Quick quiz: Do you tend toward being a controlling type, or do you relate better to a more permissive style? As with personality types, some network configuration types function to control computer users; other network types are more relaxed about controls. You can choose a mode for your current needs and then easily change your network to another mode if the circumstances warrant. The basic hardware and configuration stuff that goes into creating a network doesn't change much among the network types, so your choices mostly depend on how you want to communicate among computers.
Client/server networks for control freaks
Networking schemes that operate in client/server mode are common in businesses. These schemes include a main computer (a server) that controls users and holds files and peripherals shared by all the other computers (clients or workstations).
One of the most important reasons to install a client/server network is user authentication, which is a security feature. The server on a client/server network checks to see if a Suzie Q. user is who she says she is and controls whether she can join the network. If she's eligible, the server continues to control her network tasks, determining what she can do. For example, perhaps she can read files but not delete them. The good news is that if you set up the network, you can control everything. (Heh, heh, heh.)
All the client computers are connected in a way that gives them physical access to the server. Everyone who works at a client computer can use files and peripherals that are on his or her individual computer (the local computer) or on the server. Look at Figure 1 to see the communication between computers in a client/server environment.
Figure 1: In a client/server network, all the client computers have to check in with the server.
Even though all the computers are connected to each other, each client usually communicates with the server. However, you can configure the network so that the users on client computers can also access the other client computers on the network.
Large client/server networks (usually found in the workplace) frequently have multiple servers, and each server has a specific job. For example, one server is used for authenticating users, one manages everyone's email, one contains the accounting software, and yet another has the word processing software. The common network operating systems used for servers on client/server networks are Windows NT, Windows 2000, Novell NetWare, and UNIX/Linux. These kinds of networks may be a little more than you need - unless you're thinking of running an enormous enterprise-like business out of your home.
Peer-to-peer networks: More relaxed about controls
Peer-to-peer networks permit all the computers on a network to communicate with each other. In Figure 2, you can see a typical peer-to-peer network communication structure.
Figure 2: Everybody talks to everybody in a peer-to-peer network.
If you have computers running Windows (95/98/Me/XP), you can have a peer-to-peer network because the support for this type of network is built into the operating system.
With a peer-to-peer network, you can impose security on some resources, such as files, but most of the security features don't come close to the security of a client/server network. The exception is the security available in Windows XP, which is modeled on Microsoft's corporate versions of Windows.
Mixed networks fit all types
Some networks are both client/server and peer-to-peer. Users log on to the network server and then use it to access software and store the documents that they create. Because the peer-to-peer network is built into the operating system, users can also transfer files from other clients and access printers connected to other clients. A mixed network is the best-of-all-worlds scenario for many businesses.
