Chapter 1

Networking Basics

The aim of this chapter is to provide an introduction over the concepts and terminologies
related to computer networking.

The following subjects are discussed:

  - What is a network?

 - Benefits of Networking

- Network classifications

  - LAN/WAN Devices

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1. What is a Network?

There are several types of networks that provide us with different kinds of services. A person might make
a phone call, watch a TV show, listen to radio, look up something on the internet, or even play a video
game with someone in another country. All of these activities depend on reliable networks. Networks
provide the ability to connect people and equipment no matter where they are in the world.

Networks generally fall into one of two broad network categories:

- Client/server networks: consists of a group of user PCs (called clients) that issue requests
to a server. The client PC is responsible for issuing requests for services to be rendered.
The server’s function on the network is to service these requests.
- Peer-to-peer networks: consists of a group of PCs that operate as equals. Each PC is called
a peer. The peers share resources (such as files and printers) just like in a server-based
network, although no specialized or dedicated server machines exist. In short, each PC can
act as a client or a server.

It is important to remember that one type of networking configuration is not necessarily better than
another. Each type of networking model has its own strengths and weaknesses.

2. Benefits of Networking

- Resource sharing: e.g. printers

- Data exchange and communication: transfer of information between various computer terminals
through communication links.

3. Network Classification

Networks can be classified based on different criteria: size, topology, protocol.

3.1. Classification via size

The most common size classifications are the following:

- Local area networks (LANs)

- Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs)
- Wide Area Networks (WANs)

LAN (Local Area Network)

LAN is constrained by distance- exist in a limited geographical area. The transmission technologies
used in LAN applications do not operate at speed over long distances. LAN distances are in the range
of 100 meters (m) to 3 kilometers (km). A LAN tends to use only one type of transmission medium-
cabling.

 Major characteristics of LANs are:

 - Transfer data at high speeds and their technology is generally less expensive.
 - LANs provide multiple connected desktop devices (usually PCs) with access to high-
bandwidth media.
 - LANs rarely shut down or restrict access to connected workstations; local services are
usually always available.

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 MAN (Metropolitan Area Networks)

MAN is basically a bigger version of a LAN and uses similar technologies. A MAN can support both
data and voice, and might even be related to the local cable television network.

WAN (Wide Area Networks)

WAN interconnects LANs. A WAN can be located entirely within a state or a country, or it can be
interconnected around the world.

 WANs are characterized by the following:

- They exist in an unlimited geographical area.

- They usually interconnect multiple LANs.
- They often transfer data at lower speeds (lower bandwidth).
- Connectivity and resources, especially the transmission media, usually are managed by a third-
party carrier such as a telephone or cable company.

3.2. Classification via type

A topology is a map of the network. It defines the arrangement of nodes, cables, and connectivity
devices that make up the network. Two categories form the basis for all discussions of topologies:

- Physical topology: Describes the actual layout of the network transmission media.
- Logical topology: Describes the logical pathway a signal follows as it passes among the
network nodes.

Physical and logical topologies can take several forms. The most common are the following:

 Bus Topology
 Ring Topology
 Star Topology

Bus Topology

A bus physical topology is one in which all devices connect to a common, shared cable (sometimes
called the backbone). Most bus networks broadcast signals in both directions on the backbone cable,
enabling all devices to directly receive the signal.

The disadvantage of bus topology is that if the connection to any one user is broken, the entire
network goes down, disrupting communication between all users. Because of this problem, bus
topology is rarely used today.

The advantage of bus topology is that it requires less cabling (therefore, lower cost)
Ethernet/IEEE 802.3 networks commonly implement a bus topology.

Star Topology
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 Star topology is a LAN topology in which endpoints on a network are connected to a common central
switch or hub by point-to-point links. The benefit of star topology is that even if the connection to any
one user is broken, the network stays functioning, and communication between the remaining users is
not disrupted, but its disadvantage is that it requires more cabling (therefore, higher cost) than bus
topology and if the centralized point fails, the network fails.

Ring Topology

Ring topology consists of a series of repeaters connected to one another by unidirectional

transmission links to form a single closed loop. Each device incorporates a receiver and a transmitter
and serves as a repeater that passes the signal on to the next device in the ring.
One example of a ring topology is Token Ring.

Redundancy is used to avoid collapse of the entire ring in the event that a connection between two
components fails.

4. Network Cabling

Cable is the actual physical path upon which an electrical signal travels as it moves from one
component to another. There are three primary cable types:

 - Twisted-pair (or copper)

 - Coaxial cable
 - Fiber-optic cable

Coaxial cable

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Coaxial cable consists of a solid copper core surrounded by an insulator, a combination shield and ground
wire, and an outer protective jacket. The shielding on coaxial cable makes it less susceptible to interference
from outside sources. It requires termination at each end of the cable, as well as a single ground connection.
Coax supports 10/100 Mbps and is relatively inexpensive, although more costly than UTP. Coaxial can be
cabled over longer distances than twisted-pair cable. For example, Ethernet can run at speed over
approximately 100 m (300 feet) of twisted pair. Using coaxial cable increases this distance to 500 m.

 Twisted-pair (or copper)

Unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) is a four-pair wire medium used in a variety of networks. UTP does not
require the fixed spacing between connections that is necessary with coaxial-type connections. There are five
types of UTP cabling commonly used as shown below:

 - Category 1: Used for telephone communications. It is not suitable for transmitting data.
 - Category 2: Capable of transmitting data at speeds up to 4 Mbps.
 - Category 3: Used in 10BaseT networks and can transmit data at speeds up to 10 Mbps.
 - Category 4: Used in Token Ring networks. It can transmit data at speeds up to 16 Mbps.
 - Category 5: Transmit data at speeds up to 100 Mbps.

Shielded twisted-pair (STP) is a two-pair wiring medium used in a variety of network implementations. STP
cabling has a layer of shielded insulation to reduce EMI. Token Ring runs on STP.

Using UTP and STP:

 - Speed is usually satisfactory for local-area distances.

 - These are the least expensive media for data communication. UTP is cheaper than STP.
 - Because most buildings are already wired with UTP, many transmission standards are adapted to    use it to
avoid costly re-wiring of an alternative cable type.

Fiber-optic cable

Fiber-optic cabling consists of glass fiber surrounded by shielding protection: a plastic shield, kevlar
reinforcing, and an outer jacket. Fiber-optic cable is the most expensive of the three types, but it supports
100+ Mbps line speeds.
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There are two types of fiber cable:

 - Single or mono-mode—Allows only one mode (or wavelength) of light to propagate through the    fiber; is
capable of higher bandwidth and greater distances than multimode. Often used for    campus backbones. This
type uses lasers as the light generating method. Single mode is much more    expensive than multimode
cable. Maximum cable length is 100 km.

 - Multimode—It allows multiple modes of light to propagate through the fiber. Often used for    workgroup
applications and uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as light generating device. Maximum cable length is 2
km.

 How to choose a Cable

5. The interconnection Equipments (LAN/WAN Devices)

As networking technology continues to evolve, the actual differences between networking devices is
beginning to blur slightly. Routers today are switching packets faster and yielding the performance of
switches. Switches, on the other hand, are being designed with more intelligence and able to act more like
routers. Hubs, while traditionally not intelligent in terms of the amount of software they run, are now being
designed with software that allows the hub to be “intelligent” acting more like a switch.

 Hub

A hub is simple a multiport repeater. There is usually no software to load, and no configuration required (i.e.
network administrators don’t have to tell the device what to do).

Hubs operate very much the same way as a repeater. They amplify and propagate signals received out all
ports, with the exception of the port from which the data arrived. For example in the above image, if system
125 wanted to print on the printer 128, the message would be sent to all systems on Segment 1, as well as
across the hub to all systems on Segment 2. System 128 would see that the message is intended for it and
would process it.

Devices on the network are constantly listening for data. When devices sense a frame of information that is
addressed for it, then it will accept that information into memory found on the network interface card (NIC)
and begin processing the data.

In fairly small networks, hubs work very well. However, in large networks the limitations of hubs creates
problems for network managers. In this example, Ethernet is the standard being used. The network is also
baseband, only one station can use the network at a time. If the applications and files being used on this
network are large, and there are more nodes on the network, contention for bandwidth will slow the
responsiveness of the network down.

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  Bridges

Bridges improve network throughput and operate at a more intelligent level than do hubs. A bridge is
considered to be a store and forward device that uses unique hardware addresses to filter traffic that would
otherwise travel from one segment to another. A bridge performs the following functions:

 - Reads data frame headers and records source address/port (segment) pairs
 - Reads the destination address of incoming frames and uses recorded addresses to determine the
appropriate outbound port for the frame.
 - Uses memory buffers to store frames during periods of heavy transmission, and forwards them    when the
medium is ready.

Let’s take a look at an example.

The bridge divides this Ethernet LAN into two segments in the above image, each connecting to a hub and
then to a bridge port. Stations 123-125 are on segment 1 and stations 126-128 are on segment 2. When
station 124 transmits to station 125, the frame goes into the hub (who repeats it and sends it out all connected
ports) and then on to the bridge. The bridge will not forward the frame because it recognizes that stations 124
and 125 are on the same segment. Only traffic between segments passes through the bridge. In this example,
a data frame from station 123, 124, or 125 to any station on segment 2 would be forwarded, and so would a
message from any station on segment 2 to stations on segment 1. When one station transmits, all other
stations must wait until the line is silent again before transmitting. In Ethernet, only one station can transmit
at a time, or data frames will collide with each other, corrupting the data in both frames.

Bridges will listen to the network and keep track of who they are hearing. For instance, the bridge in this
example will know that system 127 is on Segment 2, and that 125 is on segment 1. The bridge may even
have a port (perhaps out to the Internet) where it will send all packets that it cannot identify a destination for.

 Switches

Switches use bridging technology to forward traffic between ports. They provide full dedicated transmission
rates between two stations that are directly connected to the switch ports. Switches also build and maintain
address tables just like bridges do. These address tables are known as “content addressable memory.”

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Replacing the two hubs and the bridge with an Ethernet switch provides the users with dedicated bandwidth.
Each station has a full 10Mbps “pipe” to the switch. With a switch at the center of the network, combined
with the 100Mbps links, users have greater access to the network. Given the size of the files and applications
on this network, additional bandwidth for access to the sever or to the corporate intranet is possible by using
a switch that has both 10Mbps and 100Mbps Fast Ethernet ports. The 10Mbps links could be used to support
all the desktop devices, including the printer, while the 100Mbps switch ports would be used for higher
bandwidth needs.

 Routers

A router has two basic functions, path determination using a variety of metrics, and forwarding packets from
one network to another. Routing metrics can include load on the link between devices, delay, bandwidth, and
reliability, or even hop count (i.e. the number of devices a packet must go through in order to reach its
destination).
In essence, routers will do all that bridges and switches will do, plus more. Routers have the capability of
looking deeper into the data frame and applying network services based on the destination IP address.
Destination and Source IP addresses are a part of the network header added to a packet encapsulation at the
network layer.

6. How a LAN can be build

Components of LAN

- Network operating system (NOS)

In order for computers to be able to communicate with each other, they must first have the networking
software that tells them how to do so. Without the software, the system will function simply as a
“standalone,” unable to utilize any of the resources on the network.
Network operating software may by installed by the factory, eliminating the need for you to purchase it, (for
example AppleTalk), or you may install it yourself.

- Network interface card (NIC)

In addition to network operating software, each network device must also have a network interface card.
These cards today are also referred to as adapters, as in “Ethernet adapter card” or “Token Ring adapter
card.” The NIC card amplifies electronic signals which are generally very weak within the computer system
itself. The NIC is also responsible for packaging data for transmission, and for controlling access to the
network cable. When the data is packaged properly, and the timing is right, the NIC will push the data stream
onto the cable. The NIC also provides the physical connection between the computer and the transmission
cable (also called “media”). This connection is made through the connector port. Examples of transmission
media are Ethernet, Token Ring, and FDDI.

- Writing Hub

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In order to have a network, you must have at least two devices that communicate with each other. In this
simple model, it is a computer and a printer. The printer also has an NIC installed (for example, an HP Jet
Direct card), which in turn is plugged into a wiring hub. The computer system is also plugged into the hub,
which facilitates communication between the two devices.
Additional components (such as a server, a few more PCs, and a scanner) may be connected to the hub. With
this connection, all network components would have access to all other network components. The benefit of
building this network is that by sharing resources a company can afford higher quality components. For
example, instead of providing an inkjet printer for every PC, a company may purchase a laser printer (which
is faster, higher capacity, and higher quality than the inkjet) to attach to a network. Then, all computers on
that network have access to the higher quality printer.

- Cables or Transmission Media

The wires connecting the various devices together are referred to as cables.

 - Cable prices range from inexpensive to very costly and can comprise of a significant cost of the network
itself.
 - Cables are one example of transmission media. Media are various physical environments through which
transmission signals pass. Common network media include twisted-pair, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, and
the atmosphere (through which microwave, laser, and infrared transmission occurs). Another term for this is
“physical media.”    *Note that not all wiring hubs support all medium types.

The other component shown in this fig1. is the connector.

 - As their name implies, the connector is the physical location where the NIC card    and the cabling connect.

 - Registered jack (RJ) connectors were originally used to connect telephone lines.    RJ connectors are now
used for telephone connections and for 10BaseT and other    types of network connections. Different
connectors are able support different    speeds of transmission because of their design and the materials used
in their    manufacture.

 - RJ-11 connectors are used for telephones, faxes, and modems. RJ-45 connectors    are used for NIC cards,
10BaseT cabling, and ISDN lines.

Transmission protocols determine how NIC cards take turns transmitting data onto the cable.

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Throughput Needs....!!

Super servers, high-capacity workstations, and multimedia applications have also fueled the need for higher
capacity bandwidths.

The examples on above image shows that the need for throughput capacity grows as a result of a desire to
transmit more voice, video, and graphics. The rate at which this information may be sent (transmission
speed) is dependent how data is transmitted and the medium used for transmission. The “how” of this
equation is satisfied by a transmission protocol.
Each protocol runs at a different speed. Two terms are used to describe this speed: throughput rate and
bandwidth.

The throughput rate is the rate of information arriving at, and possibly passing through, a particular point in a
network.
In this chapter, the term bandwidth means the total capacity of a given network medium (twisted pair,
coaxial, or fiber-optic cable) or protocol.

 - Bandwidth is also used to describe the difference between the highest and the lowest frequencies
available for network signals. This quantity is measured in Megahertz (MHz).

 - The bandwidth of a given network medium or protocol is measured in bits per second (bps).

Some of the available bandwidth specified for a given medium or protocol is used up in overhead, including
control characters. This overhead reduces the capacity available for transmitting data.

This table shows the tremendous variation in transmission time with different throughput rates. In years past,
megabit (Mb) rates were considered fast. In today’s modern networks, gigabit (Gb) rates are possible.
Nevertheless, there continues to be a focus on greater throughput rates.

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