Module 6: Network Media
Networking Basics (BNET)
Module Objectives
Module Title: Network Media
Module Objective: Describe common network media.
Topic Title Topic Objective
Network Media Types Describe common types of network cables.
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6.1 Network Media Types
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Network Media Types
Video - Network Media Types
This video is about network media that provides the connectivity and the path for the communications
to travel over in a network.
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Network Media Types
Three Media Types
• A network of media transmits data.
• The media provides the channel over which the
message travels from source to destination.
• Modern networks primarily use three types of media
to interconnect devices, as shown in the figure:
• Metal wires within cables - Data encodes into
electrical impulses.
• Glass or plastic fibers within cables (fiber-
optic cable) - Data encodes into light pulses.
• Wireless transmission - Data is encoded via
modulation of specific frequencies of
electromagnetic waves.
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Network Media Types
Three Media Types (Cont.)
The four main criteria for choosing network media are these:
• What is the maximum distance that the media can successfully carry a signal?
• What is the environment in which the media will be installed?
• What amount of data and at what speed must it be transmitted?
• What is the cost of the media and installation?
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Network Media Types
Common Network Cables
• The three most common network cables are twisted-pair, coaxial cable, and fiber-optic cable.
• Twisted-Pair Cable
• Ethernet technology generally uses twisted-pair
cables to interconnect devices.
• Because Ethernet is the foundation for most local
networks, twisted-pair is the most encountered type
of network cabling.
• In twisted-pair, wires are grouped in pairs and
twisted together to reduce interference.
• The pairs of wires are colored so that you can
identify the same wire at each end.
• Typically, in each pair, one of the wires is a solid
color, and its partner is the same color striped
onto a white background.
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Network Media Types
Common Network Cables (Cont.)
• Coaxial Cable
• One of the earliest types of network cabling
developed.
• The kind of copper cable used by cable TV
companies.
• Also used for connecting the various components
which make up satellite communication systems.
• It has a single rigid copper core that conducts the
signal.
• A layer of insulation, braided metal shielding, and a
protective jacket typically surround this core.
• It is a high-frequency transmission line to carry
high-frequency or broadband signals.
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Network Media Types
Common Network Cables (Cont.)
• Fiber-Optic Cable
• It can be either glass or plastic with a diameter
about the same as human hair and can carry digital
information at very high speeds over long
distances.
• Because light is used instead of electricity, electrical
interference does not affect the signal.
• It has many uses as well as communications.
• They have very high bandwidth, enabling them to
carry large amounts of data.
• Its uses include backbone networks, large
enterprise environments, large data centers,
telephone companies, medical imaging, medical
treatment, and mechanical engineering inspection.
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6.2 Network Media Summary
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Network Media Summary
What Did I Learn in this Module?
• The communication transmits across a network of media.
• The media provides the channel over which the message travels from source to destination.
• Modern networks primarily use three media types to interconnect devices: metal wires with cables,
fiber-optic cables, and wireless transmission.
• The four main criteria for choosing media are the following:
• What is the maximum distance that the media can successfully carry a signal?
• What is the environment in which the media will be installed?
• What amount of data and at what speed must it be transmitted?
• What is the cost of the media installation?
• The three most common network cables are twisted-pair, coaxial, and fiber-optic.
• Ethernet technology generally uses twisted-pair cables to interconnect devices.
• Coaxial cable is the copper cable used by cable TV companies to connect the components that make
up satellite communication systems.
• Fiber-optic cable can be either glass or plastic with a diameter about the same as human hair. It can
carry digital information at very high speeds over long distances.
• Because light is used instead of electricity, electrical interference does not affect the signal.
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