UWEZO COLLEGE

SHORT COURSE NOTES

ON

COMPUTER NETWORKING
6. Understanding Wireless Networking:
1. Understanding Network Fundamentals:
Students should comprehend the principles of wireless networking,
Students should grasp the foundational concepts of computer including different wireless technologies, standards, and security
networks, including the OSI model, TCP/IP protocol suite, and basic considerations, and be able to design, deploy, and secure wireless
networking components like routers, switches, and hubs. networks.

2. Mastering Network Design: 7. Exploring Network Management:

Students should be able to design and implement small to medium- Students should learn about network management protocols and
sized networks, including subnetting, IP addressing, and network tools for monitoring, configuring, and troubleshooting network
segmentation, while considering factors like scalability, devices and services, including SNMP (Simple Network
performance, and security. Management Protocol) and network management systems (NMS).

3. Configuring Network Devices: 8. Preparing for Industry Certifications:

Students should gain hands-on experience configuring network Students should be prepared to pursue relevant industry
devices such as routers, switches, firewalls, and access points using certifications such as CompTIA Network+, Cisco CCNA (Cisco
command-line interfaces and graphical user interfaces. Certified Network Associate), or equivalent certifications,
demonstrating their proficiency in computer networking concepts
4. Troubleshooting Network Issues: and skills.

Students should develop the skills to diagnose and resolve common

network problems, including connectivity issues, network
congestion, and device misconfigurations, using tools like ping,
traceroute, and packet sniffers.

5. Implementing Network Security Measures:

Students should understand the principles of network security and

be able to implement security measures such as access control lists
(ACLs), firewalls, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), and encryption
protocols to protect network infrastructure and data.
Computer Networks: Reliability
It decides the frequency at which network failure take place. More the failures
Introduction To Computer Networks
are, less is the network's reliability.
A set of devices often mentioned as nodes connected by media link is called a
Network.
A node can be a device which is capable of sending or receiving data generated Computer Networks: Security
by other nodes on the network like a computer, printer etc. These links It refers to the protection of data from any unauthorized user or access. While
connecting the devices are called Communication channels. travelling through network, data passes many layers of network, and data can
Computer network is a telecommunication channel using which we can share be traced if attempted. Hence security is also a very important characteristic for
data with other computers or devices, connected to the same network. It is also Networks.
called Data Network. The best example of computer network is Internet.
Computer network does not mean a system with one Control Unit connected Properties of a Good Network
to multiple other systems as its slave. That is Distributed system, not Computer
Network. 1. Interpersonal Communication: We can communicate with each
A network must be able to meet certain criteria, these are mentioned below: other efficiently and easily. Example: emails, chat rooms, video
conferencing etc, all of these are possible because of computer
1. Performance networks.
2. Reliability 2. Resources can be shared: We can share physical resources by making
3. Scalability them available on a network such as printers, scanners etc.
3. Sharing files, data: Authorised users are allowed to share the files on
Computer Networks: Performance the network.
It can be measured in the following ways:
Basic Communication Model
• Transit time: It is the time taken to travel a message from one device A Communication model is used to exchange data between two parties. For
to another. example: communication between a computer, server and telephone (through
• Response time: It is defined as the time elapsed between enquiry and modem).
response.
Other ways to measure performance are:

1. Efficiency of software Source

2. Number of users Data to be transmitted is generated by this device, example: telephones,
3. Capability of connected hardware personal computers etc.

Transmitter
The data generated by the source system is not directly transmitted in the form
its generated. The transmitter transforms and encodes the data in such a form
to produce electromagnetic waves or signals.

Transmission System
A transmission system can be a single transmission line or a complex network
connecting source and destination.

Receiver
Receiver accepts the signal from the transmission system and converts it into a
form which is easily managed by the destination device.

Destination
Destination receives the incoming data from the receiver.
Data Communication Had it not been of high importance, nobody would have bothered connecting
The exchange of data between two devices through a transmission medium is computers over a network. Let's start exploring the uses of Computer Networks
called Data Communication. The data is exchanged in the form of 0's and 1's. with some traditional use cases at companies and for individuals and then move
The transmission medium used is wire cable. For data communication to occur, on to the recent developments in the area of mobile users and home networking.
the communication device must be a part of a communication system. Data
Communication has two types - Local and Remote which are discussed Computer Networks: Business Applications
below: Following are some business applications of computer networks:

Data Communication: Local 1. Resource Sharing:

Local communication takes place when the communicating devices are in the The goal is to make all programs, equipment (like printers etc), and especially
same geographical area, same building, or face-to-face etc. data, available to anyone on the network without regard to the physical location
of the resource and the user.
Data Communication: Remote
Remote communication takes place over a distance i.e. the devices are farther. 2. Server-Client model:
The effectiveness of a data communication can be measured through the One can imagine a company's information system as consisting of one or more
following features : databases and some employees who need to access it remotely. In this model,
the data is stored on powerful computers called Servers. Often these are
1. Delivery: Delivery should be done to the correct destination. centrally housed and maintained by a system administrator. In contrast, the
2. Timeliness: Delivery should be on time. employees have simple machines, called Clients, on their desks, using which
3. Accuracy: Data delivered should be accurate. they access remote data.

3. Communication Medium:
Components of Data Communication
A computer network can provide a powerful communication medium among
employees. Virtually every company that has two or more computers now has
1. Message: It is the information to be delivered.
e-mail (electronic mail), which employees generally use for a great deal of
2. Sender: Sender is the person who is sending the message.
daily communication.
3. Receiver: Receiver is the person to whom the message is being sent
to.
4. eCommerce:
4. Medium: It is the medium through which the message is sent. For
A goal that is starting to become more important in businesses is doing business
example: A Modem.
with consumers over the Internet. Airlines, bookstores and music vendors have
5. Protocol: These are some set of rules which govern data
discovered that many customers like the convenience of shopping from home.
communication.
This sector is expected to grow quickly in the future.
The most popular forms are listed in the below figure:
Uses of Computer Networks
Computer Networks: Home Applications
Some of the most important uses of the Internet for home users are as follows:

• Access to remote information

• Person-to-person communication
• Interactive entertainment
• Electronic commerce

Computer Networks: Mobile Users

Mobile computers, such as notebook computers and Mobile phones, is one of
the fastest-growing segment of the entire computer industry. Although wireless
networking and mobile computing are often related, they are not identical, as
the below figure shows.
Line Configuration in Computer Networks
A Network is nothing but a connection made through connection links between
two or more devices. Devices can be a computer, printer or any other device
that is capable to send and receive data. There are two ways to connect the
devices :

1. Point-to-Point connection
2. Multipoint connection MultiPoint Connection
It is also called Multidrop configuration. In this connection two or more devices
share a single link.
Point-To-Point Connection
There are two kinds of Multipoint Connections :
It is a protocol which is used as a communication link between two devices. It
is simple to establish. The most common example for Point-to-Point
• If the links are used simultaneously between many devices, then it is
connection (PPP) is a computer connected by telephone line. We can connect
spatially shared line configuration.
the two devices by means of a pair of wires or using a microwave or satellite
• If user takes turns while using the link, then it is time shared (temporal)
link.
line configuration.
Example: Point-to-Point connection between remote control and Television
for changing the channels.

Types of Network Topology

Network Topology is the schematic description of a network arrangement,
connecting various nodes(sender and receiver) through lines of connection.

BUS Topology
Bus topology is a network type in which every computer and network device It is called ring topology because it forms a ring as each computer is connected
is connected to single cable. When it has exactly two endpoints, then it is to another computer, with the last one connected to the first. Exactly two
called Linear Bus topology. neighbours for each device.

Features of Bus Topology

1. It transmits data only in one direction.

2. Every device is connected to a single cable Features of Ring Topology
Advantages of Bus Topology
1. A number of repeaters are used for Ring topology with large number
1. It is cost effective. of nodes, because if someone wants to send some data to the last node
2. Cable required is least compared to other network topology. in the ring topology with 100 nodes, then the data will have to pass
3. Used in small networks. through 99 nodes to reach the 100th node. Hence to prevent data loss
4. It is easy to understand. repeaters are used in the network.
5. Easy to expand joining two cables together. 2. The transmission is unidirectional, but it can be made bidirectional by
Disadvantages of Bus Topology having 2 connections between each Network Node, it is called Dual
Ring Topology.
1. Cables fails then whole network fails. 3. In Dual Ring Topology, two ring networks are formed, and data flow
2. If network traffic is heavy or nodes are more the performance of the is in opposite direction in them. Also, if one ring fails, the second ring
network decreases. can act as a backup, to keep the network up.
3. Cable has a limited length. 4. Data is transferred in a sequential manner that is bit by bit. Data
4. It is slower than the ring topology. transmitted, has to pass through each node of the network, till the
destination node.
Advantages of Ring Topology

1. Transmitting network is not affected by high traffic or by adding more

RING Topology
nodes, as only the nodes having tokens can transmit data.
2. Cheap to install and expand 2. Hub can be upgraded easily.
Disadvantages of Ring Topology 3. Easy to troubleshoot.
4. Easy to setup and modify.
1. Troubleshooting is difficult in ring topology. 5. Only that node is affected which has failed, rest of the nodes can work
2. Adding or deleting the computers disturbs the network activity. smoothly.
3. Failure of one computer disturbs the whole network. Disadvantages of Star Topology

STAR Topology 1. Cost of installation is high.

In this type of topology all the computers are connected to a single hub through 2. Expensive to use.
a cable. This hub is the central node and all others nodes are connected to the 3. If the hub fails then the whole network is stopped because all the nodes
central node. depend on the hub.
4. Performance is based on the hub that is it depends on its capacity

MESH Topology
It is a point-to-point connection to other nodes or devices. All the network
nodes are connected to each other. Mesh has n(n-1)/2 physical channels to
link n devices.
There are two techniques to transmit data over the Mesh topology, they are :

1. Routing
2. Flooding

MESH Topology: Routing

In routing, the nodes have a routing logic, as per the network requirements.
Like routing logic to direct the data to reach the destination using the shortest
Features of Star Topology
distance. Or, routing logic which has information about the broken links, and
it avoids those node etc. We can even have routing logic, to re-configure the
1. Every node has its own dedicated connection to the hub.
failed nodes.
2. Hub acts as a repeater for data flow.
3. Can be used with twisted pair, Optical Fibre or coaxial cable.
Advantages of Star Topology MESH Topology: Flooding
In flooding, the same data is transmitted to all the network nodes, hence no
1. Fast performance with few nodes and low network traffic. routing logic is required. The network is robust, and the its very unlikely to lose
the data. But it leads to unwanted load over the network.
TREE Topology
It has a root node and all other nodes are connected to it forming a hierarchy.
It is also called hierarchical topology. It should at least have three levels to the
hierarchy.

Types of Mesh Topology

1. Partial Mesh Topology : In this topology some of the systems are

connected in the same fashion as mesh topology but some devices are Features of Tree Topology
only connected to two or three devices.
2. Full Mesh Topology : Each and every nodes or devices are connected 1. Ideal if workstations are located in groups.
to each other. 2. Used in Wide Area Network.
Features of Mesh Topology Advantages of Tree Topology

1. Fully connected. 1. Extension of bus and star topologies.

2. Robust. 2. Expansion of nodes is possible and easy.
3. Not flexible. 3. Easily managed and maintained.
Advantages of Mesh Topology 4. Error detection is easily done.
Disadvantages of Tree Topology
1. Each connection can carry its own data load.
2. It is robust. 1. Heavily cabled.
3. Fault is diagnosed easily. 2. Costly.
4. Provides security and privacy. 3. If more nodes are added maintenance is difficult.
Disadvantages of Mesh Topology 4. Central hub fails, network fails.

1. Installation and configuration is difficult. HYBRID Topology

2. Cabling cost is more. It is two different types of topologies which is a mixture of two or more
3. Bulk wiring is required. topologies. For example if in an office in one department ring topology is used
and in another star topology is used, connecting these topologies will result in Disadvantages of Hybrid Topology
Hybrid Topology (ring topology and star topology).
1. Complex in design.
2. Costly.

Features of Hybrid Topology

1. It is a combination of two or topologies

2. Inherits the advantages and disadvantages of the topologies included
Advantages of Hybrid Topology

1. Reliable as Error detecting and trouble shooting is easy.

2. Effective.
3. Scalable as size can be increased easily.
4. Flexible.
Transmission Modes in Computer Networks Half-duplex data transmission means that data can be transmitted in both
Transmission mode refers to the mechanism of transferring of data between directions on a signal carrier, but not at the same time.
two devices connected over a network. It is also called Communication Mode. For example, on a local area network using a technology that has half-duplex
These modes direct the direction of flow of information. There are three types transmission, one workstation can send data on the line and then immediately
of transmission modes. They are: receive data on the line from the same direction in which data was just
transmitted. Hence half-duplex transmission implies a bidirectional line (one
1. Simplex Mode that can carry data in both directions) but data can be sent in only one direction
2. Half duplex Mode at a time.
3. Full duplex Mode Example of half duplex is a walkie- talkie in which message is sent one at a
time but messages are sent in both the directions.

SIMPLEX Mode FULL DUPLEX Mode

In this type of transmission mode, data can be sent only in one direction i.e. In full duplex system we can send data in both the directions as it is
communication is unidirectional. We cannot send a message back to the sender. bidirectional at the same time in other words, data can be sent in both directions
Unidirectional communication is done in Simplex Systems where we just need simultaneously.
to send a command/signal, and do not expect any response back. Example of Full Duplex is a Telephone Network in which there is
Examples of simplex Mode are loudspeakers, television broadcasting, communication between two persons by a telephone line, using which both can
television and remote, keyboard and monitor etc. talk and listen at the same time.

In full duplex system there can be two lines one for sending the data and the
other for receiving data.

HALF DUPLEX Mode

Transmission Mediums in Computer Networks Guided media, which are those that provide a conduit from one device to
Data is represented by computers and other telecommunication devices using another, include Twisted-Pair Cable, Coaxial Cable, and Fibre-Optic
signals. Signals are transmitted in the form of electromagnetic energy from one Cable.
device to another. Electromagnetic signals travel through vacuum, air or other A signal travelling along any of these media is directed and contained by the
transmission mediums to move from one point to another(from sender to physical limits of the medium. Twisted-pair and coaxial cable use metallic
receiver). (copper) conductors that accept and transport signals in the form of electric
Electromagnetic energy (includes electrical and magnetic fields) consists of current. Optical fibre is a cable that accepts and transports signals in the form
power, voice, visible light, radio waves, ultraviolet light, gamma rays etc. of light.

Transmission medium is the means through which we send our data from one Twisted Pair Cable
place to another. The first layer (physical layer) of Communication Networks This cable is the most commonly used and is cheaper than others. It is
OSI Seven layer model is dedicated to the transmission media, we will study lightweight, cheap, can be installed easily, and they support many different
the OSI Model later. types of network. Some important points :

• Its frequency range is 0 to 3.5 kHz.

• Typical attenuation is 0.2 dB/Km @ 1kHz.
• Typical delay is 50 µs/km.
• Repeater spacing is 2km.

A twisted pair consists of two conductors(normally copper), each with its own
plastic insulation, twisted together. One of these wires is used to carry signals
to the receiver, and the other is used only as ground reference. The receiver
uses the difference between the two. In addition to the signal sent by the sender
on one of the wires, interference(noise) and crosstalk may affect both wires and
create unwanted signals. If the two wires are parallel, the effect of these
Factors to be considered while selecting a Transmission Medium unwanted signals is not the same in both wires because they are at different
locations relative to the noise or crosstalk sources. This results in a difference
1. Transmission Rate at the receiver.
2. Cost and Ease of Installation Twisted Pair is of two types:
3. Resistance to Environmental Conditions
4. Distances • Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)
• Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)
Bounded or Guided Transmission Media
Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable Shielded Twisted Pair Cable
It is the most common type of telecommunication when compared with This cable has a metal foil or braided-mesh covering which encases each pair
Shielded Twisted Pair Cable which consists of two conductors usually copper, of insulated conductors. Electromagnetic noise penetration is prevented by
each with its own colour plastic insulator. Identification is the reason behind metal casing. Shielding also eliminates crosstalk (explained in KEY TERMS
coloured plastic insulation. Chapter).
UTP cables consist of 2 or 4 pairs of twisted cable. Cable with 2 pair use RJ- It has same attenuation as unshielded twisted pair. It is faster the unshielded
11 connector and 4 pair cable use RJ-45 connector. and coaxial cable. It is more expensive than coaxial and unshielded twisted
pair.

Advantages of Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable Advantages of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable

• Installation is easy • Easy to install

• Flexible • Performance is adequate
• Cheap • Can be used for Analog or Digital transmission
• It has high speed capacity, • Increases the signalling rate
• 100 meter limit • Higher capacity than unshielded twisted pair
• Higher grades of UTP are used in LAN technologies like Ethernet. • Eliminates crosstalk
It consists of two insulating copper wires (1mm thick). The wires are twisted Disadvantages of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable
together in a helical form to reduce electrical interference from similar pair.
• Difficult to manufacture
Disadvantages of Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable • Heavy

• Bandwidth is low when compared with Coaxial Cable

• Provides less protection from interference.
Performance of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable
One way to measure the performance of twisted-pair cable is to compare
attenuation versus frequency and distance. As shown in the below figure, a
twisted-pair cable can pass a wide range of frequencies. However, with
increasing frequency, the attenuation, measured in decibels per kilometre
(dB/km), sharply increases with frequencies above 100kHz. Note that gauge is
a measure of the thickness of the wire.

Applications of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable

• In telephone lines to provide voice and data channels. The DSL lines
that are used by the telephone companies to provide high-data-rate
connections also use the high-bandwidth capability of unshielded
twisted-pair cables.
Coaxial Cable Standards
• Local Area Network, such as 10Base-T and 100Base-T, also use
Coaxial cables are categorized by their Radio Government(RG) ratings. Each
twisted-pair cables.
RG number denotes a unique set of physical specifications, including the wire
gauge of the inner conductor, the thickness and the type of the inner insulator,
Coaxial Cable the construction of the shield, and the size and type of the outer casing. Each
Coaxial is called by this name because it contains two conductors that are cable defined by an RG rating is adapted for a specialized function, as shown
parallel to each other. Copper is used in this as centre conductor which can be in the table below:
a solid wire or a standard one. It is surrounded by PVC installation, a sheath
which is encased in an outer conductor of metal foil, barid or both.
Outer metallic wrapping is used as a shield against noise and as the second
conductor which completes the circuit. The outer conductor is also encased in
an insulating sheath. The outermost part is the plastic cover which protects the
whole cable.
Here the most common coaxial standards.

• 50-Ohm RG-7 or RG-11 : used with thick Ethernet.

• 50-Ohm RG-58 : used with thin Ethernet Coaxial Cable Connectors
• 75-Ohm RG-59 : used with cable television To connect coaxial cable to devices, we need coaxial connectors. The most
• 93-Ohm RG-62 : used with ARCNET. common type of connector used today is the Bayonet Neill-Concelman (BNC)
connector. The below figure shows 3 popular types of these connectors: the • Much higher noise immunity
BNC Connector, the BNC T connector and the BNC terminator. • Data transmission without distortion.
• The can span to longer distance at higher speeds as they have better
shielding when compared to twisted pair cable
Disadvantages of Coaxial Cable

• Single cable failure can fail the entire network.

• Difficult to install and expensive when compared with twisted pair.
• If the shield is imperfect, it can lead to grounded loop.
Performance of Coaxial Cable
We can measure the performance of a coaxial cable in same way as that of
Twisted Pair Cables. From the below figure, it can be seen that the attenuation
The BNC connector is used to connect the end of the cable to the device, such is much higher in coaxial cable than in twisted-pair cable. In other words,
as a TV set. The BNC T connector is used in Ethernet networks to branch out although coaxial cable has a much higher bandwidth, the signal weakens
to a connection to a computer or other device. The BNC terminator is used at rapidly and requires the frequent use of repeaters.
the end of the cable to prevent the reflection of the signal.
Applications of Coaxial Cable
There are two types of Coaxial cables:
1. BaseBand • Coaxial cable was widely used in analog telephone networks, where a
This is a 50 ohm (Ω) coaxial cable which is used for digital transmission. It is single coaxial network could carry 10,000 voice signals.
mostly used for LAN's. Baseband transmits a single signal at a time with very • Cable TV networks also use coaxial cables. In the traditional cable TV
high speed. The major drawback is that it needs amplification after every 1000 network, the entire network used coaxial cable. Cable TV uses RG-59
feet. coaxial cable.
• In traditional Ethernet LANs. Because of it high bandwidth, and
2. BroadBand consequence high data rate, coaxial cable was chosen for digital
This uses analog transmission on standard cable television cabling. It transmits transmission in early Ethernet LANs. The 10Base-2, or Thin Ethernet,
several simultaneous signal using different frequencies. It covers large area uses RG-58 coaxial cable with BNC connectors to transmit data at
when compared with Baseband Coaxial Cable. 10Mbps with a range of 185 m.
Advantages of Coaxial Cable
Fiber Optic Cable
• Bandwidth is high A fibre-optic cable is made of glass or plastic and transmits signals in the form
• Used in long distance telephone lines. of light.
• Transmits digital signals at a very high rate of 10Mbps.
For better understanding we first need to explore several aspects of the nature
of light.
Light travels in a straight line as long as it is mobbing through a single uniform
substance. If ray of light travelling through one substance suddenly enters
another substance (of a different density), the ray changes direction.
The below figure shows how a ray of light changes direction when going from
a more dense to a less dense substance.

Internal view of an Optical fibre

Propagation Modes of Fiber Optic Cable

Current technology supports two modes(Multimode and Single mode) for
propagating light along optical channels, each requiring fibre with different
physical characteristics. Multimode can be implemented in two forms: Step-
Bending of a light ray index and Graded-index.
As the figure shows:

• If the angle of incidence I(the angle the ray makes with the line
perpendicular to the interface between the two substances) is less than
the critical angle, the ray refracts and moves closer to the surface.
• If the angle of incidence is greater than the critical angle, the
ray reflects(makes a turn) and travels again in the denser substance.
• If the angle of incidence is equal to the critical angle, the ray refracts
and moves parallel to the surface as shown.
Note: The critical angle is a property of the substance, and its value differs
from one substance to another.
Optical fibres use reflection to guide light through a channel. A glass or plastic
core is surrounded by a cladding of less dense glass or plastic. The difference
in density of the two materials must be such that a beam of light moving
through the core is reflected off the cladding instead of being refracted into it.
Multimode Propagation Mode
Multimode is so named because multiple beams from a light source move Single Mode
through the core in different paths. How these beams move within the cable Single mode uses step-index fibre and a highly focused source of light that
depends on the structure of the core as shown in the below figure. limits beams to a small range of angles, all close to the horizontal. The single-
mode fibre itself is manufactured with a much smaller diameter than that of
multimode fibre, and with substantially lower density.
The decrease in density results in a critical angle that is close enough to 90
degree to make the propagation of beams almost horizontal.

Fibre Sizes for Fiber Optic Cable

Optical fibres are defined by the ratio of the diameter or their core to the
diameter of their cladding, both expressed in micrometers. The common sizes
are shown in the figure below:

Fibre Optic Cable Connectors

There are three types of connectors for fibre-optic cables, as shown in the figure
• In multimode step-index fibre, the density of the core remains
below.
constant from the centre to the edges. A beam of light moves through
this constant density in a straight line until it reaches the interface of
the core and the cladding.
The term step-index refers to the suddenness of this change, which
contributes to the distortion of the signal as it passes through the fibre.
• In multimode graded-index fibre, this distortion gets decreases
through the cable. The word index here refers to the index of refraction.
This index of refraction is related to the density. A graded-index fibre,
therefore, is one with varying densities. Density is highest at the centre
of the core and decreases gradually to its lowest at the edge.
Performance of Fibre Optic Cable
Attenuation is flatter than in the case of twisted-pair cable and coaxial cable.
The performance is such that we need fewer(actually one tenth as many)
repeaters when we use the fibre-optic cable.
Applications of Fibre Optic Cable

• Often found in backbone networks because its wide bandwidth is cost-

effective.
• Some cable TV companies use a combination of optical fibre and
coaxial cable thus creating a hybrid network.
• Local-area Networks such as 100Base-FX network and 1000Base-X
also use fibre-optic cable.
The Subscriber Channel(SC) connector is used for cable TV. It uses UnBounded or UnGuided Transmission Media
push/pull locking system. The Straight-Tip(ST) connector is used for Unguided medium transport electromagnetic waves without using a physical
connecting cable to the networking devices. MT-RJ is a connector that is the conductor. This type of communication is often referred to as wireless
same size as RJ45. communication. Signals are normally broadcast through free space and thus are
available to anyone who has a device capable of receiving them.
Advantages of Fibre Optic Cable The below figure shows the part of the electromagnetic spectrum, ranging from
Fibre optic has several advantages over metallic cable: 3 kHz to 900 THz, used for wireless communication.

• Higher bandwidth
• Less signal attenuation
• Immunity to electromagnetic interference
• Resistance to corrosive materials
• Light weight
• Greater immunity to tapping
Disadvantages of Fibre Optic Cable
There are some disadvantages in the use of optical fibre: Unguided signals can travel from the source to the destination in several ways:
▪ Gound propagation
• Installation and maintenance ▪ Sky propagation
• Unidirectional light propagation ▪ Line-of-sight propagation.
• High Cost
antennas do not have to be aligned. A sending antenna send waves that can be
received by any receiving antenna. The omnidirectional property has
disadvantage, too. The radio waves transmitted by one antenna are susceptible
to interference by another antenna that may send signal suing the same
frequency or band.
Radio waves, particularly with those of low and medium frequencies, can
penetrate walls. This characteristic can be both an advantage and a
disadvantage. It is an advantage because, an AM radio can receive signals
inside a building. It is a disadvantage because we cannot isolate a
communication to just inside or outside a building.
Propagation Modes
Omnidirectional Antenna for Radio Waves
• Ground Propagation: In this, radio waves travel through the lowest Radio waves use omnidirectional antennas that send out signals in all
portion of the atmosphere, hugging the Earth. These low-frequency directions.
signals emanate in all directions from the transmitting antenna and
follow the curvature of the planet.
• Sky Propagation: In this, higher-frequency radio waves radiate
upward into the ionosphere where they are reflected back to Earth. This
type of transmission allows for greater distances with lower output
power.
• Line-of-sight Propagation: in this type, very high-frequency signals
are transmitted in straight lines directly from antenna to antenna.
We can divide wireless transmission into three broad groups:

1. Radio waves
2. Micro waves
3. Infrared waves
Applications of Radio Waves
Radio Waves
Electromagnetic waves ranging in frequencies between 3 KHz and 1 GHz are • The omnidirectional characteristics of radio waves make them useful
normally called radio waves. for multicasting in which there is one sender but many receivers.
Radio waves are omnidirectional. When an antenna transmits radio waves, they • AM and FM radio, television, maritime radio, cordless phones, and
are propagated in all directions. This means that the sending and receiving paging are examples of multicasting.
Micro Waves
Electromagnetic waves having frequencies between 1 and 300 GHz are called
micro waves. Micro waves are unidirectional. When an antenna transmits
microwaves, they can be narrowly focused. This means that the sending and
receiving antennas need to be aligned. The unidirectional property has an
obvious advantage. A pair of antennas can be aligned without interfering with
another pair of aligned antennas.
The following describes some characteristics of microwaves propagation:

• Microwave propagation is line-of-sight. Since the towers with the

mounted antennas need to be in direct sight of each other, towers that
are far apart need to be very tall.
• Very high-frequency microwaves cannot penetrate walls. This
characteristic can be a disadvantage if receivers are inside the
buildings.
A parabolic antenna works as a funnel, catching a wide range of waves and
• The microwave band is relatively wide, almost 299 GHz. Therefore,
directing them to a common point. In this way, more of the signal is recovered
wider sub-bands can be assigned and a high date rate is possible.
than would be possible with a single-point receiver.
• Use of certain portions of the band requires permission from
A horn antenna looks like a gigantic scoop. Outgoing transmissions are
authorities.
broadcast up a stem and deflected outward in a series of narrow parallel beams
by the curved head. Received transmissions are collected by the scooped shape
Unidirectional Antenna for Micro Waves of the horn, in a manner similar to the parabolic dish, and are deflected down
Microwaves need unidirectional antennas that send out signals in one direction. into the stem.
Two types of antennas are used for microwave communications: Parabolic Applications of Micro Waves
Dish and Horn. Microwaves, due to their unidirectional properties, are very useful when
unicast(one-to-one) communication is needed between the sender and the
receiver. They are used in cellular phones, satellite networks and wireless
LANs.
There are 2 types of Microwave Transmission :

1. Terrestrial Microwave
2. Satellite Microwave
Advantages of Microwave Transmission

• Used for long distance telephone communication

• Carries 1000's of voice channels at the same time
Disadvantages of Microwave Transmission

• It is very costly

Terrestrial Microwave
For increasing the distance served by terrestrial microwave, repeaters can be
installed with each antenna .The signal received by an antenna can be converted 2. Horn Antenna
into transmittable form and relayed to next antenna as shown in below figure. It is a like gigantic scoop. The outgoing transmissions are broadcast up a stem
It is an example of telephone systems all over the world and deflected outward in a series of narrow parallel beams by curved head.

There are two types of antennas used for terrestrial microwave

communication :

1. Parabolic Dish Antenna

In this every line parallel to the line of symmetry reflects off the curve at angles Satellite Microwave
in a way that they intersect at a common point called focus. This antenna is This is a microwave relay station which is placed in outer space. The satellites
based on geometry of parabola. are launched either by rockets or space shuttles carry them.
These are positioned 36000 Km above the equator with an orbit speed that
exactly matches the rotation speed of the earth. As the satellite is positioned in
a geo-synchronous orbit, it is stationery relative to earth and always stays over
the same point on the ground. This is usually done to allow ground stations to
aim antenna at a fixed point in the sky.
between one system and another, a short-range communication system in on
room cannot be affected by another system in the next room.
When we use infrared remote control, we do not interfere with the use of the
remote by our neighbours. However, this same characteristic makes infrared
signals useless for long-range communication. In addition, we cannot use
infrared waves outside a building because the sun's rays contain infrared waves
that can interfere with the communication.
Applications of Infrared Waves

• The infrared band, almost 400 THz, has an excellent potential for data
transmission. Such a wide bandwidth can be used to transmit digital
data with a very high data rate.
• The Infrared Data Association(IrDA), an association for sponsoring
Features of Satellite Microwave the use of infrared waves, has established standards for using these
signals for communication between devices such as keyboards, mouse,
• Bandwidth capacity depends on the frequency used. PCs and printers.
• Satellite microwave deployment for orbiting satellite is difficult. • Infrared signals can be used for short-range communication in a closed
Advantages of Satellite Microwave area using line-of-sight propagation.
Types of Communication Networks
• Transmitting station can receive back its own transmission and check Communication Networks can be of following 5 types:
whether the satellite has transmitted information correctly.
• A single microwave relay station which is visible from any point. 1. Local Area Network (LAN)
Disadvantages of Satellite Microwave 2. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
3. Wide Area Network (WAN)
• Satellite manufacturing cost is very high 4. Wireless
• Cost of launching satellite is very expensive 5. Inter Network (Internet)
• Transmission highly depends on whether conditions, it can go down in
bad weather

Infrared Waves
Infrared waves, with frequencies from 300 GHz to 400 THz, can be used for
short-range communication. Infrared waves, having high frequencies, cannot
penetrate walls. This advantageous characteristic prevents interference
Local Area Network (LAN) Applications of LAN
It is also called LAN and designed for small physical areas such as an office,
group of buildings or a factory. LANs are used widely as it is easy to design • One of the computer in a network can become a server serving all the
and to troubleshoot. Personal computers and workstations are connected to remaining computers called clients. Software can be stored on the
each other through LANs. We can use different types of topologies through server and it can be used by the remaining clients.
LAN, these are Star, Ring, Bus, Tree etc. • Connecting Locally all the workstations in a building to let them
LAN can be a simple network like connecting two computers, to share files and communicate with each other locally without any internet access.
network among each other while it can also be as complex as interconnecting • Sharing common resources like printers etc are some common
an entire building. applications of LAN.
LAN networks are also widely used to share resources like printers, shared
hard-drive etc. Advantages of LAN

• Resource Sharing: Computer resources like printers, modems, DVD-

ROM drives and hard disks can be shared with the help of local area
networks. This reduces cost and hardware purchases.
• Software Applications Sharing: It is cheaper to use same software
over network instead of purchasing separate licensed software for each
client a network.
• Easy and Cheap Communication: Data and messages can easily be
transferred over networked computers.
• Centralized Data: The data of all network users can be saved on hard
disk of the server computer. This will help users to use any workstation
in a network to access their data. Because data is not stored on
workstations locally.
Characteristics of LAN • Data Security: Since, data is stored on server computer centrally, it
will be easy to manage data at only one place and the data will be more
• LAN's are private networks, not subject to tariffs or other regulatory
secure too.
controls.
• Internet Sharing: Local Area Network provides the facility to share a
• LAN's operate at relatively high speed when compared to the typical
single internet connection among all the LAN users. In Net Cafes,
WAN.
single internet connection sharing system keeps the internet expenses
• There are different types of Media Access Control methods in a LAN,
cheaper.
the prominent ones are Ethernet, Token ring.
• It connects computers in a single building, block or campus, i.e. they
work in a restricted geographical area. Disadvantages of LAN
• High Setup Cost: Although the LAN will save cost over time due to Characteristics of MAN
shared computer resources, but the initial setup costs of installing
Local Area Networks is high. • It generally covers towns and cities (50 km)
• Privacy Violations: The LAN administrator has the rights to check • Communication medium used for MAN are optical fibers, cables etc.
personal data files of each and every LAN user. Moreover he can check • Data rates adequate for distributed computing applications.
the internet history and computer use history of the LAN user.
• Data Security Threat: Unauthorised users can access important data Advantages of MAN
of an organization if centralized data repository is not secured properly
by the LAN administrator. • Extremely efficient and provide fast communication via high-speed
• LAN Maintenance Job: Local Area Network requires a LAN carriers, such as fibre optic cables.
Administrator because, there are problems of software installations or • It provides a good back bone for large network and provides greater
hardware failures or cable disturbances in Local Area Network. A access to WANs.
LAN Administrator is needed at this full time job. • The dual bus used in MAN helps the transmission of data in both
• Covers Limited Area: Local Area Network covers a small area like directions simultaneously.
one office, one building or a group of nearby buildings. • A MAN usually encompasses several blocks of a city or an entire city.

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) Disadvantages of MAN

It was developed in 1980s.It is basically a bigger version of LAN. It is also
called MAN and uses the similar technology as LAN. It is designed to extend • More cable required for a MAN connection from one place to another.
over the entire city. It can be means to connecting a number of LANs into a • It is difficult to make the system secure from hackers and industrial
larger network or it can be a single cable. It is mainly hold and operated by espionage(spying) graphical regions.
single private company or a public company.
Wide Area Network (WAN)
It is also called WAN. WAN can be private or it can be public leased network.
It is used for the network that covers large distance such as cover states of a
country. It is not easy to design and maintain. Communication medium used
by WAN are PSTN or Satellite links. WAN operates on low data rates.
Disadvantages of WAN

• Need a good firewall to restrict outsiders from entering and disrupting

the network.
• Setting up a network can be an expensive, slow and complicated. The
bigger the network the more expensive it is.
• Once set up, maintaining a network is a full-time job which requires
network supervisors and technicians to be employed.
• Security is a real issue when many different people have the ability to
use information from other computers. Protection against hackers and
viruses adds more complexity and expense.

Wireless Network
Characteristics of WAN Digital wireless communication is not a new idea. Earlier, Morse code was
used to implement wireless networks. Modern digital wireless systems have
• It generally covers large distances(states, countries, continents). better performance, but the basic idea is the same.
• Communication medium used are satellite, public telephone networks Wireless Networks can be divided into three main categories:
which are connected by routers.
1. System interconnection
Advantages of WAN 2. Wireless LANs
3. Wireless WANs
• Covers a large geographical area so long distance business can connect
on the one network. System Interconnection
• Shares software and resources with connecting workstations. System interconnection is all about interconnecting the components of a
• Messages can be sent very quickly to anyone else on the network. computer using short-range radio. Some companies got together to design a
These messages can have picture, sounds or data included with short-range wireless network called Bluetooth to connect various components
them(called attachments). such as monitor, keyboard, mouse and printer, to the main unit, without wires.
• Expensive things(such as printers or phone lines to the internet) can be Bluetooth also allows digital cameras, headsets, scanners and other devices to
shared by all the computers on the network without having to buy a connect to a computer by merely being brought within range.
different peripheral for each computer. In simplest form, system interconnection networks use the master-slave
• Everyone on the network can use the same data. This avoids problems concept. The system unit is normally the master, talking to the mouse,
where some users may have older information than others. keyboard, etc. as slaves.
Wireless LANs
These are the systems in which every computer has a radio
modem and antenna with which it can communicate with other systems.
Wireless LANs are becoming increasingly common in small offices and
homes, where installing Ethernet is considered too much trouble. There is a
standard for wireless LANs called IEEE 802.11, which most systems
implement and which is becoming very widespread.

Wireless WANs
The radio network used for cellular telephones is an example of a low-
bandwidth wireless WAN. This system has already gone through three
generations.

• The first generation was analog and for voice only.

• The second generation was digital and for voice only.
• The third generation is digital and is for both voice and data.

Inter Network
Inter Network or Internet is a combination of two or more networks. Inter
network can be formed by joining two or more individual networks by means
of various devices such as routers, gateways and bridges.
Connection Oriented and Connectionless Services 1. In connection oriented service authentication is needed, while
These are the two services given by the layers to layers above them. These connectionless service does not need any authentication.
services are: 2. Connection oriented protocol makes a connection and checks whether
message is received or not and sends again if an error occurs, while
1. Connection Oriented Service connectionless service protocol does not guarantees a message
2. Connectionless Services delivery.
3. Connection oriented service is more reliable than connectionless
Connection Oriented Services service.
There is a sequence of operation to be followed by the users of connection 4. Connection oriented service interface is stream based and
oriented service. These are: connectionless is message based.

1. Connection is established. What are Service Primitives?

2. Information is sent. A service is formally specified by a set of primitives (operations) available to
3. Connection is released. a user process to access the service. These primitives tell the service to perform
In connection oriented service we have to establish a connection before starting some action or report on an action taken by a peer entity. If the protocol stack
the communication. When connection is established, we send the message or is located in the operating system, as it often is, the primitives are normally
the information and then we release the connection. system calls. These calls cause a trap to kernel mode, which then turns control
Connection oriented service is more reliable than connectionless service. We of the machine over to the operating system to send the necessary packets. The
can send the message in connection oriented service if there is an error at the set of primitives available depends on the nature of the service being provided.
receivers end. Example of connection oriented is TCP (Transmission Control The primitives for connection-oriented service are different from those of
Protocol) protocol. connection-less service. There are five types of service primitives :

Connection Less Services 1. LISTEN : When a server is ready to accept an incoming connection it
It is similar to the postal services, as it carries the full address where the executes the LISTEN primitive. It blocks waiting for an incoming
message (letter) is to be carried. Each message is routed independently from connection.
source to destination. The order of message sent can be different from the order 2. CONNECT : It connects the server by establishing a connection.
received. Response is awaited.
In connectionless the data is transferred in one direction from source to 3. RECIEVE: Then the RECIEVE call blocks the server.
destination without checking that destination is still there or not or if it prepared 4. SEND : Then the client executes SEND primitive to transmit its
to accept the message. Authentication is not needed in this. Example of request followed by the execution of RECIEVE to get the reply. Send
Connectionless service is UDP (User Datagram Protocol) protocol. the message.
5. DISCONNECT : This primitive is used for terminating the
connection. After this primitive one can't send any message. When the
Difference: Connection oriented and Connectionless service
client sends DISCONNECT packet then the server also sends the Relationship of Services to Protocol
DISCONNECT packet to acknowledge the client. When the server In this section we will learn about how services and protocols are related and
package is received by client then the process is terminated. why they are so important for each other.
Connection Oriented Service Primitives
There are 5 types of primitives for Connection Oriented Service :
What are Services?
These are the operations that a layer can provide to the layer above it in the OSI
LISTEN Block waiting for an incoming connection
Reference model. It defines the operation and states a layer is ready to perform
but it does not specify anything about the implementation of these operations.
CONNECTION Establish a connection with a waiting peer

RECEIVE Block waiting for an incoming message

SEND Sending a message to the peer

DISCONNECT Terminate a connection

What are Protocols?
These are set of rules that govern the format and meaning of frames, messages
Connectionless Service Primitives or packets that are exchanged between the server and client.
There are 4 types of primitives for Connectionless Oriented Service: omponents of Computer Networks
In this tutorial, we will cover the components of Computer Networks.
A Computer Network basically comprises multiple computers that are
UNIDATA This primitive sends a packet of data interconnected to each other in order to share information and other resources.
Multiple computers are connected either with the help of cables or wireless
FACILITY, Primitive for enquiring about the performance of the media.
REPORT network, like delivery statistics.

So basically with the help of a computer network two or more devices are
connected in order to share a nearly limitless range of information and
services which includes;
• Music
• Databases
• Websites Given below is a list of components of a Computer Network:
• Documents • Network Interface Card(NIC)
• Email and messaging • HUB
• Telephony and conferencing • Switch
• Printers and Faxes • Repeater
• Router
• Modem
• Server
• Bridge

The above image shows how two devices are connected to each other with the
help of the Internet and a laptop is connected to one of them with the help of a
cable.
Let us now learn the main components of Computer Networks;

Components of Computer Networks

The key parts that are required to install a network are included in the
components of the Computer network. From simple to complex there are
numerous types of networks in Computer networks. The components that we
need to install for a network mainly depend upon the type of Network. We can We are now going to discuss all the above mentioned major components of a
also remove some network components according to our needs. Computer Network:
For example: In order to establish a wireless network there is no need for
cables. 1. Network Interface Card(NIC)
NIC mainly provide the physical interface between computer and cabling.NIC • Also, Hubs consumes more bandwidth on the network and thus limits
prepares data, sends the data, and controls the flow of data. It can also receive the amount of communication.
and translate the data into bytes for the CPU to understand. • One disadvantage of using hubs is that they do not have the intelligence
• NIC is a hardware component that is mainly used to connect one to find out the best path for the data packets which then leads to
computer with another on a Network. inefficiencies and wastage.
• The main role of NIC is to move the serial signals on the network
cables or media into parallel data streams inside the PCs. Types of Hub
• Transfer rate supported by NIC is 10Mb/s,100 Mb/s ,1000 Mb/s. 1. Active Hub:
• Two or more NIC’s are used in the server in order to split the load. Active Hubs make use of electronics in order to amplify and clean up the
• The main job of NIC is controlling access to the media. signals before they are broadcast to other ports. Active Hubs are mainly used
• NIC can be wired or wireless. In wired NIC, there are cables and to extend the maximum distance between nodes. It works both as a wiring
connectors that act as a medium to transfer data. While in the wireless center as well as a repeater.
card, the connection is generally made using an antenna that uses 2. Passive Hub:
radio-wave technology Passive Hubs are those hubs that connect only to Active Hubs. Passive Hubs
are simply used to connect all ports together electrically and these are usually
Factors to be taken into consideration when choosing a NIC: not powered. These hubs are cheaper than Passive hub. Passive hubs neither
1. Preparing data amplifies the signal nor regenerates the signal.
2. Sending and Controlling data 3. Intelligent Hub:
3. Configuration Intelligent hubs give better performance than active and passive hubs.
4. Drivers Nowadays Intelligent hubs are widely used and are in more demand than active
5. Compatability and passive hubs. These hubs are mainly used to connect various devices. It
6. Performance supports amplification and regeneration of signals at any point of incoming
signals.
2. Hub Intelligent hub sustains the network along with the selection path. The tasks of
Hubs are those devices that are used to link several computers together. Hubs both passive and active are manageable by the intelligent hub.
repeat one signal that comes in on one port and then copies it to other ports. With the help of an Intelligent hub, the Speed and efficiency of the whole
• A network hub is basically a centralized distribution point for all the network increases which helps to gain the fast and efficient performance of the
data transmission in a network. network.
• Hub is a passive device.
• The hub receives the data and then rebroadcasts the data to other 3. Switch
computers that are connected to it. Hub mainly does not know the Switch mainly resembles a Hub. It is a layer-2 device and it is used for the
destination of a received data packet. Thus it is required to send copies intelligent forwarding of messages. By intelligent we mean the decision-
of data packets to all the hub connections. making ability of the switch. As hub works in the way by sending data to all
ports on the device, whereas the switch sends the data to only that port that is 3. PoE Switch
connected with the destination device. These are referred to as Power over Ethernet switches. With the help of the
• The switch is a network component and is mainly used to connect the PoE technology, these switches combine the data and power transmission over
segments of the network. the same cable, and with the help of that devices connected to this switch are
• The switch is more intelligent than the network hub. able to receive both electricity as well as data over the same line. Thus PoE
• Mainly Switches are capable of inspecting the data packets as soon as switches offer more flexibility.
they are received, then determine the source and destination of that 4. LAN Switch
packet, and then forward it appropriately. LAN switch is referred to as Local Area Network switch and it is mainly used
• Switch differs from the hub as it also contains ports of different speeds. to connect devices in the internal local area network of an organization. These
• Before forwarding the data to the ports switch performs the error are helpful in reducing network congestion. Bandwidth with these switches is
checking and this feature makes the switch efficient. allocated in a manner such that there is no overlapping of data packets in the
• As the switch delivers the message to the connected device it was network.
intended for, thus it conserves the bandwidth of the network and offers 5. Repeater
better performance than the hub. The repeater is a Physical layer device. As the name suggests, the repeater is
• The most important feature of the switch is that it supports unicast(one mainly used to regenerate the signal over the same network and it mainly
to one), multicast(one to many), and broadcast(one to all) regenerates before the signal gets corrupted or weak.
communications. They are incorporated into the networks in order to extend the coverage area.
• The switch makes use of MAC address in order to send data packets to Repeaters can connect signals by making the use of diffrent types of cables.
the selected destination ports. • Repeaters are cost-effective.
Switches are categorized into 4: • Repeaters are very easy o install, and after their installation, they can
1. Managed Switch easily extend the coverage area of the network.
These are expensive switches and are mainly used in those organizations that • But there is a problem with repeaters and it is they cannot those
have large and complex networks. Managed switches are configured using the networks that are not of the same type.
Simple Network Management Protocol(SNMP). These switches provide a high • Repeaters do not help to reduce the traffic in the network.
level of security, complete management of the network thus beside their
expensiveness these are used in large organizations because they provide high Types of repeaters:
scalability and flexibility Types of repeaters that are available are as follows:
2. Unmanaged Switch 1. Analog Repeaters
These are cheap switches and are mainly used in home networks and in small These are only used to amplify the analog signals.
businesses. The unmanaged switch does not need to be configured. Unmanaged 2. Digital Repeaters
switches can be easily set up just by plugging them into the network, after These are only used to amplify digital signals.
plugging they instantly start operating. 3. Wired Repeaters
These repeaters are mainly used in wired Local area networks.
4. Wireless Repeaters Types of Routers:
These are mainly used in wireless local area networks and also in cellular Different types of routers are as follows:
networks. • Core Routers
5. Local Repeaters Core routers are mainly used by service providers(like AT&T,
These are used to connect segments of a local area network that are separated Vodafone) or by cloud providers like (Amazon, Microsoft, and
by a small distance. Google). Core Routers provide maximum bandwidth so as to connect
6. Remote Repeaters additional routers or switches. Core routers are used by large
These are mainly used to connect those local area networks that are far away organizations.
from each other. • Edge Routers
An edge router is also known as a Gateway router or gateway simply.
5. Router The gateway is the network's outermost point of connection with
The router is a network component that is mainly used to send or receive external networks and also includes the Internet. These routers are
data on the computer network. The process of forwarding data packets from mainly used to optimize bandwidth and are designed in order to
the source to the destination is referred to as Routing. connect to other routers so as to distribute data to end-users. Border
• The router is a Network Layer(i.e Layer 3) device. Gateway protocol is mainly used for connectivity by edge routers.
• The main responsibilities of the router are receiving data packets, These are further categorized into two:
analyzing them, and then forwarding the data packets among the ✓ Subscriber edge routers
connected computer networks. ✓ Label edge routers.
• Whenever any data packet arrives, then first of all the router inspects • Brouters
the destination address and then consults with its routing tables in order Brouter means bridging routing device. These are special routers and
to decide the optimal route and then transfers the packet along this they also provide functionalities of bridges. They perform the
route towards the destination. functioning of the bridge as well as of router; like a bridge, these
• Routers are mainly used to provide protection against broadcast routers help to transfer data between networks, and like the router, they
storms. route the data within the devices of a network.
• Routers are expensive than a hub, switches, repeaters, and bridges. • 4.Broadband Routers
• Routers can also connect different networks together and thus data It is a type of networking device that mainly allows end-users to access
packets can also be sent from one network to another network. broadband Internet from an Internet service provider (ISP). The
• Routers are used in both LAN as well as in WAN(wide area network). Internet service provider usually provides and configures the
• Routers share data with each other in order to prepare and refresh the broadband router for the end-user.
routing tables. • 5.Distribution Routers
These routers mainly receive the data from the edge router (or
gateway) via a wired connection and then sends it on to the end-users
with the help of Wi-Fi.
• 5.Wireless Routers or more local area networks together. These are mainly used as they help in the
These routers combine the functioning of both edge routers and fast transferring of the data.
distribution routers. These routers mainly provide a WiFi connection But these are not versatile like routers.
to WiFi devices like laptops, smartphones, etc. These routers also Thus Bridge can mainly transfer the data between different protocols (i.e. a
provide the standard Ethernet routing. For indoor connections, the Token Ring and Ethernet network) and operates at the data link layer or level
range of these routers is 150 feet while for outdoor connections it is 2 of the OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) networking reference model as
300 feet. told above.
Bridges are further divided into two:
6. Modem • Local bridge
The modem is basically a hardware component that mainly allows a computer These are ordinary bridges.
• Remote bridges
or any other device like a router, switch to connect to the Internet. A modem is
basically a shorthand form of Modulator-Demodulator. These are mainly used to connect networks that are at a distance from
One of the most important functions of the modem is to convert analog signals each other. Generally Wide Area Network is provided between two
into digital signals and vice versa. Also, this device is a combination of two bridges
devices: modulator and demodulator. The modulator mainly converts the
digital data into analog data at the time when the data is being sent by the Some Bridge protocols are spanning tree protocol, source routing protocol, and
computer. source routing transparent protocol.
The demodulator basically converts the analog data signals into digital data at
the time when it is being received by the computer. Features of Computer Networks
In this tutorial, we will be covering the features of Computer Networks.
Basically, Computer Network is a connection of two or more devices that are
7. Server connected through a medium in order to exchange information. With the help
A Server is basically a computer that serves the data to other devices. The of a Computer Network, you can easily send or receive data to or from a
server may serve data to other devices or computers over a local area network computing device.
or on a Wide area network with the help of the Internet. There can be virtual
servers, proxy servers, application servers, web servers, database servers, file Now its time to cover the important features of Computer Networks:
servers, and many more. • Data Sharing
Thus servers are mainly used to serve the requests of other devices. It can be • Reliability
hardware or software. • Scalability
• Security
8. Bridge • Performance
It is another important component of the computer network. The bridge is also • Backup
a layer-2( that is data link layer device). A bridge is mainly used to connect two • Software and Hardware Compatibility
the network easily. Any computer network must be scalable so we can extend
it easily by adding new nodes. After adding new nodes to the network the speed
of connection decreases which leads to a decrease in the speed of transmission
of data. Thus due to all these, there are more chances for the occurrence of
error.
This problem can be resolved with the help of routing devices.
Let us take an example of this: Suppose there are 50 computers in a company
for their 50 employees. Let's say the company hires another 100 employees and
then the company adds 100 computers to the existing local area network then
We will discuss each feature one by one in the following section:
in that case LAN should allow the same.

1. Data Sharing
5. Performance
One of the most important features of a Computer Network is that with their
The performance of a computer network is measured using response time and
help you can easily share the data between different systems that are connected
with the help of the speed of data transmission. For better performance, the
with each other through transmission media.
response time of sending and receiving data from one node to another should
Thus, resources can be easily shared between two or more devices over a
be minimum.
network.

6. Backup
2. Reliability
There must be a central server for the computer network and this server must
With the help of Computer Networks there are fewer chances for the
keep the backup of all the data that is shared over the network. And at the time
occurrence of failure and in case if there is any failure then recovery is fast.
of failure in the network this central server helps in the faster recovery.

3. Security
7. Software and Hardware Compatibility
Security is one of the main characteristics of Computer Networks, Thus a
In the Computer Network, there must not be any limitation for all the computers
computer network should be secure so that the data transmitting over the
in a computer network to use the same software and hardware.
network should be safe from any unauthorized access.
Instead, the computer network should allow better compatibility between
Also, the data sent by the sending node should be received as it is at
different software and hardware configuration.
the receiving node, which simply means there should be no loss of data during
With the help of a Computer network, it becomes very easy for all of us to
the transmission of the data.
share our knowledge and ideas with others for example: via email messaging,
via video conferencing over the internet, everything becomes easy.
4. Scalability
Another feature of a Computer network is scalability. The scalability of a
computer network simply means that we can add new nodes or components to
• ECN − Explicit Congestion Notification; It carries information about
IPv4 - Packet Structure the congestion seen in the route.
• Total Length − Length of entire IP Packet (including IP header and IP
Internet Protocol being a layer-3 protocol (OSI) takes data Segments from Payload).
layer-4 (Transport) and divides it into packets. IP packet encapsulates data unit • Identification − If IP packet is fragmented during the transmission, all
received from above layer and add to its own header information. the fragments contain same identification number. to identify original
IP packet they belong to.
• Flags − As required by the network resources, if IP Packet is too large
to handle, these ‘flags’ tells if they can be fragmented or not. In this 3-
bit flag, the MSB is always set to ‘0’.
• Fragment Offset − This offset tells the exact position of the fragment
in the original IP Packet.
• Time to Live − To avoid looping in the network, every packet is sent
The encapsulated data is referred to as IP Payload. IP header contains all the with some TTL value set, which tells the network how many routers
necessary information to deliver the packet at the other end. (hops) this packet can cross. At each hop, its value is decremented by
one and when the value reaches zero, the packet is discarded.
• Protocol − Tells the Network layer at the destination host, to which
Protocol this packet belongs to, i.e. the next level Protocol. For
example protocol number of ICMP is 1, TCP is 6 and UDP is 17.
• Header Checksum − This field is used to keep checksum value of
entire header which is then used to check if the packet is received error-
free.
• Source Address − 32-bit address of the Sender (or source) of the
packet.
• Destination Address − 32-bit address of the Receiver (or destination)
of the packet.
• Options − This is optional field, which is used if the value of IHL is
greater than 5. These options may contain values for options such as
Security, Record Route, Time Stamp, etc.
IP header includes many relevant information including Version Number,
which, in this context, is 4. Other details are as follows −
• Version − Version no. of Internet Protocol used (e.g. IPv4).
• IHL − Internet Header Length; Length of entire IP header.
• DSCP − Differentiated Services Code Point; this is Type of Service.
Structure and Types of IP Address Decimal Representation

The Internet has become an integral part of our lives, and we rely on it for The decimal representation of an IP address makes it easier for humans to
communication, entertainment, and information. Every device that connects to understand and remember. It uses four numbers separated by dots where each
the internet requires an IP address. number ranges from 0 to 255.

An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a unique numerical identifier assigned to The numbers represent the value of each octet in decimal notation. For instance,
every device connected to a network that uses the Internet Protocol for using the same example as above, the decimal representation would be:
communication. In this article, we will explore the structure and types of IP
addresses used in networks today. 192 . 168 . 5 .1

An IP address is a unique numerical identifier assigned to every device IPv4 vs IPv6IPv4 (Internet Protocol version four) was first introduced in the
connected to a network that uses the Internet Protocol. It consists of four early days of the internet and remains one of the most widely used protocols
numbers separated by periods (dots), such as 192.168.0.1. Each number can today.
range from 0 to 255, giving us over 4 billion possible combinations.
However, with so many devices connected worldwide, IPv4 addresses are
Structure of IP Address becoming scarce due to limitations in its structure, which can only
accommodate around four billion unique addresses. IPv6 (Internet Protocol
The structure of an IP (Internet Protocol) address refers to the way it is version six), on the other hand, uses longer addresses consisting of eight groups
formatted, represented, and read. An IP address is used to identify devices on of hexadecimal digits separated by colons that can accommodate
a network and allow communication between them. Each device on a network approximately three hundred forty undecillion unique addresses.
has a unique IP address that makes it possible for data packets to be sent and
received effectively. Types of IP Addresses

Binary Representation Internet Protocol (IP) addresses are used to identify devices on a network.
There are two types of IP addresses: public and private. In addition, there is
An IP address is made up of 32 bits for IPv4 or 128 bits for IPv6 that are dynamic and static IP addressing.
grouped into octets separated by dots. The binary representation of an IP
address shows how each bit within the address is either '0' or '1.' For example, Public IP Addresses
the binary representation of an IPv4 address might look like this:
A Public IP address is an internet address that is assigned to any device that
11000000 . 10101000 . 00000101 . 00000001 This binary string corresponds directly faces the Internet. It is unique and identifies the device on the internet.
to the decimal representation: 192 . 168 . 5 . 1
It can be accessed from anywhere on the internet, making it useful for hosting Dynamic vs Static IP Addresses
websites or other services. Public IPs can be obtained from ISPs or purchased
from companies that provide them. Definition and Differences between Dynamic and Static IPs
How they are assigned
A dynamical IP address is an address that changes every time you connect to
When you connect your device to the internet through an ISP, they assign you the Internet. This change happens automatically in most cases, making it hard
a public IP address from their pool of available addresses. This assignment to keep track of your device's current IP.
process can be done either dynamically (automatic assignment) or manually
(through a service request). A static IP address, on the other hand, is an address that never changes. It is
Examples permanently assigned to a device.
Advantages and Disadvantages of each type
An example of a public IP address would be 216.58.194.174 which belongs to
Google.com. Static IPs are useful when setting up servers because they allow for a permanent
internet address for remote access purposes. However, they can be more
Private IP Addresses expensive than dynamic IPs and require manual configuration. Dynamic IPs
are cheaper and require little or no configuration at all.
Private IPs, also known as local IPs, are used within private networks and do
not route over the Internet's backbone infrastructure like Public IPs do.
Definition

A Private IP address is a non−publicly registered internet protocol address

assigned by routers in private networks like LANs (Local Area Networks),
Intranets or Wi−Fi networks at home.
How they are assigned

Private IPs are usually allocated by the router through DHCP protocol
automatically when devices connect to it.
Examples

Some examples of private addresses include: − 192.168.x.x − 172.x.x.x

− 10.x.x An example of a private IPv6 address would be

fd7a:115c:a1e0:ab35::1
Subnetting and CIDR Notation Calculating subnets using CIDR notation is relatively straightforward. First,
you need to determine how many bits are allocated for the network portion of
Explanation of Subnetting the address (i.e., the prefix length).

Subnetting is the process of dividing a large network into smaller, more Next, you need to convert this prefix length to a subnet mask. For example, if
manageable subnetworks. This process has become increasingly important as we have an IP address of 192.168.1.0/24, we know that 24 bits are used for the
the size and complexity of networks have grown over time. By breaking down network portion and 8 bits are used for the host portion.
a large network into smaller subnetworks, network administrators can improve
performance, security, and manageability. To convert this prefix length to a subnet mask, we simply fill in all the network
bits with "1's" and all the host bits with "0's". This gives us a subnet mask of
Subnetting is achieved by borrowing bits from the host portion of an IP address 255.255.255.0.
to create a separate network address. For example, if we have an IP address
192.168.1.0/24 (meaning it has a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0), we can create Once we have our subnet mask, we can then use it to determine what our
two subnets by borrowing one bit from the host portion of the IP address so subnets are by incrementing or decrementing values in the host portion of our
that our new subnet mask becomes 255.255.255.128 or /25. IP addresses depending on how many subnets and hosts per subnet were
required.
CIDR Notation (Classless Inter−Domain Routing)

CIDR notation is a method used to represent IP addresses and their associated

subnet masks in a more compact form than traditional dotted decimal notation
(e.g., 192.168.1.0/24). It was introduced in the mid−1990s as part of an effort
to address the limitations of classful addressing. In CIDR notation, an IP
address is followed by a slash (/) character and then a number that represents
how many bits are used for the network portion of the address (e.g., 192 .168.1
.0/24).

The number after the slash represents what's known as the "prefix length" or
"subnet mask length." CIDR notation allows for more flexible addressing
schemes because it doesn't rely on fixed classes like A, B or C addresses but
instead allows for variable−length subnet masks.

How to calculate subnets using CIDR notation

IPv4 - Addressing

IPv4 supports three different types of addressing modes. −

Unicast Addressing Mode

In this mode, data is sent only to one destined host. The Destination Address
field contains 32- bit IP address of the destination host. Here the client sends
data to the targeted server −

Multicast Addressing Mode

This mode is a mix of the previous two modes, i.e. the packet sent is neither
destined to a single host nor all the hosts on the segment. In this packet, the
Destination Address contains a special address which starts with 224.x.x.x and
can be entertained by more than one host.

Broadcast Addressing Mode

In this mode, the packet is addressed to all the hosts in a network segment. The
Destination Address field contains a special broadcast address,
i.e. 255.255.255.255. When a host sees this packet on the network, it is bound
to process it. Here the client sends a packet, which is entertained by all the
Servers −

Here a server sends packets which are entertained by more than one servers.
Every network has one IP address reserved for the Network Number which
represents the network and one IP address reserved for the Broadcast Address,
which represents all the hosts in that network.
Hierarchical Addressing Scheme The positional value method is the simplest form of converting binary from
decimal value. IP address is 32 bit value which is divided into 4 octets. A binary
IPv4 uses hierarchical addressing scheme. An IP address, which is 32-bits in octet contains 8 bits and the value of each bit can be determined by the position
length, is divided into two or three parts as depicted − of bit value '1' in the octet.

A single IP address can contain information about the network and its sub-
network and ultimately the host. This scheme enables the IP Address to be
hierarchical where a network can have many sub-networks which in turn can
Positional value of bits is determined by 2 raised to power (position – 1), that
have many hosts.
is the value of a bit 1 at position 6 is 2^(6-1) that is 2^5 that is 32. The total
value of the octet is determined by adding up the positional value of bits. The
Subnet Mask
value of 11000000 is 128+64 = 192.

The 32-bit IP address contains information about the host and its network. It is
IPv4 - Address Classes
very necessary to distinguish both. For this, routers use Subnet Mask, which is
as long as the size of the network address in the IP address. Subnet Mask is
Internet Protocol hierarchy contains several classes of IP Addresses to be used
also 32 bits long. If the IP address in binary is ANDed with its Subnet Mask,
efficiently in various situations as per the requirement of hosts per network.
the result yields the Network address. For example, say the IP Address is
Broadly, the IPv4 Addressing system is divided into five classes of IP
192.168.1.152 and the Subnet Mask is 255.255.255.0 then −
Addresses. All the five classes are identified by the first octet of IP Address.
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is responsible for
assigning IP addresses.

The first octet referred here is the left most of all. The octets numbered as
follows depicting dotted decimal notation of IP Address −
This way the Subnet Mask helps extract the Network ID and the Host from an
IP Address. It can be identified now that 192.168.1.0 is the Network number
and 192.168.1.152 is the host on that network.

Binary Representation
The number of networks and the number of hosts per class can be derived by
this formula −

Class B IP Addresses range from 128.0.x.x to 191.255.x.x. The default subnet

mask for Class B is 255.255.x.x.

When calculating hosts' IP addresses, 2 IP addresses are decreased because Class B has 16384 (214) Network addresses and 65534 (216-2) Host addresses.
they cannot be assigned to hosts, i.e. the first IP of a network is network number
and the last IP is reserved for Broadcast IP. Class B IP address format
is: 10NNNNNN.NNNNNNNN.HHHHHHHH.HHHHHHHH
Class A Address
Class C Address
The first bit of the first octet is always set to 0 (zero). Thus the first octet ranges
from 1 – 127, i.e. The first octet of Class C IP address has its first 3 bits set to 110, that is −

Class A addresses only include IP starting from 1.x.x.x to 126.x.x.x only. The
Class C IP addresses range from 192.0.0.x to 223.255.255.x. The default subnet
IP range 127.x.x.x is reserved for loopback IP addresses.
mask for Class C is 255.255.255.x.
The default subnet mask for Class A IP address is 255.0.0.0 which implies that
Class C gives 2097152 (221) Network addresses and 254 (28-2) Host addresses.
Class A addressing can have 126 networks (2 7-2) and 16777214 hosts (224-2).

Class C IP address format

Class A IP address format is
is: 110NNNNN.NNNNNNNN.NNNNNNNN.HHHHHHHH
thus: 0NNNNNNN.HHHHHHHH.HHHHHHHH.HHHHHHHH

Class D Address
Class B Address

Very first four bits of the first octet in Class D IP addresses are set to 1110,
An IP address which belongs to class B has the first two bits in the first octet
giving a range of −
set to 10, i.e.
Class D has IP address range from 224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255. Class D is For example, if one MSB (Most Significant Bit) is borrowed from host bits of
reserved for Multicasting. In multicasting data is not destined for a particular second octet and added to Network address, it creates two Subnets (21=2) with
host, that is why there is no need to extract host address from the IP address, (223-2) 8388606 Hosts per Subnet.
and Class D does not have any subnet mask.
The Subnet mask is changed accordingly to reflect subnetting. Given below is
Class E Address a list of all possible combination of Class A subnets −

This IP Class is reserved for experimental purposes only for R&D or Study. IP
addresses in this class ranges from 240.0.0.0 to 255.255.255.254. Like Class
D, this class too is not equipped with any subnet mask.

IPv4 - Subnetting

Each IP class is equipped with its own default subnet mask which bounds that
IP class to have prefixed number of Networks and prefixed number of Hosts
per network. Classful IP addressing does not provide any flexibility of having
less number of Hosts per Network or more Networks per IP Class.

CIDR or Classless Inter Domain Routing provides the flexibility of

borrowing bits of Host part of the IP address and using them as Network in
Network, called Subnet. By using subnetting, one single Class A IP address
can be used to have smaller sub-networks which provides better network
management capabilities.

Class A Subnets

In Class A, only the first octet is used as Network identifier and rest of three
octets are used to be assigned to Hosts (i.e. 16777214 Hosts per Network). To
make more subnet in Class A, bits from Host part are borrowed and the subnet
mask is changed accordingly.
In case of subnetting too, the very first and last IP address of every subnet is Class C IP addresses are normally assigned to a very small size network
used for Subnet Number and Subnet Broadcast IP address respectively. because it can only have 254 hosts in a network. Given below is a list of all
Because these two IP addresses cannot be assigned to hosts, sub-netting cannot possible combination of subnetted Class B IP address −
be implemented by using more than 30 bits as Network Bits, which provides
less than two hosts per subnet.

Class B Subnets

By default, using Classful Networking, 14 bits are used as Network bits

providing (214) 16384 Networks and (216-2) 65534 Hosts. Class B IP Addresses
can be subnetted the same way as Class A addresses, by borrowing bits from
Host bits. Below is given all possible combination of Class B subnetting −

IPv4 - Reserved Addresses

There are a few reserved IPv4 address spaces which cannot be used on the
internet. These addresses serve special purpose and cannot be routed outside
the Local Area Network.

Private IP Addresses

Every class of IP, (A, B & C) has some addresses reserved as Private IP
addresses. These IPs can be used within a network, campus, company and are
private to it. These addresses cannot be routed on the Internet, so packets
containing these private addresses are dropped by the Routers.

Class C Subnets

In order to communicate with the outside world, these IP addresses must have
to be translated to some public IP addresses using NAT process, or Web Proxy
server can be used.
The sole purpose to create a separate range of private addresses is to control Assume a network segment where all systems are configured to acquire IP
assignment of already-limited IPv4 address pool. By using a private address addresses from a DHCP server connected to the same network segment. If the
range within LAN, the requirement of IPv4 addresses has globally decreased DHCP server is not available, no host on the segment will be able to
significantly. It has also helped delaying the IPv4 address exhaustion. communicate to any other. Windows (98 or later), and Mac OS (8.0 or later)
supports this functionality of self-configuration of Link-local IP address. In
IP class, while using private address range, can be chosen as per the size and absence of DHCP server, every host machine randomly chooses an IP address
requirement of the organization. Larger organizations may choose class A from the above mentioned range and then checks to ascertain by means of ARP,
private IP address range where smaller organizations may opt for class C. if some other host also has not configured itself with the same IP address. Once
These IP addresses can be further sub-netted and assigned to departments all hosts are using link local addresses of same range, they can communicate
within an organization. with each other.

Loopback IP Addresses These IP addresses cannot help system to communicate when they do not
belong to the same physical or logical segment. These IPs are also not routable.
The IP address range 127.0.0.0 – 127.255.255.255 is reserved for loopback, i.e.
a Host’s self-address, also known as localhost address. This loopback IP RG-45 Termination for Twisted Pair Cables
address is managed entirely by and within the operating system. Loopback A RJ45 connector is a modular 8 position, 8 pin connector used for
addresses, enable the Server and Client processes on a single system to terminating Cat5e or Cat6 twisted pair cable. A pinout is a specific
communicate with each other. When a process creates a packet with destination arrangement of wires that dictate how the connector is terminated. There are
address as loopback address, the operating system loops it back to itself without multiple pinouts for RJ45 connectors including straight through (T568A or
having any interference of NIC. T568B), crossover, rolled, T1, and loopback. Straight through is the most
common type of cable and is used for connecting your computer to your
Data sent on loopback is forwarded by the operating system to a virtual network network. The other pinouts are for specialty cables that are used for unique
interface within operating system. This address is mostly used for testing network applications. Straight-Through Pinout Within the family of straight-
purposes like client-server architecture on a single machine. Other than that, if through color codes, there are two standards recognized by ANSI, TIA and
a host machine can successfully ping 127.0.0.1 or any IP from loopback range, EIA. The first is the T568A wiring standard and the second is T568B. T568B
implies that the TCP/IP software stack on the machine is successfully loaded has surpassed 568A and is seen as the default wiring scheme for twisted pair
and working. structured cabling. If you are unsure of which to use, choose 568B.

Link-local Addresses T-568A RJ45 Pinout

In case a host is not able to acquire an IP address from the DHCP server and it
has not been assigned any IP address manually, the host can assign itself an IP
address from a range of reserved Link-local addresses. Link local address
ranges from 169.254.0.0 -- 169.254.255.255.
Cross Over Pinout
A crossover cable utilizes two different RJ45 pinouts for the two ends of the
cable. If you need to connect 568A equipment to 568B you can use a crossover
cable.

T-568B RJ45 Pinout