Mesh Topology
A mesh network is a local area network that employs one of two connection arrangements. There are two type of Mesh topology; full mesh topology or partial mesh topology. In the full mesh topology, each workstation or other device is connected directly to one another. In the partial mesh topology, some nodes are connected to all the others, but some of the nodes are connected only to those other nodes with which they exchange the most data. A mesh network is reliable and offers redundancy. If one node can no longer operate, all the rest can still communicate with each other, directly or through one or more intermediate nodes. Mesh networks work well when the nodes are located at scattered points that do not lie near a common line. This topology is not commonly used for most computer networks as it is difficult and expensive to have redundant connection to every computer. However, this topology is commonly used for wireless networks.
Advantages of a Mesh Topology include eliminating traffic problems in links sharing; if one link becomes unusable, it does not incapacitate the entire system. Thus, act as robust; it has privacy and security; Point-to-point link make fault identification and fault isolation easy. Disadvantages of a Mesh Topology include installation and reconnections are difficult; the hardware required to connect each link (I/O ports and cable) is expensive; it is generally too costly and complex for practical networks.
Bus Topology
In local area networks where bus technology is used, each machine is connected to a long, single cable. The cable acts as a backbone to link all the devices in a network. Each computer or server is connected to the single bus cable through drop lines and some kind of connector. A terminator is required at each end of the bus cable to prevent the signal from bouncing back and forth on the bus cable. A bus