Hubs, Switches and Routers

Many people wonder what the difference is between a networking hub, switch, and router. Some people don't know and don't want to know. But if you need to know, here is what you need to know...

Hub, Switch, Router - What's the Difference?

Hubs, switches, and routers are all electronic black boxes that let you connect computers and other devices in a network. In classic hardwired networking, each type of black box has two or more cable connectors into which you plug wires that physically connect devices. The wires can be of different types: Ethernet, serial, USB, etc. But Ethernet is by far the most common cable. The hub, switch, or router allows devices connected to it to communicate with one another in a network. This type of networking allows for files and folders to be shared by multiple computers, and also allows the sharing of printers and other devices.

The difference between hubs, switches, and routers lies in how much they control such communication.

A hub does not exert much control. It just accepts whatever data any device sends into it and broadcasts that data to every other device connected to it. A hub is simple and easy to set up for a small peer-to-peer network, or local area network (LAN). But a hub generates a lot of unnecessary data "chatter". Computer A may not need to know what computer B is sending to computer C, but the hub tells it anyway.

A switch is a little smarter than a hub. It "knows" which devices are connected to which ports. It keeps track of the addresses of all devices and delivers to each device only data that is addressed to it. This smart addressing cuts down on network traffic and increases the speed at which data is delivered to where it needs to be. Switches are intelligent but still fairly simple. They don't slow down data flow by "thinking" too much.

What is a Router?

Routers are the most complex of the three networking devices. A router includes the local networking features of a hub or switch, plus the ability to manage a connection to the Internet. A router is essentially a full-blown computer in its own right, programmable and complex in its firmware or operating system. A router can manipulate and change data, not just receive and send it.

This intelligence gives routers the ability to run firewalls, for example, which "hide" one or more devices from others on the network. Firewalls based in routers are primary lines of defense against bad guys out there on the Internet. If the bad guy can't find your computer behind a firewall then he can't hack his way into it. Firewall protection is just one example of what routers can do. The ability to act as a Network Address Translator (NAT) , a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server, and a Domain Name Service (DNS) server are other features that you can explore on your own. Some routers even have wireless access points built into them.

Typically, routers are used on the "edge" of a home or office network, connecting it to the great wide word via the Internet or a private Wide Area Network (WAN). In fact, you may see the label "WAN" on the port on the back of your router; that's where you plug in the cable that connects the router to the Internet.

In summary, a hub is a simple device that can connect computers or devices on a network, a switch is a smart hub with the ability to route network traffic more efficiently, and a router does all that plus manages connections to multiple networks and the Internet.

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