’t disrupt its processes.
• Adding new devices won’t disrupt data transmissions.
• This topology has robust features to beat any situation.
• A mesh doesn’t have a centralized authority.

Disadvantages of Mesh Topology :

• It’s costly as compared to the opposite network topologies i.e. star, bus, point to point topology.
• Installation is extremely difficult in the mesh.
• Power requirement is higher as all the nodes will need to remain active all the time and share the load.
• Complex process.
• The cost to implement mesh is above other selections.
• There is a high risk of redundant connections.
• Each node requires a further utility cost to think about.
• Maintenance needs are challenging with a mesh.

Article Tags :

Computer Networks

GATE CS

Data Link Layer

Practice Tags :

Computer Networks

Read Full Article

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.

What is network topology?

Network topology is the description of the arrangement of nodes [e.g. networking switches and routers] and connections in a network, often represented as a graph.

No matter how identical two organizations are, no two networks are exactly alike. However, many organizations are relying on well-established network topology models. Network topologies outline how devices are connected together and how data is transmitted from one node to another.

A logical network topology is a conceptual representation of how devices operate at particular layers of abstraction. A physical topology details how devices are physically connected.Logical and physical topologies can both be represented as visual diagrams.

A network topology map is a map that allows an administrator to see the physical network layout of connected devices. Having the map of a network’s topology on hand is very useful for understanding how devices connect to each other and the best techniques for troubleshooting.