Computer Networks

COMPUTER NETWORKS
An Introduction
Computer Networks

❑ A computer network is a collection of

computers and devices connected in various
ways in order to communicate and share
resources
❑ Usually, connected by physical wires or
cables
⮚some connections are wireless, using radio
waves or infrared signals
Computer Networks

❑ The purpose is to share resources. A

resource may be:
⮚A file, folder, printer, disk drive
⮚Or just about anything else that exists on a
computer.
❑ The computers can be geographically
located anywhere.
❑ Networking is the term that describes the
processes involved in designing,
implementing, upgrading, managing and
otherwise working with networks and network
technologies.
Applications of Networks

🠶 Resource Sharing
🠶 Hardware (computing resources, disks, printers)
🠶 Software (application software)

🠶 Information Sharing
🠶 Easy accessibility from anywhere (files, databases)
🠶 Search Capability (WWW)

🠶 Communication
🠶 Email
🠶 Message broadcast

🠶 Remote computing
🠶 Distributed processing (GRID
Computing)
Network Topology

• A network topology describes the layout of

the wire and devices as well as the paths
used by data transmissions.
 Types of Networks

🠶 Local-area network (LAN) A network that connects

a relatively small number of machines in a relatively close
geographical area (Room, Building or a Campus)
Types of Networks

🠶 Metropolitan-area network (MAN)

The communication infrastructures
that have been developed in and
around large cities
Types of Networks
🠶 Wide-area network (WAN) A network that
connects LANs and other types of networks over
a potentially large geographic distance
(Country or across Globe)
🠶 The Internet, as we know it today, is essentially
the ultimate wide-area network, spanning the
entire globe
🠶 Communication between networks is called
internetworking
Internetwork

🠶 Connection of two or more distinct

computer networks or network
segments via a common routing
technology
🠶 three variants, depending on who
administers and who participates
in them:
🠶 Internet
🠶 Intranet
🠶 Extranet
 Internet

🠶 A worldwide system of computer networks -

a network of networks in which users at any
one computer can, if they have permission,
get information from any other computer
🠶 That uses the standard Internet Protocol Suit
(TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide.
🠶 Consists of millions of
🠶 private and public,
🠶 academic,
🠶 business, and
🠶 government networks of local to global scope
 Internet

🠶 Internet carries vast information

resources and services,
🠶 most notably the inter-linked
hypertext documents of the World
Wide Web (WWW)
🠶 and the infrastructure to support
electronic mail
Computers Role: Clients and Servers
• In a client/server network arrangement, network
services are located in a dedicated computer
whose only function is to respond to the
requests of clients.
❑ Server computer is a core component of the
network, providing a link to the resources
necessary to perform any task.
⮚ The server contains the file, print, application,
security, and other services in a central computer
that is continuously available to respond to client
requests.

🠶 Client computers normally

request and receive
information over the
network
Computers Role: Peer to Peer
🠶 A peer-to-peer network is a network where the
computers act as both workstations and servers.
🠶 In a strict peer-to-peer networking setup, every
computer is an equal, a peer in the network.
🠶 Each machine can have resources that are
shared with any other machine.
 Protocol

🠶 A set of rules which is used by computers to

communicate with each other across a
network.
🠶 Key elements of a protocol are:
🠶 SYNTAC: Data format and signal levels
🠶 SEMANTICS: Control information for coordination
and error handling
🠶 TIMING: Synchronization, speed matching, and
sequencing
🠶 Examples of protocols: TCP/IP
🠶 Protocols may be implemented by hardware,
software, or a combination of the two.
 Open Systems

🠶 Proprietary system: A system that uses

technologies kept private by a
particular commercial vendor
One system couldn’t communicate with
another, leading to the need for
🠶 Interoperability: The ability of software
and hardware on multiple machines
and from multiple commercial vendors
to communicate
🠶 Open systems: Systems based on a
common model of network architecture
and a suite of protocols used in its
implementation
 OSI Model
🠶 Open System Interconnection Model is description
for layered communications and computer
network protocol design
🠶 7 Layers
1. Physical Layer - defines the relationship between
a device and a physical medium. This includes
layout of pins, voltages, cable specifications, and
more
2. Data Link Layer - provides the functional and
procedural means to transfer data between
network entities and to detect and possibly
correct errors
3. Network Layer – determine logical path for
transferring data sequences from a source to a
destination via one or more networks
 OSI Model
4. Transport Layer - The Transport Layer controls the
reliability of a given link through flow control,
segmentation/desegmentation, and error
control
5. Session Layer - controls the connections
between computers. It establishes, manages
and terminates the connections between the
local and remote application
6. Presentation Layer - provides independence
from differences in data representation (e.g.,
encryption) by translating from application to
network format, and vice versa
7. Application Layer - interacts with software
applications that implement a communicating
component
OSI Reference Model: 7 Layers
 TCP/IP

🠶 TCP stands for Transmission Control

Protocol
TCP software breaks messages into packets, hands them
off to the IP software for delivery, and then orders and
reassembles the packets at their destination

🠶 IP stands for Internet Protocol

IP software deals with the routing of packets through the
maze of interconnected networks to their final
destination
OSI & TCP/IP Models
Reference Books

🠶 Computer Networking A Top-Down Approach

Featuring the Internet
🠶 J F Kurose, K W Ross
🠶 Data Communications and Networking
🠶 B A Forouzan
🠶 Computer Networks
🠶 A S Tanenbaum
🠶 Computer Networks A Systems Approach
🠶 L L Peterson, B S Davie