Multiple Access Protocols in Computer Network

The Data Link Layer is responsible for transmission of data between two
nodes. Its main functions are- 
 Data Link Control
 Multiple Access Control
Data Link control –
The data link control is responsible for reliable transmission of message
over transmission channel by using techniques like framing, error
control and flow control.
Multiple Access Control – 
If there is a dedicated link between the sender and the receiver then
data link control layer is sufficient, however if there is no dedicated link
present then multiple stations can access the channel simultaneously.
Hence multiple access protocols are required to decrease collision and
avoid crosstalk.
Thus, protocols are required for sharing data on non dedicated
channels. Multiple access protocols can be subdivided further as – 
1. Random Access Protocol: In this, all stations have same superiority
that is no station has more priority than another station. Any station
can send data depending on medium’s state( idle or busy). It has two
features: 
1. There is no fixed time for sending data
2. There is no fixed sequence of stations sending data
The Random access protocols are further subdivided as: 
(a) ALOHA – It was designed for wireless LAN but is also applicable for
shared medium. In this, multiple stations can transmit data at the same
time and can hence lead to collision and data being garbled. 
 Pure Aloha: 
When a station sends data it waits for an acknowledgement. If the
acknowledgement doesn’t come within the allotted time then the
station waits for a random amount of time called back-off time
(Tb) and re-sends the data. Since different stations wait for
different amount of time, the probability of further collision
decreases. 
 Slotted Aloha:
It is similar to pure aloha, except that we divide time into slots and
sending of data is allowed only at the beginning of these slots. If a
station misses out the allowed time, it must wait for the next slot. This
reduces the probability of collision.
(b) CSMA – Carrier Sense Multiple Access ensures fewer collisions as
the station is required to first sense the medium (for idle or busy)
before transmitting data. If it is idle then it sends data, otherwise it
waits till the channel becomes idle. However there is still chance of
collision in CSMA due to propagation delay
CSMA access modes- 
 1-persistent: The node senses the channel, if idle it sends the
data, otherwise it continuously keeps on checking the medium for
being idle and transmits unconditionally(with 1 probability) as
soon as the channel gets idle.
 Non-Persistent: The node senses the channel, if idle it sends the
data, otherwise it checks the medium after a random amount of
time (not continuously) and transmits when found idle. 
  P-persistent: The node senses the medium, if idle it sends the
data with p probability. If the data is not transmitted ((1-p)
probability) then it waits for some time and checks the medium
again, now if it is found idle then it send with p probability. This
repeat continues until the frame is sent. It is used in Wifi and
packet radio systems. 
 O-persistent: Superiority of nodes is decided beforehand and
transmission occurs in that order. If the medium is idle, node
waits for its time slot to send data. 
(c) CSMA/CD – Carrier sense multiple access with collision detection.
Stations can terminate transmission of data if collision is detected.
(d) CSMA/CA – Carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance.
The process of collisions detection involves sender receiving
acknowledgement signals. If there is just one signal(its own) then the
data is successfully sent but if there are two signals(its own and the one
with which it has collided) then it means a collision has occurred. To
distinguish between these two cases, collision must have a lot of impact
on received signal. However it is not so in wired networks, so CSMA/CA
is used in this case. 
2. Controlled Access: 
In this, the data is sent by that station which is approved by all other
stations
3. Channelization: 
In this, the available bandwidth of the link is shared in time, frequency
and code to multiple stations to access channel simultaneously. 
 Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) – The available
bandwidth is divided into equal bands so that each station can be
 allocated its own band. Guard bands are also added so that no
two bands overlap to avoid crosstalk and noise. 
 Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) – In this, the bandwidth is
shared between multiple stations. To avoid collision time is
divided into slots and stations are allotted these slots to transmit
data. However there is a overhead of synchronization as each
station needs to know its time slot. This is resolved by adding
synchronization bits to each slot. Another issue with TDMA is
propagation delay which is resolved by addition of guard bands. 
 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) – One channel carries all
transmissions simultaneously. There is neither division of
bandwidth nor division of time. For example, if there are many
people in a room all speaking at the same time, then also perfect
reception of data is possible if only two person speak the same
language. Similarly, data from different stations can be
transmitted simultaneously in different code languages.