Hybrid Topology

urban design & planning but it's networking

we have the basic network topologies:

• star
• mesh
• p2p

but they might not work for more complex organizational structures. that's why we mix and match. for example, many organization's follow cisco's standard for a three tiered hierarchical model.

• core
• distribution (split between routing and switching)
• access

basically, everything that's above the access layer is interconnected in one big mesh network.

Access/Edge Layer

where most of the nodes connect to the network. groups of workstations are connected to a router for that group, which connects to the switching section of the distribution layer. There are no direct connections between the routers of the edge layer.