VM,
As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. These are a couple of good diagrams.
The page below is good, because it gives at least four advantages of using a server.
http://www.techsoup.org/learningcenter/networks/page4773.cfmThe diagram below is excellent, because it shows a simple peer-to-peer and a slightly more complicated peer-to-peer. In all peer-to-peers, all computers either directly or indirectly connect to each other and share files off each other. With a small LAN, 2 to 5 computers, this works well. When you get larger, then finding files and backups, etc. becomes difficult and managing it is harder, because each user becomes problematic as he or she has a lot of control over his or her files and shares plus users have less privacy. Even though the second schematic has a hub, there is no central computer.
In diagram three, it shows all of the computers connected via a hub to a server. None connect directly to each other and ALL shares are on the server. While they are not connected directly to each other, they can still SEE files are on each other if they are shared. While the hub seems to be between the server and the clients, they are all still connected to the same hub or switch.
http://www.seniortechcenter.org/hardware_and_software/understanding_lans.phpEven though the diagrams in each and the information I give continues to say and show a hub, you would NEVER want to use a hub unless you want to go back in time at least five years. Switches have replaced hubs. They basically are the same except that switches are much faster. Hubs divide the bandwidth by the number of connections so if 100MBs per second going in and ten computers, then each get 10MBs per second. Swithces give the same 100MBs per second to each computer and the switch is smart and knows where each packet needs to go rather than a hub which just throws the packets out there and expects the computers to figure it out.
Lastly, we have ALL gone out and purchased hardware that we wish we had not done. For instance, you purchase a 10/100 Ethernet card, when you could have purchased a 10/100/1000 Ethernet card for the same price or a bit more and have one less thing to change if you go at a GB of speed.
Hope this helps. I think I tend to confuse more than help.
