COMPUTER NETWORKS

(19UCS08)

LECTURE NOTES

UNIT - 1

B.Sc (CS) III YEAR

V SEMESTER

Dr R U ANITHA, Assistant Professor

DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

SONA COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE, SALEM

Unit - 1

 Introduction - Network Hardware -Network Software - Reference Models: OSI

Reference model. Physical Layer: Guided Transmission media, Wireless
Transmission, Public Switched Telephone Network, The Mobile Telephone System.

Introduction

Development of the PC changes a lot in business, industry, science and education.

Similar revolution is occurring in data communication and networking Technologies advances
are making it possible for communications links to carry more and faster signal. Services are
evolving to allow the use of this expanded capacity

 For example telephone services extended to have:

 Conference calling

 Call waiting

 Voice mail

 Caller ID

The effectiveness of a data communications system depends on Four fundamental

characteristics: delivery, accuracy, timeliness, and jitter.
1. Delivery
• The system must deliver data to the correct destination. Data must be received by the
intended device or user and only by that device or user.
2. Accuracy
• The system must deliver the data accurately. Data that have been altered in transmission
and left uncorrected are unusable.
3. Timeliness
• The system must deliver data in a timely manner. Data delivered late are useless. In the
case of video and audio, timely delivery means delivering data as they are produced, in
the same order that they are produced, and without significant delay. This kind of
delivery is called real-time transmission.
4. Jitter
• Jitter refers to the variation in the packet arrival time. It is the uneven delay in the
delivery of audio or video packets. For example, let us assume that video packets are sent
every 30 ms. If some of the packets arrive with 30-ms delay and others with 40-ms delay,
an uneven quality in the video is the result.
Components of a data communication system
• The word data refers to information presented in whatever form is agreed upon by the
parties creating and using the data.

• Data communications are the exchange of data between two devices via some form of
transmission medium such as a wire cable.

1. Message: The message is the information (data) to be communicated. Popular forms of

information include text, numbers, pictures, audio, and video.

2. Sender: The sender is the device that sends the data message. It can be a computer,
workstation, telephone handset, video camera, and so on.

3. Receiver: The receiver is the device that receives the message. It can be a
computer, workstation, telephone handset, television, and so on.

4.Medium: The transmission medium is the physical path by which a message travels from
sender to receiver. Some examples of transmission media include twisted-pair wire, coaxial
cable, fiber-optic cable, and radio waves.
5. Protocol: A protocol is a set of rules that govern data communications. It represents an
agreement between the communicating devices. Without a protocol, two devices may be
connected but not communicating, just as a person speaking French cannot be understood by a
person who speaks only Japanese.
Data flow (simplex, half-duplex, and full-duplex)

1 . Simplex (one way street)

 The communication is unidirectional. Only one device on a link can transmit and
the other can only receive. The simplex mode can use the entire capacity of the channel
to send data in one direction. Example: Keyboards, Monitors
2. Half-Duplex (one-lane with two-directional traffic)

 Each station can both transmit and receive, but not at the same time. When one
device is sending, the other can only receive, and vice versa. The entire capacity of a
channel is taken over by the transmitting device. Example: Walkie-talkies
3. Full-Duplex (Duplex) (two-way street)

 In full-duplex, both stations can transmit and receive simultaneously. One common
example of full-duplex communication is the telephone network. When two people are
communicating by a telephone line, both can talk and listen at the same time. The full-
duplex mode is used when communication in both directions is required all the time.
Example: Telephone network

COMPUTER NETWORKS
• Computer network consists of two or more computers that are linked in order to share
resources, exchange data files or to allow electronic communication.
• The computers on a network may be linked through cables, telephone lines,
radio waves, satellites or infrared light beams.
• There are two aspects of computer networks – hardware and software.
• Hardware includes physical connection between two machines by using adaptors, cables,
routers, bridges etc.
• Software includes a set of protocols. Protocols define a formal language among
various components. It makes hardware usable by applications.

Uses of Computer Networks

1. Business Applications
2. Home Applications
3. Mobile Users
4. Social Issues

1. Business Applications

 A company may have a computer for each worker and use them to design products,
write brochures, and do the payroll. Resource sharing is to make all programs,
equipment, and especially data available to anyone on the network without regard to
the physical location of the user. Networks called VPNs (Virtual Private Networks)
may be used to join the individual networks at different sites into one extended
networks.

Client –Server Model: It is widely used and forms the basis of much network usage.

A network with two clients and one server

• Telephone calls between employees may be carried by the computer network instead of
by the phone company. This technology is called IP telephony or Voice over IP (VoIP)
The client-server model involves requests and replies

 Many companies is doing business electronically, especially with customers and

suppliers is called e-commerce (electronic commerce).

2. Home Applications

1. Access to remote information

 Many people pay their bills, manage bank accounts, and handle their investments
electronically. On-line newspaper which can be personalized. Access to information system like
World Wide Web, which contains information about arts, business, cooking, government, health,
history, science, sports, travel etc. All the above applications involve in interactions between a
person and remote database.

2.Person-to-person communication

 Electronic mail or email which allows users to communicate with no delay.

Videoconference- which makes possible.

3.Interactive entertainment

 Huge and growing industry.

 Video
 Game playing
4.Electronic Commerce

 It is commonly known as E- commerce is trading in products or services using computer

networks, such as the Internet. E-commerce facilitates home shopping, catalogue of company
products. It is also popularly employed for bill payments, banking, investments etc.
 In a peer-to-peer system there are no fixed clients and servers.

Some Forms of E- commerce

3. Mobile Users

 Mobile computers, such as laptop and handheld computers, are one of the fastest-
growing segments of the computer industry.

 Connectivity to the Internet enables many of these mobile uses.

 Wireless hotspots based on the 802.11 standard are another kind of wireless network for
mobile computers.

 Text messaging or texting is allows a mobile phone user type a short message that is
then delivered by the cellular network to another mobile subscriber.

 Smart phones, such as the popular iPhone, combine aspects of mobile phones and
mobile computers.

 GPS (Global Positioning System) is used to find the locations

 m-commerce (mobile-commerce) is used for authorize payments for food in vending

machines, movie tickets, and other small items instead of cash and credit cards.

 NFC (Near Field Communication) technology the mobile can act as an RFID smartcard
and interact with a nearby reader for payment.
  Sensor networks are made up of nodes that gather and wirelessly relay information they
sense about the state of the physical world

4. Social Issues

 Network neutrality is the communications that are not differentiated by their content or
source or who is providing the content.

 Digital Millennium Copyright Act was passed in 1998 as an anti-piracy statute

effectively making it illegal to circumvent copy protections designed to prevent pirates
from duplicating digital copyrighted works and selling or freely distributing them

 Profiling users is a collection of settings and information associated with a user. It can be
defined as the explicit digital representation of the identity of the user.

 Phishing is a form of fraud in which an attacker masquerades as a reputable entity or

person in email or other forms of communication.

Network Hardware
Type of connection

 A network is two or more devices connected through links. A link is a communications

pathway that transfers data from one device to another. For visualization purposes, it is
simplest to imagine any link as a line drawn between two points. For communication to
occur, two devices must be connected in some way to the same link at the same time.

 There are two possible types of connections: point-to-point and multipoint.

Type of connection

1. Point-to-Point

 A point-to-point connection provides a dedicated link between two devices. The entire
capacity of the link is reserved for transmission between those two devices. Most point-
to-point connections use an actual length of wire or cable to connect the two ends, but
other options, such as microwave or satellite links, are also possible. When we change
 television channels by infrared remote control, we are establishing a point-to-point
connection between the remote control and the television's control system.

2. Multipoint (multi drop)

 Multipoint (also called multi drop) connection is one in which more than two specific
devices share a single link. In a multipoint environment, the capacity of the channel is
shared, either spatially or temporally. If several devices can use the link simultaneously,
it is a spatially shared connection.

Physical Topology

The term physical topology refers to the way in which a network is laid out physically. Two or
more devices connect to a link; two or more links form a topology. The topology of a network is
the geometric representation of the relationship of all the links and linking devices (nodes) to one
another.

1. Mesh Topology

In a mesh topology, every device has a dedicated point-to-point link to every other device. The
term dedicated means that the link carries traffic only between the two devices it connects. To
link n devices fully connected mesh has: n ( n - 1) / 2 physical channels (Full-Duplex). Every
Device on the network must have n - 1 ports
 Example Problem:

8 devices in mesh has links: n(n-1) / 2

number of links = 8 (8-1)/2 = 28
number of ports per device = n – 1 = 8 –1 = 7
 One practical example of a mesh topology is the connection of telephone regional offices
in which each regional office needs to be connected to every other regional office.

Mesh : Advantages

 Each connection carry its own data load (no traffic problems)
 A mesh topology is robust
 Privacy or security
 Fault identification and fault isolation.

Mesh: Disadvantages

 Big amount of cabling is required.

 Big number of I/O ports are needed.
 Installation and reconnection are difficult.
 Sheer bulk of the wiring can be greater than the available space.
 Hardware connect to each I/O could be expensive

2. Star Topology
In a star topology, each device has a dedicated point-to-point link only to a central controller,
usually called a hub. The devices are not directly linked to one another. Unlike a mesh topology,
a star topology does not allow direct traffic between devices. The controller acts as an exchange:
 If one device wants to send data to another, it sends the data to the controller, which then relays
the data to the other connected device.

Star : Advantages

 Less expensive than mesh Topology.

 Easy to install and reconfigure
 Less cabling
 Additions, moves, and deletions required one connection
 Robustness : one fail does not affect others
 Easy fault identification and fault isolation

Star : Disadvantages
 Dependency of the whole topology on one single point (hub)
 More cabling than other topologies ( ring or bus)
 Practical Example : It is used in LAN.

3. Bus Topology

A bus topology is multipoint. One long cable acts as a backbone to link all the devices in a
network. Nodes are connected to the bus cable by drop lines and taps. A drop line is a connection
running between the device and the main cable. A tap is a connector that either splices into the
main cable or joined in cable to create a contact with the metallic core.

Bus : Advantages
  Ease of installation
 Less cables than mesh, star topologies

Bus : Disadvantages

 Difficult reconnection and fault isolation ( limit of taps)

 Adding new device requires modification of backbone
 Fault or break stops all transmission.
 The damaged area reflects signals back in the direction of the origin, creating noise in both
directions.

4. Ring Topology
Each device has dedicated point-to-point connection with only the two devices on either side of
it. A signal is passed along the ring in one direction from device to device until it reaches its
destination. Each devices incorporates a Repeater

Ring : Advantages

 Easy of install and reconfigure

 Connect to immediate neighbors
 Move two connections for any moving (Add/Delete)
 Easy of fault isolation

Ring : Disadvantage
 Unidirectional
 One broken device can disable the entire network. This weakness can be solved by using a dual
ring or a switch capable of closing off the break
5. Hybrid Topology

It is an integration of two or more different topologies to form a new topology. Example: having
a main star topology with each branch connecting several stations in a bus topology.

Advantages

 It can be utilize the strongest aspects of other networks, e.g., signal strength.

Disadvantages

 Requirement for high-end equipment.

Categories of Networks

Network Category depends on its size and it is divided into 5 categories. The primary categories
are :

1. PAN : < 1 meter (Bluetooth)

2. LAN: Covers area < 2miles

3. MAN: Between LAN & WAN, span 10s of mile

4. WAN: Can be worldwide

5. Internetworks

Classification of interconnected processors by scale.

1. Personal Area Network (PAN)
It is a computer network organized around an individual person within a single building. A
typical PAN would include one or more computers, telephones, peripheral devices, video game
consoles and other personal entertainment devices. To help these users, some companies got
together to design a short-range wireless network called Bluetooth to connect these components
without wires. PANs can also be built with other technologies that communicate over short
ranges, such as RFID on smartcards and library books.

Bluetooth PAN configuration

2. Local Area Network (LAN

It is Privately owned network. Links devices are connected in the same office, building, or
campus. Simple LAN: 2 PCs & 1 printer in home or office. Size is limited to a few kilometers.
Allow resources to be shared (hardware, software, or data)

 LAN is distinguished from other type of networks are :

 Size (# users of OS, or licensing restrictions)
 Transmission medium (only one type)
 Topology (bus, ring, star)
 Wireless and wired LANs. (a) 802.11. (b) Switched Ethernet
 Data Rates (speed):
 Early: 4 to 16 Mbps
 Today: 100 to 1000 Mbps
3. Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN)

A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a network with a size between a LAN and a WAN. It
normally covers the area inside a town or a city. It is designed for customers who need a high-
speed connectivity, normally to the Internet, and have endpoints spread over a city or part of city.
A good example of a MAN is the part of the telephone company network that can provide a
high-speed DSL line to the customer. Another example is the cable TV network.

4. Wide Area Networks (WAN)

A wide area network (WAN) provides long-distance transmission of data, image, audio, and
video information over large geographic areas that may comprise a country, a continent, or even
the whole world.
Two types OF WAN
 Switched WAN
 Backbone of the Internet
 Dialup line point-to-point WAN
 Leased line from a telephone company

5. Internetworks

Two or more networks connected together is called internetworks.

The Internet
 Internet has revolutionized many aspects of our daily lives.
 It has affected the way we do business as well as the way we spend our leisure time.
 Internet is a communication system that has brought a wealth of information to our
fingertips and organized it for our use
 An internet is 2 or more networks that can communicate with each other.
 The Internet is a collaboration of more than hundreds of thousands of interconnected
networks.
Internet Today
 The Internet today is not a simple hierarchical structure.
 It is made up of many wide and local-area networks joined by connecting devices and
switching stations.
 It is continually changing-new networks are being added, existing networks are adding
addresses, and networks of defunct companies are being removed.
 Today most end users who want Internet connection use the services of Internet service
providers (lSPs).
There are International service providers (ISPs) offer services to the end users.
• International service providers
• National service providers
• Regional service providers
• Local service providers

Hierarchical organization of the Internet

Network Software
• The first computer designed with the hardware as the major concern and the software as
an afterthought. Network software is now highly structured.

1. Protocol hierarchies
2. Design issues for the layers
3. Connection-oriented versus connectionless service
4. Service primitives
5. Relationship of services to protocols

1. Protocol Hierarchies
 To reduce the design complexity, most networks are organized as a series of layers or
levels. Each one built upon the one below it.
 The number of layers, name of each layer, contents of each layer and the function of each
layer differ from network to network.
 Layer n on one machine carries on a conversation with layer n on another machine.
 The rules and conventions used in this conversation are collectively known as the layer n
protocol.

• Between each pair of adjacent layers there is an interface.

• A set of layers and protocols is called a network architecture.
• A list of protocols used by a certain system , one protocol per layer, is called a protocol
stack.

Example information flow supporting virtual communication in layer 5.

Tasks involved in sending a letter

• We use the concept of layers in our daily life.
• As an example, let us consider two friends who communicate through postal mail.

2. Design Issues for the Layers

 • Addressing - Each layer needs a mechanism for identifying senders and receivers.
• Data transfer – simplex, half-duplex, full duplex
• Error Control – error-correction and error – detection.
• Flow Control - The communication channels must preserve the order of messages sent
on them – disassembling, transmitting, and then reassembling.
• Multiplexing – inconvenient or expensive to set up a connection for each pair of
communication process.
• Routing – multiple paths between source and destination, a route must be chosen
3. Connection-Oriented and Connectionless Services
• Connection-oriented is modeled after the telephone system.
• To talk to someone, you pick up the phone, dial the number, talk, and then hang up.
• To use a connection-oriented network service, the service user first establishes a
connection, uses the connection, and then releases the connection.
• Connectionless service is modeled after postal system.
• Each message carries the full destination address, and each one routed through the
system independent of all the routers.
• When two messages sent to the same destination, the first one sent will be first one to
arrive. If first one is delayed the second one arrives first.

4. Service Primitives

Five service primitives for implementing a simple connection-oriented service.

5. Services to Protocols Relationship

 The relationship between a service and a protocol.
 A service is a set of primitives(operations)that a layer provides to the layer above it
 A protocol is a set of rules governing the format and meaning of the frames, packets, or
messages that are exchanged by the peer entities within the layer

The OSI Reference Model

• In 1947, the international standards organization (ISO) is a multinational body dedicated to
worldwide agreement on international standards.
• An ISO standard that covers all aspects of network communications is the open systems
interconnection model.
• In late 1970s an open system is a set of protocols that allow any two different systems to
communicate.
• It divides the communications processes into seven layers.
• The main concept of OSI is that the process of a communication between two endpoints in
telecommunication network can be divided into seven distinct groups of related functions, or
layers.
•Each communicating user or program is at a computer that can provide those seven layers of
function.
•The seven layers of function are provided by a combination of applications, operating systems,
network card device drivers and networking hardware that enable a system to put a signal on a
network cable or out over Wi-Fi or other wireless protocol.

The OSI model has seven layers. The principles that were applied to arrive at the seven
layers are
1. A layer should be created where a different level of abstraction is needed.
2. Each layer should perform a well defined function.
3. The function of each layer should be chosen with an eye toward defining internationally
standardized protocols.
 4. The layers boundaries should be chosen to minimize the information flow across the
interfaces.
5. The number of layers large enough that distinct functions need not be thrown together in
the same layer out of necessity, and small enough that the architecture does not become
unwieldy.

 Please Do Not Take Steve’s Pet Alligator

The OSI reference model.

1. Physical layer

It Converts bits into electronic signals for outgoing messages and Converts electronic signals
into bits for incoming messages. The physical layer is concerned with transmitting raw bits over
a communication channel. The design issues have to do with making sure that when one side
sends a 1 bit, it is received by the other side as a 1 bit, not as a 0 bit.
The functions of the physical layer are :

1. Bit synchronization: The physical layer provides the synchronization of the bits by providing
a clock. This clock controls both sender and receiver thus providing synchronization at bit level.

2. Bit rate control: The Physical layer also defines the transmission rate i.e. the number of bits
sent per second.

3. Physical topologies: Physical layer specifies the way in which the different, devices/nodes are
arranged in a network i.e. bus, star or mesh topolgy.

4. Transmission mode: Physical layer also defines the way in which the data flows between the
two connected devices. The various transmission modes possible are: Simplex, half-duplex and
full-duplex.

* Hub, Repeater, Modem, Cables are Physical Layer devices.

2. Data link layer

The main task of the data link layer is to transform a raw transmission facility into a line that
appears free of undetected transmission errors to the network layer. It accomplishes this task by
having the sender break up the input data into data frames (typically a few hundred or a few
thousand bytes) and transmits the frames sequentially. At the receiving end, this layer
packages raw data from the physical layer into data frames for delivery to the Network layer. At
the sending end this layer handles conversion of data into raw formats that can be handled by the
Physical Layer. If the service is reliable, the receiver confirms correct receipt of each frame by
sending back an acknowledgement frame. The physical layer accepts and transmits stream of
bits, the data link layer should create and recognize frame boundaries. This can be accomplished
by attaching special bit patterns to the beginning and ending of frame. A duplicate frame
could be sent if the acknowledgement frame from receiver back to the sender were lost.
The functions of the data Link layer are :

1. Framing: Framing is a function of the data link layer. It provides a way for a sender to
transmit a set of bits that are meaningful to the receiver. This can be accomplished by attaching
special bit patterns to the beginning and end of the frame.

2. Physical addressing: After creating frames, Data link layer adds physical addresses (MAC
address) of sender and/or receiver in the header of each frame.

3.Error control: Data link layer provides the mechanism of error control in which it detects and
retransmits damaged or lost frames.

4.Flow Control: The data rate must be constant on both sides else the data may get corrupted
thus , flow control coordinates that amount of data that can be sent before receiving
acknowledgement.

5.Access control: When a single communication channel is shared by multiple devices, MAC
sub-layer of data link layer helps to determine which device has control over the channel at a
given time.

Data Link layer is handled by the NIC (Network Interface Card) and device drivers of host
machines.
Switch & Bridge are Data Link Layer devices.

3.Network layer

The network layer controls the operation of the subnet.The network layer is responsible for the
delivery of individual packets from the source host to the destination host. The network layer
controls the operation of the subnet. A key design issue is determining how packets are routed
from source to destination. Routes can be based on static tables that are ''wired into'' the network
and rarely changed. They can also be determined at the start of each conversation. If too many
packets are present in the subnet at the same time, they will get in one another's way, forming
bottlenecks. The control of such congestion also belongs to the network layer. When a packet
has to travel from one network to another to get to its destination, many problems can arise. The
addressing used by the second network may be different from the first one. The second one may
not accept the packet at all because it is too large. The protocols may differ, and so on. It is up to
the network layer to overcome all these problems.

The functions of the Network layer are :

1. Routing: The network layer protocols determine which route is suitable from source to
destination. This function of network layer is known as routing.

2. Logical Addressing: In order to identify each device on internetwork uniquely, network layer
defines an addressing scheme. The sender & receiver’s IP address are placed in the header by
network layer. Such an address distinguishes each device uniquely and universally.

Network layer is implemented by networking devices such as routers.

4. Transport layer

It Manages the transmission of data across a network. Manages the flow of data between parties
by segmenting long data streams into smaller data chunks (based on allowed “packet” size for a
given transmission medium). Reassembles chunks into their original sequence at the receiving
end. It Provides acknowledgements of successful transmissions and requests resends for packets
which arrive with errors. The basic function of the transport layer is to accept data from above,
split it up into smaller units if need be, pass these to the network layer, and ensure that the
pieces all arrive correctly at the other end. The transport layer is responsible for the delivery of a
message from one process to another. If transport connection requires a high throughput, the
transport layer might create multiple network connections. (if expensive multiple several
transport connections onto the same network connection). The transport layer also determines
what type of service to provide to the session layer, and, ultimately, to the users of the network.
The most popular type of transport connection is an error-free point-to-point channel that
delivers messages or bytes in the order in which they were sent. The type of service is
determined when the connection is established. The transport layer is a true end-to-end layer, all
the way from the source to the destination.

The functions of the transport layer are :

1. Segmentation and Reassembly: This layer accepts the message from the (session) layer,
breaks the message into smaller units. Each of the segment produced has a header associated
with it. The transport layer at the destination station reassembles the message.

2. Service Point Addressing: In order to deliver the message to correct process, transport layer
header includes a type of address called service point address or port address. Thus by specifying
this address, transport layer makes sure that the message is delivered to the correct process

5. Session layer

The session layer allows users on different machines to establish sessions between them.
Sessions offer various services, including dialog control (keeping track of whose turn it is to
transmit), token management (preventing two parties from attempting the same critical
operation at the same time), and synchronization (check pointing long transmissions to allow
them to continue from where they were after a crash).

The functions of the session layer are :

1. Session establishment, maintenance and termination: The layer allows the two processes to
establish, use and terminate a connection.
2. Synchronization : This layer allows a process to add checkpoints which are considered as
synchronization points into the data. These synchronization point help to identify the error so
that the data is re-synchronized properly, and ends of the messages are not cut prematurely and
data loss is avoided.

3. Dialog Controller : The session layer allows two systems to start communication with each
other in half-duplex or full-duplex.

6. Presentation layer

The presentation layer is concerned with the syntax and semantics of the information transmitted.
In order to make it possible for computers with different data representations to communicate,
the data structures to be exchanged can be defined, along with a standard encoding to be used
''on the wire.'' The presentation layer manages these abstract data structures and allows higher-
level data structures (e.g., banking records), to be defined and exchanged.

The functions of the presentation layer are:

1. Translation: For example, ASCII to EBCDIC.

2. Encryption/ Decryption: Data encryption translates the data into another form or code. The
encrypted data is known as the cipher text and the decrypted data is known as plain text. A key
value is used for encrypting as well as decrypting data.

3. Compression: Reduces the number of bits that need to be transmitted on the network.

7. Application layer

The application layer is responsible for providing services to the user. The application layer
contains a variety of protocols that are commonly needed by users.
One widely-used application protocol is HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), which is the basis
for the World Wide Web. When a browser wants a Web page, it sends the name of the page it
wants to the server using HTTP. The server then sends the page back. Other application
protocols are used for file transfer, electronic mail, and network news.

Ex: Application – Browsers, Skype Messenger etc.

The functions of the Application layer are :

1. Network Virtual Terminal

2. FTAM-File transfer access and management
3. Mail Services
4. Directory Services

An exchange using the OSI model

Guided Transmission Media

1. Magnetic Media
2. Twisted Pairs
3. Coaxial Cable
4. Power Lines
5. Fiber Optics
1. Magnetic Media

One of the most common ways to transport data from one computer to another is to write them
onto magnetic tape or removable media (e.g., recordable DVDs). Write data onto magnetic
media

• Disks

• Tapes

• Data transmission speed

• Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes hurtling down
the highway.

2. Twisted Pairs

A twisted pair consists of two conductors (normally copper), each with its own plastic insulation,
twisted together. One of the wires is used to carry signals to the receiver, and the other is used
only as a ground reference.
Unshielded Versus Shielded Twisted-Pair Cable

The most common twisted-pair cable used in communications is referred to as unshielded

twisted-pair (UTP). STP cable has a metal foil or braided mesh covering that encases each pair
of insulated conductors. Although metal casing improves the quality of cable by preventing the
penetration of noise or crosstalk, it is bulkier and more expensive.

The most common UTP connector is RJ45 (RJ stands for registered jack)

Applications. Twisted-pair cables are used in telephone lines to provide voice and data channels.
Local-area networks, such as l0Base-T and l00Base-T, also use twisted-pair cables.

Category 5 UTP cable with four twisted pairs

(a) Category 3 Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP). BW.=16MHz

(b) Category 5 Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP). BW.=100MHz

(c) Cat. 6 BW.=250MHz,

(d) Cat.7 BW.= 600MHz

3. Coaxial Cable

Coaxial cable (or coax) carries signals of higher frequency ranges than those in twisted pair
cable. coax has a central core conductor of solid or stranded wire (usually copper) enclosed in an
insulating sheath, which is, in turn, encased in an outer conductor of metal foil, braid, or a
combination of the two. The outer metallic wrapping serves both as a shield against noise and as
the second conductor, which completes the circuit. This outer conductor is also enclosed in an
insulating sheath, and the whole cable is protected by a plastic cover.
The most common type of connector used today is the Bayone-Neill-Concelman (BNe),
connector.

Applications

 Coaxial cable was widely used in analog telephone networks, digital telephone networks
 Cable TV networks also use coaxial cables.
 Another common application of coaxial cable is in traditional Ethernet LANs

4. Power Lines

Power lines deliver electrical power to houses, and electrical wiring within houses distributes the
power to electrical outlets. Power lines have been used by electricity companies for low-rate
communication such as remote metering for many years, as well in the home to control devices.
The convenience of using power lines for networking should be clear. Simply plug a TV and a
receiver into the wall, which you must do anyway because they need power, and they can send
and receive movies over the electrical wiring.

A network that uses household electrical wiring

5. Fiber Optics

A fiber-optic cable is made of glass or plastic and transmits signals in the form of light. Light
travels in a straight line as long as it is moving through a single uniform substance. If a ray of
light traveling through one substance suddenly enters another substance (of a different density),
the ray changes direction.

Bending of light ray

Optical fibers use reflection to guide light through a channel. A glass or plastic core is
surrounded by a cladding of less dense glass or plastic.

Propagation Modes

.
i) Multimode:

Multimode is so named because multiple beams from a light source move through the core in
different paths. How these beams move within the cable depends on the structure of the core, as
shown in below Figure.

In multimode step-index fiber, the density of the core remains constant from the center to the
edges. A beam of light moves through this constant density in a straight line until it reaches the
interface of the core and the cladding. The term step index refers to the suddenness of this
change, which contributes to the distortion of the signal as it passes through the fiber.

A second type of fiber, called multimode graded-index fiber, decreases this distortion of the
signal through the cable. The word index here refers to the index of refraction.

ii) Single-Mode:

Single-mode uses step-index fiber and a highly focused source of light that limits beams to a
small range of angles, all close to the horizontal

The subscriber channel (SC) connector, The straight-tip (ST) connector, MT-RJ(mechanical
transfer registered jack) is a connector

Applications

1. Fiber-optic cable is often found in backbone networks because its wide bandwidth is cost-
effective.

2. Some cable TV companies use a combination of optical fiber and coaxial cable,thus creating a
hybrid network.
3. Local-area networks such as 100Base-FX network (Fast Ethernet) and 1000Base-X also use
fiber-optic cable

Advantages and Disadvantages of Optical Fiber

Advantages

Fiber-optic cable has several advantages over metallic cable (twisted pair or coaxial).

1. Higher bandwidth.

2. Less signal attenuation. Fiber-optic transmission distance is significantly greater than that of
other guided media. A signal can run for 50 km without requiring regeneration. We need
repeaters every 5 km for coaxial or twisted pair cable.

3. Immunity to electromagnetic interference. Electromagnetic noise cannot affect fiber-optic

cables.

4. Resistance to corrosive materials. Glass is more resistant to corrosive materials than copper.

5. Light weight. Fiber-optic cables are much lighter than copper cables.

6. Greater immunity to tapping. Fiber-optic cables are more immune to tapping than copper
cables. Copper cables create antenna effects that can easily be tapped.

Disadvantages

1. Installation and maintenance

2. Unidirectional light propagation. Propagation of light is unidirectional. If we need

bidirectional communication, two fibers are needed.

3. Cost. The cable and the interfaces are relatively more expensive than those of other guided
media. If the demand for bandwidth is not high, often the use of optical fiber cannot be justified.

Wireless Transmission

Unguided media, also called as wireless communication, transport electromagnetic waves

without using a physical conductor. The signals propagate through air (or sometimes water).
 1. The Electromagnetic Spectrum

2. Radio Transmission

3. Microwave Transmission

4. Infrared and Millimeter Waves

5. Lightwave Transmission

1. The Electromagnetic Spectrum

The number of oscillations per second of a wave is called its frequency, f, and is
measured in Hz (in honor of Heinrich Hertz). The distance between two consecutive maxima (or
minima) is called the wavelength, which is universally designated by the Greek letter λ (lambda).
In a vacuum, all electromagnetic waves travel at the same speed, no matter what their frequency.
This speed, usually called the speed of light, c, is approximately 3 × 108 m/sec, or about 1 foot
(30 cm) per nanosecond.

The fundamental relation between f, λ, and c (in a vacuum) is λf = c

2. Radio Transmission

Radio waves are the electromagnetic waves that are transmitted in all the directions of
free space. Radio waves are omnidirectional, i.e., the signals are propagated in all the directions.
The range in frequencies of radio waves is from 3Khz to 10 khz. In the case of radio waves, the
sending and receiving antenna are not aligned, i.e., the wave sent by the sending antenna can be
received by any receiving antenna. An example of the radio wave is FM radio.

Applications Of Radio waves:

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

Advantages Of Radio transmission:

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

1. Very Low Frequency (VLF) waves propagate as surface waves, usually through air, but
sometimes also through water. VLF waves do not suffer attenuation, but atmospheric noise
affects them. VLF waves are usually used for long-range radio navigation and submarine
communication.

2. Low Frequency (LF) waves also propagate as surface waves. Attenuation is higher during the
daytime. These wave are used for long MCA-301 92 range radio navigation or navigation
locators.

3. Middle Frequency (MF) waves rely on line-of-sight antennas to increase and control
absorption problems. These waves are used for AM radio, radio direction finding and emergency
frequencies.

4. High Frequency (HF) waves are used for amateur radio, citizen's band radio, international
broadcasting, military communication, telephone, telegraph and facsimile communication.

5. Very High Frequency (VHF) waves use line-of-sight propagation, and are used for VHF
television, FM radio, aircraft AM radio and aircraft navigation.
6. Ultra High Frequency (UHF) waves use line-of-sight propagation. They are used for
television, mobile phone, cellular radio, paging and microwave links.

7. Super High Frequency (SHF) waves are transmitted as either line-ofsight or into the space.
They are used for terrestrial and satellite microwave and radar communication.

8. Extreme high Frequency (EHF) waves are transmitted into space, and are used for scientific
applications such as radar, satellite and experimental communication.

3. Microwave Transmission

Electromagnetic waves having frequencies between 1 and 300 GHz are called
microwaves. Microwaves are unidirectional. The sending and receiving antennas need to be
aligned. The unidirectional property has an obvious advantage. A pair of antennas can be aligned
without interfering with another pair of aligned antennas

Unidirectional Antenna

Microwaves need unidirectional antennas that send out signals in one direction. Two
types of antennas are used for microwave communications: the parabolic dish and the horn

Applications:

Microwaves are used for unicast communication such as cellular telephones, satellite networks,
and wireless LANs

4. Infrared and Millimeter Waves

Infrared waves, with frequencies from 300 GHz to 400 THz (wavelengths from 1 mm to
770 nm), can be used for short-range communication. Infrared waves, having high frequencies,
cannot penetrate walls. This advantageous characteristic prevents interference between one
system and another; a short range communication system in one room cannot be affected by
another system in the next room.

When we use our infrared remote control, we do not interfere with the use of the remote
by our neighbors. Infrared signals useless for long-range communication. In addition, we cannot
use infrared waves outside a building because the sun's rays contain infrared waves that can
interfere with the communication.

Applications:

Infrared signals can be used for short-range communication in a closed area using line-of-sight
propagation.

Public Switched Telephone System

PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network), were usually designed many years ago,
with a completely different goal in mind: transmitting the human voice in a more-or-less
recognizable form. Their suitability for use in computer-computer communication is often
marginal at best. To see the size of the problem, consider that a cheap commodity cable running
between two computers can transfer data at 1 Gbps or more. In contrast, typical ADSL, the
blazingly fast alternative to a telephone modem, runs at around 1 Mbps. The difference between
the two is the difference between cruising in an airplane and taking a leisurely stroll.

In the following sections we will describe the telephone system and show how it works.

i) Structure of the Telephone System

Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone in 1876 , there was an enormous demand
for his new invention. The initial market was for the sale of telephones, which came in pairs. It
was up to the customer to string a single wire between them. If a telephone owner wanted to talk
to n other telephone owners, separate wires had to be strung to all n houses. Within a year, the
cities were covered with wires passing over houses and trees in a wild jumble. It became
immediately obvious that the model of connecting every telephone to every other telephone, as
shown in Fig.(a), was not going to work.
 To his credit, Bell saw this problem early on and formed the Bell Telephone Company,
which opened its first switching office in 1878. The company ran a wire to each customer’s
house or office. To make a call, the customer would crank the phone to make a ringing sound in
the telephone company office to attract the attention of an operator, who would then manually
connect the caller to the callee by using a short jumper cable to connect the caller to the callee.
The model of a single switching office is illustrated in Fig.(b).

Pretty soon, Bell System switching offices were springing up everywhere and people
wanted to make long-distance calls between cities, so the Bell System began to connect the
switching offices. The original problem soon returned: to connect every switching office to every
other switching office by means of a wire between them quickly became unmanageable, so
second-level switching offices were invented. After a while, multiple second-level offices were
needed, as illustrated in Fig. (c). Eventually, the hierarchy grew to five levels

(a) Fully-interconnected network. (b) Centralized switch (c) Two-level hierarchy

By 1890, the three major parts of the telephone system were in place: the switching
offices, the wires between the customers and the switching offices (bynow balanced,
insulated, twisted pairs instead of open wires with an earth return), and the long-distance
connections between the switching offices.

If a subscriber attached to a given end office calls another subscriber attached to the same
end office, the switching mechanism within the office sets up a direct electrical connection
between the two local loops. This connection remains intact for the duration of the call.

If the called telephone is attached to another end office, a different procedure has to be
used. Each end office has a number of outgoing lines to one or more nearby switching centers,
called toll offices (or, if they are within the same local area, tandem offices). These lines are
called toll connecting trunks. The number of different kinds of switching centers and their
topology varies from country to country depending on the country’s telephone density.

If both the caller’s and callee’s end offices happen to have a toll connecting trunk to the
same toll office (a likely occurrence if they are relatively close by), the connection may be
established within the toll office. A telephone network consisting only of telephones (the small
dots), end offices (the large dots), and toll offices (the squares) is shown in Fig. (c).

If the caller and callee do not have a toll office in common, a path will have to be
established between two toll offices. The toll offices communicate with each other via high-
bandwidth intertoll trunks (also called interoffice trunks). Prior to the 1984 breakup of
AT&T, the U.S. telephone system used hierarchical routing to find a path, going to higher levels
of the hierarchy until there was a switching office in common. This was then replaced with more
flexible, nonhierarchical routing. Figure below shows how a long-distance connection might be
routed.

In summary, the telephone system consists of three major components:

1. Local loops (analog twisted pairs going to houses and businesses).

2. Trunks (digital fiber optic links connecting the switching offices).

3. Switching offices (where calls are moved from one trunk to another).

A typical circuit route for a medium-distance call.

ii) The Politics of Telephones

 • The relationship of Local Access and Transport Areas (LATAs), Local Exchange
Carriers (LECs), and IntereXchange Carriers (IXCs).

• All the circles are LEC switching offices. Each hexagon belongs to the IXC whose
number is on it.

iii) The Local Loop: Modems, ADSL, and Wireless

Telephone Modems

A device that converts between a stream of digital bits and an analog signal that represents
the bits is called a modem, which is short for ‘‘modulator demodulator.’’ Modems come in many
varieties: telephone modems, DSL modems, cable modems, wireless modems, etc. The modem
may be built into the computer (which is now common for telephone modems) or be a separate
box (which is common for DSL and cable modems). Logically, the modem is inserted between
the (digital) computer and the (analog) telephone system, as seen in Figure below.

Telephone modems are used to send bits between two computers over a voice-grade
telephone line, in place of the conversation that usually fills the line. The main difficulty in doing
so is that a voice-grade telephone line is limited to 3100 Hz, about what is sufficient to carry a
conversation.

Digital Subscriber Lines

 Initially, there were many overlapping high-speed offerings, all under the general name of
xDSL (Digital Subscriber Line), for various x. Services with more bandwidth than standard
telephone service are sometimes called broadband, although the term really is more of a
marketing concept than a specific technical concept.

A typical ADSL arrangement is shown in Figure below. In this scheme, a telephone

company technician must install a NID (Network Interface Device) on the customer’s premises.
This small plastic box marks the end of the telephone company’s property and the start of the
customer’s property. Close to the NID (or sometimes combined with it) is a splitter, an analog
filter that separates the 0–4000-Hz band used by POTS from the data. The POTS signal is routed
to the existing telephone or fax machine. The data signal is routed to an ADSL modem, which
uses digital signal processing to implement OFDM. Since most ADSL modems are external, the
computer must be connected to them at high speed. Usually, this is done using Ethernet, a USB
cable, or 802.11.

At the other end of the wire, on the end office side, a corresponding splitter is installed.
Here, the voice portion of the signal is filtered out and sent to the normal voice switch. The
signal above 26 kHz is routed to a new kind of device called a DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line
Access Multiplexer), which contains the same kind of digital signal processor as the ADSL
modem. Once the bits have been recovered from the signal, packets are formed and sent off to
the ISP. This complete separation between the voice system and ADSL makes it relatively easy
for a telephone company to deploy ADSL. All that is needed is buying a DSLAM and splitter
and attaching the ADSL subscribers to the splitter. Other high-bandwidth services (e.g., ISDN)
require much greater changes to the existing switching equipment

Fiber To The Home

Passive optical network for Fiber To The Home

iv) Time Division Multiplexing

 Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) is the heart of the modern telephone system
 A analog signal is sampled, quantized and coded

Each channel has 8bits, 24 channels and one framing bit form a frame of 125 µsec

The T1 carrier (1.544 Mbps).

SONET/SDH

SONET and SDH multiplex rates.

Wavelength Division Multiplexing

(OR Array Waveguide, AWG)

When the wavelengths are spaced closer, e.g. 0.1 nm, the system is referred to as Dense WDM
(DWDM)

v) Switching techniques
In large networks, there can be multiple paths from sender to receiver. The switching technique
will decide the best route for data transmission.

Switching technique is used to connect the systems for making one-to-one communication.

Classification Of Switching Techniques

1. Circuit Switching

 Circuit switching is a switching technique that establishes a dedicated path between sender
and receiver.
 In the Circuit Switching Technique, once the connection is established then the dedicated path
will remain to exist until the connection is terminated.
 Circuit switching in a network operates in a similar way as the telephone works.
 A complete end-to-end path must exist before the communication takes place.
 In case of circuit switching technique, when any user wants to send the data, voice, video, a
request signal is sent to the receiver then the receiver sends back the acknowledgment to ensure
the availability of the dedicated path. After receiving the acknowledgment, dedicated path
transfers the data.
 Circuit switching is used in public telephone network. It is used for voice transmission.
 Fixed data can be transferred at a time in circuit switching technology.

Communication through circuit switching has 3 phases:3Mgers in SQL (Hindi)

 Circuit establishment
 Data transfer
 Circuit Disconnect
Circuit Switching can use either of the two technologies:

Space Division Switches:

 Space Division Switching is a circuit switching technology in which a single transmission

path is accomplished in a switch by using a physically separate set of crosspoints.
 Space Division Switching can be achieved by using crossbar switch. A crossbar switch is a
metallic crosspoint or semiconductor gate that can be enabled or disabled by a control unit.
 The Crossbar switch is made by using the semiconductor. For example, Xilinx crossbar
switch using FPGAs.
 Space Division Switching has high speed, high capacity, and nonblocking switches.

Space Division Switches can be categorized in two ways:

i) Crossbar Switch
ii) Multistage Switch

i) Crossbar Switch

The Crossbar switch is a switch that has n input lines and n output lines. The crossbar switch has
n2 intersection points known as crosspoints.

Disadvantage of Crossbar switch:

The number of crosspoints increases as the number of stations is increased. Therefore, it

becomes very expensive for a large switch. The solution to this is to use a multistage switch.

ii) Multistage Switch

 Multistage Switch is made by splitting the crossbar switch into the smaller units and then
interconnecting them.
 It reduces the number of crosspoints.
 If one path fails, then there will be an availability of another path.

Advantages Of Circuit Switching:

 In the case of Circuit Switching technique, the communication channel is dedicated.

 It has fixed bandwidth.

Disadvantages Of Circuit Switching:

 Once the dedicated path is established, the only delay occurs in the speed of data
transmission.
 It takes a long time to establish a connection approx 10 seconds during which no data can be
transmitted.
 It is more expensive than other switching techniques as a dedicated path is required for each
connection.
 It is inefficient to use because once the path is established and no data is transferred, then the
capacity of the path is wasted.
 In this case, the connection is dedicated therefore no other data can be transferred even if the
channel is free.

2. Message Switching

 Message Switching is a switching technique in which a message is transferred as a complete

unit and routed through intermediate nodes at which it is stored and forwarded.
 In Message Switching technique, there is no establishment of a dedicated path between the
sender and receiver.
 The destination address is appended to the message. Message Switching provides a dynamic
routing as the message is routed through the intermediate nodes based on the information
available in the message.
 Message switches are programmed in such a way so that they can provide the most efficient
routes.
 Each and every node stores the entire message and then forward it to the next node. This type
of network is known as store and forward network.
 Message switching treats each message as an independent entity.

Advantages Of Message Switching

 Data channels are shared among the communicating devices that improve the efficiency of
using available bandwidth.
 Traffic congestion can be reduced because the message is temporarily stored in the nodes.
 Message priority can be used to manage the network.
 The size of the message which is sent over the network can be varied. Therefore, it supports
the data of unlimited size.

Disadvantages Of Message Switching

 The message switches must be equipped with sufficient storage to enable them to store the
messages until the message is forwarded.
 The Long delay can occur due to the storing and forwarding facility provided by the message
switching technique.

3.Packet Switching

 The packet switching is a switching technique in which the message is sent in one go, but it is
divided into smaller pieces, and they are sent individually.
 The message splits into smaller pieces known as packets and packets are given a unique
number to identify their order at the receiving end.
 Every packet contains some information in its headers such as source address, destination
address and sequence number.
 Packets will travel across the network, taking the shortest path as possible.
 All the packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct order.
 If any packet is missing or corrupted, then the message will be sent to resend the message.
 If the correct order of the packets is reached, then the acknowledgment message will be sent.

Approaches Of Packet Switching:

There are two approaches to Packet Switching:

Datagram Packet switching:

 It is a packet switching technology in which packet is known as a datagram, is considered as

an independent entity. Each packet contains the information about the destination and switch
uses this information to forward the packet to the correct destination.
 The packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct order.
 In Datagram Packet Switching technique, the path is not fixed.
 Intermediate nodes take the routing decisions to forward the packets.
 Datagram Packet Switching is also known as connectionless switching.

Virtual Circuit Switching

 Virtual Circuit Switching is also known as connection-oriented switching.

 In the case of Virtual circuit switching, a preplanned route is established before the messages
are sent.
 Call request and call accept packets are used to establish the connection between sender and
receiver.
 In this case, the path is fixed for the duration of a logical connection.

Let's understand the concept of virtual circuit switching through a diagram:

 In the above diagram, A and B are the sender and receiver respectively. 1 and 2 are the nodes.
 Call request and call accept packets are used to establish a connection between the sender and
receiver.
 When a route is established, data will be transferred.
 After transmission of data, an acknowledgment signal is sent by the receiver that the message
has been received.
 If the user wants to terminate the connection, a clear signal is sent for the termination.

Differences b/w Datagram approach and Virtual Circuit approach

Datagram approach Virtual Circuit approach

Node takes routing decisions to forward the packets. Node does not take any routing decision.

Congestion cannot occur as all the packets travel in Congestion can occur when the node is busy, and
different directions. it does not allow other packets to pass through.

It is more flexible as all the packets are treated as an It is not very flexible.
independent entity.

Advantages Of Packet Switching:

 Cost-effective: In packet switching technique, switching devices do not require massive
secondary storage to store the packets, so cost is minimized to some extent. Therefore, we can
say that the packet switching technique is a cost-effective technique.
 Reliable: If any node is busy, then the packets can be rerouted. This ensures that the
Packet Switching technique provides reliable communication.
 Efficient: Packet Switching is an efficient technique. It does not require any established
path prior to the transmission, and many users can use the same communication channel
simultaneously, hence makes use of available bandwidth very efficiently.

Disadvantages Of Packet Switching:

 Packet Switching technique cannot be implemented in those applications that require low
delay and high-quality services.
 The protocols used in a packet switching technique are very complex and requires high
implementation cost.
 If the network is overloaded or corrupted, then it requires retransmission of lost packets.
It can also lead to the loss of critical information if errors are nor recovered.

The Mobile Telephone System

 First-Generation Mobile Phones: Analog Voice

 Second-Generation Mobile Phones: Digital Voice
 Third-Generation Mobile Phones: Digital Voice, Data, and image
 Fourth-Generation Mobile Phones (OFDM): multimedia

Advanced Mobile Phone System

 (a) Frequencies are not reused in adjacent cells.
(b) To add more users, smaller cells can be used for hot spots.

GSM—The Global System for Mobile Communications

GSM mobile network architecture.

Basic services intend by IMT-2000 network

a) High-quality voice transmission.

b) Messaging (replacing email, fax, SMS, chat).
c) Multimedia (music, videos, films, television).
d) Internet access (Web surfing, incl. audio, video).