Router vs. Hub

basically:

A hub is a very simple device that connects computers & network
devices on a single physical lan. A network can be simply
extended/expanded by adding hubs or switches. A switch basically
performs the same role as a hub but is more efficient. (They can do a
little more than that but lets start simple.) Switches operate on the
data link layer unlike routers.

A router is a device that connects networks. It can be used to share
a single IP address. It is a much more sophisticated and complex
device that more actively directs & examines traffic. Routers make
decisions about traffic based on the network layer protocols (like IP,
IPX, etc.). Routers usually have firewall software & sometimes have
VPN software included. They allow traffic to travel among multiple
paths & can extend the speed, distance, & intelligence of lans.


google these terms as well as the "OSI Seven-Layer Model" for more
detail.

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/networking/bridge_types.htm
http://www.asante.com/support/routerguide/faqs/hardwared.html
 >> Stay informed about: Router vs. Hub 

frank1492 wrote:
 > Could someone please explain the difference? Also,
 > are hubs available with their own firewalls?

A hub is nothing more than a simple electrical connector of wires. When
you take an Ethernet cable from computer A and one from computer B, you
connect their cables into a hub, all the hub is doing is providing an
electrical conductor for the electrical signals to flow from one
computer's cable to the other computer's cable. There's nothing at all
that's intelligent about it, it does no processing on the data. At best
it might amplify the signals coming into it and going out of it, so that
they can travel slightly farther; but this is a simple analog electrical
signal boost nothing more.

A router on the other hand is a very intelligent device. It can actually
be considered a miniature computer of its own because it's got some
intelligence. The router will examine the packets of data coming into
it, and decide where the data is to be sent next, eg. within the same
local network, or to an outside network. Because the router is an
intelligent device, one of the features it can be made to provide is
firewalling capabilities.

  Yousuf Khan<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Router vs. Hub 

Yousuf Khan wrote:
 > frank1492 wrote:
 >
  >> Could someone please explain the difference? Also,
  >> are hubs available with their own firewalls?
 >
 >
 > A hub is nothing more than a simple electrical connector of wires.

I'm not sure I'd go that far. Somebody might wonder why they need to
be powered. But the concept is pretty close.

When
 > you take an Ethernet cable from computer A and one from computer B, you
 > connect their cables into a hub, all the hub is doing is providing an
 > electrical conductor for the electrical signals to flow from one
 > computer's cable to the other computer's cable. There's nothing at all
 > that's intelligent about it, it does no processing on the data. At best
 > it might amplify the signals coming into it and going out of it, so that
 > they can travel slightly farther; but this is a simple analog electrical
 > signal boost nothing more.

You sure? I think most (all?) are digital.

 >
 > A router on the other hand is a very intelligent device. It can actually
 > be considered a miniature computer of its own because it's got some
 > intelligence. The router will examine the packets of data coming into
 > it, and decide where the data is to be sent next, eg. within the same
 > local network, or to an outside network.

Or another local subnet.

Because the router is an
 > intelligent device, one of the features it can be made to provide is
 > firewalling capabilities.

_Some_ can.

 >
 > Yousuf Khan


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 >> Stay informed about: Router vs. Hub 

Please note that a router often shares the connection to whatever it's
connected to, using an built-in switch or hub.
To keep it simple, a router extends the functionality of a switch/hub.
 >> Stay informed about: Router vs. Hub 

Morten Skyt wrote:
 > Please note that a router often shares the connection to whatever it's
 > connected to, using an built-in switch or hub.
 > To keep it simple, a router extends the functionality of a switch/hub.
 >
To me they're totally different functions, operating at different
levels. The line is blurred by combined devices that contain, e.g.,
both a router and a switch.

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On Sun, 30 Jan 2005 19:11:02 GMT, CJT <abujlehc.RemoveThis@prodigy.net> wrote:

 >Morten Skyt wrote:
  >> Please note that a router often shares the connection to whatever it's
  >> connected to, using an built-in switch or hub.
  >> To keep it simple, a router extends the functionality of a switch/hub.
  >>
 >To me they're totally different functions, operating at different
 >levels.

I agree. Also "extending functionality" is an awfully general
concept.

 > The line is blurred by combined devices that contain, e.g.,
 >both a router and a switch.

To some extent. Depends on whether you still think of these as two
devices (even if they are in one chassis) or a hybrid device. The
line is blurred even further by layer 3 switches (although partly this
is more semantics than concept).<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Router vs. Hub