What is a Computer Network?

o Computer Network is a group of computers connected with each other

through wires, optical fibres or optical links so that various devices can
interact with each other through a network.
o The aim of the computer network is the sharing of resources among various
devices.
o In the case of computer network technology, there are several types of
networks that vary from simple to complex level.

Components Of Computer Network:

Major components of a computer network are:

NIC(National interface card)
NIC is a device that helps the computer to communicate with another device. The
network interface card contains the hardware addresses, the data-link layer protocol
use this address to identify the system on the network so that it transfers the data to
the correct destination.

There are two types of NIC: wireless NIC and wired NIC.
 o Wireless NIC: All the modern laptops use the wireless NIC. In Wireless NIC, a
connection is made using the antenna that employs the radio wave
technology.
o Wired NIC: Cables use the wired NIC to transfer the data over the medium.

Hub
Hub is a central device that splits the network connection into multiple devices.
When computer requests for information from a computer, it sends the request to
the Hub. Hub distributes this request to all the interconnected computers.

Switches
Switch is a networking device that groups all the devices over the network to transfer
the data to another device. A switch is better than Hub as it does not broadcast the
message over the network, i.e., it sends the message to the device for which it
belongs to. Therefore, we can say that switch sends the message directly from source
to the destination.

Cables and connectors

Cable is a transmission media that transmits the communication signals. There are
three types of cables:

o Twisted pair cable: It is a high-speed cable that transmits the data

over 1Gbps or more.
o Coaxial cable: Coaxial cable resembles like a TV installation cable. Coaxial
cable is more expensive than twisted pair cable, but it provides the high data
transmission speed.
o Fibre optic cable: Fibre optic cable is a high-speed cable that transmits the
data using light beams. It provides high data transmission speed as compared
to other cables. It is more expensive as compared to other cables, so it is
installed at the government level.
Router
Router is a device that connects the LAN to the internet. The router is mainly used to
connect the distinct networks or connect the internet to multiple computers.

Modem
Modem connects the computer to the internet over the existing telephone line. A
modem is not integrated with the computer motherboard. A modem is a separate
part on the PC slot found on the motherboard.

Uses Of Computer Network

o Resource sharing: Resource sharing is the sharing of resources such as
programs, printers, and data among the users on the network without the
requirement of the physical location of the resource and user.
o Server-Client model: Computer networking is used in the server-client
model. A server is a central computer used to store the information and
maintained by the system administrator. Clients are the machines used to
access the information stored in the server remotely.
o Communication medium: Computer network behaves as a communication
medium among the users. For example, a company contains more than one
computer has an email system which the employees use for daily
communication.
o E-commerce: Computer network is also important in businesses. We can do
the business over the internet. For example, amazon.com is doing their
business over the internet, i.e., they are doing their business over the internet.

Computer Network Types

A computer network is a group of computers linked to each other that enables the
computer to communicate with another computer and share their resources, data,
and applications.
A computer network can be categorized by their size. A computer network is mainly
of four types:

o LAN(Local Area Network)

o PAN(Personal Area Network)
o MAN(Metropolitan Area Network)
o WAN(Wide Area Network)

LAN(Local Area Network)

o Local Area Network is a group of computers connected to each other in a
small area such as building, office.
o LAN is used for connecting two or more personal computers through a
communication medium such as twisted pair, coaxial cable, etc.
o It is less costly as it is built with inexpensive hardware such as hubs, network
adapters, and ethernet cables.
o The data is transferred at an extremely faster rate in Local Area Network.
o Local Area Network provides higher security.
PAN(Personal Area Network)
o Personal Area Network is a network arranged within an individual person,
typically within a range of 10 meters.
o Personal Area Network is used for connecting the computer devices of
personal use is known as Personal Area Network.
o Thomas Zimmerman was the first research scientist to bring the idea of the
Personal Area Network.
o Personal Area Network covers an area of 30 feet.
o Personal computer devices that are used to develop the personal area
network are the laptop, mobile phones, media player and play stations.
There are two types of Personal Area Network:

o Wired Personal Area Network

o Wireless Personal Area Network

Wireless Personal Area Network: Wireless Personal Area Network is developed by

simply using wireless technologies such as WiFi, Bluetooth. It is a low range network.

Wired Personal Area Network: Wired Personal Area Network is created by using

the USB.

Examples Of Personal Area Network:

o Body Area Network: Body Area Network is a network that moves with a

person. For example, a mobile network moves with a person. Suppose a
person establishes a network connection and then creates a connection with
another device to share the information.
 o Offline Network: An offline network can be created inside the home, so it is
also known as a home network. A home network is designed to integrate the
devices such as printers, computer, television but they are not connected to
the internet.
o Small Home Office: It is used to connect a variety of devices to the internet
and to a corporate network using a VPN

MAN(Metropolitan Area Network)

o A metropolitan area network is a network that covers a larger geographic area
by interconnecting a different LAN to form a larger network.
o Government agencies use MAN to connect to the citizens and private
industries.
o In MAN, various LANs are connected to each other through a telephone
exchange line.
o The most widely used protocols in MAN are RS-232, Frame Relay, ATM, ISDN,
OC-3, ADSL, etc.
o It has a higher range than Local Area Network(LAN).
Uses Of Metropolitan Area Network:

o MAN is used in communication between the banks in a city.

o It can be used in an Airline Reservation.
o It can be used in a college within a city.
o It can also be used for communication in the military.

WAN(Wide Area Network)

o A Wide Area Network is a network that extends over a large geographical area
such as states or countries.
o A Wide Area Network is quite bigger network than the LAN.
o A Wide Area Network is not limited to a single location, but it spans over a
large geographical area through a telephone line, fibre optic cable or satellite
links.
o The internet is one of the biggest WAN in the world.
o A Wide Area Network is widely used in the field of Business, government, and
education.
Examples Of Wide Area Network:

o Mobile Broadband: A 4G network is widely used across a region or country.

o Last mile: A telecom company is used to provide the internet services to the
customers in hundreds of cities by connecting their home with fiber.
o Private network: A bank provides a private network that connects the 44
offices. This network is made by using the telephone leased line provided by
the telecom company.

Advantages Of Wide Area Network:

Following are the advantages of the Wide Area Network:

o Geographical area: A Wide Area Network provides a large geographical area.

Suppose if the branch of our office is in a different city then we can connect
with them through WAN. The internet provides a leased line through which
we can connect with another branch.
o Centralized data: In case of WAN network, data is centralized. Therefore, we
do not need to buy the emails, files or back up servers.
o Get updated files: Software companies work on the live server. Therefore, the
programmers get the updated files within seconds.
o Exchange messages: In a WAN network, messages are transmitted fast. The
web application like Facebook, Whatsapp, Skype allows you to communicate
with friends.
o Sharing of software and resources: In WAN network, we can share the
software and other resources like a hard drive, RAM.
o Global business: We can do the business over the internet globally.
o High bandwidth: If we use the leased lines for our company then this gives
the high bandwidth. The high bandwidth increases the data transfer rate
which in turn increases the productivity of our company.

Disadvantages of Wide Area Network:

The following are the disadvantages of the Wide Area Network:

o Security issue: A WAN network has more security issues as compared to LAN
and MAN network as all the technologies are combined together that creates
the security problem.
 o Needs Firewall & antivirus software: The data is transferred on the internet
which can be changed or hacked by the hackers, so the firewall needs to be
used. Some people can inject the virus in our system so antivirus is needed to
protect from such a virus.
o High Setup cost: An installation cost of the WAN network is high as it
involves the purchasing of routers, switches.
o Troubleshooting problems: It covers a large area so fixing the problem is
difficult.

Internetwork
o An internetwork is defined as two or more computer network LANs or WAN or
computer network segments are connected using devices, and they are
configured by a local addressing scheme. This process is known
as internetworking.
o An interconnection between public, private, commercial, industrial, or
government computer networks can also be defined as internetworking.
o An internetworking uses the internet protocol.
o The reference model used for internetworking is Open System
Interconnection(OSI).

Types Of Internetwork:
1. Extranet: An extranet is a communication network based on the internet protocol
such as Transmission Control protocol and internet protocol. It is used for
information sharing. The access to the extranet is restricted to only those users who
have login credentials. An extranet is the lowest level of internetworking. It can be
categorized as MAN, WAN or other computer networks. An extranet cannot have a
single LAN, atleast it must have one connection to the external network.

2. Intranet: An intranet is a private network based on the internet protocol such

as Transmission Control protocol and internet protocol. An intranet belongs to an
organization which is only accessible by the organization's employee or members.
The main aim of the intranet is to share the information and resources among the
organization employees. An intranet provides the facility to work in groups and for
teleconferences.
Intranet advantages:
o Communication: It provides a cheap and easy communication. An employee
of the organization can communicate with another employee through email,
chat.
o Time-saving: Information on the intranet is shared in real time, so it is time-
saving.
o Collaboration: Collaboration is one of the most important advantage of the
intranet. The information is distributed among the employees of the
organization and can only be accessed by the authorized user.
o Platform independency: It is a neutral architecture as the computer can be
connected to another device with different architecture.
o Cost effective: People can see the data and documents by using the browser
and distributes the duplicate copies over the intranet. This leads to a reduction
in the cost.

What is Network Topology?

Topology defines the structure of the network of how all the components are
interconnected to each other. There are two types of topology: physical and logical
topology.

Types of Network Topology

Physical topology is the geometric representation of all the nodes in a network.
There are six types of network topology which are Bus Topology, Ring Topology, Tree
Topology, Star Topology, Mesh Topology, and Hybrid Topology.
1) Bus Topology

o The bus topology is designed in such a way that all the stations are connected
through a single cable known as a backbone cable.
o Each node is either connected to the backbone cable by drop cable or directly
connected to the backbone cable.
o When a node wants to send a message over the network, it puts a message
over the network. All the stations available in the network will receive the
message whether it has been addressed or not.
o The bus topology is mainly used in 802.3 (ethernet) and 802.4 standard
networks.
 o The configuration of a bus topology is quite simpler as compared to other
topologies.
o The backbone cable is considered as a "single lane" through which the
message is broadcast to all the stations.
o The most common access method of the bus topologies is CSMA (Carrier
Sense Multiple Access).

CSMA: It is a media access control used to control the data flow so that data
integrity is maintained, i.e., the packets do not get lost. There are two alternative
ways of handling the problems that occur when two nodes send the messages
simultaneously.

o CSMA CD: CSMA CD (Collision detection) is an access method used to

detect the collision. Once the collision is detected, the sender will stop
transmitting the data. Therefore, it works on "recovery after the collision".
o CSMA CA: CSMA CA (Collision Avoidance) is an access method used to
avoid the collision by checking whether the transmission media is busy or not.
If busy, then the sender waits until the media becomes idle. This technique
effectively reduces the possibility of the collision. It does not work on
"recovery after the collision".

Advantages of Bus topology:

o Low-cost cable: In bus topology, nodes are directly connected to the cable
without passing through a hub. Therefore, the initial cost of installation is low.
o Moderate data speeds: Coaxial or twisted pair cables are mainly used in bus-
based networks that support upto 10 Mbps.
o Familiar technology: Bus topology is a familiar technology as the installation
and troubleshooting techniques are well known, and hardware components
are easily available.
o Limited failure: A failure in one node will not have any effect on other nodes.

Disadvantages of Bus topology:

o Extensive cabling: A bus topology is quite simpler, but still it requires a lot of
cabling.
 o Difficult troubleshooting: It requires specialized test equipment to
determine the cable faults. If any fault occurs in the cable, then it would
disrupt the communication for all the nodes.
o Signal interference: If two nodes send the messages simultaneously, then the
signals of both the nodes collide with each other.
o Reconfiguration difficult: Adding new devices to the network would slow
down the network.
o Attenuation: Attenuation is a loss of signal leads to communication issues.
Repeaters are used to regenerate the signal.

2) Ring Topology

o Ring topology is like a bus topology, but with connected ends.

o The node that receives the message from the previous computer will
retransmit to the next node.
o The data flows in one direction, i.e., it is unidirectional.
o The data flows in a single loop continuously known as an endless loop.
o It has no terminated ends, i.e., each node is connected to other node and
having no termination point.
o The data in a ring topology flow in a clockwise direction.
o The most common access method of the ring topology is token passing.
o Token passing: It is a network access method in which token is passed
from one node to another node.
o Token: It is a frame that circulates around the network.
Working of Token passing

o A token moves around the network, and it is passed from computer to

computer until it reaches the destination.
o The sender modifies the token by putting the address along with the data.
o The data is passed from one device to another device until the destination
address matches. Once the token received by the destination device, then it
sends the acknowledgment to the sender.
o In a ring topology, a token is used as a carrier.

Advantages of Ring topology:

o Network Management: Faulty devices can be removed from the network

without bringing the network down.
o Product availability: Many hardware and software tools for network
operation and monitoring are available.
o Cost: Twisted pair cabling is inexpensive and easily available. Therefore, the
installation cost is very low.
o Reliable: It is a more reliable network because the communication system is
not dependent on the single host computer.

Disadvantages of Ring topology:

o Difficult troubleshooting: It requires specialized test equipment to

determine the cable faults. If any fault occurs in the cable, then it would
disrupt the communication for all the nodes.
o Failure: The breakdown in one station leads to the failure of the overall
network.
o Reconfiguration difficult: Adding new devices to the network would slow
down the network.
o Delay: Communication delay is directly proportional to the number of nodes.
Adding new devices increases the communication delay.

3) Star Topology
 o Star topology is an arrangement of the network in which every node is
connected to the central hub, switch or a central computer.
o The central computer is known as a server, and the peripheral devices
attached to the server are known as clients.
o Coaxial cable or RJ-45 cables are used to connect the computers.
o Hubs or Switches are mainly used as connection devices in a physical star
topology.
o Star topology is the most popular topology in network implementation.

Advantages of Star topology

o Efficient troubleshooting: Troubleshooting is quite efficient in a star

topology as compared to bus topology. In a bus topology, the manager has to
inspect the kilometers of cable. In a star topology, all the stations are
connected to the centralized network. Therefore, the network administrator
has to go to the single station to troubleshoot the problem.
o Network control: Complex network control features can be easily
implemented in the star topology. Any changes made in the star topology are
automatically accommodated.
o Limited failure: As each station is connected to the central hub with its own
cable, therefore failure in one cable will not affect the entire network.
o Familiar technology: Star topology is a familiar technology as its tools are
cost-effective.
o Easily expandable: It is easily expandable as new stations can be added to
the open ports on the hub.
 o Cost effective: Star topology networks are cost-effective as it uses
inexpensive coaxial cable.
o High data speeds: It supports a bandwidth of approx 100Mbps. Ethernet
100BaseT is one of the most popular Star topology networks.

Disadvantages of Star topology

o A Central point of failure: If the central hub or switch goes down, then all
the connected nodes will not be able to communicate with each other.
o Cable: Sometimes cable routing becomes difficult when a significant amount
of routing is required.

4) Tree topology

o Tree topology combines the characteristics of bus topology and star topology.
o A tree topology is a type of structure in which all the computers are
connected with each other in hierarchical fashion.
o The top-most node in tree topology is known as a root node, and all other
nodes are the descendants of the root node.
o There is only one path exists between two nodes for the data transmission.
Thus, it forms a parent-child hierarchy.

Advantages of Tree topology

o Support for broadband transmission: Tree topology is mainly used to

provide broadband transmission, i.e., signals are sent over long distances
without being attenuated.
 o Easily expandable: We can add the new device to the existing network.
Therefore, we can say that tree topology is easily expandable.
o Easily manageable: In tree topology, the whole network is divided into
segments known as star networks which can be easily managed and
maintained.
o Error detection: Error detection and error correction are very easy in a tree
topology.
o Limited failure: The breakdown in one station does not affect the entire
network.
o Point-to-point wiring: It has point-to-point wiring for individual segments.

Disadvantages of Tree topology

o Difficult troubleshooting: If any fault occurs in the node, then it becomes

difficult to troubleshoot the problem.
o High cost: Devices required for broadband transmission are very costly.
o Failure: A tree topology mainly relies on main bus cable and failure in main
bus cable will damage the overall network.
o Reconfiguration difficult: If new devices are added, then it becomes difficult
to reconfigure.

5) Mesh topology

o Mesh technology is an arrangement of the network in which computers are

interconnected with each other through various redundant connections.
 o There are multiple paths from one computer to another computer.
o It does not contain the switch, hub or any central computer which acts as a
central point of communication.
o The Internet is an example of the mesh topology.
o Mesh topology is mainly used for WAN implementations where
communication failures are a critical concern.
o Mesh topology is mainly used for wireless networks.
o Mesh topology can be formed by using the formula:
Number of cables = (n*(n-1))/2;

Where n is the number of nodes that represents the network.

Backward Skip 10sPlay VideoForward Skip 10s

Mesh topology is divided into two categories:

o Fully connected mesh topology

o Partially connected mesh topology

o Full Mesh Topology: In a full mesh topology, each computer is connected to

all the computers available in the network.
o Partial Mesh Topology: In a partial mesh topology, not all but certain
computers are connected to those computers with which they communicate
frequently.

Advantages of Mesh topology:

Reliable: The mesh topology networks are very reliable as if any link breakdown will
not affect the communication between connected computers.

Fast Communication: Communication is very fast between the nodes.

Easier Reconfiguration: Adding new devices would not disrupt the communication
between other devices.

Disadvantages of Mesh topology

o Cost: A mesh topology contains a large number of connected devices such as

a router and more transmission media than other topologies.
o Management: Mesh topology networks are very large and very difficult to
maintain and manage. If the network is not monitored carefully, then the
communication link failure goes undetected.
o Efficiency: In this topology, redundant connections are high that reduces the
efficiency of the network.

6) Hybrid Topology

o The combination of various different topologies is known as Hybrid

topology.
 o A Hybrid topology is a connection between different links and nodes to
transfer the data.
o When two or more different topologies are combined together is termed as
Hybrid topology and if similar topologies are connected with each other will
not result in Hybrid topology. For example, if there exist a ring topology in
one branch of ICICI bank and bus topology in another branch of ICICI bank,
connecting these two topologies will result in Hybrid topology.

Advantages of Hybrid Topology

o Reliable: If a fault occurs in any part of the network will not affect the
functioning of the rest of the network.
o Scalable: Size of the network can be easily expanded by adding new devices
without affecting the functionality of the existing network.
o Flexible: This topology is very flexible as it can be designed according to the
requirements of the organization.
o Effective: Hybrid topology is very effective as it can be designed in such a
way that the strength of the network is maximized and weakness of the
network is minimized.

Disadvantages of Hybrid topology

o Complex design: The major drawback of the Hybrid topology is the design of

the Hybrid network. It is very difficult to design the architecture of the Hybrid
network.
o Costly Hub: The Hubs used in the Hybrid topology are very expensive as
these hubs are different from usual Hubs used in other topologies.
o Costly infrastructure: The infrastructure cost is very high as a hybrid network
requires a lot of cabling, network devices, etc.

Transmission modes
o The way in which data is transmitted from one device to another device is
known as transmission mode.
o The transmission mode is also known as the communication mode.
 o Each communication channel has a direction associated with it, and
transmission media provide the direction. Therefore, the transmission mode is
also known as a directional mode.
o The transmission mode is defined in the physical layer.

The Transmission mode is divided into three categories:

o Simplex mode
o Half-duplex mode
o Full-duplex mode

Simplex mode

o In Simplex mode, the communication is unidirectional, i.e., the data flow in

one direction.
o A device can only send the data but cannot receive it or it can receive the data
but cannot send the data.
o This transmission mode is not very popular as mainly communications require
the two-way exchange of data. The simplex mode is used in the business field
as in sales that do not require any corresponding reply.
o The radio station is a simplex channel as it transmits the signal to the listeners
but never allows them to transmit back.
 o Keyboard and Monitor are the examples of the simplex mode as a keyboard
can only accept the data from the user and monitor can only be used to
display the data on the screen.
o The main advantage of the simplex mode is that the full capacity of the
communication channel can be utilized during transmission.

Advantage of Simplex mode:

o In simplex mode, the station can utilize the entire bandwidth of the
communication channel, so that more data can be transmitted at a time.

Disadvantage of Simplex mode:

o Communication is unidirectional, so it has no inter-communication between

devices.

Half-Duplex mode

o In a Half-duplex channel, direction can be reversed, i.e., the station can

transmit and receive the data as well.
o Messages flow in both the directions, but not at the same time.
o The entire bandwidth of the communication channel is utilized in one
direction at a time.
o In half-duplex mode, it is possible to perform the error detection, and if any
error occurs, then the receiver requests the sender to retransmit the data.
o A Walkie-talkie is an example of the Half-duplex mode. In Walkie-talkie, one
party speaks, and another party listens. After a pause, the other speaks and
first party listens. Speaking simultaneously will create the distorted sound
which cannot be understood.
Advantage of Half-duplex mode:

o In half-duplex mode, both the devices can send and receive the data and also
can utilize the entire bandwidth of the communication channel during the
transmission of data.

Disadvantage of Half-Duplex mode:

o In half-duplex mode, when one device is sending the data, then another has
to wait, this causes the delay in sending the data at the right time.

Full-duplex mode

o In Full duplex mode, the communication is bi-directional, i.e., the data flow in
both the directions.
o Both the stations can send and receive the message simultaneously.
o Full-duplex mode has two simplex channels. One channel has traffic moving in
one direction, and another channel has traffic flowing in the opposite
direction.
o The Full-duplex mode is the fastest mode of communication between devices.
o The most common example of the full-duplex mode is a telephone network.
When two people are communicating with each other by a telephone line,
both can talk and listen at the same time.

Advantage of Full-duplex mode:

o Both the stations can send and receive the data at the same time.

Disadvantage of Full-duplex mode:

o If there is no dedicated path exists between the devices, then the capacity of
the communication channel is divided into two parts.
Differences b/w Simplex, Half-duplex and Full-duplex
mode

Basis for Simplex mode Half-duplex mode Full-duplex mode

comparison

Direction of In simplex mode, the In half-duplex mode, In full-duplex mode,

communication communication is the communication is communication is bidirectio
unidirectional. bidirectional, but one
at a time.

Send/Receive A device can only send Both the devices can Both the devices can send
the data but cannot send and receive the receive the
receive it or it can only data, but one at a simultaneously.
receive the data but time.
cannot send it.

Performance The performance of half- The performance of The Full-duplex mode

duplex mode is better full-duplex mode is better performance am
than the simplex mode. better than the half- simplex and half-duplex m
duplex mode. as it doubles the utilizatio
the capacity of
communication channel.

Example Examples of Simplex Example of half- Example of the Full-du

mode are radio, duplex is Walkie- mode is a telephone netwo
keyboard, and monitor. Talkies.

What is Transmission media?

o Transmission media is a communication channel that carries the information
from the sender to the receiver. Data is transmitted through the
electromagnetic signals.
o The main functionality of the transmission media is to carry the information in
the form of bits through LAN(Local Area Network).
 o It is a physical path between transmitter and receiver in data communication.
o In a copper-based network, the bits in the form of electrical signals.
o In a fibre based network, the bits in the form of light pulses.
o In OSI(Open System Interconnection) phase, transmission media supports the
Layer 1. Therefore, it is considered to be as a Layer 1 component.
o The electrical signals can be sent through the copper wire, fibre optics,
atmosphere, water, and vacuum.
o The characteristics and quality of data transmission are determined by the
characteristics of medium and signal.
o Transmission media is of two types are wired media and wireless media. In
wired media, medium characteristics are more important whereas, in wireless
media, signal characteristics are more important.
o Different transmission media have different properties such as bandwidth,
delay, cost and ease of installation and maintenance.
o The transmission media is available in the lowest layer of the OSI reference
model, i.e., Physical layer.

Some factors need to be considered for designing the transmission media:

o Bandwidth: All the factors are remaining constant, the greater the bandwidth
of a medium, the higher the data transmission rate of a signal.
o Transmission impairment: When the received signal is not identical to the
transmitted one due to the transmission impairment. The quality of the signals
will get destroyed due to transmission impairment.
o Interference: An interference is defined as the process of disrupting a signal
when it travels over a communication medium on the addition of some
unwanted signal.

Causes Of Transmission Impairment:

 o Attenuation: Attenuation means the loss of energy, i.e., the strength of the
signal decreases with increasing the distance which causes the loss of energy.
o Distortion: Distortion occurs when there is a change in the shape of the
signal. This type of distortion is examined from different signals having
different frequencies. Each frequency component has its own propagation
speed, so they reach at a different time which leads to the delay distortion.
o Noise: When data is travelled over a transmission medium, some unwanted
signal is added to it which creates the noise.

Classification Of Transmission Media:

o Guided Transmission Media

o UnGuided Transmission Media

Guided Media
It is defined as the physical medium through which the signals are transmitted. It is also
known as Bounded media.

Types Of Guided media:

Twisted pair:
Twisted pair is a physical media made up of a pair of cables twisted with each other. A
twisted pair cable is cheap as compared to other transmission media. Installation of the
twisted pair cable is easy, and it is a lightweight cable. The frequency range for twisted pair
cable is from 0 to 3.5KHz.
A twisted pair consists of two insulated copper wires arranged in a regular spiral pattern.

The degree of reduction in noise interference is determined by the number of turns

per foot. Increasing the number of turns per foot decreases noise interference.

Types of Twisted pair:

Unshielded Twisted Pair:

An unshielded twisted pair is widely used in telecommunication. Following are the
categories of the unshielded twisted pair cable:

o Category 1: Category 1 is used for telephone lines that have low-speed data.
o Category 2: It can support upto 4Mbps.
o Category 3: It can support upto 16Mbps.
o Category 4: It can support upto 20Mbps. Therefore, it can be used for long-
distance communication.
o Category 5: It can support upto 200Mbps.

Advantages Of Unshielded Twisted Pair:

o It is cheap.
o Installation of the unshielded twisted pair is easy.
o It can be used for high-speed LAN.

Disadvantage:
 o This cable can only be used for shorter distances because of attenuation.

Shielded Twisted Pair

A shielded twisted pair is a cable that contains the mesh surrounding the wire that
allows the higher transmission rate.

Characteristics Of Shielded Twisted Pair:

o The cost of the shielded twisted pair cable is not very high and not very low.
o An installation of STP is easy.
o It has higher capacity as compared to unshielded twisted pair cable.
o It has a higher attenuation.
o It is shielded that provides the higher data transmission rate.

Disadvantages

o It is more expensive as compared to UTP and coaxial cable.

o It has a higher attenuation rate.

Coaxial Cable
o Coaxial cable is very commonly used transmission media, for example, TV wire
is usually a coaxial cable.
o The name of the cable is coaxial as it contains two conductors parallel to each
other.
o It has a higher frequency as compared to Twisted pair cable.
o The inner conductor of the coaxial cable is made up of copper, and the outer
conductor is made up of copper mesh. The middle core is made up of non-
conductive cover that separates the inner conductor from the outer
conductor.
o The middle core is responsible for the data transferring whereas the copper
mesh prevents from the EMI(Electromagnetic interference).
Coaxial cable is of two types:

1. Baseband transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting a single

signal at high speed.
2. Broadband transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting multiple
signals simultaneously.

Advantages Of Coaxial cable:

o The data can be transmitted at high speed.

o It has better shielding as compared to twisted pair cable.
o It provides higher bandwidth.

Disadvantages Of Coaxial cable:

o It is more expensive as compared to twisted pair cable.

o If any fault occurs in the cable causes the failure in the entire network.

Fibre Optic
o Fibre optic cable is a cable that uses electrical signals for communication.
o Fibre optic is a cable that holds the optical fibres coated in plastic that are
used to send the data by pulses of light.
o The plastic coating protects the optical fibres from heat, cold, electromagnetic
interference from other types of wiring.
o Fibre optics provide faster data transmission than copper wires.

Diagrammatic representation of fibre optic cable:

Basic elements of Fibre optic cable:

o Core: The optical fibre consists of a narrow strand of glass or plastic known as

a core. A core is a light transmission area of the fibre. The more the area of the
core, the more light will be transmitted into the fibre.
o Cladding: The concentric layer of glass is known as cladding. The main
functionality of the cladding is to provide the lower refractive index at the core
interface as to cause the reflection within the core so that the light waves are
transmitted through the fibre.
o Jacket: The protective coating consisting of plastic is known as a jacket. The
main purpose of a jacket is to preserve the fibre strength, absorb shock and
extra fibre protection.

Following are the advantages of fibre optic cable over copper:

o Greater Bandwidth: The fibre optic cable provides more bandwidth as

compared copper. Therefore, the fibre optic carries more data as compared to
copper cable.
o Faster speed: Fibre optic cable carries the data in the form of light. This allows
the fibre optic cable to carry the signals at a higher speed.
o Longer distances: The fibre optic cable carries the data at a longer distance
as compared to copper cable.
o Better reliability: The fibre optic cable is more reliable than the copper cable
as it is immune to any temperature changes while it can cause obstruct in the
connectivity of copper cable.
o Thinner and Sturdier: Fibre optic cable is thinner and lighter in weight so it
can withstand more pull pressure than copper cable.
UnGuided Transmission
o An unguided transmission transmits the electromagnetic waves without using
any physical medium. Therefore it is also known as wireless transmission.
o In unguided media, air is the media through which the electromagnetic
energy can flow easily.

Unguided transmission is broadly classified into three categories:

Radio waves
o Radio waves are the electromagnetic waves that are transmitted in all the
directions of free space.
o Radio waves are omnidirectional, i.e., the signals are propagated in all the
directions.
o The range in frequencies of radio waves is from 3Khz to 1 khz.
o In the case of radio waves, the sending and receiving antenna are not aligned,
i.e., the wave sent by the sending antenna can be received by any receiving
antenna.
o An example of the radio wave is FM radio.

Applications Of Radio waves:

o A Radio wave is useful for multicasting when there is one sender and many
receivers.
o An FM radio, television, cordless phones are examples of a radio wave.
Advantages Of Radio transmission:

o Radio transmission is mainly used for wide area networks and mobile cellular
phones.
o Radio waves cover a large area, and they can penetrate the walls.
o Radio transmission provides a higher transmission rate.

Microwaves

Microwaves are of two types:

o Terrestrial microwave
o Satellite microwave communication.

Terrestrial Microwave Transmission

o Terrestrial Microwave transmission is a technology that transmits the focused

beam of a radio signal from one ground-based microwave transmission
antenna to another.
o Microwaves are the electromagnetic waves having the frequency in the range
from 1GHz to 1000 GHz.
o Microwaves are unidirectional as the sending and receiving antenna is to be
aligned, i.e., the waves sent by the sending antenna are narrowly focussed.
o In this case, antennas are mounted on the towers to send a beam to another
antenna which is km away.
o It works on the line of sight transmission, i.e., the antennas mounted on the
towers are the direct sight of each other.
Characteristics of Microwave:

o Frequency range: The frequency range of terrestrial microwave is from 4-6

GHz to 21-23 GHz.
o Bandwidth: It supports the bandwidth from 1 to 10 Mbps.
o Short distance: It is inexpensive for short distance.
o Long distance: It is expensive as it requires a higher tower for a longer
distance.
o Attenuation: Attenuation means loss of signal. It is affected by environmental
conditions and antenna size.

Advantages Of Microwave:

o Microwave transmission is cheaper than using cables.

o It is free from land acquisition as it does not require any land for the
installation of cables.
o Microwave transmission provides an easy communication in terrains as the
installation of cable in terrain is quite a difficult task.
o Communication over oceans can be achieved by using microwave
transmission.

Disadvantages of Microwave transmission:

o Eavesdropping: An eavesdropping creates insecure communication. Any

malicious user can catch the signal in the air by using its own antenna.
o Out of phase signal: A signal can be moved out of phase by using microwave
transmission.
o Susceptible to weather condition: A microwave transmission is susceptible
to weather condition. This means that any environmental change such as rain,
wind can distort the signal.
o Bandwidth limited: Allocation of bandwidth is limited in the case of
microwave transmission.

Satellite Microwave Communication

o A satellite is a physical object that revolves around the earth at a known

height.
 o Satellite communication is more reliable nowadays as it offers more flexibility
than cable and fibre optic systems.
o We can communicate with any point on the globe by using satellite
communication.

How Does Satellite work?

The satellite accepts the signal that is transmitted from the earth station, and it amplifies the
signal. The amplified signal is retransmitted to another earth station.

Advantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:

o The coverage area of a satellite microwave is more than the terrestrial

microwave.
o The transmission cost of the satellite is independent of the distance from the
centre of the coverage area.
o Satellite communication is used in mobile and wireless communication
applications.
o It is easy to install.
o It is used in a wide variety of applications such as weather forecasting,
radio/TV signal broadcasting, mobile communication, etc.

Disadvantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:

o Satellite designing and development requires more time and higher cost.
o The Satellite needs to be monitored and controlled on regular periods so that
it remains in orbit.
o The life of the satellite is about 12-15 years. Due to this reason, another launch
of the satellite has to be planned before it becomes non-functional.

Infrared
o An infrared transmission is a wireless technology used for communication
over short ranges.
o The frequency of the infrared in the range from 300 GHz to 400 THz.
 o It is used for short-range communication such as data transfer between two
cell phones, TV remote operation, data transfer between a computer and cell
phone resides in the same closed area.

Characteristics Of Infrared:

o It supports high bandwidth, and hence the data rate will be very high.
o Infrared waves cannot penetrate the walls. Therefore, the infrared
communication in one room cannot be interrupted by the nearby rooms.
o An infrared communication provides better security with minimum
interference.
o Infrared communication is unreliable outside the building because the sun
rays will interfere with the infrared waves.

OSI vs TCP/IP
What is OSI model?
The OSI stands for Open System Interconnection, which was developed in 1980s. It is
a conceptual model used for network communication. It is not implemented entirely,
but it is still referenced today. This OSI model consists of seven layers, and each layer
is connected to each other. The data moves down the OSI model, and each layer
adds additional information. The data moves down until it reaches the last layer of
the OSI model. When the data is received at the last layer of the OSI model, then the
data is transmitted over the network. Once the data is reached on the other side,
then the process will get reversed.
What is TCP/IP model?
The TCP model stands for Transmission Control Protocol, whereas IP stands
for Internet Protocol. A number of protocols that make the internet possibly comes
under the TCP/IP model. Nowadays, we do not hear the name of the TCP/IP model
much, we generally hear the name of the IPv4 or IPv6, but it is still valid. This model
consists of 4 layers. Now, we will look at the diagrammatic representation of
the TCP/IP model.
As shown in the above diagram, the TCP/IP model has 4 layers, while the OSI model
consists of 7 layers. Diagrammatically, it looks that the 4 layers of the TCP/IP model
exactly fit the 7 layers of the OSI model, but this is not reality. The application layer of
the TCP/IP model maps to the first three layers, i.e., application, session, and
presentation layer of the OSI model. The transport layer of the TCP maps directly to
the transport layer of the OSI model. The internet layer of the TCP/IP model maps
directly to the network layer of the OSI model. The last two layers of the OSI model
map to the network layer of the TCP/IP model. TCP/IP is the most widely used model
as compared to the OSI model for providing communication between computers
over the internet.

Similarities between the OSI and TCP/IP model

The following are the similarities between the OSI and TCP/IP model:

Backward Skip 10sPlay VideoForward Skip 10s

o Share common architecture

Both the models are the logical models and having similar architectures as both the
models are constructed with the layers.

o Define standards

Both the layers have defined standards, and they also provide the framework used
for implementing the standards and devices.

o Simplified troubleshooting process

Both models have simplified the troubleshooting process by breaking the complex
function into simpler components.

OSI Model TCP/IP Model

It stands for Open System Interconnection. It stands for Transmission Control Protoco

OSI model has been developed by ISO (International It was developed by ARPANET (Advan
Standard Organization). Research Project Agency Network).

It is an independent standard and generic protocol It consists of standard protocols that lea
used as a communication gateway between the the development of an internet. It
network and the end user. communication protocol that provides
connection among the hosts.
 In the OSI model, the transport layer provides a The transport layer does not provide the su
guarantee for the delivery of the packets. for the delivery of packets. But still, we can
that it is a reliable model.

This model is based on a vertical approach. This model is based on a horizontal approa

In this model, the session and presentation layers In this model, the session and presenta
are separated, i.e., both the layers are different. layer are not different layers. Both layers
included in the application layer.

It is also known as a reference model through which It is an implemented model of an OSI mode
various networks are built. For example, the TCP/IP
model is built from the OSI model. It is also referred
to as a guidance tool.

In this model, the network layer provides both The network layer provides only connection
connection-oriented and connectionless service. service.

Protocols in the OSI model are hidden and can be In this model, the protocol cannot be e
easily replaced when the technology changes. replaced.

It consists of 7 layers. It consists of 4 layers.

OSI model defines the services, protocols, and In the TCP/IP model, services, protocols,
interfaces as well as provides a proper distinction interfaces are not properly separated.
between them. It is protocol independent. protocol dependent.

The usage of this model is very low. This model is highly used.

It provides standardization to the devices like router, It does not provide the standardization to
motherboard, switches, and other hardware devices. devices. It provides a connection betw
various computers.

o Pre-defined standards

The standards and protocols which are already pre-defined; these models do not
redefine them; they just reference or use them. For example, the Ethernet standards
were already defined by the IEEE before the development of these models; instead of
recreating them, models have used these pre-defined standards.

o Both have similar functionality of 'transport' and 'network' layers

The function which is performed between the 'presentation' and

the 'network' layer is similar to the function performed at the transport layer.
Differences between the OSI and TCP/IP model

Let's see the differences between the OSI and TCP/IP model in a tabular form:

Signal and System Introduction

Analog signals
The analog image processing is applied on analog signals and it processes only two-
dimensional signals. Analog signal is time-varying signals so the images formed
under analog image processing get varied. It is generally continuous and not broken
into tiny components.

The main characteristics of analog signals are frequency, amplitude, and phase.
Analog signals recorded sound waves better than digital sound.

Frequency in the analog signal

In a given amount of time, the number of waves that passed through a fixed position
is called frequency in the analog system.

Amplitude in the analog signal

It describes the height of a signal that is on the horizontal axis and the amplitude is
always equal to the point given on waveform.
Phase in the analog signal
On same frequency, when wave occurs behind another wave or we can say the
position of a point in time (instant) on a waveform cycle.

Human voice
The best example of an analog signal is our voice. Whatever we speak generate
sound waves and this sound travel through sound waves.

Human voice shows all the characteristics of analog signals as continuously and
smoothly time-varying frequency or amplitude.

                (sound wave)

Digital Signals
Digital signals are very easy to analyze and it has time-varying quantities and a
discrete point at every sampling point. The digital signals are generated by digital
modulation.

Digital signal is less accurate in comparison to analog signal but the best part in it is,
it can be easily stored and accessed comfortably.

It is used everywhere today whether it be in computers, digital pens, digital phones

etc.

Computer Keyboard
Computer keyboard comes in the category of the input devices. A computer
keyboard is used to send control signals to any information appliance i.e. computer.
When you press any key in the keyboard, underneath the keys, there is a grid of
circuits which transfers the signals. There is a switch under the keys which is pressed
to allow the current to flow through it. If we discussed its working principle, then
there is a metallic plate, circuit board, and processor, which are responsible for
sending signals to the computer.

Difference between the Analog signals and

Digital signals
Analog signals Digital signals

Analog signals are difficult to get analysed at first. Digital signals are easy to analyse.

Analog signals are more accurate than digital signals. Digital signals are less accurate.

Analog signals take time to be stored. It has infinite Digital signals can be easily stored.
memory.

To record an analog signal, the technique used, In recording digital signal, the sample
preserves the original signals. signals are taken and preserved.

There is a continuous representation of signals in There is a discontinuous representatio

analog signals. signals in digital signals.

Analog signals produce too much noise. Digital signals do not produce noise.

Examples of analog signals are Human voice, Examples of digital signals are Computers
Thermometer, Analog phones etc. Digital Phones, Digital pens, etc.

What are Analog and Digital

Signals? Differences, Examples
What is a Signal?
Gestures, actions, sounds, expressions tell us some information, and
these are the ways of communicating one to other.
Similarly signal is a way of communicating by sending information
from one system to other system. In other words signal is a function
that represents information or data.

Signal is an electromagnetic wave that carries information through

physical medium. Here the data is converted into electromagnetic
signal either as analog or digital and sent from sender to receiver.

Voltage and current are few time varying quantities that are used to
represent data, by varying these quantities with respect to time data
can be transmitted. Similarly signal is also represented as the
function of the frequency domain rather than time domain.

For communicating between two systems, a message signal is

passed through encoder and modulator to transmit through a
medium while it is passed through decoder and demodulator to
receive the message signal at the other end.

Signals are divided into two categories based on their nature. 

Signals which are

1. Signal which are Continuous as time varying in nature

are analog signals                               
2. Signal which are discrete are called digital signals.
Analog Signals
Analog signal is a form of electrical energy (voltage, current or
electromagnetic power) for which there is a linear relationship
between electrical quantity and the value that the signal represents.

The signal whose amplitude takes any value in a continuous range is

called analog signal.

Analog Signals are continuous in nature which vary with respect to

time. They can be periodic or non-periodic.
Voltage, current, frequency, pressure, sound, light, temperature are
the physical variables that are measured with respect to their
changes with respect to time to obtain information.

When voltage versus time graph is plotted we see curve with

continuous values like sine waves.

These signals are more subjected to noise as they travel through the
medium, these noises result in information loss in the signal. 

Analog to digital converter converts analog signal to digital signal

by a process called sampling and quantization. Sound waves are
converted to sequence of samples by the process Sampling

Examples of analog signals:

Conventional (old) transmitters, transducers convey data in analog

mode.

The signals include audio signals transmitted through wires, video

signals broadcasted using older technology, radio signals, and
analog watches.

Digital Signals
The signal, whose amplitude takes only limited values is called
Digital signal.

Digital signal are discrete, they contain only distinct values. 

Digital signals carry binary data i.e. 0 or 1 in form of bits, it can only
contain one value at a period of time. Digital signals are
represented as square waves or clock signals.
The minimum value is 0 volts whereas maximum value is 5 volts.

Digital signals are less subjected to noise compared to analog

signal.

Transmission of digital data in analog channel is done by process

called Modulation.

Amplitude modulation is a process in which digital data is

converted to analog signals using single frequency carrier signal.
Similarly FREQUENCY shift keying uses a constant amplitude carrier
signal and two frequencies to differentiate between 1 and 0.

Nowadays usage of digital signals for transmitting information has

increased rapidly in every field of usage as the applications and
properties of digital signals are more productive compared to
analog signals.  

Examples of digital signals:

 Smart transmitters using various protocols transmit data

through analog and digital signals.
 Digital watches.
 Digital video signals.
 CD’s.
 DVD’s.
 Computer.
Difference between Analog and Digital
Signals
Analog Signals Digital Signals

Analog signal is continuous and time varying. Digital signal have two or more states and in bina
 Troubleshooting of analog signals are difficult. Troubleshooting of digital signals are easy.

An analog signal is usually in the form of sine wave. An digital signal is usually in the form of square

Easily affected by the noise. These are stable and less prone to noise.

Analog signals use continous values to represent the

Digital signals use discrete values to represent th
data.

Accuracy of the analog signals may be affected by

Accuracy of the digital signals are immune from
noise.

Analog signals may be affected during data

Digital signals are not affacted during data transm
transmission.

Analog signals use more power. Digital signals use less power.

Examples: Temperature, Pressure, Flow measurements,

Examples: Valve Feedback, Motor Start, Trip, et
etc.

Components like resistors, Capacitors, Inductors, Components like transistors, logic gates, and mic
Diodes are used in analog circuits. controllers are used in Digital circuits.

Transmission Impairment in Data

Communication

In communication system, analog signals travel through transmission media, which

tends to deteriorate the quality of analog signal, which means that the signal at the
beginning of the medium is not the same as the signal  at the end of the medium. The
imperfection causes signal impairment. Below are the causes of the impairment.
Causes of impairment – 
 
 
 Attenuation – It means loss of energy. The strength of signal decreases
with increasing distance which causes loss of energy in overcoming
resistance of medium. This is also known as attenuated signal. Amplifiers
are used to amplify the attenuated signal which gives the original signal
back and compensate for this loss.
 

Attenuation is measured in decibels(dB). It measures the relative strengths

of two signals or one signal at two different point. 
 
Attenuation(dB) = 10log10(P2/P1)
P1 is the power at sending end and P2 is the power at receiving  end.
Some where the decibel is also define in terms of voltage instead of power.In this
case because power is proportional to the square of the voltage the formula is  
Attenuation(dB) = 20log10(V2/V1)
V1 is the voltage at sending end and V2 is the voltage at receiving end.
 Distortion – It means changes in the form or shape of the signal. This is
generally seen in composite signals made up with different frequencies.
Each frequency component has its own propagation speed travelling
 through a medium. And thats why it delay in arriving at the final
destination Every component arrive at different time which leads to
distortion. Therefore, they have different phases at receiver end from what
they had at senders end. 
 

 
 Noise – The random or unwanted signal that mixes up with the original
signal is called noise. There are several types of noise such as induced
noise, crosstalk noise, thermal noise and impulse noise which may corrupt
the signal. 
Induced noise comes from sources such as motors and appliances. These
devices act as sending antenna and transmission medium act as receiving
antenna. Thermal noise is movement of electrons in wire which creates an
extra signal. Crosstalk noise is when one wire affects the other
wire. Impulse noise is a signal with high energy that comes from lightning
or power lines 
 

 To find the theoretical bit rate limit, we need to know the ration .The
signal-to-noise ratio is defined as
 
SNR = AVG SIGNAL POWER / AVG NOISE POWER
SNRdB = 10Log10SNR
EXAMPLE 
The values of SNR and SNRdB for a noiseless channel are
SNR = Signal Power/0  = ∞
SNRdB  = 10Log10 ∞  = ∞