What is Client/Server network?

Client/Server Network:

           

Client/Server networks are for more powerful and wide-ranging than peer-to-peer networks. They can support thousand of clients and they can link multiple computing platform, such as windows ‘95’98’NT’2000’XP and Macintosh. Like mainframe based centralized server and are administered from a central location.

            Whereas a peer-to-peer network consists have Computers linked to one and other, client/server networks consists of computer linked, again by means of cabling to a centralized server. The serer must be capable of running a Network Operating System (NOS), such as Windows’NT server, linux or Novel Netware. Such NOS are much more complex than a typical desktop operating system.

Client:

            Network clients are typically desktop computers with their own local storage and their own processing power. In order to communicate, both client Computers and server must be equipped with a network adapter card, or Network Interface Card (NIC card), which is usually installed in one of the expansion slots inside the machine. The network adapter card is responsible for both sending message  and for monitoring- ‘listening’ to the network for incoming message addressed to the client.

            To actually connect the client to the network cabling, the network adapter include a post that accept a cable ending in one of several types of connectors.

Server:

            Network serves are the behinds the scene workhorses that provide service requested by the client computer. The servers themselves can be categorized in different ways, depending on the type of work they do: Dedicated and Non Dedicated servers.

·                     Dedicated Server:

                        Dedicated Server are the quite powerful machines that powerful machines that power that network and provide resource but are never used for the tasks performed by the client desktop PC and workstations that request their services. This machine must be fast a powerful to handle simultaneous user requests and to run a network operating system that provides for network security, administration and management.

·                     Non-Dedicated server:

                          Non-dedicated server typical of peer to peer networks are: machines that are set up to they can both provide  (server) resources and do the work required of a client machine. These machines can be normal desktop PC in their day-to-day lives as long as they run an operating system, such as windows’98, NT workstation that gives them the ability to share files and resources. A non-dedicated server requires less processing power, memory and disk storage than a dedicated server so, typically it can a machine along the lines of a Pentium class desktop computer with say, a standard serving of 32 to 64 MB of RAM and hard disk of 3 GB or more.