Home Networking: The Basics
Home networking can do much more than connect your computers to the Internet.
With high-speed wireless home networking and a wireless laptop, you can:
- Check e-mail throughout the house
- Get content where you need it (such as recipes in the kitchen and homework info at the kitchen table)
- Video chat in the living room
- Store your music library, photos, and videos on one computer or server, and wirelessly stream them to your TV, computer, or other device
- Wireless home networking also lets you stream Internet movies to your HDTV or home theater
- Challenge friends to awesome interactive games from any room in your home
- Save money and time with home networking by sharing files, printers, storage and other peripherals
What You Need for Home Networking
In most home networking setups, a broadband modem (for DSL or cable) delivers a high-speed, always-on Internet connection. The modem connects to a router, a hardware device that connects computers together and to the Internet.
There are two types of home networking setups: wired and wireless. For either type, you need a router. Today's wireless routers let you connect computers and other hardware using Ethernet cables, or wirelessly over radio waves.
The simplest home networking setups are used to connect two or more PCs for sharing files, printers, and a single connection to the Internet (usually broadband Internet through a cable or DSL provider). A server can be added for increased functionality.
More recently, telephone and cable companies have been using home networking to provide triple play services (voice, video and data) to customers. The home network usually operates over the existing home wiring (coaxial cable in North America, phone wires in apartments or condos and powerline in Europe). These home networks are often professionally installed and managed by the telco.
Home Network Elements
A home network is built using the following pieces:
- A broadband modem for connection to the internet (either a DSL modem using the phone line, or cable modem using the cable internet connection).
- A router (sometimes called a residential gateway) connected between the broadband modem and the rest of the network. This enables multiple devices to connect to the internet simultaneously. Routers (residential gateways), hubs/switches, DSL modems, and wireless access points are often combined.
- PC, or multiple PCs including laptops.
- A wireless access point, usually implemented as a feature of the broadband connection rather than a separate box, for connecting wireless devices.
- Entertainment add-ons An increasing number of devices can be connected to the home network, including DVRs like TiVo, digital audio players, games machines, stereo system, and IPset-top boxes.
- Internet phones (for Voice over Internet Protocol telephony, or VoIP).
- A network bridge connects two networks together, often giving a wired device, such as a multimedia game player, access to a wireless network.
- Network attached storage (NAS) device that acts as a central storage/hard drive on the network.
- Print server shares printers among computers on the network.
- An additional network hub/switch provides a central networking hub containing a number of Ethernet ports for connecting multiple networked devices.
Which Wireless?
The Wireless G standard (802.11g) is best for basic networking set-ups in small homes or apartments. The newer Wireless N standard (802.11n) lets you do more things at greater speed and bandwidth across a larger space, such as streaming video and music and downloading Internet movies. Wireless N also extends the range and strength of your home network further than other wireless standards. The cost of Wireless N-based products is about the same as products based on Wireless G.
Home Network Solutions
Linksys® by Cisco offers affordable, advanced routers and other home network solutions for a variety of budgets and needs.
Discover how high-performance wireless home networking products from Linksys by Cisco provide the foundation you need for enjoying music around the house.
Find out how streaming media can enhance your home entertainment.
Want more entertainment options? Learn about Linksys by Cisco cable TV set-top boxes with integrated digital video recorder technology.
Enjoy the best of Internet TV with Linksys by Cisco Media Center Extender products for your home-entertainment system.
What is visual networking? Find out.
Learn more about Linksys by Cisco Wireless Home Audio products and kits.
