LAN Basics
High-speed, fault-tolerant data network that covers a relatively small geographic area
LAN protocols function at the 2 lowest layers of OSI RM (Physical and Data Link Layers)
Typical access methods: CSMA/CD (carrier sense multiple access collision detection) and Token Passing
Transmission methods: unicast, multicast and broadcast; in these methods a single packet is sent to one or more nodes
LAN topologies: bus, star, ring
Devices: repeaters, hubs, bridges, switches, routers