A physical bus topology connects all networked devices to a single continuous cable. Data may pass directly from one station to another without first going through a hub or around the ring. In a logical bus topology all network communications are broadcast to the entire network. A star network is the most reliable, since the remaining segments of the star can still function if one segment goes bad. In a bus or ring topology, a bad segment can bring down the entire network.
Most networks are a hybrid of the three types.
A network's logical topology does not have to match its physical topology. For example, in most token ring networks the network may be set up as a phyical star, with the data and wiring passing through a hub. However, data are transmitted from workstation to workstation, passing through the hub, using the logical ring topology. Click here to go to the beginning of Internet Networking . Click here to go to the next topic in this section.