Q1. Why are protocols needed?

Answer:

Q2. What are the two types of line configuration?

Answer: Two or more devices connected through a link is a network. A link is a
transmission path through which data is transfer between two or more
device.
Types of Line Configurations
1. Point to Point connection
2. Multipoint connection

Point to Point connection

1. It is a dedicated communication link between two devices.
2. It is simple to set up, understand and maintain.
3. It is connected through cable or wire but satellite or microwave link is also
possible.
Example
1. Communication between Television and remote control for changing the
channels through infrared ray.
2. A computer connected by a telephone line.
Multipoint connection
1. In this connection, more than two computers are connected through a single
link.
2. It is also called a multidrop configuration.

Example
ATM is an example of Multipoint connection
Q3. Name the four basic topologies and advantages.
Answer:

Advantages of this topology:

 Communication is very fast between the nodes.

 It is robust.
 The fault is diagnosed easily. Data is reliable because data is transferred
among the devices through dedicated channels or links.
 Provides security and privacy.
Problems with this topology:
 Installation and configuration are difficult.
 The cost of cables is high as bulk wiring is required, hence suitable for less
number of devices.
 The cost of maintenance is high.
Star Topology:
In star topology, all the devices are connected to a single hub through a cable. This
hub is the central node and all other nodes are connected to the central node.

Advantages of this topology:

 If N devices are connected to each other in a star topology, then the number
of cables required to connect them is N. So, it is easy to set up.
 Each device requires only 1 port i.e. to connect to the hub, therefore the total
number of ports required is N.
 It is Robust. If one link fails only that link will affect and not other than that.
 Easy to fault identification and fault isolation.
 Star topology is cost-effective as it uses inexpensive coaxial cable.
Problems with this topology:
 If the concentrator (hub) on which the whole topology relies fails, the whole
system will crash down.
 The cost of installation is high.
  Performance is based on the single concentrator i.e. hub.

Bus Topology:
Bus topology is a network type in which every computer and network device is
connected to a single cable. It is bi-directional.

Advantages of this topology:

 If N devices are connected to each other in a bus topology, then the number
of cables required to connect them is 1, known as backbone cable, and N
drop lines are required.
 Coaxial or twisted pair cables are mainly used in bus-based networks that
support up to 10 Mbps.
 The cost of the cable is less compared to other topologies, but it is used to
build small networks.
 Bus topology is familiar technology as installation and troubleshooting
techniques are well known.
Problems with this topology:
  A bus topology is quite simpler, but still, it requires a lot of cabling.
 If the common cable fails, then the whole system will crash down.
 If the network traffic is heavy, it increases collisions in the network. To
avoid this, various protocols are used in the MAC layer known as Pure
Aloha, Slotted Aloha, CSMA/CD, etc.
 Adding new devices to the network would slow down networks.
 Security is very low.

Ring Topology:
In this topology, it forms a ring connecting devices with exactly two neighboring

devices.

Advantages of this topology:

 The data transmission is high-speed.
 The possibility of collision is minimum in this type of topology.
  Cheap to install and expand.
 It is less costly than a star topology.
Problems with this topology:
 The failure of a single node in the network can cause the entire network to
fail.
 Troubleshooting is difficult in this topology.
 The addition of stations in between or the removal of stations can disturb the
whole topology.
 Less secure.

Q4.What is an internet? What is internet?

Answer: The Internet is a global network of billions of computers and other
electronic devices.
The Internet is called a network of networks because it is a global network of
computers that are linked together by cables and telephone lines making
communication possible among them.

Q5. What are the advantages of a multipoint connection over a point-to-point

one?
The advantages of a multipoint connection over a point-to-point connection are
ease of installation, low cost, reliability. A point to point connection is used for
connecting 2 devices, whereas in a multipoint connection more than 2 devices
share the communication link. Therefore, multipoint connection provides more
reliability.It is easier to add more users in a multipoint connection, than creating
individual connections between all users separately. This also leads to low cabling
cost and installation cost.
Q6. Identify the five components of a data communications system.
Answer: Data Communication is defined as exchange of data between two devices
via some form of transmission media.
Components of Data Communication:
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,
fiber-optic 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.
Q7. What are the difference between half duplex and full duplex transmission
media?

Q8. Catagorize the four basic topologies in terms of line configuration

Answer: Point to point- mesh and star.
Multi point- bus and ring.
Q9. For n devices in a network, what is the number of cable links required for
a mesh, ring, bus, and star topology?
Ans:
 n(n-1)/2 cable link are required for mesh.
 n for ring.
 n-1 cable link for bus.
 n cable link for star topology.

Q10. When we use local telephones to talk to a friend, are we using a circuit
switched network or a packet-switched network?
Answer: We used the circuit switch network because it provides continuous
communication and employs a dedicated link between each device, the telephone is
a circuit-switched network. Circuit switching is a network configuration in which a
physical path is obtained and dedicated to a single connection between two network
endpoints for the lifetime of that connection. Circuit switching is used in standard
voice phone service. For the duration of a call, this reserved circuit is used. The
movement of small chunks of data across many networks is known as packet
switching. These data blocks, or "packets," make data transmit faster and more
efficient. When a user transfers a file across a network, it is frequently sent in smaller
data packets rather than all at once.