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Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science · 0478
Topic 3: Hardware — Part 5
Network Hardware
Network Interface Card (NIC)
- Purpose
- Hardware inside a device required to access a network.
- Function
- Converts data into signals (voltages/pulses for wired, radio waves for wireless).
- MAC address
- Each NIC is assigned a unique MAC address during manufacture.
MAC addresses
- Definition
- A permanent hardware/physical identifier for devices on a local network.
- Structure
- Consists of two parts: a manufacturer code and a serial code.
- Format
- Usually written in hexadecimal to reduce character length.
Exam Traps
- Do not confuse MAC and IP addresses — a MAC address is a permanent hardware identifier assigned during manufacture, whereas an IP address is allocated by the network and can change (static or dynamic).
IP addresses
- Definition
- Unique identifiers allocated by the network to each connected device.
- Types
- Can be static (fixed) or dynamic (changing).
- Versions
- IPv4 (32-bit, written as four decimal numbers separated by dots) vs. IPv6 (128-bit, written as eight groups of hex digits separated by colons).
Exam Traps
- IPv4 uses four decimal groups (32-bit); IPv6 uses eight hex groups (128-bit) — do not mix the formats in an exam answer.
Routers
- Role
- Directs data packets between different networks.
- Process
- Reads the destination IP address of each packet and forwards it along the best path.
- Other functions
- Connects local networks to the internet and can assign local IP addresses via DHCP.
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