When would you use a server based network?

A server based network also called client server network. This is lot different from peer to peer network and it provides added advantages. The needs of client server network depends on the requirements of individuals and companies.

For instance, if you are in a home or small office where you need that some of your computers communicate, peer to peer network is excellent. In this communication, all the computers are part of a workgroup and can share limited resources. The greatest drawback of this network is security and monitoring.

The client server network is the most sophisticated network which is being used all around the globe. So what's the difference between peer to peer and client server network?. As I already told you about peer to peer, lets see what client server network offers.

You have a server computer with a good server operating system which handles all the operations. It authenticates users to log on to the server. All the requests are passed through to server computer. All user accounts, groups, policies, securities, firewalls, monitoring and restrictions are put on server and they are replicated throughout the network. The internet and file sharing is also done through server. Users can also print on any printer where they have permission from the Administrator.

So, server based network provides you full support and all kinds of facilities which are never possible in peer to peer network. The network administrator has full control over the network. He performs all the operations according to company's IT policy. So, if you want to implement a server based network, try installing Windows Server 2008 on server and install Windows XP on client side, to reap maximum benefits of client server network.