COMPUTER NETWORK ASSIGNMENT-2

Q.1 What is the difference between IPv4 and IPv6?

IPv4 (Internet Protocol Version 4) is the fourth revision of the Internet Protocol (IP) used to to identify devices on a
network through an addressing system. The Internet Protocol is designed for use in interconnected systems of
packet-switched computer communication network.

IPv4 is the most widely deployed Internet protocol used to connect devices to the Internet. IPv4 uses a 32-bit address
scheme allowing for a total of 2^32 addresses (just over 4 billion addresses). With the growth of the Internet it is
expected that the number of unused IPv4 addresses will eventually run out because every device -- including
computers, smartphones and game consoles -- that connects to the Internet requires an address.

A new Internet addressing system Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is being deployed to fulfill the need for more
Internet addresses.
IPv6 (Internet Protocol Version 6) is also called IPng (Internet Protocol next generation) and it is the newest version
of the Internet Protocol (IP) reviewed in the IETF standards committees to replace the current version of IPv4
(Internet Protocol Version 4).

IPv6 is the successor to Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4). It was designed as an evolutionary upgrade to the Internet
Protocol and will, in fact, coexist with the older IPv4 for some time. IPv6 is designed to allow the Internet to grow
steadily, both in terms of the number of hosts connected and the total amount of data traffic transmitted.

IPv6 is often referred to as the "next generation" Internet standard and has been under development now since the
mid-1990s. IPv6 was born out of concern that the demand for IP addresses would exceed the available supply.
Q.2 What do you mean by intranet and internet?

An intranet is a private network that is contained within an enterprise. It may consist of many
interlinked local area networks and also use leased lines in the wide area network. Typically, an intranet
includes connections through one or more gateway computers to the outside Internet. The main
purpose of an intranet is to share company information and computing resources among employees. An
intranet can also be used to facilitate working in groups and for teleconferences.

An intranet uses TCP/IP, HTTP, and other Internet protocols and in general looks like a private version of
the Internet. With tunneling, companies can send private messages through the public network, using
the public network with special encryption/decryption and other security safeguards to connect one
part of their intranet to another.

Typically, larger enterprises allow users within their intranet to access the public Internet
through firewall servers that have the ability to screen messages in both directions so that company
security is maintained. When part of an intranet is made accessible to customers, partners, suppliers, or
others outside the company, that part becomes part of an extranet.

The internet is a globally connected network system that uses TCP/IP to transmit data via various types
of media. The internet is a network of global exchanges – including private, public, business, academic
and government networks – connected by guided, wireless and fiber-optic technologies.

The terms internet and World Wide Web are often used interchangeably, but they are not exactly the
same thing; the internet refers to the global communication system, including hardware and
infrastructure, while the web is one of the services communicated over the internet.

Q.3 What are routers?

A router is a device that analyzes the contents of data packets transmitted within a network or to
another network. Routers determine whether the source and destination are on the same network or
whether data must be transferred from one network type to another, which requires encapsulating the
data packet with routing protocol header information for the new network type.
Q.4 What is subnet Mask?

A subnet mask is a 32-bit number used to differentiate the network component of an IP address by
dividing the IP address into a network address and host address. It does so with bit arithmetic whereby a
network address is bit multiplied by the subnet mask reveal the underlying subnetwork. Like the IP
address, a subnet mask is written using the "dotted-decimal" notation.

A subnet mask is also known as an address mask.

Q.5 Briefly describe NAT?

Network address translation (NAT)

To access Internet, one public IP address is needed but as you use private IP address in our private
network, translation of private IP address to a public IP address is required. Network Address Translation
(NAT) is a process in which one or more local IP address is translated into one or more Global IP address
and vice versa in order to provide Internet access to the local hosts. Also, it does the translation of port
numbers i.e. masks the port number of the host with another port number, in the packet that will be
routed to destination. It then makes the corresponding entries of ip address and port number in the NAT
table. NAT generally operates on router or firewall.

Q.6 What is NIC?

A Network Interface Card (NIC) is a computer hardware component that allows a computer to connect
to a network. NICs may be used for both wired and wireless connections.

A NIC is also known as a network interface controller (NIC), network interface controller card, expansion
card, computer circuit board, network card, LAN card, network adapter or network adapter card (NAC).

Q.7 What is the private IP address?

An IP address within three ranges of numbers that are set aside for the computers in local networks.
Typically assigned to the machines by a DHCP server, these private addresses are not routed over the
Internet. In order to gain access to the Internet, the private addresses are converted to a public IP
address that is exposed to the Internet by a network address translation (NAT) service.
See 192.168.1.1, CIDR, NAT, DHCP and IP address.
Q.8 What are Mac addresses?

In order to communicate or transfer the data from one computer to another computer we need some
address. In Computer Network various types of address are introduced; each works at different layer.
Media Access Control Address is a physical address which works at Data Link Layer. In this article, we will
discuss about addressing in DLL, which is MAC Address.

Media Access Control (MAC) Address –

MAC Addresses are unique 48-bits hardware number of a computer, which is embedded into network
card (known as Network Interface Card) during the time of manufacturing. MAC Address is also known
as Physical Address of a network device. In IEEE 802 standard, Data Link Layer is divided into two
sublayers –

Logical Link Control(LLC) Sublayer

Media Access Control(MAC) Sublayer

MAC address is used by Media Access Control (MAC) sublayer of Data-Link Layer. MAC Address is word
wide unique, since millions of network devices exists and we need to uniquely identify each

Q.9 What is DHCP?

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a network management protocol used to dynamically
assign an IP address to any new node entering the network. DHCP permits a node to be configured
automatically, thereby avoiding the necessity of involvement by a network administrator.

DHCP does the following:

Manages the provision of all the nodes added or dropped from the network

Maintains the unique IP address of the host using a DHCP server

Sends a request to the DHCP server whenever a client/node, which is configured to work with DHCP,
connects to a network. The server acknowledges by providing an IP address to the client/node.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is also known as RFC 2131.

Short for Address Resolution Protocol, a network layerprotocol used to convert an IP address into a
physical address (called a DLC address), such as an Ethernet address. A host wishing to obtain a physical
address broadcasts Ban ARP request onto the TCP/IP network. The host on the network that has the IP
address in the request then replies with its physical hardware address.