What is networking hardware? Networking hardware includes all computers, peripherals, interface cards and other equipment needed to perform data-processing and communication within the network, below is a list of some networking hardware: 1 A file server stands at the heart of most networks, it is a very fast computer with a large amount of ram and storage space, along with a fast network interface card. The network operating system software resides on this computer, along with any software application and data files that need to be shared.2 All computers connected to the file server on a network are called workstations. A typical workstation is a computer that is configured with a network interface card, networking software, and the a appropriate cables, and does not necessarily require a hard or CD/DVD drives because files can be saved on the file server. 3 A hub is used to receive signal from one computer and transmit them to all computers in the network. A hub can be active or passive. An active hub acts as a repeaters. A passive hub is basically just a junction box, it splits incoming signals for transmission a cross the network. 4 A switch is an ‘intelligent hub’ that has the ability to determine the destination mac address of a packet. In stead of passing the packet to all ports, the switch forwards it only to the port to which it is addressed. Thus, a switch can reduce network traffic. 5 A bridge is a relay or interconnecting device that is used to join two lan`s .The function of a Bridge may be performed by a server or an independent Bridge device .An operation of the bridge is to convert a wired Connection to a wireless connection and vise – versa, for example a Nano-Station network device 6 A router translates information from one network to another : similar to a super – intelligent Bridge . It selects the best path to route a message , based on the source and destination address an can direct traffic to prevent head – on collisions , While bridges know the addresses of all computers on each side of the network ,routers know the addresses of computers ,bridges ,and other routers on the network and can even “listen” to the entire network then redirect data around those sections until they clear up 7.