COMPUTER NETWORKS

(21UCS05)

LECTURE NOTES

UNIT - 1

B.Sc (CS) II YEAR

III SEMESTER

Dr R U ANITHA, Assistant Professor

DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

SONA COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE, SALEM

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Unit - I

Introduction – Network Hardware - Software - Reference Models - OSI and

TCP/IP Models - Example Networks: Internet, ATM, Ethernet and Wireless LANs -
Physical Layer - Theoretical Basis for Data Communication - Guided Transmission
Media.

1.1 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.

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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.

1.1.1 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.

Figure 1 : Data Communication

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.

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1.1.2 Data flow (simplex, half-duplex, and full-duplex)

Figure 2 : Data Flow

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

1.1.3 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.

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• Software includes a set of protocols. Protocols define a formal language among
various components. It makes hardware usable by applications.

1.1.4 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.

Figure 3 : 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)

Figure 4: The client-server model involves requests and replies

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  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.

Figure 5: In a peer-to-peer system there are no fixed clients and servers.

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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.

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  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.

1.2 Network Hardware

1.2.1 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.

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.

Figure 6: Point to Point

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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.

Figure 7: Multipoint

1.2.2 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.

Figure 8: Topology

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

Figure 9: Mesh Topology

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 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.

Figure 10: Star Topology

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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.

Figure 11: Bus Topology

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.

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 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

Figure 12: Ring Topology

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.

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 Figure 13: Hybrid Topology

Advantages

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

Disadvantages

 Requirement for high-end equipment.

1.2.3 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.

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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.

Figure 14: 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)

Figure 15: Wireless and wired LANs. (a) 802.11. (b) Switched Ethernet
 Data Rates (speed):
 Early: 4 to 16 Mbps
 Today: 100 to 1000 Mbps

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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.

Figure 16: MAN

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.

Figure 17: WAN

Two types OF WAN
 Switched WAN
 Backbone of the Internet
 Dialup line point-to-point WAN

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 Figure 18: 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

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 Figure 19: Hierarchical organization of the Internet

1.3 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.

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 Figure 20: Layering
• 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.

Figure 21: 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.

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 Figure 22: Layer Concepts
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.

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 4. Service Primitives

Figure 23: 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

Figure 24: Service provided by Layer

1.4 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.

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• 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

Figure 25: OSI Layer

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1. Physical layer

Figure 26: 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

Figure 27: Data Link Layer

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 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.

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3. Network layer

Figure 28: 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.

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4. Transport layer

Figure 29: 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

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5. Session layer

Figure 30: 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

Figure 31: Presentation Layer

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 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.

Figure 32: Application Layer

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

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

Figure 33: An exchange using the OSI model

1.5 Example Networks

1. The ARPANET
2. NSFNET
3. INTERNET
4. Connection-Oriented Networks: X.25, Frame Relay, and ATM
5. Ethernet
6. Wireless LANs: 802:11

1. The ARPANET
 The Internet is not a network, but a vast collection of different networks that use
certain common protocols and provide certain common services.
 US created a single defense research organization, ARPA, the Advanced Research
Projects Agency – it had no scientists or laboratories but did its work by issuing
grants and contracts to universities and companies.
Figure 34: (a) Structure of the telephone system (b) Baran’s proposed distributed switching System

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 Figure 35: The ARPANET design
 During the 1980s, additional networks, mainly LANs, were connected to the
ARPANET. Finding hosts became increasingly expensive, so DNS (Domain Name
System) was created to organize machines into domains and map host names onto IP
addresses.
 DNS has become a generalized, distributed database system for storing a variety of
information

2. NSFNET
 In 1970s, NSF (the U.S. National Science Foundation) found the major impact of the
ARPANET and designed a successor to the ARPANET that is open to all university
research groups
 NSF decided to build a backbone network to connect its six supercomputer centers, in
San Diego, Boulder, Champaign, Pittsburgh, Ithaca, and Princeton
 NSF also funded some regional networks that connected to the backbone to allow
users at thousands of universities, research labs, libraries, and museums to access any
of the supercomputers and to communicate with one another.
 This complete network was called NSFNET
 NSF awarded contracts to four different network operators to establish a NAP
(Network Access Point)
 During the 1990s, many other countries and regions also built national research
networks, often patterned on the ARPANET and NSFNET. They are Europa NET and
EBONE in Europe.

Figure 36: The NSFNET backbone in 1988

3. Internet
 The number of networks, machines, and users connected to the ARPANET grew
rapidly after TCP/IP became the only official protocol on January 1, 1983

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  When NSFNET and the ARPANET were interconnected, the growth became
exponential. Many regional networks joined up, and connections were made to
networks in Canada, Europe, and the Pacific
 The glue that holds the Internet together is the TCP/IP reference model and TCP/IP
protocol stack
 To be on the Internet - a machine is on the Internet if it runs the TCP/IP protocol
stack, has an IP address, and can send IP packets to all the other machines on the
Internet.
 Up to 1990s, the Internet was largely populated by academic, government, and
industrial researchers.
 WWW (World Wide Web) changed all that and brought millions of new, non-
academic users to the net.

Figure 37: Architecture of the Internet

 ISP have POP (Point of Presence), where converted digital signals from the computer
to analog signals (by modem) are removed from the telephone system and injected
into the ISP’s regional network, from this point on, the system is fully digital and
packet switched
 The ISP's regional network consists of interconnected routers in the various cities the
ISP serves.
 If the packet is destined for a host served directly by the ISP, the packet is delivered to
the host.
 Otherwise, it is handed over to the ISP's backbone operator

4. Connection-Oriented Networks: X.25, Frame Relay, and ATM

 X.25 is the first public data network, deployed in the 1970s at a time when telephone
service was a monopoly
 In the 1980s, X.25 networks were largely replaced by a new kind of network called
frame relay.

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  The essence of frame relay is that it is a connection-oriented network with no error
control and no flow control
 ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) - merging voice, data, cable television, telex,
telegraph, etc into a single integrated system that could do everything for everyone .
 ATM transmits all information in small, fixed-size packets called cells - an ATM cell.

Figure 38: The ATM Reference Model

5. Ethernet
 Internet and ATM are designed for wide area networking
 The most popular LAN is Ethernet
 Up to 256 machines could be attached to the system via transceivers screwed onto the
cable.
 A cable with multiple machines attached to it in parallel is called a multidrop cable
 A computer first listened to the cable to see if someone else was already transmitting,
the computer held back until the current transmission finished
 Architecture of the original Ethernet.

Figure 39: Ethernet

 If two or more computers start transmitting at once each computer listens during its
own transmission and if it detects interference, jam the ether to alert all senders
 Then the station/computer backs off and waits a random time before retrying

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  If a second collision happens, the random waiting time is doubled, and so on, to
spread out the competing transmissions and give one of them a chance to go first
 In 1978 Xerox drew the 10-Mbps Ethernet standard – became IEEE 802.3 standard in
1983.

6. Wireless LANs: 802.11

 IEEE committee that standardized the wired LANs was given the task of creating
wireless LAN standard that resulted in 802.11
 Commonly known as WiFi
 The proposed standard had to work in two modes: In the presence of a base station
 In the absence of a base station
 In the first case, all communication go through the base station, called an access point
 In the second case, the computers would just send to one another directly - ad hoc
networking.

Figure 40: (a) Wireless networking with a base station. (b) Ad hoc networking.

 Ethernet had dominated local area networking, so the committee decided to make
802.11 compatible with Ethernet above the data link layer.
 Possible to send an IP packet over the wireless LAN the same way a wired computer
sent an IP packet over Ethernet.
 Another problem is that a radio signal can be reflected off solid objects, so it may be
received multiple times (along multiple paths). This interference results in what is
called multipath fading.

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 Figure 41: The range of a single radio may not cover the entire system.

Figure 42: A multicell 802.11 network

1.6 The Physical Layer

1.6.1 The Theoretical Basis for Data Communication

Information can be transmitted on wires by varying some physical property such as

voltage or current. By representing the value of this voltage or current as a single-valued
function of time, f(t), we can model the behavior of the signal and analyze it mathematically.
This analysis is the subject of the following sections.

1. Fourier Analysis

In the early 19th century, the French mathematician Jean-Baptiste Fourier proved that
any reasonably behaved periodic function, g(t) with period T can be constructed as the sum of
a (possibly infinite) number of sines and cosines:

(1)

where f = 1/T is the fundamental frequency, an and bn are the sine and cosine
amplitudes of the nth harmonics (terms), and c is a constant. Such a decomposition is called a
Fourier series. From the Fourier series, the function can be reconstructed; that is, if the
period, T, is known and the amplitudes are given, the original function of time can be found
by performing the sums of Eq. (1).

A data signal that has a finite duration (which all of them do) can be handled by just
imagining that it repeats the entire pattern over and over forever (i.e., the interval from T to
2T is the same as from 0 to T, etc.).

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 The an amplitudes can be computed for any given g(t) by multiplying both sides of
Eq. (1) by sin(2?kft) and then integrating from 0 to T. Since only one term of the summation
survives: an. The bn summation vanishes completely. Similarly, by multiplying Eq. (2-1) by
cos(2?kft) and integrating between 0 and T, we can derive bn. By just integrating both sides
of the equation as it stands, we can find c. The results of performing these operations are as
follows:

2. Bandwidth-Limited Signals

To see what all this has to do with data communication, let us consider a specific
example: the transmission of the ASCII character ''b'' encoded in an 8-bit byte. The bit pattern
that is to be transmitted is 01100010. The left-hand part of Fig. 43 (a) shows the voltage
output by the transmitting computer. The Fourier analysis of this signal yields the
coefficients:

(2)

The root-mean-square amplitudes, , for the first few terms are shown on the right-
hand side of Figure (a). These values are of interest because their squares are proportional to
the energy transmitted at the corresponding frequency.

No transmission facility can transmit signals without losing some power in the
process. If all the Fourier components were equally diminished, the resulting signal would be
reduced in amplitude but not distorted [i.e., it would have the same nice squared-off shape as
Figure 43(a)].

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 Figure 43: (a) A binary signal and its root-mean-square Fourier amplitudes. (b)-(e)
Successive approximations to the original signal.

Unfortunately, all transmission facilities diminish different Fourier components by

different amounts, thus introducing distortion. Usually, the amplitudes are transmitted
undiminished from 0 up to some frequency fc [measured in cycles/sec or Hertz (Hz)] with all
frequencies above this cutoff frequency attenuated.

35
 The range of frequencies transmitted without being strongly attenuated is called the
bandwidth. In practice, the cutoff is not really sharp, so often the quoted bandwidth is from 0
to the frequency at which half the power gets through.

The bandwidth is a physical property of the transmission medium and usually depends
on the construction, thickness, and length of the medium. In some cases a filter is introduced
into the circuit to limit the amount of bandwidth available to each customer.

For example, a telephone wire may have a bandwidth of 1 MHz for short distances,
but telephone companies add a filter restricting each customer to about 3100 Hz. This
bandwidth is adequate for intelligible speech and improves system-wide efficiency by
limiting resource usage by customers.

Now let us consider how the signal of Figure 43(a) would look if the bandwidth were
so low that only the lowest frequencies were transmitted [i.e., if the function were being
approximated by the first few terms of Eq. (1)]. Figure 43(b) shows the signal that results
from a channel that allows only the first harmonic (the fundamental, f) to pass through.
Similarly, Figure 43(c)-(e) show the spectra and reconstructed functions for higher-
bandwidth channels.

Given a bit rate of b bits/sec, the time required to send 8 bits (for example) 1 bit at a
time is 8/b sec, so the frequency of the first harmonic is b/8 Hz. An ordinary telephone line,
often called a voice-grade line, has an artificially-introduced cutoff frequency just above
3000 Hz. This restriction means that the number of the highest harmonic passed through is
roughly 3000/(b/8) or 24,000/b, (the cutoff is not sharp).

For some data rates, the numbers work out as shown in the above Figure. From these
numbers, it is clear that trying to send at 9600 bps over a voice-grade telephone line will
transform Figure 43(a) into something looking like Figure 43(c), making accurate reception
of the original binary bit stream tricky. It should be obvious that at data rates much higher
than 38.4 kbps, there is no hope at all for binary signals, even if the transmission facility is
completely noiseless. In other words, limiting the bandwidth limits the data rate, even for
perfect channels. However, sophisticated coding schemes that make use of several voltage
levels do exist and can achieve higher data rates. We will discuss these later in this chapter.

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 Figure 44: Relation between data rate and harmonics.

3. The Maximum Data Rate of a Channel

As early as 1924, an AT&T engineer, Henry Nyquist, realized that even a perfect
channel has a finite transmission capacity. He derived an equation expressing the maximum
data rate for a finite bandwidth noiseless channel. In 1948, Claude Shannon carried Nyquist's
work further and extended it to the case of a channel subject to random (that is,
thermodynamic) noise (Shannon, 1948). We will just briefly summarize their now classical
results here.

Nyquist proved that if an arbitrary signal has been run through a low-pass filter of
bandwidth H, the filtered signal can be completely reconstructed by making only 2H (exact)
samples per second. Sampling the line faster than 2H times per second is pointless because
the higher frequency components that such sampling could recover have already been filtered
out. If the signal consists of V discrete levels, Nyquist's theorem states:

For example, a noiseless 3-kHz channel cannot transmit binary (i.e., two-level)
signals at a rate exceeding 6000 bps.

So far we have considered only noiseless channels. If random noise is present, the
situation deteriorates rapidly. And there is always random (thermal) noise present due to the
motion of the molecules in the system. The amount of thermal noise present is measured by
the ratio of the signal power to the noise power, called the signal-to-noise ratio. If we denote
the signal power by S and the noise power by N, the signal-to-noise ratio is S/N. Usually, the
ratio itself is not quoted; instead, the quantity 10 log10 S/N is given. These units are called
decibels (dB). An S/N ratio of 10 is 10 dB, a ratio of 100 is 20 dB, a ratio of 1000 is 30 dB,
and so on. The manufacturers of stereo amplifiers often characterize the bandwidth

37
(frequency range) over which their product is linear by giving the 3-dB frequency on each
end. These are the points at which the amplification factor has been approximately halved
(because log103 0.5).

Shannon's major result is that the maximum data rate of a noisy channel whose
bandwidth is H Hz, and whose signal-to-noise ratio is S/N, is given by

For example, a channel of 3000-Hz bandwidth with a signal to thermal noise ratio of
30 dB (typical parameters of the analog part of the telephone system) can never transmit
much more than 30,000 bps, no matter how many or how few signal levels are used and no
matter how often or how infrequently samples are taken. Shannon's result was derived from
information-theory arguments and applies to any channel subject to thermal noise.
Counterexamples should be treated in the same category as perpetual motion machines. It
should be noted that this is only an upper bound and real systems rarely achieve it.

1.7 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.

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2. Twisted Pairs

A twisted pair consists of two insulated copper wires, typically about 1 mm thick. The
wires are twisted together in a helical form, just like a DNA molecule. Twisting is done
because two parallel wires constitute a fine antenna. When the wires are twisted, the waves
from different twists cancel out, so the wire radiates less effectively. A signal is usually
carried as the difference in voltage between the two wires in the pair. This provides better
immunity to external noise because the noise tends to affect both wires the same, leaving the
differential unchanged.

The most common application of the twisted pair is the telephone system. Nearly all
telephones are connected to the telephone company (telco) office by a twisted pair. Both
telephone calls and ADSL Internet access run over these lines. Twisted pairs can run several
kilometers without amplification, but for longer distances the signal becomes too attenuated
and repeaters are needed. When many twisted pairs run in parallel for a substantial distance,
such as all the wires coming from an apartment building to the telephone company office,
they are bundled together and encased in a protective sheath. The pairs in these bundles
would interfere with one another if it were not for the twisting. In parts of the world where
telephone lines run on poles above ground, it is common to see bundles several centimeters in
diameter.

Twisted pairs can be used for transmitting either analog or digital information. The
bandwidth depends on the thickness of the wire and the distance traveled, but several
megabits/sec can be achieved for a few kilometers in many cases. Due to their adequate
performance and low cost, twisted pairs are widely used and are likely to remain so for years
to come.

Figure 45: Twisted Pairs

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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.

Figure 46: Unshielded Versus Shielded Twisted-Pair Cable

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.

40
 A coaxial cable consists of a stiff copper wire as the core, surrounded by an insulating
material. The insulator is encased by a cylindrical conductor, often as a closely woven
braided mesh. The outer conductor is covered in a protective plastic sheath. A cutaway view
of a coaxial cable is shown in the following Fig.

Figure 47: Unshielded Versus Shielded Twisted-Pair Cable

The construction and shielding of the coaxial cable give it a good combination of high
bandwidth and excellent noise immunity. The bandwidth possible depends on the cable
quality and length. Modern cables have a bandwidth of up to a few GHz. Coaxial cables used
to be widely used within the telephone system for long-distance lines but have now largely
been replaced by fiber optics on long haul routes. Coax is still widely used for cable
television and metropolitan area networks, however. 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

41
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.

Figure 48: A network that uses household electrical wiring

The difficulty with using household electrical wiring for a network is that it was
designed to distribute power signals. This task is quite different than distributing data signals,
at which household wiring does a horrible job. Electrical signals are sent at 50–60 Hz and the
wiring attenuates the much higher frequency (MHz) signals needed for high-rate data
communication. The electrical properties of the wiring vary from one house to the next and
change as appliances are turned on and off, which causes data signals to bounce around the
wiring. Transient currents when appliances switch on and off create electrical noise over a
wide range of frequencies. And without the careful twisting of twisted pairs, electrical wiring
acts as a fine antenna, picking up external signals and radiating signals of its own. This
behavior means that to meet regulatory requirements, the data signal must exclude licensed
frequencies such as the amateur radio bands.

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.

Fiber optics are used for long-haul transmission in network backbones, highspeed
LANs (although so far, copper has always managed catch up eventually), and high-speed
Internet access such as FttH (Fiber to the Home). An optical transmission system has three
key components: the light source, the transmission medium, and the detector. Conventionally,
a pulse of light indicates a 1 bit and the absence of light indicates a 0 bit.

The transmission medium is an ultra-thin fiber of glass. The detector generates an

electrical pulse when light falls on it. By attaching a light source to one end of an optical fiber
and a detector to the other, we have a unidirectional data transmission system that accepts an

42
electrical signal, converts and transmits it by light pulses, and then reconverts the output to an
electrical signal at the receiving end.

This transmission system would leak light and be useless in practice were it not for an
interesting principle of physics.

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.

Figure 49: Bending of light ray

Propagation Modes

Figure 50: Types of Propagation Modes

43
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

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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.

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