Network Computing

Lecture 1
Data communications & networking basics
Objectives
Learn about the network basics
Understand Network QoS and Application QoS
Learn about the basics for data transmissions

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Contents
1. Application & Networking terminology
2. Digital Communications basics
3. Protocol stacks

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1. Application & Networking terminology

Data communication
Network types
Network QoS
Application QoS

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Data communications

Unicast (1-to-1)
Simplex
Data associated with the application flows in one directions only
Half-duplex
Data flows in both directions but alternately
Duplex
Data flows in both directions simultaneously
Broadcast (1-to-M)
Data output by a single source is received by all the other devices
connected to the same network
Multicast (1-to-M)
Data output by a single source is received by only a specific
subset of the devices connected to the network

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Network types

Circuit-switched
Call/connection setup delay
Bit rate associated with the connection is fixed
Example: Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
Packet-switched
Variable bit rate
Types:
Connection-oriented
◻ connection setup delay
Connectionless
Example: Internet, VoIP instead of PSTN

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Network QoS

Main parameter determining the suitability of the channel to its use for a
particular application:
Transmission delay
Determine by:
◻ Delays in the computer network interfaces
◻ Bit rate / Data rate
◻ Propagation delay

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Network QoS – Bit rate
Bit rate/Data rate
the number of bits that are conveyed or processed per
unit of time
The bit rate is quantified using the bits per second (bit/s or
bps) unit

Name Symbol Multiple

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 Network QoS – Bit rate
Audio (MP3)
32 kbit/s – AM quality
96 kbit/s – FM quality
128–160 kbit/s – Standard Bitrate quality
1,411.2 kbit/s – sound format of Compact Disc Digital Audio

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bit_rate
 Network QoS – Bit rate

Video
16 kbit/s - videophone quality (minimum necessary for a
consumer-acceptable "talking head" picture using various video
compression schemes)
128 – 384 kbit/s - business-oriented videoconferencing quality using video
compression
1.15 Mbit/s max – VCD quality (using MPEG1 compression)
9.8 Mbit/s max – DVD (using MPEG2 compression)
8 to 15 Mbit/s – HDTV quality
29.4 Mbit/s max – HD DVD
40 Mbit/s max – Blu-ray Disc (using MPEG2)

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bit_rate
Network QoS
Propagation Delay:
physical separation (metres)/velocity of a signal across
transmission medium (metres/seconds)
Exercise:
Determine the propagation delay associated with the following
communication channels:
A connection through a private telephone network of 1 km
A connection through a PSTN of 200 km
A connection over a satellite channel of 50000 km.
Assume that the velocity of propagation of a signal in the case of (1)
and (2) is 2 * 108 ms-1 and in the case of (3) 3 * 108 ms-1.

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Application QoS
Maximum startup delay
Time that elapses between an application making a request
to start a session and the confirmation being received from
the application at the destination
Maximum end to end delay
End-to-end delay refers to the time taken for a data bit to
be transmitted across a network from source to
destination.
Maximum round-trip delay
Delay incurred when a request for some information being
made and the start of the information being
received/displayed
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Part 2. Digital Communications basics
Signal transmissions
Transmission media

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Signal transmissions
Network interface card (NIC)
Consisting of hardware controlled by software
Performs the network related functions
Signal output by NIC varies between 2 levels
+ V and –V
At a rate determined by the transmission bit rate
Transmission signals are:
Attenuated: decreased in amplitude
Distorted: misshapen (changes its shape/form)
Combined with noise that affects the transmission medium

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Transmission media
Twisted-pairs lines
1 Mbps over short distances ( < 100 m)
10 Mbps using special circuits
Types:
Unshielded twisted pairs (UTPs)
Shielded twisted pairs (STPs)
Coaxial cable
10 Mbps over several hundred metres
Optical fiber
Beam of light (instead of electrical signal)
100s of Mbps
Immune to electrical interference
Satellites
Electromagnetic (radio) waves
E.g Digital TV with VSATs, downlink: 0.5-2Mbps, uplink: 64Kbps
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 Transmission media
Transmission time over particular media:
Average length of frame or packet (bits) / transmission
rate (bits/second)
Example
A 1000-kbit block of data is to be transmitted between two computers.
Determine (1) the propagation delay, (2) the transmission time over
the media, and (3) the total time required to transmit same using
the following types of data link:
(i) 100 m of twisted-pair wire and a transmission rate of 10 Kbps,
(ii) 10 km of coaxial cable and a transmission rate of 1 Mbps,
(iii) 50000 km of free space (satellite link) and a transmission rate of
10 Mbps.
Assume that the velocity of propagation of an electric signal within
each type of cable is 2 * 108 ms-1, and that of free space 3 * 108 ms-1.

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Part 3. Protocol stacks
The OSI Reference model
The Internet protocol stack

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OSI Reference model
Primary Secondary

Application Application

Presentation Presentation

Session Session

Transport Transport

Network Network

Data Link Data Link

Physical Physical

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OSI Reference model

Application
This is the layer that actually interacts with the application whenever
the user chooses to transfer files, read messages or perform other
network-related activities.
Presentation
Layer 6 takes the data provided by the Application layer and converts it
into a standard format that the other layers can understand.
Session
Layer 5 establishes, maintains and ends communication with the
receiving device.

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OSI Reference model
Transport
This layer maintains flow control of data and provides for error
checking and recovery of data between the devices.
Network
The way that the data will be sent to the recipient device is determined
in this layer. Logical protocols, routing and addressing are handled here.
Data link
In this layer, bits are grouped into frames with special bit pattern at the
beginning and end. The size of the frame is based on the type of network
(MTU).
Physical
This is the level of the actual hardware. It defines the physical
characteristics of the network such as connections, voltage levels and
timing.

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Internet protocol stack

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Internet protocol stack (TCP/IP)

Network Layer: Internet Protocol (IP)

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Summary

Application & Networking terminology

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 Home work
Consider an optical fibre 3000 km long with a transmitter
transmitting at 1.5 Gbps. The signal propagation speed in
optical fibre is approximately 200 000 km/sec. Suppose
packet switching is being used with a packet length of 2000
bits.
1.What is the bit propagation delay along the fibre ?
2.What is the packet transmission time here ?
3.How many packets have been transmitted and are
propagating over the fibre when the first bit reaches the
destination ?

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