v  Hubs and switches are different types of network equipment that connect devices. They differ in the way that they pass on the network traffic that they receive.

v  Switches differ in some ways. They can be of the store-and-forward type, storing each incoming packet in an internal buffer before forwarding it, or cut-through, beginning to forward packets already after their header is in and before the rest of the packet has been received.

v  Hubs repeat everything they receive and can be used to extend the network. However, this can result in a lot of unnecessary traffic being sent to all devices on the network. Hubs pass on traffic to the network regardless of the intended destination.

v  In a small network (less than 30 users), a hub (or collection of hubs) can easily cope with the network traffic generated and is the ideal piece of equipment to use for connecting the users.

v  When the network gets larger (about 50 users), you may need to use a switch to divide the groups of hubs, to cut down the amount of unnecessary traffic being generated.