desktop processors and the requirements of client applications continue to increase, the demand
for support beyond 10 Mbps has increased as well. The medium-to-large LANs of today
demand greater bandwidth to support multimedia, videoconferencing, and quality of service
(QoS) requirements. The CCDP should take advantage of the latest LAN technologies, such as
Gigabit Ethernet and switching, to meet the greater demands of the network.
switch that supports the most bandwidth. Although this solution will probably solve most
issues, it does not represent a cost-effective solution that matches a business requirement with
a technical requirement. This section explores LAN technologies in an attempt to explain the
issues and problems that are encountered in LANs today. This section will help you do more
than just throw high-speed switches and maximum bandwidth at every problem you encounter.
segmentation using VLANs.
Token Ring technology. You can use a Token Ring switch as either a transparent bridge or
a source-route bridge.
X3T9.5, specifying a 100 Mbps token-passing network using fiber-optic cable.
for voice, video, and data.
Ethernet technology is 10 Mbps twisted-pair. The 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet standard operates
over twisted-pair and fiber-optic media. As the 100 Mbps standard becomes more widely
adopted, hubs and computers are being equipped with interfaces that operate at both 10 Mbps
and 100 Mbps. The most recent Ethernet standard, 1 Gigabit Ethernet, operates over twisted-
pair and fiber-optic media at 1000 Mbps. Figure 3-2 shows an Ethernet network.