Global Academy of Technology, Bengaluru

Artificial Intelligence and Data Science

Course: Computer Networks
Module 1: Introduction
The word data refers to information presented in whatever form is agreed upon by the parties
creating and using it. Data communications is the exchange of data between two devices via
some form of transmission medium such as a wire cable. For data communications to occur, the
communicating devices must be part of a communications system made up of a combination of
hardware (physical equipment) and software (programs).
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 a 30-ms delay and others with a 40-ms delay,
the video will have an uneven quality.

Components
A data communications system has five components (see Figure 1.1).
 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, a
telephone handset, a 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. Transmission 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.

Data Flow
Communication between two devices can be simplex, half-duplex, or full-duplex as shown in
Figure 1.2.

Simplex
In simplex mode, the communication is unidirectional, as on a one-way street. Only one of the two
devices on a link can transmit; the other can only receive. Keyboards and traditional monitors are
examples of simplex devices.
Half-Duplex
In half-duplex mode, 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. Walkie-talkies and CB (citizens band)
radios are both half-duplex systems.
Full-Duplex
In full-duplex mode, both stations can transmit and receive simultaneously. The full-duplex mode is
like a two-way street with traffic flowing in both directions at the same time. 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.
NETWORKS
A network is the interconnection of a set of devices capable of communication. In this definition, a
device can be a host, such as a large computer, desktop, laptop, workstation, cellular phone, or
security system.
Network Criteria
A network must be able to meet a certain number of criteria. The most important of these are
performance, reliability, and security.
1. Performance
Performance can be measured in many ways, including transit time and response time. Transit time
is the amount of time required for a message to travel from one device to another. Response time is
the elapsed time between an inquiry and a response.
2. Reliability
In addition to accuracy of delivery, network reliability is measured by the frequency of failure, the
time it takes a link to recover from a failure, and the network’s robustness in a catastrophe.
3. Security
Network security issues include protecting data from unauthorized access, protecting data from
damage and development, and implementing policies and procedures for recovery from breaches
and data losses.

Physical Structures
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 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
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. There are four basic topologies
possible: mesh, star, bus, and ring.
1. Mesh Topology
In a mesh topology, every device is connected to another device via a particular channel.
In Mesh Topology, the protocols used are AHCP (Ad Hoc Configuration Protocols), DHCP
(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), etc.

Mesh Topology

Figure 1: Every device is connected to another via dedicated channels. These channels are
known as links.
 Suppose, the N number of devices are connected with each other in a mesh
topology, the total number of ports that are required by each device is N-1. In
Figure 1, there are 5 devices connected to each other, hence the total number of
ports required by each device is 4. The total number of ports required = N * (N-1).
 Suppose, N number of devices are connected with each other in a mesh topology,
then the total number of dedicated links required to connect them is NC2 i.e. N(N-
1)/2. In Figure 1, there are 5 devices connected to each other, hence the total
number of links required is 5*4/2 = 10.
Advantages of Mesh Topology
 Communication is very fast between the nodes.
 Mesh Topology is robust.
 The fault is diagnosed easily. Data is reliable because data is transferred among
the devices through dedicated channels or links.
 Provides security and privacy.
Drawbacks of Mesh Topology
 Installation and configuration are difficult.
 The cost of cables is high as bulk wiring is required, hence suitable for less
number of devices.
 The cost of maintenance is high.
A common example of mesh topology is the internet backbone, where various internet service
providers are connected to each other via dedicated channels. This topology is also used in
military communication systems and aircraft navigation systems.
2. Star Topology
In Star Topology, all the devices are connected to a single hub through a cable. This
hub is the central node and all other nodes are connected to the central node. The hub can be
passive and active hub.
 Star Topology

Figure 2: A star topology having four systems connected to a single point of connection i.e.
hub.
Advantages of Star Topology
 If N devices are connected to each other in a star topology, then the number of
cables required to connect them is N. So, it is easy to set up.
 Each device requires only 1 port i.e. to connect to the hub, therefore the total
number of ports required is N.
 It is Robust. If one link fails only that link will affect and not other than that.
 Easy to fault identification and fault isolation.
 Star topology is cost-effective as it uses inexpensive coaxial cable.
Drawbacks of Star Topology
 If the concentrator (hub) on which the whole topology relies fails, the whole
system will crash down.
 The cost of installation is high.
 Performance is based on the single concentrator i.e. hub.
A common example of star topology is a local area network (LAN) in an office where all
computers are connected to a central hub. This topology is also used in wireless networks
where all devices are connected to a wireless access point.
3. Bus Topology
Bus Topology is a network type in which every computer and network device is
connected to a single cable. It is bi-directional. It is a multi-point connection and a non-robust
topology because if the backbone fails the topology crashes. In Bus Topology, various MAC
(Media Access Control) protocols are followed by LAN ethernet connections like TDMA,
Pure Aloha, CDMA, Slotted Aloha, etc.

Bus Topology

Figure 3: A bus topology with shared backbone cable. The nodes are connected to the
channel via drop lines.
Advantages of Bus Topology
 If N devices are connected to each other in a bus topology, then the number of
cables required to connect them is 1, known as backbone cable, and N drop lines
are required.
 Coaxial or twisted pair cables are mainly used in bus-based networks that support
up to 10 Mbps.
 The cost of the cable is less compared to other topologies, but it is used to build
small networks.
 Bus topology is familiar technology as installation and troubleshooting techniques
are well known.
 CSMA is the most common method for this type of topology.
Drawbacks of Bus Topology
 A bus topology is quite simpler, but still, it requires a lot of cabling.
 If the common cable fails, then the whole system will crash down.
 If the network traffic is heavy, it increases collisions in the network. To avoid this,
various protocols are used in the MAC layer known as Pure Aloha, Slotted Aloha,
CSMA/CD, etc.
 Adding new devices to the network would slow down networks.
 Security is very low.
A common example of bus topology is the Ethernet LAN, where all devices are connected to
a single coaxial cable or twisted pair cable. This topology is also used in cable television
networks.

4. Ring Topology
In a Ring Topology, it forms a ring connecting devices with exactly two neighbouring
devices. A number of repeaters are used for Ring topology with a large number of nodes,
because if someone wants to send some data to the last node in the ring topology with 100
nodes, then the data will have to pass through 99 nodes to reach the 100th node. Hence to
prevent data loss repeaters are used in the network.
The data flows in one direction, i.e. it is unidirectional, but it can be made bidirectional by
having 2 connections between each Network Node, it is called Dual Ring Topology. In-Ring
Topology, the Token Ring Passing protocol is used by the workstations to transmit the data.

Ring Topology

Figure 4: A ring topology comprises 4 stations connected with each forming a ring.
Advantages of Ring Topology
 The data transmission is high-speed.
 The possibility of collision is minimum in this type of topology.
 Cheap to install and expand.
 It is less costly than a star topology.
Drawbacks of Ring Topology
 The failure of a single node in the network can cause the entire network to fail.
 Troubleshooting is difficult in this topology.
 The addition of stations in between or the removal of stations can disturb the
whole topology.
 Less secure.

NETWORK TYPES
1. Local Area Network
A local area network (LAN) is usually privately owned and connects some hosts in a single
office, building, or campus. Each host in a LAN has an identifier, which is an address that uniquely
defines the host in the LAN. A packet sent by a host to another host carries both the source host’s
and the destination host’s addresses.

2. Wide Area Network (WAN)

A wide area network (WAN) is also an interconnection of devices capable of
communication. However, there are some differences between a LAN and a WAN. A LAN is
normally limited in size, spanning an office, a building, or a campus; a WAN has a wider
geographical span, spanning a town, a state, a country, or even the world. A LAN interconnects
hosts; a WAN interconnects connecting devices such as switches, routers, or modems.
We see two distinct examples of WANs today: point-to-point WANs and switched WANs.

Point-to-Point WAN
A point-to-point WAN is a network that connects two communicating devices through a
transmission medium (cable or air). Figure 1.9 shows an example of a point-to-point WAN
Switched WAN
A switched WAN is a network with more than two ends. It is used in the backbone of a global
communications network today. Figure 1.10 shows an example of a switched WAN.

The Internet
History of Internet
STANDARDS AND ADMINISTRATION
Internet Standards
An Internet standard is a thoroughly tested specification that is useful to and adhered to by those
who work with the Internet.
An Internet draft is a working document (a work in progress) with no official status and a six-month
lifetime. Upon recommendation from the Internet authorities, a draft may be published as a Request
for Comment (RFC).
Maturity Levels
An RFC, during its lifetime, falls into one of six maturity levels: proposed standard, draft standard,
Internet standard, historic, experimental, and informational.
a. Proposed Standard: A proposed standard is a specification that is stable, well understood, and
of sufficient interest to the Internet community. At this level, the specification is usually tested
and implemented by several different groups.
b. Draft Standard: A proposed standard is elevated to draft standard status after at least two
successful independent and interoperable implementations.
c. Internet Standard: A draft standard reaches Internet standard status after demonstrations of
successful implementation.
d. Historic: The historic RFCs are significant from a historical perspective. They either have been
superseded by later specifications or have never passed the necessary maturity levels to become
an Internet standard.
e. Experimental: An RFC classified as experimental describes work related to an experimental
situation that does not affect the operation of the Internet.
f. Informational: An RFC classified as informational contains general, historical, or tutorial
information related to the Internet.

Requirement Levels
RFCs are classified into five requirement levels: required, recommended, elective, limited use, and
not recommended.
a. Required: An RFC is labelled required if it must be implemented by all Internet systems to
achieve minimum conformance.
b. Recommended: An RFC labelled recommended is not required for minimum conformance; it is
recommended because of its usefulness.
c. Limited Use: An RFC labelled limited use should be used only in limited situations.
d. Not Recommended: An RFC labelled not recommended is inappropriate for general use.

Internet Administration
ISOC
The Internet Society (ISOC) is an international, nonprofit organization formed in 1992 to provide
support for the Internet standards process. ISOC accomplishes this through maintaining and
supporting other Internet administrative bodies such as IAB, IETF, IRTF, and IANA.
IAB
The Internet Architecture Board (IAB) is the technical advisor to the ISOC. The main purposes of
the IAB are to oversee the continuing development of the TCP/IP Protocol Suite and to serve in a
technical advisory capacity to research members of the Internet community. IAB accomplishes this
through its two primary components, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and the Internet
Research Task Force (IRTF).
IETF
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is a forum of working groups managed by the Internet
Engineering Steering Group (IESG). IETF is responsible for identifying operational problems and
proposing solutions to these problems. IETF also develops and reviews specifications intended as
Internet standards. The working groups are collected into areas, and each area concentrates on a
specific topic.
IRTF
The Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) is a forum of working groups managed by the Internet
Research Steering Group (IRSG). IRTF focuses on long-term research topics related to Internet
protocols, applications, architecture, and technology.

PROTOCOL LAYERING
When communication is simple, we may need only one simple protocol; when the communication
is complex, we may need to divide the task between different layers, in which case we need a
protocol at each layer, or protocol layering.
TCP/IP PROTOCOL SUITE
TCP/IP is a protocol suite (a set of protocols organized in different layers) used in the Internet
today. It is a hierarchical protocol made up of interactive modules, each of which provides a specific
functionality. The term hierarchical means that each upper-level protocol is supported by the
services provided by one or more lower-level protocols.

Layered Architecture
To show how the layers in the TCP/IP protocol suite are involved in communication between two
hosts, we assume that we want to use the suite in a small internet made up of three LANs (links),
each with a link-layer switch.
The two hosts are involved in all five layers; the source host needs to create a message in the
application layer and send it down the layers so that it is physically sent to the destination host. The
destination host needs to receive the communication at the physical layer and then deliver it through
the other layers to the application layer.

Layers in the TCP/IP Protocol Suite

To better understand the duties of each layer, we need to think about the logical connections
between layers. Figure 2.6 shows logical connections in our simple internet.

Physical Layer
We can say that the physical layer is responsible for carrying individual bits in a frame across the
link. The physical layer is the lowest level in the TCP/IP protocol suite, the communication between
two devices at the physical layer is still a logical communication because there is another, hidden
layer, the transmission media, under the physical layer.
Data Link Layer
When the next link to travel is determined by the router, the data-link layer is responsible for taking
the datagram and moving it across the link.
Network Layer
The network layer is responsible for creating a connection between the source computer and the
destination computer. The communication at the network layer is host-to-host. However, since there
can be several routers from the source to the destination, the routers in the path are responsible for
choosing the best route for each packet.
Transport Layer
The logical connection at the transport layer is also end-to-end. The transport layer at the source
host gets the message from the application layer, encapsulates it in a transport-layer packet. In other
words, the transport layer is responsible for giving services to the application layer: to get a
message from an application program running on the source host and deliver it to the corresponding
application program on the destination host. transmits user datagrams without first creating a logical
connection.
Application Layer
The logical connection between the two application layers is end-to-end. The two application layers
exchange messages between each other as though there were a bridge between the two layers.
However, we should know that the communication is done through all the layers. Communication at
the application layer is between two processes (two programs running at this layer). To
communicate, a process sends a request to the other process and receives a response. Process-to-
process communication is the duty of the application layer.

OSI Model
Although, when speaking of the Internet, everyone talks about the TCP/IP protocol suite, this suite
is not the only suite of protocols defined. Established in 1947, the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) is a multinational body dedicated to worldwide agreement on international
standards. Almost three-fourths of the countries in the world are represented in the ISO. An ISO
standard that covers all aspects of network communications is the Open Systems Interconnection
(OSI) model. It was first introduced in the late 1970s.

OSI V/s TCP/IP

Data Signals
 The bit rate is the number of bits sent in 1 s, expressed in bits per second (bps).
 Attenuation means a loss of energy.

 Distortion means that the signal changes its form or shape.

 Noise is another cause of impairment. Several types of noise, such as thermal noise, induced
noise, crosstalk, and impulse noise, may corrupt the signal.

 Thermal noise is the random motion of electrons in a wire, which creates an extra signal not
originally sent by the transmitter.
 Induced noise comes from sources such as motors and appliances. These devices act as a
sending antenna, and the transmission medium acts as the receiving antenna.
 Impulse noise is a spike (a signal with high energy and very short duration) that comes from
power lines, lightning, and so on
Data Rate Limits
Data rate depends on three factors:
 The bandwidth available
 The level of the signals we use
 The quality of the channel (the level of noise)

Noiseless Channel: Nyquist Bit Rate

For a noiseless channel, the Nyquist bit rate formula defines the theoretical maximum bit rate.
BitRate = 2 × B × log2 L
Noisy Channel: Shannon Capacity
In reality, we cannot have a noiseless channel; the channel is always noisy. Claude Shannon
introduced a formula, called the Shannon capacity, to determine the theoretical highest data rate for
a noisy channel:
C = B × log2 (1 + SNR)

Performance
Bandwidth: Bandwidth in bits per second can be defined as the number of bits a channel can pass.
Throughput: The throughput is a measure of how fast we can actually send data through a
network.
Latency (Delay): The latency or delay defines how long it takes for an entire message to
completely arrive at the destination from the time the first bit is sent out from the source
Latency = propagation delay + transmission delay + queuing delay + processing delay
Bandwidth-Delay Product: The bandwidth-delay product defines the number of bits that can fill
the link. Jitter: Another performance issue that is related to delay is jitter.