The Internet Chapter Notes and Answers

Computer Science @ Aquinas College
THE INTERNET
Checklist
Questions page 27-34
Questions page 45-50
Questions page 58
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Contents
The Internet and how it works................................................................................................................4
Packet switching 4
IP addresses 5
Routers 5
Router operation 5
Gateways 6
Packet Switching - How does it work? 6
How the internet works : Activities 7
Uniform Resource Locator (URL) 8
Domain Names 8
The Domain Name Service and Domain Name Servers (DNS) 10
Accessing the internet registry. 11
Activity: Find a free website name 11
Internet Protocols and the protocol stack 12
Ports and Sockets 14
Client ports. 15
MAC Addresses 15
Application Level Protocols 16
FTP (file Transfer Protocol) 16
HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) 16
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) 17
SSH (Secure Shell) 17
SMTP and POP3 (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol and Post Office Protocol) 18
Routing using IP addresses 19
IP address format 19
Masking IP Addresses 20
Routable and non-routable IP addresses 20
Network Address Translation (NAT) 21
Activity: Routing and IP addresses- Setting up a private network 23
Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP) 24
Port Forwarding 24
Activity: Terminology – The Internet and how it works 25
Activity: Application Layer Protocols and Ports 26
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How the Internet Works : Past Paper Questions 27

Internet Security................................................................................................................................... 35
Firewalls 35
Encryption 36
Method 1 Symmetric Keys 36
Method 2 - Asymmetric keys 37
Transport Layer Security (TLS) 42
Worms, Trojans and viruses 42
Virus 42
Worm 42
Trojan 42
Combatting against Trojans, viruses and worms 43
Activities: Internet Security 44
Internet Securtiy: Past paper Questions 45
The Client-Server Model....................................................................................................................... 51
Web sockets APIs 51

CRUD and REST 52
Without a RESTful API 53
With a RESTful API 53
JSON vs XML 54
Thin- versus thick- client computing 55
Client-server Model: Activities 56
Questions Client-Server Model 57
ANSWERS.............................................................................................................................................. 59
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The Internet and how it works

The internet is a global network of
interconnected networks1, linked by
routers, operating on standard
protocols2 (TCP/IP). It is publicly
available to anyone using an ISP. The
internet has had a massive impact on
society, changing the way we
communicate, work, socialise, shop and
bank. There are an estimated 3.5 billion
internet users worldwide (about 45% of
the global population).
ISP = Internet service provider.

1
By network we mean one or more devices (e.g. computer) linked together
2
A protocol is an agreed set of rules for transmitting data.
Packet switching
The internet is a packet switching network. Any data communicated is broken down into chunks and
transferred as packets called datagrams.
1 email split Several Packets
A packet (datagram) will look something like this
Source Destination Sequence Data Checksum

address Address Number
Header
Source Address – the sending computers IP address,
Destination Address – the receiving computers IP address
Sequence Number – what position in this sequence of packets is it.
Check Sum – A check of the data sent to ensure accurate transmission.
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IP addresses
In IP v4 These are traditionally 4 one byte numbers E.g. 223.123.23.23 that are assigned to any
device on the internet. It is a unique address. Effectively you can have a range of addresses from
1.1.1.1 to 255.255.255.25. Because of the scale of the internet we are in the process of transferring
to IP (version 6). This will give us a far greater range of unique addresses. Public IP addresses have to
be issued by a domain name authority in order to prevent two people using the same address.
IP addressed identify the network and the computer. The first one, two or three numbers will identify
the network. The remaining numbers which computer on that network.
IP addresses are a bit like telephone numbers parts of the network ID also tell you the location.
e.g. 0161 440 1234 0161 🡪 Manchester, 440 🡪 Bramhall exchange

212.219.123.1 212.219 🡪 UK northwest network 123 🡪 Stockport
Routers
These are devices that redirect packets on the internet based on their IP address. They are used to
connect networks running the internet protocol. When a packet arrives at a router it will look at the
IP address and decide which route the packet should leave the router from. It does this by looking at
a routing table which they maintain. Occasionally when there is heavy traffic it buffers packets or
choses an alternative route. They can exist on different levels – local, regional or national.
Router operation
Packet arriving
Source Destination Data
10.10.3.5 214.78.45.6 Hello!
Packet leaving
Source Destination Data
10.10.3.5 214.78.45.6 Hello!
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Gateways
Whereas Routers connect networks using a common Internet Protocol. Gateways connect networks running
different protocols.
You often here the terms used interchangeably. Sometimes the word gateway is used as the connection point for
a network to the outside world.
Packet Switching - How does it work?
Computer 1 Wireless home router/modem
Message packets
Computer 2
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How the internet works : Activities
1. Using a trace route.
www.yougetsignal.com
Run this website and use the ‘Visual trace route’ tool to trace the route a data packet takes from one
location to another.
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Uniform Resource Locator (URL)

A URL is the full address used to find files on the Internet. For example:
http://www.microsoft.co.uk/index.html
It is the method used to uniquely identifying the location of resources on the internet. The
contents of the file that a URL locates will vary depending on the Internet protocol being used. In the
above example, hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) is being used. The file it points to is a html file
called “index.html” which contains hyperlinks to further pages. HTTP indicates that the file can be
accessed using a browser. Consequently, most URLs start with HTTP although it is not always
necessary to type it in the address line.
A Uniform Resource Locator
Domain Names
The Domain name identifies organisations or groups on the Internet. For example: bbc.co.uk
● bbc is the name of the organisation. Domain names have to be unique so organisation had to
act quickly to secure a domain name that was the same as the name of their organisation.
All domain names are registered at a central company called ICANN to ensure uniqueness. This
company overseas Internet registries.
● .co indicates that it is a company. This part of the name is referred to as the second-level
domain. It indicates the type of organisation. Some common examples are:
o .com indicates a commercial organisation
o .gov indicates that the organisation is part of government
o .ac indicates that the organisation is an academic institution (college or university)
o .sch indicates that the organisation is a school
o .org indicates that the organisation is non-commercial such as a charity
o .net indicates a company providing Internet services
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● .uk indicates the website is registered in the UK. It is referred to as a top-level domain Other
examples:
o .au is Australia
o .ca is Canada
o .de is Germany (Deutschland)
o .gr is Greece
o .it is Italy
o .es is Spain (Espana)
o .com (us company) <- The US doesn’t not have to specify it’s country code.
Notice in the bbc example above we did not type in www before the domain name. The www
indicates the host server for the resource. Most commonly used websites are accessed via www so it
does not always needs to be typed in. Where the www is typed, the domain name is known as a fully
qualified domain name (FQDN) and is completely unambiguous as it can relate to only one host. The
domain bbc.co.uk might also contain other hosts with different names, e.g. mail.bbc.co.uk,
ftp.bbc.co.uk
Domain Names are arranged in a hierarchical fashion.
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The Domain Name Service and Domain Name Servers (DNS)

We have seen that in order to communicate with another computer on the internet we need to
know its IP address. However we humans prefer the more convenient system of Domain Names. For
example yahoo.com is much easier to remember than 225.167.35.14! A Domain name represents
one or more, in the case of popular sites, IP address.
So when we type in a domain name it has to be translated into an IP address. A DNS Server does this.
It’s a bit like your mobile phone address book!
1: a call out to a DNS-server, asking

for the IP of someserver.com
2: the DNS server will reply with

the IP-address (in this example
192.5.6.111)
3: TCP/IP makes now the

connection to the requested
server someserver.com, using the
IP-address 192.5.6.111
The DNS service is arranged in a hierarchical fashion too with separate DNS servers responsible for
different sub-domains
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Accessing the internet registry.

WHOIS is an internet protocol for finding out who owns a
particular website. It allows access to the internet registry entry
for any website.
For top level domains…
http://whois.icann.org/en
For UK domains (the internet registrar is a company called

NOMINET. The keep the registry of UK domain names and their
DNS entries.
http://www.nominet.uk/whois/
For academic second-level domains (ac.uk) the registry is

supervised by ja.net.
Here is the WHOIS lookup info for Aquinas College. It is accessible

through the WHOIS service of the ja.net network.
https://Community.jisc.ac.uk/janet-apps/whois
Activity: Find a free website name
Think of a good website name – Use a WHOIS request see if it already owned!
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Internet Protocols and the protocol stack
It is important to understand that for effective communication across the internet several protocols
are required. This interaction between protocols is referred to as the protocol stack.
The protocol stack has four layers. Let’s look at this using the analogy of writing a letter.
Sending data
LAYER Internet Protocol Postal system

Application HTTP (browser), POP/SMTP You write a letter
(email) is used to communicate
the information
Transport Broken into packets and You place in an envelope, write
addresses added TCP on an address and put a stamp
on.
Network The packet is routed through a The letter is posted, goes to the
network of routers. IP sorting office and they decide
which sorting office it needs to
be sent to.
Link The data is transmitted along The letter is sent either by train,
the appropriate medium – plain, van or ship to its
satellite, fibreoptic etc. Each destination.
method will have its own
protocols
Receiving data
LAYER Internet Protocol Postal system

Link The data is transmitted along The letter is sent either by train,
the appropriate medium – plain, van or ship to it’s
satellite, fibreoptic etc. Each destination. The postie delivers
method will have its own it to your door.
protocols
Network The packet is routed through a The last sorting office gives it to
network of routers. IP the local postman to deliver
Transport The packets are rearranged into You open the envelope
a single communication and containing the letter
passed to the appropriate
application. TCP
Application HTTP (browser), POP/SMTP You read the letter
(email) is used to read the
information
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THE TCP/IP PROTOCOL STACK
11-22-33-44-55 | 00-17-4F-08-5D-69
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Ports and Sockets

When data travels up and down the protocol stack to the TCP layer its final destination could be for
one of many possible applications processes. For example it could be an Email or a web page
destined for a browser. The type of data it is will determine which application uses this data.
TCP needs to know which application is this data for?
HTTP FTP SSH POP3 SMTP
TCP
IP
Data Link
To overcome this problem each packet of data as well as having

the IP address of the computer the address has an extra piece of
data called a port. This combination of IP address and port is
called a socket.
Different applications at the server are identified by different

port numbers. These are agreed values and are referred to as well-known ports.
Some well-known port numbers
Port Server Protocol
20 FTP server FTP
80 Web server HTTP
23 Telnet Server Telnet
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Client ports.
As well as well-known ports used by server software we need to set up temporary ports on clients
for the other end of the exchange. These temporary client ports (in the range 1024 to 65535) are
referred to as client or dynamic ports. Client ports are necessary to stop the well-known listening
port getting clogged up.
Let’s look at the communication between a web client and server. In the example below the same
computers carry out two different client-server interactions (called sessions);
HOST A (CLIENT) HOST B (SERVER)
IP 122.34.56.78 IP 215.221.12.56
Web browser FTP Web browser FTP

Client port Client port Server http port Server FTP Port
1024 1025 80 20
Transport Layer TCP Transport TCP
Network Layer IP Network Layer IP
Link layer Link Layer
MAC Addresses
A MAC address is given to any
piece of equipment that can be
networked.
It is important to understand that

at the lowest level of
communication devices identify
each other using a MAC address
rather than an IP address. For
example on an Ethernet network
using CSMA-CD or a wireless
network using CSMA-CA devices
use MAC addresses when sending data. As the data moves down the protocol stack header
information is being added.
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Application Level Protocols

There are certain application level protocols you need to be familiar with
FTP (file Transfer Protocol)

FTP is a protocol for transferring files between servers and clients across an internet connection.
Using FTP, a client can upload, download, delete, rename, move and copy files on a server. A user
typically needs to log on to the FTP
server. A server that provides an
FTP service may provide
anonymous FTP access which
requires no log in. Many FTP hosts
whose purpose is to provide
software updates will allow
anonymous logins.
FTP offers poor security as it does

not encrypt its traffic; all
transmissions are in clear text and
usernames, passwords, commands
and data can be read by anyone
able to perform packet capture.
The filezilla FTP client
HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
When communicating with a webserver HTTP is the

protocol for retrieving web pages and any embedded
multi-media content.
1. The HTTP GET request is based around a URL on port 80.
2. The webpage returned is in HTML (text) format via the client port.
3. The HTML is rendered by the web-browser into a web page we see on the screen.
4. Any embedded content in the webpage – i.e. images, videos, sound files require more GET
requests.
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HTTP web server dealing with multiple client requests on separate client ports
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure)

This operates in the same way as HTTP except the data transmitted is encrypted. This works around a
process called SSL (secure socket layer) and involves the use of public and private encryption keys.
(More about this in the internet security section).
SSH (Secure Shell)

The shell of a computer is a piece of software that allows users to directly communicate with the
kernel, the very core of an operating system. The shell can have either a graphical or command-line
interface or both.
SSH is a protocol that uses public-key encryption to control another computer remotely.
These days, SSH is used to log into and execute code on remote hosts, browse the web using
encrypted proxy clients, and transfer files – even setting up a Virtual Private Network.
SSH could be used to tunnel through firewalls and bypass security however.
Common SSH software include programs like Putty (http://www.putty.org/)
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SMTP and POP3 (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol and Post Office Protocol)
These are separate protocols for sending and receiving emails.
The SMTP protocol delivers an email from the sender’s client computer to the receivers email server.
POP3 is used to deliver the mail from the receiver’s server to the client when requested.
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Routing using IP addresses

IP address format
There are currently two standards of IP address v4 and v6. Because of the explosion in the number
of internet enabled devices we have virtually run out of v4 addresses hence the move to v6
IPv6 uses a 128-bit address, theoretically allowing Ipv4 uses a 4 byte(32 bit) address. So there are
2128 addresses (that’s a lot!) approximately 232 addresses
Ipv4 Internet addresses have two parts
1. Part identifies the network the device is on

2. Part identifies the device itself
In IP v4 there are different types of address where the proportion of the address used to
identify the network part of the address can vary. See table below:
Class A - This class is for very large networks, such

as a major international company might have. IP
addresses with a first byte from 1 to 126 are part of
this class. The other three byte are used to identify
each host. This means that there are 126 Class A
networks available.
Class B - Class B is used for medium-sized

networks. A good example is a large college campus.
Class B addresses also include the second byte as
part of the Net identifier. The other two bytes are
used to identify each host. This means that there are
16,384 (214) Class B networks.
Class C - Class C addresses are commonly used for

small to mid-size businesses.. The last byte is used to
identify each host. This means that there are
2,097,152 (221) Class C networks.
IP v4 IP address structure
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Masking IP Addresses
When we route traffic we are routing BETWEEN NETWORKS. Therefore the host part of the address is
irrelevant and we want to get rid of it for the purposes of moving packets between networks.
So we mask out the station(host) part of the address. We do this by a Boolean AND operation and a
Mask.
In a class B network the mask to do this would be 255.255.0.0
This because only the first two bytes are used to identify the address
in binary -11111111. 11111111.00000000.00000000
(we are only interested in the network part of the address).
Assuming A packet with the following IP address( arrives in binary) destined for a class B network.
10111010.00100101.00111100.10001000
We want to preserve only the first two bytes so we can see which network it belongs to.
AND MASK (class B network)
Network Part Host Part

Addr. 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
Mask 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
result 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Routable and non-routable IP addresses

Certain ranges of IP addresses are referred to as non-routable or private addresses. It allows these
addresses to be reused by people for small private networks – packets containing these address will
not be routed by internet routers. The only address the outside world will see is the external
network address of the router. When packets arrive or leave from the router they are directed to the
appropriate machine on the private network using a technique called NAT. Non-routable IP addresses
DO NOT NEED TO BE REGISTERED WITH AN INTERNET REGISTRAR.
The big advantage of non-routable addresses is that they can be reused. This allows us to have many
more devices on the internet than otherwise would be possible.
Non-routable(private) IP address ranges
10.0.0.0 - 10.255.255.255 Class A

172.16.0.0 - 172.31.255.255 Class B
192.168.0.0 - 192.168.255.255 Class C
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Private IP addressing
No device outside of private network 1 will see any other address than the router’s external port
address i.e. 128.195.4.119
Network Address Translation (NAT)

When you request a website on an external web server from inside a private network. How does the
response get back to your private computer from the external website?
REMEMBER the external website will only see the external port address of the router not the
machine that requested the page.
How do we solve this problem?
The solution Network Address Translation (NAT).
The purpose of NAT (network address translation) is to help implement private IP addresses. It acts
as a way of redirecting external packets to the correct computer in the private local network and is
undertaken by the firewall/gateway/router that acts as the point of entry/exit to the network. It can
achieve this in a number of ways. One common way is to keep a table of which port numbers in
packets refer to which machines.
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NAT in action
In the above diagram the person sat at the computer 192.168.0.2 requests a page from google’s
server
The packet google receives will look like this because private addresses are non-routable…
133.45.67.81:80 212.123.4.56:1096 data
The response packet back to the client will look like this…
212.123.4.56:1096 133.45.67.81:4596 data
This will be routed to ROUTER A
ROUTER A will use NAT to get the packet to machine 192.168.0.2 on the private network
It has kept a list…
Port sent Was from…

1096 192.168.0.2
It updates the response packet to this
192.168.0.2 133.45.67.81:4596 data
In many respects this is like port forwarding.
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Activity: Routing and IP addresses- Setting up a private network
An organisation creates a LAN that connects to the internet via a gateway computer. The organisation
has a routable IP address of 213.122.120.2 which it has registered.
Allocate the appropriate IP, gateway addresses and cabling below. There are relatively few machines
so a class C network will suffice. They decide to put the machines on a private (non-routable) IP
network 192.168.0
Wire up and assign the appropriate IP addresses to the network cards on these computers. All
network cards on a network need to know the unique IP address of the device AND the gateway IP
address i.e. the exit point from the network.
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Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP)

Another way of dealing with limited IP addresses is to allocate IP addresses on a need to use basis.
Rather than have every machine in the network with a fixed IP address we allocate IP addresses to
those machines communicating on the internet. In that way it is possible to have more machines
than IP addresses on the assumption that everyone wont’ be using the internet at once.
The key word in DHCP is "dynamic." Because instead of having just one fixed and specific IP address,
most computers will be assigned one that is available from a subnet or "pool" that is assigned to the
network.
1. Host sends request to discover a (DHCP) server

2. (DHCP) server(s) offer configuration to host;
3. Host accepts offer of configuration from (a DHCP) server
4. (DHCP) server confirms that configuration has been allocated to host;
Port Forwarding
Normally, a network router will examine the header of an IP packet and send it to a linked and
appropriate interface, which in turn sends the data to the destination information that's in the
header.
But in port forwarding, the intercepting application (or device) reads the packet header, notes the
destination, and then rewrites the header information and sends it to a another computer—one
that's different from the one intended. That secondary host destination may be a different IP address
using the same port, a different port on the same IP address, or a completely different combination
of the two.
A port forward is a way of making a computer on your home or business network accessible to
computers on the internet, even though they are behind a router and have a non-routable (private)
address. It is commonly used in gaming, security camera setup, voice over ip, and downloading files.
After you have forwarded a port you are said to have an open port.
Port forwarding is also an excellent way to preserve public IP addresses. It can protect servers and
clients from unwanted access, "hide" the services and servers available on a network, and limit
access to and from a network. Port forwarding is transparent to the end user and adds an extra layer
of security to networks.
In short, port forwarding is used to keep unwanted traffic off networks. It allows network
administrators to use one IP address for all external communications on the Internet while dedicating
multiple servers with different IPs and ports to the task internally. Port forwarding is useful for home
network users who may wish to run a Web server or gaming server on one network.
Port forwarding on a home network.

Different port numbers can be assigned
to different computers behind the
router. In this way we can make servers
out of computers with non-routable
addresses
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Activity: Terminology – The Internet and how it works
Complete the statements below
1. The Internet is a network of networks and computers that use unique ___ addresses and the
___________ protocol.
2. Internet communication is split into ______________, which are _____________ to their
destination independently by packet switching.
3. A _______________ is a device for redirecting packets based on their IP address.
4. A protocol provides ______________ signals, codes and rules for data exchange between
systems.
5. The TCP/IP protocol stack consists of four layers: _________________________,
_______________, ____________________ and ______________.
6. Some application protocols are ____________, ____________, _____________ and
______________.
7. Domain names are registered in Internet __________________
8. Domain names are organised __________________________ into a DNS. An example top
level domain would be ____________.
9. DNS servers translate __________________________ into _________________________
10. The well-known port number for a HTTP server is _____.
11. A socket address is a combination of __________ address and ____________ number.
12. Every device connected to a network has a unique fixed _____________________________
which is used for low level link communication.
13. A _____________________ IP address is one that cannot be routed and which doesn’t
require registering.
14. ___________ is a method of directing external packets to the correct private IP address in a
private network.
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Activity: Application Layer Protocols and Ports

Complete the table: assign the appropriate client software applications to the following protocols.
The same software can appear more than once.
Protocol Software Application Well known Port Number
http
https
ftp
SMTP
SSH
POP3
User A wishes to send an e-mail to user B over an Ethernet. Complete the diagram.
User A User B
Layer Protocol Layer Protocol
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How the Internet Works : Past Paper Questions
Question 1
The diagram below is a partial view of a router network connecting an e-mail client to
an e-mail server.
(a) Describe two roles of the routers shown in the diagram above.
Role 1: ...........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
Role 2: ...........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
(2)
(b) Name one of the application protocols associated with e-mail.
........................................................................................................................
(1)
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(c) The diagram below shows the TCP/IP stack for two computers (hosts) connected
via a network.
Explain how the TCP/IP stack in each host supports an e-mail client to e-mail
server request at the same time as a web browser to web server request. You
should cover in your explanation:
• the steps from the initiation of a request to the receipt of a response
• the role of the different TCP/IP layers in the stages of client-server operation
• the use of packets.
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In your answer you will be assessed on your ability to use good English and to
organise your answer clearly in complete sentences, using specialist vocabulary
where appropriate.
............................................................................................................... ...................
....................................................................................................................... ...........
.....................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................... ...................
....................................................................................................................... ...........
.....................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................... ...................
....................................................................................................................... ...........
.....................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................... ...................
....................................................................................................................... ...........
.....................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................... ...................
....................................................................................................................... ...........
.....................................................................................................................................
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(6)
(Total 9 marks)
Question 2
An ICT technician at a secondary school has access to a variety of programs that she
uses to manage a group of servers.
(a) State one use for each of the protocols listed below.
(i) SSH: ..............................................................................................................

(1)
(ii) FTP: ...............................................................................................................

(1)
(iii) POP3: .............................................................................................................

(1)
(b) Whilst remotely connecting to one of the servers the technician executes a command
that displays the current network connections. The table below shows these network
connections.
Active Internet Connections
Proto Recv– Send– Local Address Foreign Address (state)

Q Q
tcp4 0 0 192.168.3.205:80 74.125.4.148:58539 ESTABLISHED
tcp4 0 0 192.168.3.205:80 208.43.202.29:57458 ESTABLISHED
tcp4 37 0 192.168.3.205:25 208.43.202.29:57459 CLOSE_WAIT
From the table above provide an example of the following:
(i) IP address:...................................................................................
(1)
(ii) Port: ......................................................................................................

(1)
(iii) Socket: .................................................................................................

(1)
(c) State two reasons why the technician uses remote management software
from her computer rather than going to the actual servers.
Reason 1: ......................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
Reason 2: ......................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
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(Total 8 marks)
Question 3
A student uses the following URL to download a copy of a previous year’s

COMP2 exam paper.
https://www.aqa.org.uk/gce/computing/2012comp2.pdf
A B C
(a) (i) Describe the three labelled parts of this URL.
A ...........................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
B...........................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
C...........................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
(3)
(ii) State the top-level domain part in the URL.
..............................................................................................................
(1)
(b) To access the exam paper, the student’s computer might need to make use
of a Domain Name System (DNS) query which is transmitted to a DNS
server.
(i) What is the role of a DNS server?
..............................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
(1)
(ii) In some circumstances the student’s computer will not need to

contact a remote DNS server to access a resource.
Describe two situations when a DNS query will not be sent to a

remote DNS server.
Situation 1.............................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
Situation 2.............................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
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(2)
(c) In the process of requesting a web page, a browser will generate an HTTP
GET request.
(i) In which layer of the TCP / IP stack is the browser operating?
..............................................................................................................
(1)
(ii) Explain why the student’s computer might need to make several
HTTP GET requests to display one web page.
..............................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
(1)
(iii) The HTTP GET requests are being sent to port 80 on the remote
machine. The browser has been allocated a client port number.
What is meant by a client port number?
..............................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
(1)
(Total 10 marks)
Question 4
Major parts of the Internet run on a packet switched network.
(a) What is meant by the term packet switching?
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(b) A packet being sent across the Internet may contain the details of a socket,
for example 12.23.45.89:80.
Complete the table below to explain what each part of the socket in the
table represents.
Part Represents
12.23.45.89
80
Page | 33
(2)
(Total 8 marks)
Question5 (2018)
The diagram shows the physical topology of a local area network (LAN) used by a
company, and its connection to the Internet. The LAN uses the IPv4 protocol.
Internally, the network has been divided into subnets: 27 bits have been allocated to
the network / subnet identifier.
(a) In binary, write out the subnet mask that has been programmed into the devices on the
network.
(1)
(b) Subnet Z consists of all of the devices that are directly connected to Switch B.
What is the maximum number of devices that could be connected to Subnet Z at the
same time?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(1)
Page | 34
(c) When a device wishes to join Subnet Z it communicates with the DHCP server.
Explain:
• the purpose of the DHCP system

• why the DHCP system is used
• what will happen during this communication.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(4)
(Total 6 marks)
Question 6
The web server, which has the IP address 192.168.16.12, must be accessible from
computers that are connected to the Internet but outside the company’s own network.
As the web server has a non-routable IP address, it cannot be accessed directly from
outside the network. Therefore, access to the web server will be facilitated by the External
Router, which supports Network Address Translation (NAT) and port forwarding.
Explain how the External Router will have been configured so that the web server can be
accessed by computers outside the network.
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
(Total 2 marks)
Page | 35
Internet Security
The internet is to a large extent unregulated. As a result there are many potential security risks to
someone going on line. You need to be aware of these risks and the measures to protect against
hem.
Firewalls
Firewalls provide a layer of security

between networks. They determine,
like a bouncer at a nightclub, it
decides what gets in.
As data passes from the gateway/router’s external card to the internal card the packets passing
through are inspected. Based on the packets conforming to certain rules they are either allowed
through from the external to the internal network or not.
The way this inspection is done can operate in different ways:
Packet Filtering
This operates at the IP level by applying certain filtering rule to the packet’s header data. For example
- Do we allow packets from this IP address?
- Do we allow packets on this port?
- Do we allow this Protocol type?
The limitations of this type of firewall is that it is easy to bypass these rules using spoofing/proxy
servers and port forwarding. It is simple to implement and requires the firewall to have no
memory/storage
Stateful Inspection
This is more sophisticated. It tracks each session between clients and servers in a state table. When it
looks at packets it filters them in context. For example if may be expected a certain type of packet in
the session e.g. get/response packets. It would also remember which temporary ports are being used
by client and server and block packets in this session not using these ports.
Proxy server
Proxy servers are placed between networks and cache all incoming traffic. The external network only
sees the proxy server. The proxy can undertake more sophisticated monitoring of packets. e.g.
blocking packets with certain content or packets to and from certain network users. Another
advantage of caching web pages arriving is that several local users accessing the same information
can reuse the data that is cached on the proxy.
Page | 36
Proxy servers can unfortunately also be used to bypass security by hiding someone’s source IP
address. Sites such as (websiteproxy.co.uk) provide a service to do this.
Proxy servers can be used as well as

firewalls
Encryption
Encryption involves the process of converting plaintext into ciphertext before transmission so if the
data is intercepted it should be unreadable. Central to encryption is the use of keys to perform this
function. However, both sender and receiver must have the appropriate keys to be able to read each
other’s communication.
Method 1 Symmetric Keys
Both users have the same key

which performs both encryption
and decryption.
Data sent is encrypted using this

common key.
However there is a problem here!
The problem with symmetric keys -Key exchange
At the beginning of any encrypted communication both sender and receiver need a copy of the
symmetric encryption key. The transfer of keys between sender and receiver is known as key
exchange. If anyone else gets it they will be able to read the messages sent. BUT how do we
exchange the keys – we can’t encrypt them because we both don’t have the key yet!!!
Page | 37
The solution to this as used by the internet is the use of asymmetric keys.
Method 2 - Asymmetric keys
In asymmetric encryption each person is given a key

pair. The key pair (A and B) works as follows
If KEY A encrypts something KEY B will decrypt it.
If KEY B encrypts something KEY A will decrypt it.
Something encrypted by KEY A will not be able to

be decrypted by KEY A.
Public key encryption

A Web server's Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) security feature utilizes a technique known as public key
encryption to shield the session key from interception during transmission. Public key encryption,
which involves the use of two additional keys, a private and a public key, works in the following
manner:
(Bob's public key)
Bob
(Bob's private key)
Bob has been given two keys. One of Bob's keys is called a Public Key, the other is called a Private
Key.
Page | 38
Bob's Co-workers:
Anyone can get Bob's

Public Key, but Bob keeps
his Private Key to himself
Pat Doug Susan

Bob's Public key is
available to anyone who
needs it, but he keeps his Private Key to himself. Keys are used to encrypt information.
Susan (shown below) can encrypt a message using Bob's Public Key
Any of Bob's co-workers might have access to the message Susan encrypted, but without Bob's
Private Key, the data is worthless.
HNFmsEm6U
n
"Hey Bob,
BejhhyCGKOK
how about
JUxhiygSBCEi
lunch at Taco
C
Bell. I hear
0QYIh/Hn3xgi
they have free
K
refills!"
BcyLK1UcYiY
lxx2lCFHDC/A
. Bob uses his Private Key to decrypt the message.
HNFmsEm6Un
BejhhyCGKOK
JUxhiygSBCEiC "Hey Bob, how about lunch at Taco
0QYIh/Hn3xgi Bell. I hear they have free refills!"
K BcyLK1UcYiY
lxx2lCFHDC/A
Bob can put digital signatures on documents and other data. A digital signature is a hashed digest of
the message. The digital signature acts as proof you have sent the message.
Page | 39
Page | 40
To
sign a
document, Bob's
software will crunch
down the data into
just a few lines by a
process called
"hashing". These
few lines are called a
message digest. (It is
not possible to
change a message
digest back into the
original data from
which it was
created.)
Bob's software then encrypts the message digest with his private key. The result is the digital
signature.
Page | 41
Finally, Bob's software appends the digital signature to document. All of the data that was
hashed has been signed.
Bob now passes the document on to Pat.
First, Pat's software decrypts the signature (using Bob's public key) changing it back into
a message digest. If this worked, then it proves that Bob signed the document, because
only Bob has his private key. Pat's software then hashes the document data into a
message digest. If the message digest is the same as the message digest created when
the signature was decrypted, then Pat knows that the signed data has not been
changed.
Plot complication...
Doug (our disgruntled employee) wishes to deceive Pat. Doug makes sure that Pat
receives a signed message and a public key that appears to belong to Bob. Unbeknownst
to Pat, Doug deceitfully sent a key pair he created using Bob's name. Short of receiving
Bob's public key from him in person, how can Pat be sure that Bob's public key is
authentic?
To overcome this problem Bob registers for a digital certificate. This is proof you are the person who
owns this public key. A digital certificate authority will carry out background checks on you before
issuing you with an approved key pair.
Page | 42
Now Bob's co-workers can check Bob's trusted certificate to make

Bob Info: sure that his public key truly belongs to him. In fact, no one at
Name
Bob's company accepts a signature for which there does not exist
Department
a certificate.
Cubical Number
Certificate Info: Let's say that Bob sends a signed document to Pat. To verify the
Expiration Date signature on the document, Pat's software first uses Susan's (the
Serial Number
certificate authority's) public key to check the signature on Bob's
Bob's Public Key: certificate. Successful de-encryption of the certificate proves that
Susan created it. After the certificate is de-encrypted, Pat's
software can check if Bob is in good standing with the certificate
authority and that all of the certificate information concerning
Bob's identity has not been altered.
Page | 43
An Overview of public key encryption
Here is how a digitally signed encrypted message is sent.
SENDER RECEIVER
Page | 44
Transport Layer Security (TLS)

This method of encryption is used in HTTPS. Normally the client(us) are communicating with a server
(bank/shop etc). The organisation will have a digital certificate but we don’t. So has does it work?
TLS session
SERVER CLIENT
Public Key (checked against certificate)
Browser calculates a symmetric

‘session’ key to be used by both
parties for the duration of their
interaction
Session key (encrypted with servers public key)
Server decrypts the session key using their private key
data sent (encrypted and decrypted using session key)
Worms, Trojans and viruses

Virus
A computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer and normally
causing damage to the computer. It often does this by attaching itself to a host program and waiting
for the program to be copied. A virus can damage computer systems from producing irritating
messages to deleting files.
Worm
Worms are self-replicating viruses that spread themselves across networks. As a result of their
proliferation the usually affect the bandwidth of infected networks. Worms do not need to attach
themselves to a host program. They use the internet to replicate themselves – one method by
generating emails from the infected machines email address book
Trojan
A Trojan horse or Trojan is a type of malware that is often disguised as legitimate software. Trojans
can be employed by cyber-thieves and hackers trying to gain access to users' systems. Users are
typically tricked by some form of social engineering into loading and executing Trojans on their
systems. Once activated, Trojans can enable cyber-criminals to spy on you, steal your sensitive data,
and gain backdoor access to your system.
Page | 45
Video resources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF8Ka8Jh0BQ
Combatting against Trojans, viruses and worms

● It is important that users follow codes of conduct that stipulate not to download illegal
software and not to respond to e-mails from unknown sources or download email
attachments.
● Download any patches / service packs that address identified vulnerabilities in software –
both browsers and operating systems.
● Up-to-date virus protection software can intercept and isolate viruses (in quarantine) if they
arrive on your computer.
● Firewalls can block emails from particular sources and containing certain words/phrases.
What programmers can do

● Ensure code I tested thoroughly as errors can be exploited (e.g. Heartbleed bug)
● Be careful about open source code that can be modified by others
● Make sure patches and updates are written to correct code in the light of perceived
threats
● Encrypt data stored in the program
Page | 46
Activities: Internet Security

ACTIVITY COMPLETE THIS TABLE FOR SENDING AN ENYCRYPTED, DIGITALLY
SIGNED MESSAGE. TICK THE KEY INVOLVED AT EACH STAGE
Sender’s Sender’s Recipient’s Recipient’s

public Private public key private key
key key
stage Activity sender
1 Hash message to
message digest
2 Encrypt message digest

to signature
3 Add signature to
message.
4 Encrypt message with

signature
MESSAGE TRANSMITTED
Sender’s Sender’s Recipient’s Recipient’s
public Private public key private key
key key
Activity recipient
5 Decrypts message back

to original
6 Decrypts signature back

to digest
7 Hashes message to
digest.
8 Compares the two

digests
Page | 47
Internet Securtiy: Past paper Questions
Question 1.
Two computers, A and B, are involved in a secure communication that uses asymmetric
encryption. A is sending a message to B.
Each computer has a public key and a private key.
(a) Complete the missing words in the following paragraph.
A will encrypt the message using ..............................key. The message
will be decrypted by B using ..............................key.
(2)
(b) The security of the communication could be improved by the adding a digital signature.
State two benefits of including a digital signature.
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 4 marks)
Question 2.
Software is being developed to allow secure transmission of data over the Internet.
The two computers involved in a communication will be known as A and B.
(a) What is encryption?
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(1)
(b) The data that are being transmitted will be encrypted using public and private
keys.A and B will each have a public key and a private key.
A will encrypt the data that it is sending using B’s public key.
Explain why the data should not be encrypted using:
(i) A’s public key.
Page | 48
.............................................................................................................. .........................
........................................................................................................................................
(1)
(ii) A’s private key.
.................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................... ..........................
(1)
(c) The communication will be made more secure by the use of a digital signature
attached to the end of the message.
• State the purpose of the digital signature.
• Explain how it will be created and used in the data transmission process from
A to B.
In your answer you will be assessed on your ability to use good English, and to
organise your answer clearly in complete sentences, using specialist vocabulary
where appropriate.
................................................................................................................. ..................
.................................................................................................................. .................
................................................................................................................ ...................
................................................................................................................ ...................
........................................................................................................... ........................
................................................................ ...................................................................
................................................................ ...................................................................
................................................................. ..................................................................
.................................................................... ...............................................................
..................................................................... ..............................................................
........................................................................ ...........................................................
.......................................................................... .........................................................
............................................................................... ....................................................
................................................................................ ...................................................
................................................................................. ..................................................
.................................................................................. .................................................
Page | 49
................................................................................... ................................................
(6)
(Total 9 marks)
Question 3.
There are continuing threats invading any computer system.
(a) What is a computer virus?
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(b) What is a Worm?

.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(4 marks)
Question 4
Networks can be protected from one another by implementing a firewall using packet filtering,
stateful inspection or a proxy server.
Describe one unique feature of each type of firewall.
(a) Packet filtering
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(b) Stateful Inspection
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
(c) Proxy server
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
Page | 50
.......................................................................................................................
(2)
Question 5
The configuration file for a school's firewall contains the following three rules:
Rule 1 ACCEPT 80.1.12.100:22 [SSH]
Rule 2 ACCEPT * . * . * . * :80 [HTTP]
Rule 3 DENY * . * . * . * :23 [TELNET]
* represents all numbers from 0 - 255
(a) Explain what is meant by an IP address.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(1)
(b) (i) SSH, HTTP and Telnet are all protocols.
State what is meant by the term protocol.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(1)
(ii) Explain why the school has set up the firewall so that HTTP requests are
accepted from any IP address but Telnet requests are denied.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(2)
(c) David is a company's network manager who is away travelling for his summer
holiday. Whilst he is on holiday, a security update is released for a critical piece of
software running on one of his company's servers. The update can be downloaded
from the FTP server at URL ftp.aqaservertools.com for which David has a username
and password.
David has a laptop which has a telnet client and an FTP client installed on it.
On the company server, David has access to a Telnet server, an FTP server and an
Page | 51
FTP client.
Page | 52
The figure below shows the situation.
Security update
Laptop Company server
server
IP: 12.23.56.78 ftp.aqaservertools.com IP: 80.56.34.12
Telnet client FTP server Telnet server

FTP client FTP client
FTP server
David uses his laptop to connect to a local wireless access point.
Explain what is meant by the client server-model and describe the steps David would
go through to apply the security update to the company's server.
In your answer you will be assessed on your ability to use good English and to
organise your answer clearly in complete sentences using specialist vocabulary where
appropriate.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(6)
(Total 10 marks)
Page | 53
Question 6
(a) Three important computer security procedures are:
• authentication
• authorisation
• accounting
The table lists two situations which involve the use of security procedures.
For each row in the table, place a tick in one column to indicate whether the Situation
and Procedure is an example of Authentication, Authorisation or Accounting.
Situation and
Authentication Authorisation Accounting
Procedure
A web server
generating a log of the
IP addresses of
computers that have
accessed it.
Using a digital signature

when sending an e-mail
message.
(2)
(b) Viruses and worms are both threats to computer security.
Explain what a virus is, and explain the difference between a virus and a worm.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(3)
(Total 5 marks)
Page | 54
The Client-Server Model

The central principle of the internet is the idea of clients and servers. Clients request services from
servers. These servers undertake this requests and pass the results to the client.
For example in HTTP
Client issues a GET request for a web page.
Server REPLIES with the webpage requested.
Web sockets APIs

In the original working of the web, the web browser (client software... Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.)
Contacts a web server and asks for a web page. Once the web browser loaded the web page, it
stopped talking to the server and the webpage would not be updated unless the client requested the
webpage again.
A web socket creates a temporary

full-duplex (two way) persistent real time
connection between client and server.
Whilst the connection is open client and
servers can communicate without having
to refresh whole webpages and therefore
supports more interactive/dynamic
webpages. For example, HTML5 requires
web sockets so that the server can update
the client page constantly.
Page | 55
CRUD and REST

Often the communication between a client and server involves the server accessing a database.
This interaction between client and server could be to
● Create new data

● Retrieve data
● Update Data
● Delete Data
From this we get the acronym CRUD
If we think about the way we interact with databases using SQL there is an obvious mapping here…
Operation SQL
Create INSERT
Read (Retrieve) SELECT
Update (Modify) UPDATE
Delete (Destroy) DELETE
In a REST interface this mapping is taken one stage further. We use an API which processes database
requests using the HTTP protocol. HTTP has certain key words used to determine the type of request
being made. REST is an agreed standard both for requesting and the format the data is received in.
Operation SQL HTTP
Create INSERT POST
Read (Retrieve) SELECT GET
Update (Modify) UPDATE PUT
Delete (Destroy) DELETE DELETE
The advantages of RESTful Web APIs I that anything can be accesses from the browser using
JavaScript on the client’s browser rather than generating the pages on the server (called server sided
scripting). This means that different devices phones, laptops, tablets can worry about the interface at
their end. The server hasn’t got to worry about presentation and get on just processing raw data.
Without a RESTful API
Page | 56
With a RESTful API
Here is a directory of available web APIs developed by webservers. It allows you to access their data
as well as themselves!
http://www.programmableweb.com/apis/directory
Page | 57
JSON vs XML
These are two competing formats for delivering data from a website through an API. Each have
advantgaes and disadvantages
JSON advantages XML advantages

Easier to read Can transfer more different types of data – such
as images, charts and graphs, music etc.
more compact
Quicker for computers to process
Here is the same data returned as both JSON and XML
JSON XML
Page | 58
Thin- versus thick- client computing

At college we have a thick-client network. Whilst our client computers rely on servers to deliver files
and organise print queues most of the processing is done on the client computers. For example
Microsoft office is loaded and runs from the computer you are sitting at.
In thin client networks the client station is ‘dumb’. It has little processing power and no hard disk. It is
effectively a simple input/output device (called a terminal) to the server. In a thin-client network the
files and applications remain on and run on the server. The results and inputs are simply transmitted
to the client.
Whilst thin clients still run an operating system, ultra-thin clients don’t even do that!
The internet is now providing many ‘on-line’ applications such as google docs. Also manufacturers
have produced thin-client machine that require internet access such as Chromebook.
THIN-CLIENT THICK-CLIENT
Page | 59
Client-server Model: Activities

1. Complete this table listing the advantages of each type of network.
Peer-to-Peer - advantages Client-server - advantages
2. Complete the table
Operation SQL HTTP
Create INSERT POST
Read (Retrieve)
Update (Modify)
Delete (Destroy)
Page | 60
Questions Client-Server Model

Question 1
A company sets up a server-based network with ten terminals. Each terminal is a PC

with its own secondary storage.
(a) The network was recently created from an existing set of stand-alone computers,
and is used by a team of programmers. Describe two advantages that
networking the computers has brought to the programming team.
1. _________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(2)
(b) The network manager has the choice of:
Option 1: Installing all the applications software on the server.
Option 2: Installing the applications software on the hard drive of each PC.
(i) Describe one advantage to the network manager of Option 1.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(1)
(ii) Describe one advantage to a terminal user of Option 2.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(1)
(c) Each terminal communicates with a printer using a handshaking protocol.
(i) Explain the term protocol.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(1)
(ii) Explain the term handshaking.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
(2)
Page | 61
(d) Clients who use the company’s website input
http://www.smk-solutions.co.uk/index.htm
into the address bar of their browser.
What is the domain name for the company?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
(1)
(Total 8 marks)
Page | 62
ANSWERS
Key to mark scheme annotation
NE=not enough
; = mark
R = Reject
A= accept
Internet Questions Page 27
Question 1
(a) To examine the destination of each packet;

To forward packets from one network to another;
To manage congestion;
Choose an appropriate forwarding route;
Route packets according to destination IP address;
Store incoming packets temporarily;
Change link address in packet;
To store/make use of a routing table;
A data instead of packets
R information / signals
Max 2
(b) SMTP;
POP(3);
IMAP(4);
A full names of the protocols above
A ESMTP // SMAP // LMTP // QMTP
Max 1
(c) Key Points of Subject Criteria

Concept that data passed up/down between layers;
A by example – just one needed but must be correct
NE just describing the layers in the correct order
Application layer selects appropriate protocol for the communication // protocol mentioned by
example ( POP / HTTP );
Application layer is to interact with the user via the email client / web browser;
Transport Layer: establishes end to end communication // Transport layer establishes a virtual path //
TCP layer establishes connection between client and server;
Destination and source application level client/server identified by port numbers;
TCP layer uses these port numbers to route reassembled requests/responses to correct application
layer client/server;
TCP layer splits and reassembles requests/responses into packets/from packets;
Packets are numbered by transport layer;
Transport layer deals with error control (acknowledgements/retransmission);
Network layer adds source and destination IP addresses; Routers use destination IP addresses to
route packets to destination // network layer involved with packet routing;
Link layer adds source and destination hardware/Ethernet/Link layer/MAC addresses;

Link layer destination and source addresses change from link to link;
Page | 63
Link layer moves packets between 2 internet hosts;

Link layer deals with physical connection/cabling;
Network layer strips IP address (when receiving) // Link layer strips MAC address Server uses
received source IP address to know where to send response;
Server uses received client port number to know to which instance of application layer client to send
response to;
Servers use well-known ports;
Client port numbers come from the dynamic range;
Packets of Email client/server and Web browser/Web server travel independent paths;
Packets of Email client/server and Web browser/Web server share links//intermingled on links;
Combination of IP address and Port = Socket / described;

[9]
Question 2
(a) (i) To manage / control / execute commands on a remote machine;

A remote access / login
A a clear example of remote management
NE remote viewing
R remote desktop 1
(ii) Enable files on one host / computer / client to be copied to another host / computer /
server;
To manage files on a remote computer / server;
A to upload / download / transfer files
NE “sharing”
NE load a file
NE transfer data
1
(iii) To retrieve / fetch (stored) email;

To check for new emails;
A access / download / receive
R sending
TO any mention of sending
NE just “email”
1
(b) (i) 192.168.3.205 // 74.125.4.148 // 208.43.202.29;
1
(ii) 80 // 25 // 58539 // 57458 // 57459;

1
(iii) 192.168.3.205:80 //
192.168.3.205:25 //
74.125.4.148:58539 //
208.43.202.29:57458 //
208.43.202.29:57459 ;
1
Page | 64
(c) Servers might be in another room / site / cupboard / inaccessible ;

Servers might not have a keyboard / monitor installed ;
Can manage multiple servers from one machine;
Servers can be managed outside of work hours / from anywhere;
It would be quicker (A more convenient) (to manage from her machine than visit the
servers) // better time management;
Server rooms are often uncomfortable places for people to work in;
NE she does not need to go to the servers
Max 2
[8]
Question 3
(a) (i) A the protocol to be used / / secure hyper-text transfer protocol / / hyper-text
transfer protocol secure;
NE hyper-text transfer protocol
B the FQDN / / fully qualified domain name;
A the address of (AQA’s) web server
C the path and resource to be returned;
A path / pathname / file path
3
(ii) uk / / .uk ;
1
(b) (i) To take a required FQDN and to return an IP address;

To link / map a FQDN to an IP address;
A domain name for FQDN
R URL
1
(ii) The (local) computer already has a copy of the needed IP address (in a hosts file);
The (local) computer has a cache of recent DNS queries / answered DNS queries;
A previously visited site / refreshing a page;
The URL typed in already contains an IP address;
The URL refers to a local resource, e.g., a file on the local computer / / localhost ;
NE intranet
MAX 2
(c) (i) application (layer);

A fourth layer;
1
(ii) To fetch different parts of the web page that also include an URL;
To fetch a needed image / video / javascript / css / resource;
R transmission error
R network busy
MAX 1
(iii) Port that is temporarily assigned / only exists for duration of a connection;
Port number automatically allocated / / assigned from the TCP / IP stack;
A a port number in range 1024 - 65535
MAX 1
[10]
Question 4
(a) Messages split into packets; A chunks

Each packet given destination / source address;
Page | 65
Each packet dispatched to the Internet through a router / gateway;

Packets sent independently;
Packets given a sequence number;
Routers forward packets (until they reach destination);
Path of packet transfer determined by router(s);
Packets reassembled at the destination;
Max 2
(b) 12.23.45.89
An IP (v4) address (that uniquely identifies a machine on the Internet) // Internet

protocol address;
80
A port number // a number that specifies which process on the receiving

machine/host to send the data to;
A port;
Denotes that HTTP (server) is recipient of packet //

packet is an HTTP packet
2
Question 5
(a) Mark is for AO1 (understanding)
1 mark: Correct binary pattern (below):
(b) Mark is for AO2 (apply)
30 // (25)−2;
A. 32, 25, 31, (25)−1 (this time only)
1
(c) 1 mark for AO1 (understanding) and 3 marks for AO1 (knowledge)
Purpose (1 mark – AO1 (knowledge)):

To automate the configuration of hosts connecting to a (TCP/IP) network //
to allocate IP addresses / subnet mask / default gateway to hosts;
A. “computer” or suitable alternative term for “host”
Why used (1 mark – AO1 (understanding)):
Reduces the need for expert knowledge when configuring a host // reduces
the time required to configure hosts // facilitates efficient use of a limited
pool of IP addresses // avoids errors with a relevant example such as
duplicating IP addresses or programming incorrect subnet mask;
A. enables reuse of IP addresses
N.E. “avoiding errors” without an example
Contents of communication (Max 2 marks – AO1 (knowledge)):

1. Host sends request to discover a (DHCP) server; A. host sends request for
configuration
Page | 66
2. (DHCP) server(s) offer configuration to host; NE. server gives IP

address to host
3. Host accepts offer of configuration from (a DHCP) server (by echoing
the accepted configuration back to the server);
4. (DHCP) server confirms that configuration has been allocated to host;
A. “IP Address” for “configuration” but NE. “subnet mask”, “default gateway”
for this mark point
Award one mark for any one correct point OR two marks for any two
correct points, made in the correct order.
4
[6]
Question 6
All marks AO1 (understanding)
Traffic arriving on the HTTP(S) port // the port used for web services // port
80/8080/443 (from outside the network) // HTTP(S) traffic (from outside the
network);
Must be forwarded (by the External Router) to the IP address of the Web Server //
IP address 192.168.16.12;
[2]
Page | 67
Internet Security: page 45
Question 1.
(a) All marks AO1 (understanding)
1 mark: A will encrypt the message using B's public; key.

1 mark: The message will be decrypted by B using B's private; key.
2
(b) All marks AO1 (understanding)
1 mark: Detect (unauthorised) changes to message;

1 mark: Authenticate sender's identity / / confirm who sent it;
2
[4]
Question 2.
(a) (Using an algorithm) to convert a message into a form that is not
understandable
(without the key to decrypt it);
(Using an algorithm) to convert a message into a form that is only
understandable
by the intended parties // can only be read with the correct key;
Converting a message into cipher text;
NE scrambling unless further explanation is provided
A “unreadable” for “understandable”
A “data” for “a message”
Max 1
(b) (i) B will not be able to decrypt it // A's private key would be needed to
decrypt it // only A could decrypt it; (as ...)
Only A has access to A’s private key // B cannot access A.s private
key;
Max 1
(ii) As A’s public key is available to anyone;

Anybody could decrypt it;
Max 1
(c) Subject-related points:
Purpose:
To authenticate/confirm identity of sender // that message was sent by A //
To detect if message has been tampered with/changed;
How used:
*1 Hash / digest produced/calculated from message // (shortened) value
calculated from message;
A message is hashed
A message digest created
*1Hash encrypted with A’s private key;
*1Encrypted hash is known as the (digital) signature;
*2(Digital) signature is appended to message;
A transmitted with message
Page | 68
A even if stated or implied that this is done after the encryption of the
message using B’s public key
A hash or digest
A encrypts message and signature with B’s public key;
A without reference to signature but TO if clear from order of statements or
what candidate has written that the signature is not encrypted with B’s
public key
B decrypts message and signature with B’s private key;
A without reference to signature
B decrypts (digital) signature using A’s public key (to reveal hash);
B reproduces/recalculates hash from received message;
A re-hashed
A creates new digest
*3If received hash matches reproduced hash then message has not been
tampered with // identity of sender is authenticated;
A Data for message
A Digest, checksum for hash
A Encrypted hash / Encrypted digest for signature
A Example of hashing method e.g. MD2/4/5/6, SH0/1/224/256/384/512
*1 = as an alternative to these three points, allow one mark for the idea that
the digital signature is calculated from/hashed from/a digest of the message
*2 = only award this mark if there is previously the concept of the hash or
signature being produced.
*3 = can only be awarded if there is clear concept that the comparison is to a
recalculated hash
[6]
Question 3.
(a) Program designed to replicate itself (and spread on its own), preferably
without anyone aware of its existence.
Damage files / hardware or amuse user
Any 2 × 1
2
(b) Self replicating virus which can spread itself across networks. Doesn’t
require a host program. Consumes bandwidth
Any 2 × 1
2
[4]
Question 4
(a) IP level filtering
Looks at header information
Filters on IP address/protocol
Page | 69
(b) Maintains a record of transmission state

Filters depending unusual packet contents or unexpected port numbers
(c) Caches packets and web pages retrieved

Inspects packet contents
Can filter on local user ID
[6]
Question 5.
(a) A numerical label/value assigned to a device;

A series of four bytes // a 32 bit number;
A. a series of 16 bytes // a 128 bit number;

A. octet as an alternative to byte
R. Internet Protocol
MAX 1
(b) (i) A set of rules (for communication between devices);

1
(ii) HTTP:
HTTP is a protocol for accessing websites which are usually available to the general public;
Telnet (MAX 1):

The school does not wish people outside of the school network to remotely login to a school computer
// open Telnet port is a security risk;
A. Telnet is an insecure protocol;
2
(c) Client server model:

• User runs a client application to connect to the server/server application // client sends a request
to the server
• Server (performs processing and) sends result back to client
Steps to update server:

• Run the Telnet client on the laptop to connect to the company server
• Login to the company server
• Run the FTP client on the company server // use of FTP client to connect to FTP server
• Login to the security update FTP server using username and password
• Download/transfer the required file
• Run the command to install the security update // apply the security update
• Log off from the server // Disconnect from the server
Alternative steps:
• Run the FTP client on the laptop to connect to the security update Server using username and
password
• Download/transfer the required file
• Connect to the company FTP server
• Upload the required file from the laptop
• Run the Telnet client to connect to the company server
• Login to the remote server
• Run the command to install the security update // apply update
• Log off from the server // Disconnect from the server
Page | 70
HOW TO AWARD MARKS:
Mark Bands and Description
5-6 To achieve a mark in this band, candidates must meet the subject criterion (SUB) and all 5 of
the quality of written communication criteria (QWCx).
SUB Candidate has made at least five mark-worthy points and covers both the client server
model and the steps form a logical sequence to update the server.
QWC1 Text is legible.
QWC2 There are few, if any, errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar. Meaning is clear.
QWC3 The candidate has selected and used a form and style of writing appropriate to the
purpose and has expressed ideas clearly and fluently.
QWC4 Sentences (and paragraphs) follow on from one another clearly and coherently.
QWC5 Appropriate specialist vocabulary has been used.
3-4 To achieve a mark in this band, candidates must meet the subject criterion (SUB) and 4 of the
quality of written communication criteria (QWCx).
SUB Candidate has made at least three mark-worthy points.
QWC1 Text is legible.
QWC2 There may be occasional errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar. Meaning is
clear.
QWC3 The candidate has, in the main, used a form and style of writing appropriate to the
purpose, with occasional lapses. The candidate has expressed ideas clearly and reasonably
fluently.
QWC4 The candidate has used well-linked sentences (and paragraphs).
QWC5 Appropriate specialist vocabulary has been used.
1-2 To achieve a mark in this band, candidates must meet the subject criterion (SUB) and 3 of the
5 quality of written communication criteria (QWCx).
SUB Candidate has made a small number of relevant points.
QWC1 Most of the text is legible.
QWC2 There may be some errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar but it should still be
possible to understand most of the response.
QWC3 The candidate has used a form and style of writing which has many deficiencies. Ideas
are not always clearly expressed.
QWC4 Sentences (and paragraphs) may not always be well-connected.
QWC5 Specialist vocabulary has been used inappropriately or not at all.
0 Candidate has made no relevant points.

6
[10]
Question 6.
(a)
Situation and Procedure Authentication Authorisation Accounting
A web server generating a log of the IP

addresses of computers that have ✔;
accessed it.
Using a digital signature when sending

✔;
an e-mail message.
Page | 71
R. Responses in which more than one column is ticked on a row

A. Responses in which a symbol other than a tick is used
2
(b) Virus is (max 2 marks):

Program that attaches itself to / conceals itself within another program/file;
Self-replicating // program can copy itself; N.E. Viruses spread
Has malicious purpose; A. Is a type of malware A. Examples of malicious purposes
Difference to worm (max 2 marks):

Worm duplicates by exploiting network security weaknesses / across network (whereas
virus copies itself by attaching to other files);
Worm is standalone software (whereas virus conceals itself within another file);
Worm replicates without user action (whereas virus relies on user running program to
replicate it);
MAX 3
3
Answers Page 57 Client Server Model
Question 1.
(a) Allows for the sharing of peripherals/hardware; R ‘Resources’ programmers
can access their work from any terminal; better communications / internal
e-mail/instant messaging; easier/quicker/instant sharing of a program
library/ sharing program code/ data files; central storage of documents e.g.
program specifications; changes to important documents are held centrally /
document management; setting up of an Intranet (for document
management); easier for the backup of data;
R anything about program updates
Max 2
(b) (i) Easier/quicker installation/maintenance of the application software /

easier backup (only if not in(a));
R Saves space on the PCs / ‘Security’ / cheaper (licensing)
1
(ii) If server goes down software (may) still be available;

Software will load/accessed faster from secondary store;
Software can be personalised for individual user;
Helps to avoid degradation in network performance;
R anything about the software runs faster
1
(c) (i) Protocol set of rules (about the way devices communicate);
A standards
R Instructions
1
(ii) Handshaking …
Sending signals between devices + implication of 2-way;
Confirmation of ready for sending / receiving data;
Acknowledge that a transfer is completed;
Max 2
(d) smk-solutions.co.uk;
R www.smk-solutions.co.uk
1
[8]
Page | 72

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Computer Science @ Aquinas College

How the Internet Works : Past Paper Questions 27

Web sockets APIs 51

The Internet and how it works

ISP = Internet service provider.

1 email split Several Packets

A packet (datagram) will look something like this

Source Destination Sequence Data Checksum

Source Address – the sending computers IP address,

Destination Address – the receiving computers IP address

Sequence Number – what position in this sequence of packets is it.

Check Sum – A check of the data sent to ensure accurate transmission.

e.g. 0161 440 1234 0161 🡪 Manchester, 440 🡪 Bramhall exchange

Source Destination Data

10.10.3.5 214.78.45.6 Hello!

Source Destination Data

10.10.3.5 214.78.45.6 Hello!

Packet Switching - How does it work?

Computer 1 Wireless home router/modem

How the internet works : Activities

1. Using a trace route.

Uniform Resource Locator (URL)

A Uniform Resource Locator

Domain Names are arranged in a hierarchical fashion.

The Domain Name Service and Domain Name Servers (DNS)

1: a call out to a DNS-server, asking

2: the DNS server will reply with

3: TCP/IP makes now the

Accessing the internet registry.

For top level domains…

For UK domains (the internet registrar is a company called

For academic second-level domains (ac.uk) the registry is

Here is the WHOIS lookup info for Aquinas College. It is accessible

Activity: Find a free website name

Internet Protocols and the protocol stack

LAYER Internet Protocol Postal system

LAYER Internet Protocol Postal system

THE TCP/IP PROTOCOL STACK

Ports and Sockets

TCP needs to know which application is this data for?

HTTP FTP SSH POP3 SMTP

To overcome this problem each packet of data as well as having

Different applications at the server are identified by different

Some well-known port numbers

Port Server Protocol

20 FTP server FTP

80 Web server HTTP

23 Telnet Server Telnet

HOST A (CLIENT) HOST B (SERVER)

Web browser FTP Web browser FTP

Transport Layer TCP Transport TCP

Network Layer IP Network Layer IP

Link layer Link Layer

It is important to understand that

Application Level Protocols

FTP (file Transfer Protocol)

FTP offers poor security as it does

The filezilla FTP client

2. Internet communication is split into __, which are _ to their

_, and .

6. Some application protocols are , , _ and

9. DNS servers translate __ into _

11. A socket address is a combination of address and __ number.