Chapter # 1

Fundamental Characteristics of data communication

Delivery :The system must deliver data to the correct destination. Data must be received by the
intended device or user and only by that device or user.
Accuracy :The system must deliver the data accurately. Data that have been altered in transmission and
left uncorrected are unusable.
Timeliness:The system must deliver data in a timely manner. Data delivered late are useless. In the case
of video and audio, timely delivery means delivering data as they are produced, in the same
order that they are produced, and without significant delay. This kind of delivery is called realtime transmission.
Jitter:Jitter refers to the variation in the packet arrival time. It is the uneven delay in the delivery of
audio or video packets. For example, let us assume that video packets are sent every 3D ms. If
some of the packets arrive with 3D-ms delay and others with 4D-ms delay, an uneven quality
in the video is the result.

Components of Data Communication

A data communications system has five components
Message:The message is the information (data) to be communicated. Popular forms of information
include text, numbers, pictures, audio, and video.
Sender:The sender is the device that sends the data message. It can be a computer, workstation,
telephone handset, video camera, and so on.
Receiver:The receiver is the device that receives the message. It can be a computer, workstation,
telephone handset, television, and so on.
Transmission medium:The transmission medium is the physical path by which a message travels from sender to
receiver. Some examples of transmission media include twisted-pair wire, coaxial cable, fiberoptic cable, and radio waves.
Protocol:A protocol is a set of rules that govern data communications. It represents an agreement
between the communicating devices. Without a protocol, two devices may be connected but
not communicating, just as a person speaking French cannot be understood by a person who
speaks only Japanese.

Data Flow
Communication between two devices can be simplex, half-duplex, or full-duplex.
Simplex:In simplex mode, the communication is unidirectional, as on a one-way street. Only one of the
two devices on a link can transmit; the other can only receive.Keyboards and traditional
monitors are examples of simplex devices. The keyboard can only introduce input; the monitor
can only accept output. The simplex mode can use the entire capacity of the channel to send
data in one direction.

Half-Duplex:In half-duplex mode, each station can both transmit and receive, but not at the same
time.When one device is sending, the other can only receive, and vice versa. The half-duplex
mode is like a one-lane road with traffic allowed in both directions. When cars are traveling in
one direction, cars going the other way must wait. In a half-duplex transmission, the entire
capacity of a channel is taken over by whichever of the two devices is transmitting at the time.
Walkie-talkies and CB (citizens band) radios are both half-duplex systems. The half-duplex
mode is used in cases where there is no need for communication in both directions at the
same time; the entire capacity of the channel can be utilized for each direction.

Full-Duplex:In full-duplex m.,lle (als@ called duplex), both stations can transmit and receive
simultaneously.The full-duplex mode is like a two-way street with traffic flowing in both
directions at the same time. In full-duplex mode, signals going in one direction share the
capacity of the link: with signals going in the other direction.This sharing can occur in two
ways: Either the link must contain two physically separate transmission paths, one for sending
and the other for receiving; or the capacity of the channel is divided between signals traveling
in both directions. One common example of full-duplex communication is the telephone
network. When two people are communicating by a telephone line, both can talk and listen at
the same time. The full-duplex mode is used when communication in both directions is
required all the time. The capacity of the channel, however, must be divided between the two
directions.

Type of Connection
A network is two or more devices connected through links. A link is a communications pathway
that transfers data from one device to another. For communication to occur, two devices must
be connected in some way to the same link at the same time. There are two possible types of
connections: point-to-point and multipoint.
Point-to-Point:A point-to-point connection provides a dedicated link between two devices. The entire capacity
of the link is reserved for transmission between those two devices. Most point-to-point
connections use an actual length of wire or cable to connect the two ends, but other options,
such as microwave or satellite links, are also possible. When you change television channels
by infrared remote control, you are establishing a point-to-point connection between the
remote control and the television's control system.
Multipoint:A multipoint (also called multidrop) connection is one in which more than two specific devices
share a single link. In a multipoint environment, the capacity of the channel is shared, either
spatially or temporally. If several devices can use the link simultaneously, it is a spatially
shared connection. If users must take turns, it is a timeshared connection.

Types of Network
Depending upon the geographical area covered by a network, it is classified as:
Local Area Network (LAN)
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
Wide Area Network (WAN)
LAN
A LAN is a network that is used for communicating among computer devices, usually within
an office building or home.
LANs enable the sharing of resources such as files or hardware devices that may be needed
by multiple users.
Is limited in size, typically spanning a few hundred meters, and no more than a mile
Is fast, with speeds from 10 Mbps to 10 Gbps
Requires little wiring, typically a single cable connecting to each device
Has lower cost compared to MANs or WANs
LANs can be either wired or wireless. Twisted pair, coax or fibre optic cable can be used in
wired LANs.

 Every LAN uses a protocol a set of rules that governs how packets are configured and
transmitted.
Nodes in a LAN are linked together with a certain topology. These topologies include:
Bus
Ring
Star
LANs are capable of very high transmission rates (100s Mb/s to G b/s).

Disadvantages of LAN
Expensive To Install
Requires Administrative Time
File Server May Fail
Cables May Break
Advantages of LAN
Speed
Cost
Security
E-mail
Resource Sharing
MAN(Metropolitan Area Network)
A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a large computer network that usually spans a city or
a large campus.
A MAN is optimized for a larger geographical area than a LAN, ranging from several blocks
of
buildings to entire cities.
A MAN might be owned and operated by a single organization, but it usually will be used by
many individuals and organizations.
A MAN often acts as a high speed network to allow sharing of regional resources.
A MAN typically covers an area of between 5 and 50 km diameter.
Examples of MAN: Telephone company network that provides a high speed DSL to
customers and cable TV network.
WAN (Wide Area Network)
WAN covers a large geographic area such as country, continent or even whole of the world.
A WAN is two or more LANs connected together. The LANs can be many miles apart.

 To cover great distances, WANs may transmit data over leased high-speed phone lines or
wireless links such as satellites.
Multiple LANs can be connected together using devices such as bridges, routers, or
gateways, which enable them to share data.
The world's most popular WAN is the Internet.

Network Topologies
Network topologies describe the ways in which the elements of a network are mapped. They
describe the physical and logical arrangement of the network nodes.
The physical topology of a network refers to the configuration of cables, computers, and
other peripherals
Different Types of Topologies
Bus Topology
Star Topology
Ring Topology
Mesh Topology
Tree Topology
Hybrid Topology

Bus Topology
All the nodes (file server, workstations, and peripherals) on a bus topology are connected by
one single cable.
A bus topology consists of a main run of cable with a terminator at each end. All nodes (file
server, workstations, and peripherals) are connected to the linear cable.
Popular on LANs because they are inexpensive and easy to install.
Advantages of Bus Topology
It is Cheap, easy to handle and implement.
Require less cable
It is best suited for small networks.
Disadvantages of Bus Topology
The cable length is limited. This limits the number of stations that can be connected.
This network topology can perform well only for a limited number of nodes.

Ring Topology
In a ring network, every device has exactly two neighbours for communication purposes.

 All messages travel through a ring in the same direction.

A failure in any cable or device breaks the loop and can take down the entire network.
To implement a ring network we use the Token Ring technology
A token, or small data packet, is continuously passed around the network. When a device
needs to transmit, it reserves the token for the next trip around, then attaches its data packet
to it.

Advantage of Ring Topology

Very orderly network where every device has access to the token and the opportunity to
transmit.
Easier to Mange than a Bus Network
Good Communication over long distances
Handles high volume of traffic
Disadvantages of Ring Topology
The failure of a single node of the network can cause the entire network to fail.
The movement or changes made to network nodes affects the performance of the entire
network.

Star Topology
In a star network, each node (file server, workstations, and peripherals) is connected to a
central device called a hub.
The hub takes a signal that comes from any node and passes it along to all the other nodes
in the network.
Data on a star network passes through the hub, switch, or concentrator before continuing to
its destination.
The hub, switch, or concentrator manages and controls all functions of the network.
The star topology reduces the chance of network failure by connecting all of the systems to a
central node.
Advantages of Star Topology
Easy to manage
Easy to locate problems (cable/workstations)
Easier to expand than a bus or ring topology.
Easy to install and wire.
Easy to detect faults and to remove parts.
Disadvantages of Star Topology
Requires more cable length than a linear topology.

 If the hub or concentrator fails, nodes attached are disabled.

More expensive because of the cost of the concentrators.

Tree Topology
A tree topology (hierarchical topology) can be viewed as a collection of star networks
arranged in a hierarchy.
This tree has individual peripheral nodes which are required to transmit to and receive from
one other only and are not required to act as repeaters or regenerators.
The tree topology arranges links and nodes into distinct hierarchies in order to allow greater
control and easier troubleshooting.
This is particularly helpful for colleges, universities and schools so that each of the connect
to the big network in some way.
Advantages of a Tree Topology
Point-to-point wiring for individual segments.
Supported by several hardware and software vendors.
All the computers have access to the larger and their immediate networks.
Disadvantages of a Tree Topology
Overall length of each segment is limited by the type of cabling used.
If the backbone line breaks, the entire segment goes down.
More difficult to configure and wire than other topologies.

Mesh Topology
In this topology, each node is connected to every other node in the network.
Implementing the mesh topology is expensive and difficult.
In this type of network, each node may send message to destination through multiple paths.
While the data is travelling on the Mesh Network it is automatically configured to reach the
destination by taking the shortest route which means the least number of hops.
Advantage of Mesh Topology
No traffic problem as there are dedicated links.
It has multiple links, so if one route is blocked then other routes can be used for data
communication.
Points to point links make fault identification easy.
Disadvantage of Mesh Topology
There is mesh of wiring which can be difficult to manage.
Installation is complex as each node is connected to every node.
Cabling cost is high.

Hybrid Topology

 A combination of any two or more network topologies.

A hybrid topology always accrues when two different basic network topologies are
connected.
It is a mixture of above mentioned topologies. Usually, a central computer is attached with
sub-controllers which in turn participate in a variety of topologies.
Advantages of a Hybrid Topology
It is extremely flexible.
It is very reliable.
Disadvantages of a Hybrid Topology
Expensive