Network Adapter Cards

A network interface card (NIC) is a hardware component without which a computer cannot be
connected over a network. It is a circuit board installed in a computer that provides a dedicated
network connection to the computer. It is also called network interface controller, network
adapter or LAN adapter.
Purpose

 NIC allows both wired and wireless communications.

 NIC allows communications between computers connected via local area network (LAN)
as well as communications over large-scale network through Internet Protocol (IP).

 NIC is both a physical layer and a data link layer device, i.e. it provides the necessary
hardware circuitry so that the physical layer processes and some data link layer processes
can run on it.
Classification of NIC Cards
NIC cards are classified into two −

Internal Network Cards

In internal networks cards, motherboard has a slot for the network card where it can be inserted.
It requires network cables to provide network access. Internal network cards are of two types.
The first type uses Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) connection, while the second type
uses Industry Standard Architecture (ISA).
External Network Cards
In desktops and laptops that do not have an internal NIC, external NICs are used. External
network cards are of two types: Wireless and USB based. Wireless network card needs to be
inserted into the motherboard, however no network cable is required to connect to the network.
They are useful while traveling or accessing a wireless signal.

What is Network Interface Card – Types, Working & Its Components

Network Interface Card (NIC) is a hardware unit, which is inbuilt inside a computer provided
with a slot, it connects the computer to a computer network for communication with other
devices via buses. There are many synonyms for network interface card like, network
adapter, local area network (LAN) card or physical network interface card, ethernet controller or
ethernet adapter, network controller, and connection card. Network interface card supports
almost all standard buses for data transfer between the computers or devices. The connectors or
buses act as an intermediator for communication converts the communication between various
devices from serial communication to parallel communication or parallel communication to
serial communication. It also formats data based on the architecture of the network. This article
discusses an overview of What is a wireless network interface card, and its types.

What is a Network Interface Card?

Definition: Network interface card NIC is a hardware component, where network controllers are
integrated on to a circuit board that uses standard OSI model of 7 layers to communicate and it
acts like a trans-receiver, where it can transmit and receives at the same time while
communicating with other devices. Suppose if we want to communicate with another device, let
us assume the case of client and server, where the communication between them takes place by
firstly sending signals to the physical layer, and then transmitting data packets to the network
layer which is an interface at TCP/IP. Connection to the motherboard is made using any one of
the following via
 PCI connector
 ISA connector
 ISA connector
 PCI-E
 FireWire
 USB
 Thunderbolt.
The connection to the network is made via any one of the following

 Ethernet
 Wi-Fi
 Token – Ring
 ATM
Functions of NIC
 It acts like a translator, which converts data into a digital signal.
 Communication can be either by using cable wire or by the router which is wireless over the
server network
 To communicate over a long distance a network adapter is used.
Types of Network Interface Cards

There are two types NIC they are,

 Ethernet NIC
 Wireless Network NIC
Ethernet NIC

Ethernet NIC card is a slot for a cable where we have to plug one end of the Ethernet cable into
the slots of the computer and another end of the cable is plugged into the modem, likewise,
various devices are connected to make a communication set up between them. There are three
standards in Ethernet they are

 5-Base T: It was developed in 1973, which can transmit, paragraphs using coaxial cable up to
a distance 1000mts.
 10-Base T: It was developed in 1987, it uses twisted cables like telephonic cables for
communication.
 100-Base T: It is also known as fast Ethernet, the speed of data transmitted is very high.
 Gigabit Ethernet: It is also named as 1000-Base T Ethernet, the special feature of this is it
increases the network bandwidth up to 10 times, which can transmit up to 1000mbps of data.

Wireless Network NIC

Wireless network NIC cards consist of a small antenna integrated onto the card, where the
communication between various devices is set up wirelessly using the router and various
network protocols. One such example of a wireless network NIC card is fiber data digital
interface FDDI. In a case where data has to be transmitted over long distances, in such cases, a
fiber data digital interface FDDI concept is used which translates data into digital pulses and
communicates using optical fiber. FDDI is ring-type architecture, which is of 100mbps,
transmission, and retransmission for a long distance is an advantage of FDDI.

Components of Network Interface Card

The main components of the Network Interface Card are as follows

 An external Memory is used to store the data temporarily and uses the stored data whenever
required while processing the communication.
 Connectors are used to make the physical link between cables and plugin with the board, this
type of connection is especially seen in Ethernet type of NIC cables.
 A Processor converts the data message into a signal format for communication to take place
easily.
 Different types of standard Buses are plugged into Buses Connector slots, based on the
compatibility of the operation process buses are chosen.
 Jumpers or Dual in package switches are used to control the communication operation, which
is either by turning on or turning off the switch.
 MAC address which is a unique identity address is given to network interface card where
ethernet packets are communicated with the computer. MAC address is also known as a
physical network address.
 A router is an NIC device that is used to connect wirelessly to the internet.

Working of NIC

The Functions of the network interface card is, it acts like a bridge connecting multiple
computers using LAN – local area network or router, which is plugged into the NIC card slot.
Considering a live scenario of corporate offices, for a better understanding of the concept.
In a company there may be many computers provided with WiFi access, where each employee is
assigned with one computer to work when the employee wants to access the company website to
update his day to day work status, he is provided with his login credentials. He can only log in to
his profile based on two scenarios, one is a proper internet connection which can be either wired
or wireless connection or other correct login credentials. Here come a few questions about
network interface card NIC concept that is, how the network is connected and how data transfer
takes place?

These computers which are connected to NIC communicate over the internet where the incoming
data travels along the media is received by NIC. These bits which are received formatted into
frames, CRC (cyclic redundant code) is compared with CRC (cyclic redundant code) in the
frame trailer and calculated using CRC (cyclic redundant code) algorithm. If CRC (cyclic
redundant code) doesn’t match it means the frame is damaged/changed and it is discarded. This
kind of situation is rarely observed in an electrically noisy environment.

Another case where if the CRC (cyclic redundant code) is ok, the destination MAC address is
checked, if it is matching the network interface card of the broadcast frame, then the frame is
processed forward else discarded. Once the MAC address is verified, the frame header and trailer
are stripped creating a packet that is transmitted using network protocols for further processing.
This is the actual job of NIC in one direction.

Now for an out-going data, the reverse process is used. The network protocol transfers a packet
to the NIC. The NIC adds the source and destination MAC address as the frame header and
calculates the CRC for the trailer. Now the frame is ready to transmit. The NIC converts the
frame for transmission onto the medium as bit signals.

Advantages

The advantages of the Network Interface Card are as follows

 The communication speed using the Internet is high usually in Gigabytes

 Highly reliable connection
 Many peripheral devices can be connected using many ports of NIC cards.
 Bulk data can be shared among many users.
Disadvantages

The disadvantages of Network Interface Card are as follows

 Inconvenient in case of wired cable NIC, as it is not portable like a wireless router
 The configuration should be proper for better communication.
 Data is unsecured.
Applications

The applications of Network Interface Card are as follows

 The computer uses NIC for data exchange over a network like documents, images, files, etc.
 Applicable for wireless communication devices like Firewalls, Bridges, Repeater.
 Applicable for wired communication devices hubs, switches, router, smartphones, etc.