Q.

Sub Answer
No. Q. N.

1. A)

a) Define computer network.

Ans: A network consists of two or more computers that are linked in order to share resources
(such as printers and CDs), exchange files, or allow electronic communications. The
computers on a network may be linked through cables, telephone lines, radio waves,
satellites, or infrared light beams.

b) Give advantages of computer network.

Ans: Advantages of Computer Network

1. File sharing: The major advantage of computer network is that it allows file sharing
and remote file access. A person sitting at one workstation that is connected to a
network can easily see files present on another workstation, provided he/she is
authorized to do so.
2. Resource Sharing: A computer network provides a cheaper alternative by the
provision of resource sharing. All the computers can be interconnected using a
network and just one modem & printer can efficiently provide the services to all
users.
3. Inexpensive set-up: Shared resources means reduction in hardware costs. Shared
files means reduction in memory requirement, which indirectly means reduction in
file storage expenses.
 4. Flexible Handling: A user can log on to a computer anywhere on the network and
access his/her files. This offers flexibility to the user as to where he/she should be
during the course of his/her routine.

c) What is hub? Give types of hub.

Ans: HUB: Hub is a connecting device; it is also known as multiport repeater. It is normally
used for connecting stations in a physical star topology All networks require a central
location to bring media segments together. These central locations are called hubs. A hub
organizes the cables and relays signals to the other media segments.

There are three main types of hubs:

1. Passive Hub
2. Active Hub
3. Intelligent Hub
d) What are the various network control devices?

Ans: Network Control device:

1. Repeater
2. Hub
3. Switch
4. Bridge
5. Router
6. Gateway
7. Modem
e) Why the network cable is twisted?

Ans: Twisted pair cabling is a type of wiring in which two conductors of a single circuit are
twisted together for the purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference (EMI)
from external sources; for instance, electromagnetic radiation from unshielded twisted pair
(UTP) cables, and crosstalk between neighboring pairs.
f) State any two advantages of coaxial cable.

Ans: 1. Transmits digital signals at a very high speed of 10 Mbps

2. Greater channel capacity.
3. Greater bandwidth
4. Lower error rates.
5. Data Transmission without distortion.
6. Greater spacing between amplifier

g) What is Layered Architecture?

Ans: To reduce the design complexity, most of the networks are organized as a series of layers
or levels, each one build upon one below it. Layered architecture is to divide the design
into small pieces. Each layer adds to the services provided by the lower layers in such a
manner that the highest layer is provided a full set of services to manage communications
and run the applications. The benefits of the layered architecture is modularity and clear
interfaces, i.e. open architecture and comparability between the different provider’s
components.
 h) What is IP address? State IP address classes.

Internet Protocol address (IP address) is a numerical label assigned to each device (e.g.,
computer, printer) participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for
communication. An IP address serves two principal functions: host or network interface
identification and location addressing. IPv4 address is of 32 bit.

The IPv4 addresses are classified into 5 types as follows:

1. Class A
2. Class B
3. Class C
4. Class D
5. Class E

B) :

a) Explain computer network facilities in terms of centralized network management.

Ans: The Computer network facilitates centralized network management in following aspects
1. Management of Software: Expensive software can be installed on one centralized
computer and they can be accessed by other computers in a network.
2. Maintenance of network: Because of centralized management, maintenance of
network becomes easy an administrator can keep track of network performance, speed
and security from centralized computer
3. Keeping data Backup: It may happen that the data on any one computer system is
accidently lost due to system failure, computer viruses or human error. To avoid this,
data from computer system’s disk is copied to some other medium for keeping it safe.
Such backups are important to retrieve the lost data.
4. Network security: It becomes easy to maintain network with respect to virus and
malware attacks using centralized management

b) Describe router with neat and labeled diagram. State the situation under which
router are necessary in network.

Ans: Router:

 It operates at the network layer.

 A router normally connects LANs and WANs in the Internet and has a routing table that
is used for making decisions about the route. The routing tables are normally dynamic
and are updated using routing protocols.

 Routers are devices that help in determining the best path out of the available paths, for
a particular transmission. They consist of a combination of hardware and software.
  The two main kinds of software in a router are the operating system and the routing
protocol.

 Routers use logical and physical addressing to connect two or more logically separate
networks.

 Messages are stored in the routers before re-transmission, routers are said to implement
a store-and-forward technique.

Fig: Router

Situation under which router can be used:

The router is a fundamental building block of modern business networks, providing traffic
with a gateway to both the Internet and other networks. Routers play important roles
on a network, with many combined with other devices such as firewalls, modems and
switches to provide networking solutions.

c) Explain the operation of modem.

Ans:
MODEM: Modem works as modulator as well as demodulator. Modem converts analog
signal to digital signal and vice versa. In case of networking data has to be transferred
from one location to another location. At present to transfer such data whatever the
infrastructure (PSTN) is available is of analog technology but computer sends digital data
to transfer this data to another location. Thus it is needed to convert into analog format so
that it can be transferred by using currently available infrastructure

Fig: Modem
2. :

a) What is meant by file sharing and printer sharing? How this can be achieved?

Ans: 1. File sharing: It is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such
as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic
books.
File sharing typically involves word-processing files, spreadsheets, and other files to
which many people need regular access. It requires a shared directory or disk drive that
many users can access over the network, along with the underlying programming logic
needed to make sure that more than one person doesn’t make changes to a file at the
same time (called file locking). The reason you don’t want multiple people making
changes to a file at the same time is that they might both be making conflicting changes
simultaneously without realizing it.

2. Printer sharing: Printer sharing is beneficial to many users as they can share costly &
higher quality printers. Printer sharing can be done in several different ways on
network.
The most common way is to use printer queues on server. The printer queue holds print
job until any currently running print jobs are finished & then automatically send the
waiting jobs to the printer i.e. printer connected to server. Another way to share printer
on a network is that each workstations accesses the printer directly.

b) State various network features. Explain any one in detail.

Ans: Network features:

1. File Sharing
2. Printer Sharing
3. Application Services
4. E-mail Services
5. Remote access
6. Internet & Intranet

1) File sharing: File sharing is the primary feature of network. Due to use of networks,
the sharing of files becomes easier. File sharing requires a shared directory or disk drive to
which many users can access over the network. When many users are accessing the same
file on the network, more than one person can make changes to a file at the same time.
They might both making conflicting changes simultaneously.
2) Printer sharing: Printer sharing is beneficial to many users as they can share costly &
higher quality printers. Printer sharing can be done in several different ways on network.
The most common way is to use printer queues on server. The printer queue holds print
job until any currently running print jobs are finished & then automatically send the
waiting jobs to the printer i.e. printer connected to server. Another way to share printer on
a network is that each workstations accesses the printer directly.
 3) Application services: You can also share application on a network. For example you
can have a shared copy of Microsoft office or some other application & keep it on the
network server. Another application services you can have on the network is shared
installation i.e. contents of CD-ROM copy to the server, then run the installation the
installing application mush faster & more convenient.
4) E- mail services: E-mail is extremely valuable & important feature for communication
within organization or outside the people in world. E-mail service can be used by user in
two different ways: 1. File based 2.Client File based e-mail system requires gateway
server for connecting or handling the e-mail interface between the two systems using
gateway software that is part of the file-based e-mail system. A client-server e-mail
system is one where an e-mail server containing the messages & handles all incoming &
outgoing mail. It is more secure & powerful than file based e-mail system.
5) Remote access: Using this feature user can access their file & e-mail, when they are
travelling or working on remote location. It enables users to access to centralized
application, stored private or shared files on LAN.
6) Internet & Intranet: Internet: It is public network. This consists of thousands of
individual networks & millions of computers located around the world. Internets have
many different types of services available such as e-mail, the web & Usenet newsgroups.
Intranet: It is private network or it is company’s own network. Company use this feature
for internal use. For example: company establish its own web server, for placing
documents such as employee handbooks, purchases form or other information that
company publishes for internal use. It also has internet services such as FTP servers or
Usenet servers.

c) Define the following term :

1) Roaming 2) Soft hand off 3) GSM 4) AMPS
Ans: 1) Roaming: It is the ability for a cellular customer to automatically make and receive
voice calls, send and receive data, or access other services, including home data
services, when travelling outside the geographical coverage area of the home network,
by means of using a visited network.
2) Soft hand off: The hand off is known as soft handoff if the MS starts communication
with a new base station without stopping the communication with the older base
station.
3) GSM: (Global System for Mobile communication) is a digital mobile telephony system
which uses a variation of time division multiple access (TDMA). GSM digitizes and
compresses data, then sends it down a channel with two other streams of user data,
each in its own time slot.
4) AMPS: Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) is a standard system
for analog signal cellular telephone service. It uses FDMA to separate channels in a
link.
 d) With neat diagram, explain satellite communication system.

Ans: Satellite Communication: In satellite communication, signal transferring between the

sender and receiver is done with the help of satellite. In this process, the signal which is
basically a beam of modulated microwaves is sent towards the satellite called UPLINK
(6Ghz). Then the satellite amplifies the signal and sent it back to the receiver’s antenna
present on the earth’s surface called as DOWNLINK (4Ghz), as shown in the diagram
given

Fig: Satellite Communication

As the entire signal transferring is happening in space. Thus this type of communication is
known as space communication. The satellite does the functions of an antenna and the
repeater together. If the earth along with its ground stations is revolving and the satellite is
stationery, the sending and receiving earth stations and the satellite can be out of sync
over time. Therefore Geosynchronous satellites are used which move at same RPM as that
of the earth in the same direction. So the relative position of the ground station with
respect to the satellite never changes

e) Compare client server and peer to peer network.

Ans:
Client server Network Peer to peer network
Centralized management. Decentralized management.
In this server has more power & client In this each machine has same power
has less power.
It is hardware intensive. Uses less expensive computer
hardware.
Complex to setup & require Easy to setup & administrator.
professional administrator.
Very secure Less secure
Network O.S required Network O.S not required
It support large Network It support small Network
 f) Explain basic principles of mobile communication.

Ans: 1. The first mobile telephone system had a single channel for both sending and receiving
in as early as 1946.
2. Second development took place in 1960s. This was called Improved Mobile
Telephone System (IMTS)
3. It had a strong transmitter and used for two frequencies – one for sending and other for
receiving.
4. The third step was the development of Advanced Mobile Phone system (AMPS), the
area covered is conceptually divided in small regions known as cells, thus the name
cellular phones. Each cell has an antenna and a cell office to control that cell.
5. MTSO controls various such cell offices and coordinates the communication between
them and the Telephone central office
6. Telephone central office is a part of the wired land telephone system.
7. The computer at MTSO is responsible for not only the connections but also for the
information and billing of cells
8. The typical cell radius size is 0 to 12 miles.

3. :

a) With neat diagram explain client server network along with its advantages and
disadvantages.
Ans:  The servers stores all the network's shared files and applications programs, such as
word processor documents, compilers, database applications, spreadsheets, and the
network operating system.
 Client will send request to access information from the server based on the request
server will send the required information to the client.

 Advantages of Client Server Network:

2) It has the centralized control i.e. centralized user accounts, security, and access to
simplify network administration.
3) It does not slow down with heavy use.
4) The size of the network can be expanded to any size.
5) Proper Management in which all files are stored at the same place. In this way,
management of files becomes easy. Also it becomes easier to find files.
6) As all the data is stored on server it’s easy to make a back-up of it.
 7) Reduces Data duplication by storing data stored on the servers instead of each
client, so it reduces the amount of data duplication for the application.

Disadvantages of Client Server Network:

1) Server failure leads to whole network failure.
2) It is very expensive to install and manage as dedicated hardware (server) and
special software is required.
3) A Professional IT person is required to maintain the servers and other technical
details of network.
b) Explain mesh topology with suitable diagram.

Ans:

 In a mesh network topology, each of the network node, computer and other devices,
are interconnected with one another.
 Every node not only sends its own signals but also relays data from other nodes.
 In fact a true mesh topology is the one where every node is connected to every other
node in the network.
 This type of topology is very expensive as there are many redundant connections, thus
it is not mostly used in computer networks.
 It is commonly used in wireless networks.
 Flooding or routing technique is used in mesh topology.

c) Describe the OSI model with neat diagram.

Ans: OSI model (open system interconnection) model was developed by ISO (international
standard organization)

Function of OSI model:

i. It provides way to understand how internetwork operates.

ii. It gives guideline for creating network standard.
OSI model has 7 layers as shown in the figure.

Application Layer
Presentation Layer
Session Layer
Transport Layer
Network Layer
Data link Layer
Physical Layer

OSI model has following 7 layers as Physical layer, data link layer, Network layer,
Transport layer, session layer, presentation layer, application layer.

1. Physical layer:
o It co-ordinates the functions required to transmit bit stream over physical medium.
o It deals with mechanical and electrical specifications of interface and transmission
medium.
o For transmission it defines procedures and functions that devices and transmission
medium has to perform
 Physical characteristics of interfaces and media.
 Representation of bits: Data rate (transmission rate).
 Synchronization of bits.
 Line configuration: Point to point or multipoint configuration should be
used.

2. Data link layer:

o It is responsible for transmitting group of bits between the adjacent nodes. The
group of bits is called as frame.
o The network layer passes a data unit to the data link layer.
o Header and trailer is added to the data unit by data link layer.
o This data unit is passed to the physical layer.
o Data link layer is responsible for moving frames from one node to the next.
o Functions of data link layer are:
 Framing
 Physical addressing
 Flow control
 Error control
 Media access control
 Node to node delivery

3. Network layer:
o It is responsible for routing the packets within the subnet i.e. from source to
destination.
o It is responsible for source e to destination delivery of individual packets across
multiple networks.
o It ensures that packet is delivered from point of origin to destination.
o Functions of network layer:
 logical addressing
  Routing.
 Congestion control
 Accounting and billing
 Address transformation
 Source host to destination host error free delivery of packet.

4. Transport layer:
o Responsibility of process to process delivery of message Ensure that whole
message arrives in order.
o Functions of Transport layer:
 Service point addressing
 Segmentation and reassembly
 Connection control
 Flow control: Flow control is performed end to end.
 Error Control

5. Session layer:
o Establishes, maintains, and synchronizes the interaction among communication
systems
o It is responsible for dialog control and synchronization.
o Functions of Session layer:
 Dialog control
 Synchronization, session and sub session
 Session closure

6. Presentation layer:
o It is concerned with syntax, semantics of information exchanged between the two
systems.
o Functions of Presentation layer:
 Translation: presentation layer is responsible for converting various
formats into required format of the recipient
 Encryption: Data encryption and decryption is done by presentation layer
for security.
 Compression and Decompression: data to be transform compressed while
sending and decompress while receiving for reducing time of transmission.

7. Application layer:
o It enables user to access the network.
o It provides user interfaces and support for services like email, remote file access.
o Functions of Application layer:
 Network virtual terminal
 file transfer access and management
 mail services and directory services
 d) Describe data encapsulation.

Ans:

Explanation:
 The protocols operating at the various layers work together to supply a unified quality
of service.
 Each protocol layer provides a service to the layers directly above and below it.
 The process of adding the headers and trailers to the data is called as data
encapsulation.
 A packet(header and data ) at level 7 is encapsulated in a packet at level 6.The whole
packet at level 6 is encapsulated in a packet at level 5, and so on. In other words, the
data portion of a packet at level N-1 carries the whole packet (data and header and
maybe trailer) from level N.

e) State any four protocol associated with application layer of OSI model.

Ans: Protocol associated with Application layer of OSI Reference model are

1. Virtual Terminal (TELNET)

2. File transfer Protocol (FTP)
3. Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)
4. Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP)
5. Domain Name System (DNS)
 f) Differentiate between SLIP and PPP.

Ans:
SLIP PPP
Serial Line Internet Protocol does not In PPP, LCP (Line Control Protocol)
establish or maintain connection is responsible for establishing,
between the client and ISP server. maintaining and termination
connection between two end points.
Communication starts once the Communication begins only after
connection between two modems are authentication and the types of traffic
established. is sent by the client.
Type of traffic cannot be selected in Type of traffic can be selected by
SLIP. NCP ( Network Control Protocol)
No protocol for termination. IPCP/IP (Control Protocol) terminates
a network layer connection between
the user and ISP.
No addressing mechanism provided. Additional services for addressing
mechanism is provided
Doesn’t allow error control Allows error control
No provision for data compression Provides Data compression.

4. :

a) Explain TCP/IP reference model with diagram.

Ans:

TCP/IP Reference Model:

 TCP/IP means transmission control protocol and internet protocol.

 Protocols are set of rules which govern every possible communication over the
internet.
 These protocols describe the movement of data between the host computers or
internet. These offer simple naming and addressing schemes.
 It is robust to failures and flexible to diverse networks.
  Most widely used protocol for interconnecting computers and it is the protocol of the
internet.

Description of different TCP/IP layers

 Layer 1: Host-to-network Layer

1. Protocol is used to connect the host, so that the packets can be sent over it.
2. Varies host to host and network to network.

 Layer 2: Internet layer

1. Selection of a packet switching network which is based on a connectionless

internetwork layer is called internet layer.
2. It the layer which holds the whole architecture together.
3. It allows the host to insert the packets.
4. It helps the packet to travel independently to the destination.
5. Order in which packets are received is different from the way they are sent.
6. IP (internet protocol) is used in this layer.

 Layer 3: Transport Layer

1. It decides if data transmission should be on parallel path or single path.

2. Functions such as multiplexing, segmenting or splitting on the data done by layer
four that is transport layer.
3. Transport layer breaks the message (data) into small units so that they are handled
more efficiently by the network layer.
4. Functions of the transport layer are same as the OSI model.
5. Transport layer also arrange the packets sent in sequence.

 Layer 4: Application Layer

1. Protocols used in this layer are high level protocols such as TELNET, FTP (file
transfer protocol etc.

b) Explain subnet masking.

Ans:
 An IP address has two components, the network address and the host address.
 A subnet mask separates the IP address into the network and host addresses.
 In Internet Protocol (IP) networking, devices on a subnet share contiguous ranges of
IP address numbers.
 A mask (known as the subnet mask or network mask) defines the boundaries of an IP
subnet.
 The correspondence between subnet masks and IP address ranges follows defined
mathematical formulas.
 IT professionals use subnet calculators to map between masks and addresses.
 A Subnet mask is a 32-bit number that masks an IP address, and divides the IP address
into network address and host address.
  Subnet Mask is made by setting network bits to all "1"s and setting host bits to all
"0"s. Within a given network, two host addresses are reserved for special purpose, and
cannot be assigned to hosts.
 The "0" address is assigned a network address and "255" is assigned to a broadcast
address, and they cannot be assigned to hosts.
 Subnet masking for 2 subnet: To calculate the number of subnets or nodes, use the
formula (2n-2) where n = number of bits in either field, and 2n represents 2 raised to
the nth power. Multiplying the number of subnets by the number of nodes available
per subnet gives you the total number of nodes available for your class and subnet
mask. Also, note that although subnet masks with noncontiguous mask bits are
allowed, they are not recommended.
 Example:
10001100.10110011.11011100.11001000 140.179.220.200 IP Address
11111111.11111111.11000000.00000000 255.255.192.000 Subnet Mask
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10001100.10110011.11000000.00000000 140.179.192.000 Subnet Address
Hence Subnet number Address
 140.179.64.0
 140.179.128.0

c) Distinguish between guided and unguided transmission media.

Ans:

GUIDED MEDIA UNGUIDED MEDIA

Also called as bounded or wired media Also called as unbounded or wireless
media
Point to point connection i.e. signal Used for radio broadcasting in all
travelling is directed directions i.e. signal travelling is
undirected
Transport signal in electric current or Transport signal in the form of
light/ beam electromagnetic waves
Unidirection, not broadcast Broadcast
Installation is costly and time Installation needs less time and money
consuming
Wired media leads to discrete network Wireless media leads to continuous
topologies network topologies
Attenuation depends exponentially on Attenuation is proportional to square
the distance of the distance
Example: Twisted Pair cable, Coaxial Example: Radio, Infrared light,
cable, Fibre optic cable Microwave
 d) Compare IPV6 and IPV4.

Ans:
IPV6 IPV4
Source and destination addresses are Source and destination addresses are
128 bits (16 bytes) in length. For more 32 bits (4 bytes) in length.
information.

There are no IPv6 broadcast addresses. Uses broadcast addresses to send

Instead, multicast scoped addresses are traffic to all nodes on a subnet.
used.

Fragmentation is not supported at Fragmentation is supported at

routers. It is only supported at the originating hosts and intermediate
originating host. routers.

IP header does not include a IP header includes a checksum.

checksum.
All optional data is moved to IPv6 IP header includes options.
extension headers.

IPSec support is required in a full IPv6 IPSec support is optional.

implementation.

Payload identification for QOS No identification of payload for QOS

handling by routers is included in the handling by routers is present within
IPv6 header using the Flow Label the IPv4 header.
field...
Addresses can be automatically Addresses must be configured either
assigned using stateless address auto manually or through DHCP.
configuration, assigned using
DHCPv6, or manually configured.
Uses host address (AAAA) resource Uses host address (A) resource records
records in the Domain Name System in the Domain Name System (DNS) to
(DNS) to map host names to IPv6 map host names to IPv4 addresses.
addresses.

e) Write the names of layer that performs the following function in OSI.
1) 1)Data encapsulation 2) Error detection 3) File transfer 4) Encoding
Ans:
1. Data Encapsulation- Transport Layer, Data Link Layer. (All OSI Layers)

2. Error Detection-Data link layer and Transport Layer

3. File Transfer-Application layer

4. Encoding- Data link layer

 f) Distinguish between LAN and WAN.

Ans:
LAN WAN
Covers Local areas only (e.g. homes, Large geographic areas(e.g. cities,
offices, schools) states, nations)
Definition LAN (Local Area Network) is a WAN (Wide Area Network) is a
computer network covering a computer network that covers a
small geographic area, like a broad area (e.g., any network
home, office, school, or group whose communications links cross
of buildings. metropolitan, regional, or national
boundaries over a long distance).
Speed High speed (1000 mbps) Less speed (150 mbps)
Data transfer LANs have a high data transfer WANs have a lower data transfer
rates rate. rate compared to LANs.
Example The network in an office Internet is a good example of a
building can be a LAN WAN
Connection One LAN can be connected to Computers connected to a wide-
other LANs over any distance area network are often connected
via telephone lines and radio through public networks, such as
waves. the telephone system. They can
also be connected through leased
lines or satellites.
Data Experiences fewer data Experiences more data
Transmission transmission errors transmission errors as compared to
Error LAN
Ownership Typically owned, controlled, WANs (like the Internet) are not
and managed by a single person owned by any one organization but
or organization. rather exist under collective or
distributed ownership and
management over long distances.
Set-up costs If there is a need to set-up a For WANs since networks in
couple of extra devices on the remote areas have to be connected
network, it is not very the set-up costs are higher.
expensive to do that.
Geographical Have a small geographical Have a large geographical range
Spread range and do not need any generally spreading across
leased telecommunication lines boundaries and need leased
telecommunication lines
Maintenance Because it covers a relatively Maintaining WAN is difficult
costs small geographical area, LAN is because of its wider geographical
easier to maintain at relatively coverage and higher maintenance
low costs. costs.
Bandwidth High bandwidth is available for Low bandwidth is available for
transmission. transmission.
Geographical Have a small geographical Have a large geographical range
Spread range and do not need any generally spreading across
leased telecommunication lines boundaries and need leased
telecommunication lines
5. Attempt any four :

a) Explain RARP and ICMP.

Ans: RARP (Reverse Address Resolution Protocol):

 This is used to obtain the IP address of a host based on its physical address.
 This performs the job exactly opposite to that of ARP (Address Resolution Protocol)
 In RARP, a host in LAN can request to learn its IP address from a gateway server's
Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) table or cache.
 A network administrator creates a table in a local area networks gateway router that
maps the physical machine (or Media Access Control - MAC address) addresses to
corresponding Internet Protocol addresses.
 When a new machine is set up, its RARP client program requests from the RARP
server on the router to be sent its IP address.
 Assuming that an entry has been set up in the router table, the RARP server will return
the IP address to the machine which can store it for future use.

The Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP):

 ICMP is a error reporting protocol.
 This protocol is responsible for providing diagnostic functions and reporting errors
due to the unsuccessful delivery of IP packets.
 It is used by network devices, like routers, to send error messages indicating, for
example, that a requested service is not available or that a host or router could not be
reached.
 ICMP can also be used to relay query messages.
 ICMP enables the detection and reporting of problems in the Internet.

b) Describe repeater. State the situation under which repeater are necessary in
network.

Ans: Repeater
 Repeaters are used to take the distorted, weak and corrupt input signal and regenerate
this signal at its output.
 It ensures that the signals are not distorted or weak before it reaches the destination.
 It recreates the bit pattern of the signal, and puts this regenerated signal back on to the
transmission medium
 It works in the physical layer with no intelligent function.
 It simply recreates the bit pattern of the signal and puts this regenerated signal back on
to the transmission medium. In effect, the original signal is created once again.

Example situation in which repeater is used:

Repeater is used to remove attenuation in the media, In any computer network,
when the data bit pattern is sent from a computer A to Computer B, if Computer B is not
able to receive the exact data bit pattern, a repeater is connected in between. This will
regenerate the weak signal so that the exact replica of the original input signal is sent
forward.
 Diagram:

c) Explain microwave link with diagram.

Ans: Microwave link :

 Microwaves use the line of sight method of propagation, as the signals do not travel
along the surface of the earth.
 Thus, two antennas must be in a straight line, able to see each other without any
obstacle in between.
 The taller the antenna, the more distance that these waves can travel. Thus, they are
always positioned at higher levels like on mountains.
 Microwave signals travel only one direction at a time.
 Thus for two way communication like telephone systems, two frequencies are
allocated.
 At both ends, a transceiver is used which is a combination of a transmitter and
receiver, operating at two respective frequencies.
 Therefore only one antenna can server both the functions and cover both the
frequencies.
 Repeaters are used along with the antennas to enhance the signal.
 The data rates defined are 1Mbps to 10Gbps.
 d) Compare hub and switch.

Ans:

Factor Hub Switch

Function To connect a network of To connect multiple computers
personal computers in which it can direct a
together, they can be joined transmission to its specific
through a central hub. destination. (Unicast the
(Broadcast the signals) signals)
Types Active, Passive, Intelligent Layer 2 and Layer 3 Switches
Operating Layer in Physical Layer Data Link Layer
OSI
Type of device Passive (Active hubs also Active
available)
Used in network type LAN LAN

Used in network Star Topology Star Topology

topology
Address used MAC address MAC address
Usage To connect multiple Can be used to connect Single
computers in a single and multiple networks also
network

e) Explain structure of IP frame header.

Ans: {**Note: IPv4 or IPv6 packet header shall be considered as the answer for IP frame
header. **}

IPv4 header:

The IP datagram contains header and data.

The header consists of around 20 to 60bytes consists of information about routing and
delivery.
The header is like an envelope i.e., it contains information about the data.
The structure of the standard format is as shown below.

HLEN
Version Service Type
(4 Total Length ( 16 bits)
(4 Bits) (ToS) (8 Bits)
bits)
Flags Fragmentation offset ( 13
Identification ( 16 bits)
( 3bits) bits)
Time to Live Protocol
Header Checksum ( 16 bits)
(TTL) (8 bits) ( 8 bits)
Source IP address (32 bits)
Destination IP address (32 bits)
The various fields are as described below:
Version: This field identifies the version of IP, which contains a value 4, which indicates
IP version 4. It may contain 6 for IPv6

Header length (HLEN): This indicates the size of the header in a multiple of 4 byte
words. When the header size is 20 bytes, HLEN = 5, and HLEN = 15 when maximum size
(60 bytes).

Service Type (Type of Service): This field is used to define service parameters such as
the priority of the datagram and the level of reliability desired.

Total Length: This field contains the total length of the IP datagram. IP datagram cannot
be more than 65,536 since this filed size is 2 bytes or 16 (216 = 65,536).

Identification: This field is used in the situations when a datagram is fragmented. The sub
datagram are sequenced using identification field so that later it can be used to reconstruct
the original datagram.

Flags: This field corresponds to identification field. It indicates whether a datagram can
be fragmented and if fragmented, the position of the fragment (first, last or middle).

Fragmentation Offset: If a datagram is fragmented, this field indicates the offset of the
data in the original datagram before segmentation. This is used while reconstructing.

Time to Live (TTL): This filed is initialized by some value and decremented each time it
passes through routers. If the value becomes zero or negative, the data is not forwarded.
Thus it decides the lifetime of the data.

Protocol: This field identifies the transport protocol running on top of IP. The upper layer
software piece can be TCP or UDP. This field specifies which piece of software at the
destination node the datagram should be passed on to.

Source address: This field contains the 32 bit IP address of the sender.

Destination address: This field contains the 32 bit IP address of the final destination.

OR
IPv6 header:

IPv6 fixed header is 40 bytes long and contains the following information.

 Version (4 bit): It represents the version of Internet Protocol, i.e. 0110

 Traffic Class (8-bits): These 8 bit are divided into two parts. The most significant 6 bits are
used for Type of Service to let the Router Known what services should be provided to this
packet. The least significant 2 bits are used for Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN).

 Flow label (20-bits): This label is used to maintain the sequential flow of the packets
belonging to a communication. The source labels the sequence to help the router identify that a
particular packet belongs to a specific flow of information. This field helps avoid re- ordering
of data packets. It is designed for streaming/real –time media.

 Payload Length (16-bits): This field is used to tell the routers how much information a
particular packet contains in its payload. Payload is composed of Extension Headers and Upper
Layer data. With 16 bits, up to 65535 bytes can be indicated, but if the Extension Headers
contain Hop-by-Hop Extension Header, then the payload may exceed 65535 bytes and this
field is set to 0.

 Next Header (8-bits): This field is used to indicate either the type of Extension Header, or if
the Extension Header is not present then it indicates the Upper Layer PDU. The values for the
type of Upper Layer.

 Hop Limit (8-bits): This field is used to stop packet to loop in the network infinitely. This is
same as TTL in IPV4. The value of Hop Limit field is decremented by 1 as it passes a link
(router/hop). When the field reaches 0 the packets is discarded.

 Source Address (128-bits): This field indicates the address of originator of the packet.

 Destination Address (128–bits): This field provides the address of intended recipient of the
packet.
 f) Draw and explain working of bridges.

Ans: Bridge:
 It is a device which connects two or more segment of a network.
 It only forwards the packet which are for the exact destination.
 A bridge device filters data traffic at a network boundary.
 Bridges reduces the amount of traffic on a LAN by dividing it into two segments.
 It inspects incoming traffic and decides whether to forward or discard it.
 It sends packets between two networks of same type.
 A bridge operates in both the physical and the data link layer.
 As a physical layer device, it regenerates the signal it receives.
 As a data link layer device, the bridge can check the physical (MAC) addresses
(source and destination) contained in the frame.

6. Attempt any two :

a) Explain working of data link layer and network layer of OSI model.

Ans: Data link layer:

Data link layer is the second layer of the OSI model. It accepts the data from the Network
layer, attaches header & trailer and send it to the physical layer. At receives side it accepts
the data from the physical layer snip of header & footer & give back to network layer the
way it has taken. IEEE has divided data link layer into two sub layers

1) Logical link control (LLC)

2) Media access control (MAC)

Working:
 It is responsible for transmitting group of bits between the adjacent nodes.
 The group of bits is called as frame.
 The network layer passes a data unit to the data link layer. Header and trailer
information is added to the data unit by data link layer.
 This data unit is passed to the physical layer.
 Data link layer is responsible for moving frames from one node to the next.
Functions of data link layer include Framing, Physical addressing, Flow control, Error
control, Media access control, Node to node delivery.
 Network layer:
 It is responsible for routing the packets within the subnet i.e. from source to
destination.
 It is responsible for source e to destination delivery of individual packets across
multiple networks.
 It ensures that packet is delivered from point of origin to destination.

Working:
 Network layer chooses a route before sending all the packets belonging to the same
message.
 A header is added to a packet, which includes source and destination addresses.
 Any congestion at a node is tackled by the network layer.
 When there are multiple subnet operators of different types, the different rates are
charged by the network layer as an accounting function.
 Functions of network layer include Logical addressing, Routing, Congestion control,
Accounting and billing, Address transformation and Source host to destination host
error free delivery of packet.

b) What is ARP? Explain function of ARP.

Ans:  ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol. ARP converts an Internet Protocol
address to its physical network address (MAC). ARP was defined by RFC 826 in
1982. It operates at layer 2 of the OSI model.

Diagram:

Fig: ARP Operation

 Functions:
 Local host maintains the ARP Table. ARP maps the Internet Protocol address (IP)to a
physical machine address.
 It provides the interface between the IP addressing system used by IP and the
Hardware addresses used by the data link layer protocol.
 ARP broadcasts an IP address in an effort to discover its equivalent hardware address.
 ARP has been implemented with many combinations of network and data link layer
technologies.
 Responsible for ARP query and ARP response datagram.
 Maintains ARP cache so that if the same query has been processed earlier, new
broadcast message is not created but, it checks in the ARP cache.

c) Describe advantages and disadvantages of optical fiber cable.

Ans: Optical fibre advantages:

 Higher bandwidth : Fiber-optic cable can support dramatically higher bandwidths
(and hence data rates) than either twisted-pair or coaxial cable
 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.
 Immunity to electromagnetic interference: Electromagnetic noise cannot affect
fiber-optic cables.
 Resistance to corrosive materials: Glass is more resistant to corrosive materials than
copper.
 Light weight: Fiber-optic cables are much lighter than copper cables.
 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.
 Lesser number of repeaters
 Electrical isolation: - Optical fibres are fabricated from glass or plastic polymers
which are electrical insulators. Hence they do not exhibit earth loop.
 Signal security: - The light from Optical fibre does not radiate significantly &
therefore they provide a high degree of signal security.

Optical fibre disadvantages:

 Installation: Not easy to install.
 Maintenance: Its maintenance require expertise.
 Unidirectional light propagation: Propagation of light is unidirectional. Two fibers
are needed for bidirectional communication.
 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.