CTU – San Francisco Campus

CompTech 213 – Computer Network and Security

Topic 5: Fundamentals of Building Computer Networks

FUNDAMENTALS OF BUILDING COMPUTER NETWORKS

Computer Network
A computer network or data network is a telecommunications network which
allows computers to exchange data. In computer networks, networked
computing devices exchange data with each other using a data link. The
connections between nodes are established using either cable media or
wireless media. The best-known computer network is the Internet.
Following is the list of hardware's required to setup a computer network.
• Computer
• Server
• Network Devices (Router, Switch, Hub, Bridge, AP)
• Network Media (Network Cables, Wireless Devices and etc.)
• Network Adapters (Internal and External Cards)
• Mobile Wireless Devices (Smart phones, Laptops, PDAs, and etc.)
CHARACTERISTICS OF A NETWORK
Many characteristics are commonly used to describe and compare various
network designs. Networks can be described and compared according to
network performance and structure, as follows:

• Speed: Speed is a measure of how fast data is transmitted over the network. A more precise term would be data rate.
• Cost: Cost indicates the general cost of components, installation, and maintenance of the network.
• Security: Security indicates how secure the network is, including the data that is transmitted over the network. The subject of security is
important and constantly evolving. You should consider security whenever you take actions that affect the network.
• Availability: Availability is a measure of the probability that the network will be available for use when required. For networks that are meant
to be used 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, availability is calculated by dividing the time it is actually available by the total time
in a year and then multiplying by 100 to get a percentage.
• Scalability: Scalability indicates how well the network can accommodate more users and data transmission requirements. If a network is
designed and optimized for just the current requirements, it can be very expensive and difficult to meet new needs when the network grows.
• Reliability: Reliability indicates the dependability of the components (routers, switches, PCs, and so on) that make up the network. Relia bility
is often measured as a probability of failure, or mean time between failures (MTBF).
• Topology: Networks have two types of topologies: the physical topology, which is the arrangement of the cable, network devices, and end
systems (PCs and servers), and the logical topology, which is the path that the data signals take through the physical topology.

These characteristics and attributes provide a means to compare different networking solutions. Increasingly, features such a s security, availability,
scalability, and reliability have become the focus of many network designs because of the importance of the network to the business process.
Elements of a Network
The diagram shows elements of a typical network, including devices, media, and services, tied together by rules, that work to gether to send messages.
We use the word messages as a term that encompasses web pages, e-mail, instant messages, telephone calls, and other forms of communication enabled
by the Internet.

Networking is a very graphically oriented subject, and icons are commonly used to represent networking devices. On the left s ide of the diagram are
shown some common devices which often originate messages that comprise our communication. These include various types of computers (a PC and
laptop icon are shown), servers, and IP phones. On local area networks these devices are typically connected by LAN media (wired or wireless).

The right side of the figure shows some of the most common intermediate devices, used to direct and manage messages across th e network, as well as
other common networking symbols. Generic symbols are shown for:
• Switch - the most common device for interconnecting local area networks
• Firewall - provides security to networks
• Router - helps direct messages as they travel across a network
• Wireless Router - a specific type of router often found in home networks
• Cloud - used to summarize a group of networking devices, the details of which may be unimportant to the discussion at hand
• Serial Link - one form of WAN interconnection, represented by the lightning bolt-shaped line
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Network Connections
Network connections can be wired or wireless. In wired connections, the medium is either copper, which carries electrical signals, or optical fiber, which
carries light signals. In wireless connections, the medium is the Earth's atmosphere, or space, and the signals are microwaves. Copper medium includes
cables, such as twisted pair telephone wire, coaxial cable, or most commonly, what is known as Category 5 Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) cable. Optical
fibers, thin strands of glass or plastic that carry light signals, are another form of networking media. Wireless media may include the home wireless
connection between a wireless router and a computer with a wireless network card, the terrestrial wireless connection between two ground stations, or
the communication between devices on earth and satellites.

NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE TRANSMISSION PROCESS

The Messages
In the first step of its journey from the computer to its destination, our instant message gets converted into a format that can be transmitted on the
network. All types of messages must be bits, binary coded digital signals, before being sent to their destinations. This is true no matter what the original
message converted to format was: text, video, voice, or computer data.
The Devices
To begin to understand the robustness and complexity of the interconnected networks that make up the Internet, it is necessary to start with the basics.
Take the example of sending the text message using an instant messaging program on a computer. When we think of using network services, we usually
think of using a computer to access them. But, a computer is only one type of device that can send and receive messages over a network. Many other
types of devices can also be connected to the network to participate in network services. Among these devices are telephones, cameras, music systems,
printers and game consoles.
The Medium
To send our instant message to its destination, the computer must be connected to a wired or wireless local network. Local networks can be installed in
homes or businesses, where they enable computers and other devices to share information with each other and to use a common connection to the
Internet. Wireless networks allow the use of networked devices anywhere in an office or home, even outdoors. Outside the office or home, wireless
networking is available in public hotspots, such as coffee shops, businesses, hotel rooms, and airports.
The Services
Network services are computer programs that support the human network. Distributed on devices throughout the network, these s ervices facilitate
online communication tools such as e-mail, bulletin/discussion boards, chat rooms, and instant messaging. In the case of instant messaging, for example,
an instant messaging service, provided by devices in the cloud, must be accessible to both the sender and recipient.
The Rules
Important aspects of networks that are neither devices nor media are rules, or protocols. These rules are the standards and p rotocols that specify how
the messages are sent, how they are directed through the network, and how they are interpreted at the destination devices. For example, in the case of
Jabber instant messaging, the XMPP, TCP, and IP protocols are all important sets of rules that enable our communication to occur.
MULTIPLE SERVICES-MULTIPLE NETWORKS
Converged networks - Technology advances are enabling us to consolidate these disparate
networks onto one platform - a platform defined as a converged network. The flow of voice,
video, and data traveling over the same network eliminates the need to create and
maintain separate networks. Traditional telephone, radio, television, and computer data
networks each have their own individual versions of the four basic network elements. In
the past, every one of these services required a different technology to carry its particular
communication signal. Additionally, each service had its own set of rules and standards to
ensure successful communication of its signal across a specific medium.

NETWORK ARCHITECTURE
Network architecture is the design of a communication network. It is a framework for the
specification of a network's physical components and their functional organization and
configuration, its operational principles and procedures, as well as data formats used in its
operation.

Networks must support a wide range of applications and services, as well as operate over
many different types of physical infrastructures. The term network architecture, in this
context, refers to both the technologies that support the infrastructure and the
programmed services and protocols that move the messages across that infrastructure. As
the Internet and networks in general, evolve, we are discovering that there are four basic
characteristics that the underlying architectures need to address in order to meet user
expectations: fault tolerance, scalability, quality of service, and security.

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 Fault Tolerance
The expectation that the Internet is always available to the millions of users who rely on it requires a network architecture that is designed and built to
be fault tolerant. A fault tolerant network is one that limits the impact of a hardware or software failure and can recover quickly when such a failure
occurs.
Scalability
A scalable network can expand quickly to support new users and applications without impacting the performance of the service being delivered to
existing users. Thousands of new users and service providers connect to the Internet each week.
Quality of Service (QoS)
The Internet is currently providing an acceptable level of fault tolerance and scalability for its users. But new applications available to users over
internetworks create higher expectations for the quality of the delivered services. Voice and live video transmissions require a level of consistent quality
and uninterrupted delivery that was not necessary for traditional computer applications.
Security
The Internet has evolved from a tightly controlled internetwork of educational and government organizations to a widely acces sible means for
transmission of business and personal communications. As a result, the security requirements of the network have ch anged. The security and privacy
expectations that result from the use of internetworks to exchange confidential and business critical information exceed what the current architecture
can deliver.
PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION
Source, Channel, and Destination
The primary purpose of any network is to
provide a method to communicate
information. From the very earliest primitive
humans to the most advanced scientists of
today, sharing information with others is
crucial for human advancement.
All communication methods have three
elements in common. The first of these
elements is the message source, or sender. Message sources are people, or electronic devices, that need to communicate a message to other individuals
or devices. The second element of communication is the destination, or receiver, of the message. The destination receives the message and interprets
it. A third element, called a channel, provides the pathway over which the message can travel from source to destination.
Rules of Communication
In any conversation between two people, there are many rules, or protocols, that the two must follow in order for the message to be successfully
delivered and understood. Among the protocols for successful human communication are:
• Identification of sender and receiver
• Agreed-upon medium or channel (face-to-face, telephone, letter, photograph)
• Appropriate communication mode (spoken, written, illustrated, interactive or one-way)
• Common language
• Grammar and sentence structure
• Speed and timing of delivery

BASIC NETWORK COMPONENTS

There are many components that can be part of a network, for example personal computers, servers, networking devices, and cabling. These components
can be grouped into four main categories:

Network Devices Hosts

Network Media Peripherals

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Shared Peripheral
Shared peripherals are not directly connected to the network, but instead are connected to hosts. The host is then responsible for sharing the peripheral
across the network. Hosts have computer software configured to enable people on the network to use the attached peripheral devices.
The network devices, as well as networking media, are used to interconnect hosts. Some devices can play more than one role, d epending on how they
are connected. For example, a printer directly connected to a host (local printer) is a peripheral. A printer directly connected to a network device and
participates directly in network communications is a host.
COMMON NETWORK DEVICES AND FUNCTIONS
Network Switch
Switches are used to connect multiple devices on the same network within a building or
campus. For example, a switch can connect your computers, printers and servers, creating a
network of shared resources. There are two basic types of switches to choose from as part of
your networking basics: managed and unmanaged. An unmanaged switch works out of the
box and does not allow you to make changes. Home-networking equipment typically offers
unmanaged switches. A managed switch allows you access to program it. This provides greater
flexibility to your networking basics because the switch can be monitored and adjusted locally
or remotely to give you control over network traffic, and who has access to your network.
Modem
A modem modulates one or more carrier wave signals to encode digital information for
transmission, and demodulates signals to decode the transmitted information. The goal is to
produce a signal that can be transmitted easily and decoded reliably to reproduce the
original digital data.
Router
Routers analyze the data being sent over a network, change how it is packaged, and send it to another network, or over a different type of network. They
connect your business to the outside world, protect your information from security threats, and can even decide which computers get priority over
others. Depending on your business and your networking plans, you can choose from routers that include different capabilities . These can include
networking basics such as:
Firewall: Specialized software that examines incoming data and protects your business network against attacks
Virtual Private Network (VPN): A way to allow remote employees to safely access your network remotely
IP Phone network: Combine your company's computer and telephone network, using voice and conferencing technology, to simplify and unify your
communications

Access Point
An access point is a device that creates a wireless local area network, or WLAN, usually in an office or large building. An access point connects to a wired
router, switch, or hub via an Ethernet cable, and projects a Wi-Fi signal to a designated area.

Organizational Standards
The Physical layer consists of hardware, developed by engineers, in the form of electronic circuitry, media, and connectors. Therefore, it is appropriate
that the standards governing this hardware are defined by the relevant electrical and communications engineering organizations. By comparison, the
protocols and operations of the upper OSI layers are performed by software and are designed by software engineers and computer scientists. As we saw
in a previous chapter, the services and protocols in the TCP/IP suite are defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in RFCs.
Similar to technologies associated with the Data Link layer, the Physical layer technologies are defined by organizations such as:
• The International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
• The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
• The American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
• The International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
• The Electronics Industry Alliance/Telecommunications Industry Association (EIA/TIA)
• National telecommunications authorities such as the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) in the USA.

Data Carrying Capacity

Different physical media support the transfer of bits at different speeds. Data transfer can be measured in three ways:
1. Bandwidth
The capacity of a medium to carry data is described as the raw data bandwidth of the media. Digital bandwidth measures the am ount of information
that can flow from one place to another in a given amount of time. Bandwidth is typically measured in kilobits per second (kbps) or megabits per second
(Mbps). The figure shows the commonly used units of bandwidth.

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 2. Throughput
Throughput is the measure of the transfer of bits across the media over a given period of time. Due to a number of factors, throughput usually does not
match the specified bandwidth in Physical layer implementations such as Ethernet. In an internetwork or network with multiple segments, throughput
cannot be faster than the slowest link of the path from source to destination. Even if all or most of the segments have high bandwidth, it will only take
one segment in the path with low throughput to create a bottleneck to the throughput of the entire network.
Figure shows Data Throughput and Good put

3. Goodput

Goodput is the measure of usable data transferred over a given period of time, and is therefore the measure that is of most interest to network users.
As shown in the figure, goodput measures the effective transfer of user data between Application layer entities, such as between a source web server
process and a destination web browser device.

As an example, consider two hosts on a LAN transferring a file. The bandwidth of the LAN is 100 Mbps. Due to the sharing and media overhead the
through put between the computers is only 60 Mbps. With the overhead of the encapsulation process of the TCP/IP stack, the actual rate of the data
received by the destination computer, goodput, is only 40Mbps.

Cabling
Cables should be considered a long term investment. What may be sufficient now
may not be in the near future. Always plan for the future by complying with all
current standards. Remember that standards help to ensure that the cables will be
able to deliver acceptable performance as the technology evolves. It is important to
observe cabling best practices in all environments. Strict adherence to these
practices, in home and business environments, helps reduce the number of potential
problems. It will save a great amount of time, money and frustration.

Cabling Best Practice

The following steps, called best practices, ensure that cable termination is successful.

1. It is important that the type of cables and components used on a network adhere to the standards required for that network. M odern converged
networks carry voice, video and data traffic on the same wires; therefore the cables used on converged networks must be able to support all these
applications.
2. Cable standards specify maximum lengths for different types of cables. Always adhere to the length restrictions for the type of cable being installed.
3. UTP, like all copper cable, is susceptible to EMI. It is important to install cable away from sources of interference such as high-voltage cables and
fluorescent lighting. Televisions, computer monitors and microwaves are other possible sources of interference. In some environments it may be
necessary to install data cables in conduit to protect them from EMI and RFI.
4. Improper termination and the use of low quality cables and connectors can degrade the signal carrying capacity of the cable. Always follow the rules
for cable termination and test to verify that the termination has been done properly.
5. Test all cable installations to ensure proper connectivity and operation.
6. Label all cables as they are installed, and record the location of cables in network documentation.

Structured Cabling
Structured cabling is a method for creating an organized cabling system that can be easily understood by installers, network administrators, and any
other technicians who deal with cables. One component of structured cabling is cable management. Cable management serves multiple purposes. First,
it presents a neat and organized system which aids in the isolation of cabling problems. Second, by following cable management best practices, the cables
are protected from physical damage which greatly reduces the number of problems experienced.

References:
Adapted and Compiled from:
CCNA IT Essential, “PC Hardware and Software” version 4.0, Cisco Networking Academy
CCNA Discovery 1, “Networking for Home and Small Businesses”, Cisco Networking Academy
CCNA Discovery 2, “Working at a Small-to-Medium Business of ISP”, Cisco Networking Academy
CCNA Exploration 1, “Network Fundamentals”, Cisco Networking Academy
Cisco Networking Academy Program, CCNA 1 and 2 Companion Guide, Cisco Press
Website
http://www.conceptdraw.com/examples/wireless-router-network-diagram
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_network