All three components—COAX (coaxial cables), Fiber (optical fiber cables), and STP (shielded twisted pair cables)—can be used in LANs for Ethernet connectivity, depending on specific network requirements and conditions. Different types of Ethernet cables, including coaxial, fiber optic, and shielded twisted pair, are used based on factors such as data transfer speed, distance, and susceptibility to electromagnetic interference.

A switching hub, also known as a network switch, is designed to send packets using package addresses. A network switch operates at the data link layer of the OSI model and uses MAC addresses to forward data frames to specific devices within a local area network (LAN). Unlike a hub, which simply broadcasts data to all devices in the network, a switch intelligently forwards packets only to the device intended to receive the data, increasing network efficiency and reducing unnecessary network traffic.

Multicast switch