i have a linksys network hub and ppl have told me that a network hub wont work to split the internet and that i need a router but other ppl have told me that it will work. so im getting mixed messages and im confused. so like the topic says. whats the difference between the 2?

Model:NH1005, V2

Ah the Age old Question. Router or Hub? Or Switch for that matter.

A hub is like a for-way stop without a traffic cop.
A switch is a bypass without lights.

A router is a bypass with lights and stat troopers all over.


ok A router is Secure and Smart. This means that it can assign
multiple IP Addresses and keep track of them.

Hubs and switches only split traffic up, they do not keep track of
who's who. A switch or hub would Work, but you'd need multiple
IP Adresses assigned by your ISP, which is usually more expensive than
getting a router and be done with it.

This information was pulled from my CCNA course material:

-Repeater-
The term repeater comes from the early days of long distance communication. A repeater was a person on one hill who would repeat the signal that was just received from the person on the previous hill. The process would repeat until the message arrived at its destination. Telegraph, telephone, microwave, and optical communications use repeaters to strengthen signals sent over long distances.

A repeater receives a signal, regenerates it, and passes it on. It can regenerate and retime network signals at the bit level to allow them to travel a longer distance on the media.

-Hub-
Hubs are actually multiport repeaters. The difference between hubs and repeaters is usually the number of ports that each device provides. A typical repeater usually has two ports. A hub generally has from 4 to 24 ports.

The use of a hub changes the network from a linear bus with each device plugged directly into the wire to a star topology. Data that arrives over the cables to a hub port is electrically repeated on all the other ports connected to the network segment.

Devices attached to a hub receive all traffic that travels through the hub. If many devices are attached to the hub, collisions are more likely to occur. A collision occurs when two or more workstations send data over the network wire at the same time. All data is corrupted when this occurs. All devices that are connected to the same network segment are members of the same collision domain.

Sometimes hubs are called concentrators since they are central connection points for Ethernet LANs.

-Router-
Routers are responsible for routing data packets from source to destination within the LAN, and for providing connectivity to the WAN. Within a LAN environment the router contains broadcasts, provides local address resolution services, such as ARP and RARP, and may segment the network using a subnetwork structure. In order to provide these services the router must be connected to the LAN and WAN.

The major differences lie in the layer at which each device functions in accordance with the TCP/IP layer model.

..also you never want to connect just a hub to a broadband modem. For one there is no NAT like routers have so you may have ip issues. Ther also is not SPI, sort of a firewall.

just wanted to make an addition to this topic ... Cyb3r_Ninj mentioned his CCNA training & that's exactly where I've received much of my knowledge on hubs, modems, routers, etc.
Will