Your computer is part of a network called a local area network (LAN). A LAN is a network of computers in the same physical location, such as a building. Network specialists developed LANs to reduce the cost of having to provide a printer or scanner for each computer and reduce the amount of desk space used for these components. Your computer connects to your building’s LAN. In Building 152, for example, the local network consists of the computers in the computer labs, the Distance Learning computers, Planetarium computers, and administrative computers used by professors and staff in the building.
A wide area network(WAN), on the other hand, is a network of computers linked together across a great distance such as a town or city. The CTC network’s WAN is between the Central Campus and the Fort Hood and Gatesville campuses. The Gatesville campus connects to the main network through a frame relay circuit. A frame relay circuit is a packet switching protocol for connecting devices, such as computers and printers, on a WAN through a four-wire dedicated telephone line, or T1 circuit. A packet switching protocol is an agreed up format developed by various network specialists that allow individual packets to transfer along shared public routes to its destination. T1 circuits are four-wire dedicated telephone lines leased to businesses that transfer data up to 1.544Mbps. The Fort Hood campus connects to the network through 11 kilometers (5 miles) of leased fiber optic cable that transfers data at 1Gbps each way.
For more information contact the Help Desk at extension 3103.
Send mail to help.desk@ctcd.edu with questions or comments about this web site.
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Telephone (254)501-3103
FAX (254)526-1950
P.O. Box 1800, Killeen, TX 76540-1800