A ring is a a serial connection of independent point-topoint
links.
¾ Each ring node contains a transmitter and a receiver.
¾ The node function is that of an active regenerator.
– After the ring detects the delivered message and the station
reads it, the data are regenerated and transmitted to the next
station
¾ The power from any one optical transmitter travels to a
single receiver, there is no sharing of power.
¾ The ring can connect more terminals than any of the
other networks.
¾ The ring is not limited by power distribution losses as are
tee and star.
¾ Of course, the active rings are much more complex than
the passive nodes of tee and star.