What are the goals of Computer Network?

1-Resource Sharing

The main goal of the computer network is Resource Sharing. It is to create

all the programs, data and hardware accessible to anyone on the network
without considering the resource’s physical area and the client.

2-Saving Money/ Cost Reduction

Another goal of networking is reduction of cost. Resource sharing

automatically reduces cost and hence money can be saved.

3-High Reliability

To provide high reliability by having alternative sources of supply, all files

could be replicated on two or more machines. If one of them is not available,
due to hardware failure, the other copies could be used. Computer networks
aim to provide reliable communication by ensuring that data is delivered
accurately and efficiently. This involves error detection, error correction,
and fault tolerance mechanisms

4-Improve Performance

Computer networks must provide high performance and low latency /high
throughput to ensure that applications and services are responsive and
available when needed. This requires optimizing network infrastructure,
bandwidth utilization, and traffic management, congestion control, inserting
one or more processors into it as its workload grows

5-Communication Medium

Computer networks provide a powerful communication medium. A file that

was updated/modified on a network can be seen by the other users on the
network immediately.

6-Security
Ensuring the security and integrity of data transmitted over the network is
a critical goal. This includes encryption, authentication, access control, and
other security measures to protect against unauthorized access, data
breaches, and cyberattacks.
7-Flexibility
Networks should be flexible enough to support different types of
applications and devices. This includes accommodating diverse
communication protocols, network architectures, and emerging
technologies.

--Applications of Computer Networks

 Marketing and sales: –

Teleshopping is important part of sales applications that use order-entry
computers or telephones connected to an order-processing network, and on-
line reservation services for hotels airline and so on.
 Manufacturing: -
Two are computer-assisted manufacturing (CAM) and computer –assisted
designing (CAD) both of which permit multiple users to work on a project
simultaneously.
 Financial Services: –
In Present, Financial services are completely dependent on computer
networks. Main applications are credit history searches, foreign exchange
and investment services, and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) that permits
a user to transfer money without going into bank.
 Teleconferencing: –
With The help of teleconferencing conferences are possible to occur without
the participants being in the same place. Applications include simple text
conferencing, voice conferencing, and video conferencing.
 Cable Television:-
Future Services provided by cable television network can include video on
request
 Information Services:-
Network information services include bulletin boards and data banks.
 Electronic Messaging:–
Electronic mail (e-mail) is the most widely used network application.
  Electronic Data Interchange (EDI):– EDI permits business
information to be transferred without using paper.

 Cellular Telephone: –In present cellular network make it possible to

maintain wireless phone connections even while travelling over large
distances.

 E-commerce: Online transactions, electronic payments, inventory

management, and supply chain logistics.

 Entertainment: Computer networks play a vital role in delivering

entertainment content such as streaming media, online gaming, and
social media platforms.

 Education: Networks are used in education for distance learning,

online courses, virtual classrooms,

--Compnents of Data Communication

There are mainly five components of a data communication system:

1. Message
2. Sender
3. Receiver
4. Transmission Medium
5. Set of rules (Protocol)
All above mentioned elements are described below:
 Figure – Components of Data Communication Sy

1. Message :
The message simply refers to data or piece of information which is to
be communicated. A message could be in any form, it may be in form of a
text file, an audio file, a video file, etc.
2. Sender :
Sender plays part of a source in data communication system. It is
simple a device that sends data message. The device could be in form of a
computer, mobile, telephone, laptop, video camera, or a workstation, etc.
3. Receiver :
It is destination where finally message sent by source has arrived. It
is a device that receives message. Same as sender, receiver can also be in
form of a computer, telephone mobile, workstation, etc.
4. Transmission Medium :
Act as a bridge between sender and receiver. It is physical path by
which data or message travels from sender to receiver. Transmission
medium could be guided (with wires) or unguided (without wires), for
example, twisted pair cable, fiber optic cable, radio waves, microwaves, etc.
5. Set of rules (Protocol) :
 Protocol is a set of rules that govern data communication. If two
different devices are connected but there is no protocol among them, there
would not be any kind of communication between those two devices. Thus
the protocol is necessary for data communication to take place.

---Computer Network Components

 NIC
o NIC stands for network interface card.
o NIC is a hardware component used to connect a computer with
another computer onto a network
o It can support a transfer rate of 10,100 to 1000 Mb/s.
o The MAC address or physical address is encoded on the
network card chip used to identify a network card uniquely.
o There are two types of NIC:
1 Wired NIC: The Wired NIC is present inside the motherboard. Cables
and connectors are used with wired NIC to transfer data.

2 Wireless NIC: The wireless NIC contains the antenna to obtain the
connection over the wireless network. For example, laptop computer
contains the wireless NIC.

 Hub
. A Hub is a hardware device that divides the network
connection among multiple devices.
. When computer requests for some information from a
network, it first sends the request to the Hub through cable. .
Hub will broadcast this request to the entire network.

 Switch
. A switch is a hardware device that connects multiple devices
on a computer network.
. A Switch contains more advanced features than Hub.
 . Switch delivers the message to the correct destination based
on the physical address present in the incoming message.
. A Switch does not broadcast the message to the entire network
like the Hub.
. Switch provides a direct connection between the source and
destination. It increases the speed of the network.

 Router
. A router is a hardware device which is used to connect a LAN
with an internet connection.
. It is used to receive, analyze and forward the incoming
packets to another network.
. A router works in a Layer 3 (Network layer) of the OSI
Reference model.
. It determines the best path from the available paths for the
transmission of the packet.
 Modem
.A modem is a hardware device that allows the computer to
connect to the internet over the existing telephone line.
. It stands for Modulator/Demodulator.
. It converts the digital data into an analog signal over the
telephone lines.
. Classified in the following categories:

1 Standard PC modem or Dial-up modem

2 Cellular Modem
3 Cable modem

 Cables and Connectors

. Cable is a transmission media used for transmitting a signal.
. There are three types of cables used in transmission:
1 Twisted pair cable
2 Coaxial cable
3 3 Fibre-optic cable

1. Wired Media
2. Wireless Media
Examples of Wired media are as follows:

1 Ethernet: Ethernet is the most widely used LAN technology, which is

defined under IEEE standards 802.3.
2 Fibre Optic Cable: In this data is transferred in the form of light waves.

Optic Fibre Cable

3 Coaxial Cable: Mainly used for audio and video communications.

Coaxial Cable

4 USB Cable: USB Stands for Universal Serial Bus. Mainly used to connect
PCs and smartphones.
Examples of Wireless media are as follows:
• Infrared (E.g. short-range communication – TV remote control).
• Radio (E.g. Bluetooth, Wi-Fi).
• Microwaves (E.g. Cellular system).
• Satellite (E.g. Long range communications – GPS).
• Repeater
It is used to regenerate and amplify signal in the computer networks.
Repeaters are used to improve the quality of the networks and they are
operated on the Physical Layer of the OSI Model.

* Server
The server plays a vital role in facilitating communication, data storage,
etc. Servers have more data storage as compared to normal computers.

• Firewall:
Firewalls are security devices that control and monitor incoming and
outgoing network traffic. Firewalls can be hardware-based or software-
based and are essential for network security.

--Transmission Media-
A physical path between the transmitter and the receiver i.e. it is the
channel through which data is sent from one place to another.
Transmission Media is broadly classified into the following types:

1. Guided Media: It is also referred to as Wired or Bounded transmission

media. Signals being transmitted are directed and confined in a narrow
pathway by using physical links.
Features:
• High Speed
• Secure
• Used for comparatively shorter distances
There are 3 major types of Guided Media:

(i) Twisted Pair Cable –

It consists of 2 separately insulated conductor wires wound about each
other. They are the most widely used Transmission Media. Twisted Pair is
of two types:
•Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP):
UTP consists of two insulated copper wires twisted around one another.
This type of cable has the ability to block interference and does not depend
on a physical shield for this purpose. It is used for telephonic applications.

Applications:
Used in telephone connections and LAN networks
•Shielded Twisted Pair (STP):
This type of cable consists of a special jacket (a copper braid covering or a
foil shield) to block external interference. It is used in fast-data-rate
Ethernet and in voice and data channels of telephone lines.
Applications:
The shielded twisted pair type of cable is most frequently used in extremely
cold climates, where the additional layer of outer covering makes it perfect
for withstanding such temperatures or for shielding the interior
components.
(ii) Coaxial Cable –
It has an outer plastic covering containing an insulation layer made of PVC
or Teflon and 2 parallel conductors each having a separate insulated
protection cover. The coaxial cable transmits information in two modes:
Baseband mode(dedicated cable bandwidth) and Broadband mode(cable
bandwidth is split into separate ranges). Cable TVs and analog television
networks widely use Coaxial cables.

Radio frequency signals are sent over coaxial wire

(iii) Optical Fiber Cable –

It uses the concept of refraction of light through a core made up of glass or
plastic. The core is surrounded by a less dense glass or plastic covering
called the cladding. It is used for the transmission of large volumes of data.
Applications:
• Defence Purpose: Used in transmission of data in aerospace.
• Industrial Purpose: designing the interior and exterior of
automobiles.
•
2. Unguided Media:
It is also referred to as Wireless or Unbounded transmission media. No
physical medium is required for the transmission of electromagnetic
signals.

Features:
• The signal is broadcasted through air
• Less Secure
• Used for larger distances
There are 3 types of Signals transmitted through unguided media:

(i) Radio waves –

These are easy to generate and can penetrate through buildings. Frequency
Range:3KHz – 1GHz. AM and FM radios and cordless phones use Radio
waves for transmission.Further Categorized as
(i) Terrestrial and
(ii) Satellite.
(ii) Microwaves –
It is a line of sight transmission i.e. the sending and receiving antennas need
to be properly aligned with each other. The distance covered by the signal is
directly proportional to the height of the antenna. Frequency Range:1GHz
– 300GHz. These are majorly used for mobile phone communication and
television distribution.Infrared –
(iii)Infrared waves are used for very short distance communication. They
cannot penetrate through obstacles. This prevents interference between
systems. Frequency Range:300GHz – 400THz. It is used in TV remotes,
wireless mouse, keyboard, printer, etc.
--Switching
* The technique of transferring the information from one computer
network to another network is known as switching.
* Switching in a computer network is achieved by using switches.
* A switch is a small hardware device which is used to join multiple
computers together with one local area network (LAN).
* Network switches operate at layer 2 (Data link layer) in the OSI model.

Why is Switching Concept required?

Switching concept is developed because of the following reasons:
* Bandwidth: It is defined as the maximum transfer rate of a cable. It is a
very critical and expensive resource. Therefore, switching techniques are
used for the effective utilization of the bandwidth of a network.
* Collision: Collision is the effect that occurs when more than one device
transmits the message over the same physical media, and they collide with
each other. To overcome this problem, switching technology is implemented
so that packets do not collide with each other.
Advantages of Switching:
 Switch increases the bandwidth of the network.
 It reduces the workload on individual PCs as it sends the information
to only that device which has been addressed.
 It increases the overall performance of the network
 Reduces the traffic on the network.
 There will be less frame collision.

--Types of Switching
* Message Switching:
This is an older switching technique that has become
obsolete. In message switching technique, the entire data block/message is
forwarded across the entire network thus, making it highly inefficient.

* Circuit Switching:
In this type of switching, a connection is established
between the source and destination beforehand. This connection receives
the complete bandwidth of the network until the data is transferred
completely.
This approach is better than message switching as it does not involve
sending data to the entire network, instead of its destination only.

* Packet Switching:
This technique requires the data to be broken down into
smaller components, data frames, or packets. These data frames are then
transferred to their destinations according to the available resources in the
network at a particular time.
This switching type is used in modern computers and even the Internet.
Here, each data frame contains additional information about the
destination and other information required for proper transfer through
network components.

--Framing

Framing is a point-to-point connection between two computers or devices

consists of a wire in which data is transmitted as a stream of bits. Data-link
layer takes the packets from the Network Layer and encapsulates them into
frames. Then, it sends each frame bit-by-bit on the hardware. At receiver’s
end, data link layer picks up signals from hardware and assembles them
into frames.

Parts of a Frame

• A Header − The source and destination address is placed into the

header part of the frame.
• Payload field − Contains the message to be delivered.
• A Trailer − Contains the error detection and error correction bits.
• Flag − Shows the beginning and end of the frame.
Framing Methods
*Character Count
The first framing method uses a field in the header to specify
the number of characters in the frame. When the data link layer at the
destination sees the character count, it knows how many characters follows
and hence where the end of the frame is.
Drawback : It still has no way of telling where the next frame starts.
Retransmission does not help either,. The character count methods is rarely
used anymore.

*Byte Stuffing
Most protocols have used the same byte called a flag byte, as
both the starting and ending delimiter. In this way, if the receiver ever loss
synchronization, it can just search for the flag byte to find the end of
current frame. Two consecutive flag bytes indicate the end of one frame
and start of the next one. An escape byte is stuffed into the outgoing
character stream before a flag byte in the data.
Drawback : It is closely tied to the use of 8-bit character. Not all character
codes use 8-bit characters. For example, UNICODE is 16-bit characters.

Byte Stuffing

*Bit Stuffing
Each frame begins and ends with a special bit pattern,
01111110. Whenever the sender’s data link layer encounters five
consecutive 1s in the data it automatically stuffs a 0 bit into the outgoing bit
stream. The bit stuffing is equivalent to byte stuffing. Receiver
automatically dyestuffs (delete) the 0 bits.

---Error Detection Techniques-

*Simple Parity Check

Simple-bit parity is a simple error detection method that involves adding
an extra bit to a data transmission. It works as:
• 1 is added to the block if it contains an odd number of 1’s, and
• 0 is added if it contains an even number of 1’s
This scheme makes the total number of 1’s even, that is why it is called
even parity checking.
*

Disadvantages
• Single Parity check is not able to detect even no. of bit error.
• For example, the Data to be transmitted is 101010.
Two-dimensional Parity Check--Two-dimensional Parity check bits are
calculated for each row, which is equivalent to a simple parity check bit. Parity
check bits are also calculated for all columns, then both are sent along with the
data. At the receiving end, these are compared with the parity bits calculated on
the received data.
Checksum
Checksum error detection is a method used to identify errors in
transmitted data. The process involves dividing the data into equally sized
segments and using a 1’s complement to calculate the sum of these
segments. The calculated sum is then sent along with the data to the
receiver. At the receiver’s end, the same process is repeated and if all zeroes
are obtained in the sum, it means that the data is correct.
Checksum – Operation at Sender’s Side
• Firstly, the data is divided into k segments each of m bits.
• On the sender’s end, the segments are added using 1’s complement
arithmetic to get the sum. The sum is complemented to get the checksum.
• The checksum segment is sent along with the data segments.
Checksum – Operation at Receiver’s Side
• At the receiver’s end, all received segments are added using 1’s
complement arithmetic to get the sum. The sum is complemented.
• If the result is zero, the received data is accepted; otherwise
discarded.

Disadvantages
• If one or more bits of a segment are damaged and the
corresponding bit or bits of opposite value in a second segment are also
damaged.
Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC)
• CRC is based on binary division.
• In CRC, a sequence of redundant bits, called cyclic
redundancy check bits, are appended to the end of the data unit so that
the resulting data unit becomes exactly divisible by a second,
predetermined binary number.
• At the destination, the incoming data unit is divided by the
same number. If at this step there is no remainder, the data unit is
assumed to be correct and is therefore accepted.
• A remainder indicates that the data unit has been damaged in
transit and therefore must be rejected.
--Multiple Access (MA) Protocols

1. Random Access Protocol: In this, all stations have same superiority that
is no station has more priority than another station. Any station can send
data depending on medium’s state( idle or busy). It has two features:
1. There is no fixed time for sending data
2. There is no fixed sequence of stations sending data
The Random access protocols are further subdivided as:

(a) ALOHA – It was designed for wireless LAN but is also applicable for
shared medium. In this, multiple stations can transmit data at the same
time and can hence lead to collision and data being garbled.
• Pure Aloha:
When a station sends data it waits for an acknowledgement. If the
acknowledgement doesn’t come within the allotted time then the station
waits for a random amount of time called back-off time (Tb) and re-sends
the data. Since different stations wait for different amount of time, the
probability of further collision decreases.
Vulnerable Time = 2* Frame transmission time
Throughput = G exp{-2*G}
Maximum throughput = 0.184 for G=0.5
• Slotted Aloha:
It is similar to pure aloha, except that we divide time into slots and
sending of data is allowed only at the beginning of these slots. If a station
misses out the allowed time, it must wait for the next slot. This reduces the
probability of collision.
Vulnerable Time = Frame transmission time
Throughput = G exp{-*G}, Maximum throughput = 0.368 for G=1
(b) CSMA – Carrier Sense Multiple Access ensures fewer collisions as the
station is required to first sense the medium (for idle or busy) before
transmitting data. If it is idle then it sends data, otherwise it waits till the
channel becomes idle. However there is still chance of collision in CSMA
due to propagation delay.

(c) CSMA/CD – CSMA/CD basically means CSMA with Collision

Detection. In CSMA/CD, whenever the station transmits data-frame it
then detects the channel or the medium to admit the state of the
transmission that is profitably transmitted or failed. If the transmission
succeeds, then it produces the successive frame otherwise it resends the
formerly failed data frame. The purpose to recollect here is, that the
frame coordinate universal time ought to be at minimum twice the most
propagation time, which might be deduced once the gap between the 2
stations concerned in a collision is most.

(d) CSMA/CA – Carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance.

The process of collisions detection involves sender receiving
acknowledgement signals. If there is just one signal(its own) then the data
is successfully sent but if there are two signals(its own and the one with
which it has collided) then it means a collision has occurred. To
distinguish between these two cases, collision must have a lot of impact on
received signal. However it is not so in wired networks, so CSMA/CA is
used in this case.

CSMA/CA avoids collision by:

1. Interframe space – Station waits for medium to become idle and if
found idle it does not immediately send data (to avoid collision due to
propagation delay) rather it waits for a period of time called Interframe
space or IFS. After this time it again checks the medium for being idle.
The IFS duration depends on the priority of station.
2. Contention Window – It is the amount of time divided into slots. If
the sender is ready to send data, it chooses a random number of slots as
wait time which doubles every time medium is not found idle. If the
medium is found busy it does not restart the entire process, rather it
restarts the timer when the channel is found idle again.
3. Acknowledgement – The sender re-transmits the data if
acknowledgement is not received before time-out.

--MAC Address
* MAC address is the physical address, which uniquely identifies each
device on a given network.
* To make communication between two networked devices, we need two
addresses: IP address and MAC address.
* A physical address that operates at the Data Link Layer is called a Media
Access Control Address.
*It is assigned to the NIC (Network Interface card) of each device that can
be connected to the internet.I
*t is globally unique; it means two devices cannot have the same MAC
address.
* It is represented in a hexadecimal format on each device

--Reasons to Have Both IP and MAC Addresses

Both MAC and IP addresses are operated on different layers of the internet
protocol suite. The MAC address works on layer 2 and helps identify the
devices within the same broadcast network (such as the router). On the
other hand, the IP addresses are used on layer 3 and help identify the
devices on different networks.
We have the IP address to identify the device through different networks,
we still need a MAC address to find the devices on the same network.

--Types of MAC address

 There are three types of MAC addresses, which are:

 Unicast MAC Address

 Multicast MAC address
 Broadcast MAC address
* Unicast MAC Address: This is like your home address. It's unique and is
used to send data specifically to one device on a network
* Multicast MAC Address: It's used to send data to a specific group of
devices on a network that belong to the same multicast group.
* Broadcast MAC Address: It's used to send data to all devices on a
network segment, and every device on that segment will receive and
process the broadcast message.

--Data Link Layer Bridge and Switch-

S.NO. Switch Bridge

It is basically a device which is

It is a device which is responsible for channeling the data that
responsible for dividing a single
1. is coming into the various input ports to a particular output
network into various network
port which will further take the data to the desired destination.
segments.

2. A switch can have a lot of ports. A bridge can have 2 or 4 ports only.

The bridge performs the packet

The switch performs the packet forwarding by using
3. forwarding by using softwares so it is
hardwares such as ASICS hence, it is hardware based.
software based.

The switching method in case of a switch can thus be store, The switching method in case of a
4.
forward, fragment free or cut through. bridge is store and forward.

A bridge cannot perform the error

5. The task of error checking is performed by a switch.
checking.

6. A switch has buffers. A bridge may not have a buffer.