Bus topology is also known as line topology. In this topology, all nodes are directly connected to a single cable known as the backbone or main cable. Each node is known as a station. The type of cable to be used as a backbone depends on the type of network card. The most frequently used cable is the coaxial cable.
Above is a diagram showing the bus topology. Five nodes are connected to a single cable. Packets sent by any device will be received by all other devices. Let’s say that node 1 wants to share some data with node 6. When node 1 starts sending packets, they will be received by every device, including node 6. There is no one-to-one communication between any two nodes.
There is always the possibility of a packet collision. If two devices are transmitting packets at the same time, there is a high chance that the packets will collide. To avoid packet collisions on the network, it uses Media Access Control technology known as CSMA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access). CSMA makes sure only a single device should transmit the data on the cable.
Advantages
- It works well for a small network.
- Easy to implement
- It requires a smaller number of cables as compared to a star topology.
- It is easy to connect or remove devices without affecting the network.
- Very cost-effective
Disadvantages
- This is not great for a large network.
- Complete network will fail if the backbone cable is damaged.
- Require a terminator at both ends of the cable to stop the signal from bouncing back.
- There is a high number of packet losses.
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