Bus Topology

Bus Topology

In a bus topology, all of the computers in a network are attached to a continuous cable, or segment, that connects them in a straight line. In this straight-line topology, a packet is transmitted to all network adapters on that segment.

Because of the way electrical signals are transmitted over this cable, the ends of the cable must be terminated by hardware devices called terminators, which act as the boundaries for the signal and define the segment. If there is a break anywhere in the cable or if an end is not terminated, the signal will travel back and forth across the network and all communication will stop.

The number of computers attached to a bus also affects network performance. The more computers there are on the bus, the greater the backup of computers waiting to put data on the bus, and consequently, the slower the network. In addition, because of the way computers communicate in a bus topology, there may be a lot of noise. Noise is the traffic generated on the network when computers attempt to communicate with each other simultaneously. An increase in the number of computers results in an increase in noise and a corresponding decrease in network efficiency.