E-business (electronic business) is the conduct of business processes on the internet.

These e-business processes include buying and selling goods and services, servicing customers,
processing payments, managing production control, collaborating with business partners, sharing
information, running automated employee services, recruiting; and more.

E-business can comprise a range of functions and services. They range from the
development of intranets and extranets to the provision of e-services over the internet
by application service providers.

Today, as corporations continuously rethink their businesses in terms of the internet --

specifically, the internet's availability, reach and ever-changing capabilities -- they are
conducting e-business to buy parts and supplies from other companies, collaborate on sales
promotions, and conduct joint research.

The growth of e-business in recent decades has given rise to new business requirements.
On the customer front, consumers expect organizations to offer self-service options for
conducting transactions; they expect personalized experiences; and they want speedy, secure
interactions. On the regulatory front, new laws and best practices for keeping electronic data
secure have been instated. As e-commerce accelerated, companies have adopted stringent
security protocols and tools, including encryption and digital certificates, to protect against
hackers, fraud and theft.

With the security built into browsers and with digital certificates now available for

individuals and companies from various vendors providing cybersecurity tools and technologies,
cybersecurity has become ingrained in e-business. However, the security of business transactions
on the web remains a pressing issue for consumers and enterprises alike, even as that concern has
not slowed the growth of e-business.

Local Area Network

Local Area Network is a computer network within a small geographical area such as a
home, school, computer laboratory, office building or group of buildings. It spans a relatively
small area. Most often, a LAN is confined to a single room, building or group of buildings,
however, one LAN can be connected to other LANs over any distance via telephone lines and
radio waves.
A LAN is composed of inter-connected workstations and personal computers which are
each capable of accessing and sharing data and devices, such as printers, scanners and data
storage devices, anywhere on the LAN. LANs are characterized by higher communication and
data transfer rates and the lack of any need for leased communication lines.
 A system of LANs connected in this way is called a wide-area network (WAN). The
difference between a LAN and WAN is that the wide-area network spans a relatively large
geographical area. Typically, a WAN consists of two or more local-area networks (LANs) and
are often connected through public networks.
Most LANs connect workstations and personal computers. Each node (individual
computer) in a LAN has its own CPU with which it executes programs, but it also is able to
access data and devices anywhere on the LAN. This means that many users can share expensive
devices, such as laser printers, as well as data. Users can also use the LAN to communicate with
each other, by sending email or engaging in chat sessions.
LANs are capable of transmitting data at very fast rates, much faster than data can be transmitted
over a telephone line; but the distances are limited and there is also a limit on the number of
computers that can be attached to a single LAN.

There are many different types of LANs, with Ethernets being the most common for PCs.
Most Apple Macintosh networks are based on Apple's AppleTalk network system, which is built
into Macintosh computers. The following characteristics differentiate one LAN from another:

 Topology: The geometric arrangement of devices on the network. For example, devices

can be arranged in a ring or in a straight line.
 Protocols: The rules and encoding specifications for sending data. The protocols also
determine whether the network uses a peer-to-peer or client/server architecture.
 Media: Devices can be connected by twisted-pair wire, coaxial cables, or fiber optic
cables. Some networks do without connecting media altogether, communicating instead via radio
waves.

Wireless networks are relatively easy to implement these days, especially when compared
to the prospect of having to route wires when deploying a new wired network or overhauling an
existing one. The first step in planning a wireless LAN deployment should be to decide on your
wireless networking technology standard. Keep in mind that the standard you need to
accommodate your network access points and routers as well as the entire collection of
wireless network interface cards (NICs) for your computers and other network resources.
Network Architecture
Network Architecture is the complete framework of an organization's computer network.
The diagram of the network architecture provides a full picture of the established network with
detailed view of all the resources accessible. It includes hardware components used for
communication, cabling and device types, network layout and topologies, physical and wireless
connections, implemented areas and future plans. In addition, the software rules and protocols
also constitute to the network architecture. This architecture is always designed by a network
manager/administrator with coordination of network engineers and other design engineers.
 Network Architecture provides the detail overview of a network. It is used to classify all
the network layers step-by-step in logical form by describing each step in detail. It is also based
on the complete working definitions of the protocols. The architecture is emphaiszed in a
distributed computing environment and its complexity cannot be understood without a
framework. Therefore there is a need to develop applications or methods to layout an overview
of a network.
In telecommunication, the specification of a network architecture may also include a
detailed description of products and services delivered via a communications network, as well as
detailed rate and billing structures under which services are compensated.
The network architecture of the Internet is predominantly expressed by its use of the Internet
Protocol Suite, rather than a specific model for interconnecting networks or nodes in the
network, or the usage of specific types of hardware links.
The Open Systems Interconnection model (OSI model) defines and codifies the concept
of layered network architecture. Abstraction layers are used to subdivide a communications
system further into smaller manageable parts. A layer is a collection of similar functions that
provide services to the layer above it and receives services from the layer below it. On each
layer, an instance provides services to the instances at the layer above and requests service from
the layer below.
Network Protocol

A network protocol defines rules and conventions for communication between network
devices. Network protocols include mechanisms for devices to identify and make connections
with each other, as well as formatting rules that specify how data is packaged into sent and
received messages. Some protocols also support message acknowledgment and data compression
designed for reliable and/or high-performance network communication.

Modern protocols for computer networking all generally use packet switching techniques to send

and receive messages in the form of packets — messages subdivided into pieces that are
collected and reassembled at their destination. Hundreds of different computer network protocols
have been developed, each designed for specific purposes and environments.

The Internet Protocol (IP) family contains a set of related (and among the most widely used)
network protocols. Beside Internet Protocol itself, higher-level protocols like TCP, UDP, HTTP,
and FTP all integrate with IP to provide additional capabilities. Similarly, lower-level Internet
Protocols like ARP and ICMP also coexist with IP. In general, higher-level protocols in the IP
family interact more closely with applications like web browsers, while lower-level protocols
interact with network adapters and other computer hardware.
Thanks to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and LTE, wireless networks have become commonplace. Network
protocols designed for use on wireless networks must support roaming mobile devices and deal
with issues such as variable data rates and network security.
Routing protocols are special-purpose protocols designed specifically for use by network
routers on the internet. A routing protocol can identify other routers, manage the pathways
(called routes) between sources and destinations of network messages, and make dynamic
routing decisions. Common routing protocols include EIGRP, OSPF, and BGP.

Modern operating systems contain built-in software services that implement support for
some network protocols. Applications like web browsers contain software libraries that support
the high-level protocols necessary for that application to function. For some lower-
level TCP/IP and routing protocols, support is implemented in direct hardware (silicon chipsets)
for improved performance.

Each packet transmitted and received over a network contains binary data (ones and zeros that
encode the contents of each message). Most protocols add a small header at the beginning of
each packet to store information about the message's sender and its intended destination. Some
protocols also add a footer at the end. Each network protocol can to identify messages of its own
kind and process the headers and footers as part of moving data among devices.

A group of network protocols that work together at higher and lower levels is often called
a protocol family. Students of networking traditionally learn about the OSI model that
conceptually organizes network protocol families into specific layers for teaching purposes.

Network Topology

Network Topology refers to the layout of a network and how different nodes in a network are

connected to each other and how they communicate. Topologies are either physical (the physical
layout of devices on a network) or logical (the way that the signals act on the network media, or
the way that the data passes through the network from one device to the next). This Webopedia
Study Guide describes five of the most common network topologies. 

Physical topology is the placement of the various components of a network (e.g., device location
and cable installation), while logical topology illustrates how data flows within a network.
Distances between nodes, physical interconnections, transmission rates, or signal types may
differ between two different networks, yet their topologies may be identical. A network’s
physical topology is a particular concern of the physical layer of the OSI model.
Examples of network topologies are found in local area networks (LAN), a common computer
network installation. Any given node in the LAN has one or more physical links to other devices
in the network; graphically mapping these links results in a geometric shape that can be used to
describe the physical topology of the network. A wide variety of physical topologies have been
used in LANs, including ring, bus, mesh and star. Conversely, mapping the data flow between
the components determines the logical topology of the network. In comparison, Controller Area
Networks, common in vehicles, are primarily distributed control system networks of one or more
controllers interconnected with sensors and actuators over, invariably, a physical bus topology.
Node
A node is a point of intersection/connection within a network. In an environment where all
devices are accessible through the network, these devices are all considered nodes. The concept
of nodes works on several levels, but the big-picture view defines nodes as the major centers
through which Internet traffic is typically routed. This usage is somewhat confusing, as these
same Internet nodes are also referred to as Internet hubs.
In telecommunications networks, a node (Latin nodus, ‘knot’) is either a redistribution point or
a communication endpoint. The definition of a node depends on the network and protocol
layer referred to. A physical network node is an electronic device that is attached to a network,
and is capable of creating, receiving, or transmitting information over a communications
channel. A passive distribution point such as a distribution frame or patch panel is consequently
not a node.
The idea of nodes was popularized with the adoption of packet-switching theory and the concept
of distributed networks. In this context, nodes were gateways that could receive, store and send
information along different routes through a distributed network. Each node was given an equal
standing within the network, meaning that the loss of any one node wouldn’t significantly hurt
the network.
When applied to an office or personal network, however, a node is simply one of the devices that
performs a particular function. As such, the loss of that node usually means the loss of function,
such as the inability to use a printer.
In data communication, a physical network node may either be data communication
equipment (DCE) such as a modem, hub, bridge or switch; or data terminal equipment (DTE)
such as a digital telephone handset, a printer or a host computer.
If the network in question is a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN), every
LAN or WAN node, that are at least data link layer devices, must have a network address,
typically one for each network interface controller it possesses. Examples are computers, packet
switches, xDSL modems (with Ethernet interface) and wireless LAN access points. Equipment,
such as a hub, repeater or PSTN modem with serial interface, that operate only below the data
link layer does not require a network address.[citation needed]
If the network in question is the Internet or an Intranet, many physical network nodes are host
computers, also known as Internet nodes, identified by an IP address, and all hosts are physical
network nodes. However, some data link layer devices such as switches, bridges and wireless
access points do not have an IP host address (except sometimes for administrative purposes), and
are not considered to be Internet nodes or hosts, but as physical network nodes and LAN nodes.
In the fixed telephone network, a node may be a public or private telephone exchange, a remote
concentrator or a computer providing some intelligent network service. In cellular
communication, switching points and databases such as the Base station controller, Home
Location Register, Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) and Serving GPRS Support
Node (SGSN) are examples of nodes. Cellular network base stations are not considered to be
nodes in this context.
In cable television systems (CATV), this term has assumed a broader context and is generally
associated with a fiber optic node. This can be defined as those homes or businesses within a
specific geographic area that are served from a common fiber optic receiver. A fiber optic node
is generally described in terms of the number of "homes passed" that are served by that specific
fiber node.
If the network in question is a distributed system, the nodes are clients, servers or peers. A peer
may sometimes serve as client, sometimes server. In a peer-to-peer or overlay network, nodes
that actively route data for the other networked devices as well as themselves are
called supernodes.

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_topology

https://www.webopedia.com/quick_ref/topologies.asp

https://www.lifewire.com/definition-of-protocol-network-817949
https://www.techopedia.com/definition/5526/local-area-network-lan

https://www.webopedia.com/TERM/L/local_area_network_LAN.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_architecture

https://www.techopedia.com/definition/8549/network-architecture