UNIT 1 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE

Structure Page Nos.

1.0 Introduction 5
1.1 Objectives
1.2 What is Graphical User Interface?
Evolution of Human and Machine Interactioi~
Coinmon Graphical User Interfaces
Functionality of Graphical User Interface
GUI design consideration: psychological factors
GUI design consideration: standards
GUl Examples
1.8.1 Microsoft Windows
1.8.2' Macintosh Toolbox
1.8.3 X-windows
1.8.4 NeXT

Solutions/ Answers
Further Readings

1.O INTRODUCTION
The Graphical User Interface (GUI) is one of the most revolutionary changes to
occur ill the evolution ofthe modern computing system. The interaction between
inan and computer in the design of operating system has changed from a
character-oriented system to the now more graphics-oriented system. This
revolution has increased the accessibility and usability of computer systems to the
general public.

We will look at GUI features of the various operating systems with little
knowledge of operating system or memorized commands. The software providing
such features supports Modern User Interface concept such as desktop
metaphor, which makes computers available to the majority of people who are
either novices or non-programmers. The personal computer was invented for these
users.

We will start with the basic definition move on to basic components and finally look
into some systems to find out what GUI facilities they are supporting.

1.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you should be able to:

define what GU1 is and how it is different from character oriented system,

define all the terms related with GUI, and

identify important features of several GUIs.

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Operatirig System
Fundamentals & 1.2 WHAT IS GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE?
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The term "user interface" originated in the engineering environment in the late 1970s.
Virtually everyone who interacted directly with computers had been an engineer and a
programmer, but new kinds of users were emerging: the non-programming user. These
users often reacted more negatively to difficulties in dealing with a machine. New
f0rm.s of interaction were needed, new interfaces, were required, attention flowed to
"the user interface".

With the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984, Apple Computer popularised the
user interface as it is known today. Apple's user interface is now commonly
referred to as a Graphical User Interface or GUI. The GUI has become associated
with a common feature set available in a number of product offerings. Common
features include:

Secondary user-input devices. Usually a pointing device and typically a mouse.

l

I Point and shoot functionality with screen menus that appear or disappear
under pointing-device-control.

Icons that represent files, directories and other application and system entities.

Dialog boxes, button, sliders, check boxes and many other graphical
metaphors that let the programmer and user tell the computer what to do and
how to do it.

Today's GUIs have expanded basic functionalities to support not only grkphics, but also
dimensions, color, height, video, and highly dynamic interaction. Modem user interfaces
can simulate a very realistic view of a real, three-dimensional world.

1.3 EVOLUTI0N;OFHUMAN AND MACHINE

INTERACTI~N
The primary means of communication with computers earlier had been through command-
based interfaces. In command interfaces, users have to learn a large set of commands to
get theirjob(s) done. In earlier computer systems paper tapes, cards and batch jobs were
the primary means of communicating these commands to the computers. Later, time-
sharing systems allowed the use of CRT terminals to interact/communicate with the
computer. These early systems were heavily burdened by users trying to share precious
computer resources such as CPU and peripherals.

The batch systems and time-sharing led to command-driven user interfaces. Users had
to memorise commands and options or consult a large set of user manuals. The early
mainframe and minicomputer systems required a large set of instruction manuals on
how to use the system. In some systems, meaningful terms were used for command
names to help the end-user. But in other systems the end-user had to memorise several
sequences of keystrokes to accomplish certain tasks.

Early users of computes were engineers and what we now call expert users; user3
who had a lot of interest in knowing more about computer systems and the technology.
Command line interfaces were acceptable to the majority of these users. In the 1970s,
computers were introduced to a new class of users: secretaries, managers and non-
technical people. These new users were less interested in learning computer
technology and more interested in getting theirjobs done through the machine. The
command-based interfaces caused many of these new users to develop computer
phobia. Imagine the thought of memorising commands made up of "Control-Alt-Del" to
boot the system.
To make life easier for the end -user, a large collection of devices have been Graphical llsrr
invented to control, monitor and display information. The early (and still widely used) Interface
peripherals are the keyboard and the video terminal. But, it was not until the late
70s, that research projects at some universities led to the invention of pointing
devices and windowing systems. The mouse and joystick were among some of the
few pointing devices that were invented in this period. Also, research pioneers
invented the notion of splitting the screen to allow multiple windows and direct
manipulation of objects.

In the 70s, researchers designed powerful new workstations armed with graphical
user-interfaces. The basic assumption of these new workstations was that one user
could have a powerful desktop computer totally dedicated to that user's task. Thus,
the computer is not only used to perform the task, but can also provide a much more
intuitive and easy-to-use environment. In this unit we will examine the common
GUIs.

COMMON GRAPRICAL USER INTERFACES

This section presents a list of terms used commonly with the graphical user interface
(GUI): GUIs are systems that allow creation and manipulations of user interfaces
employing windows, menus, icons, dialog boxes-mouse and keyboard. Macintosh toolbox,
Microsoft Windows and X-Windows are some examples of GUIs.

1) Pointing Dqvices

Pointing devices allow users to point at different parts of the screen. Pointing devices
can be used to invoke a command from a list of commands presented in a menu. They
can also be used to manipulate objects on the screen by:
Selecting objects on the screen

Moving objects around the screen, or

Merging several objects into another object.

Since the 1960s, a diverse set of tools have been used as pointing devices including the
light pen, joystick, touch sensitive screen and a mouse. The popularity of the mouse is
due to the optimal coordination of hand and easier tracking of the cursor on the screen.

2) Pointer
A symbol that appears on the display screen and that you move to select objects and
commands. Usually the pointer appears as a small angled arrow.

3) Bit-Mapped Displays

As memory chips get denser and cheaper, bit displays are replacing character-based
display screens. Bit-mapped display made up of tiny dots (pixels) are independently
addressable and much finer resolution than character displays. Bit-mapped displays
have advantages over character displays. One of the major advantages is graphic
manipulation capabilities for vector and raster graphics, which presents information in
the final form on paper (also called WYSIWYG: What You See Is What You Get).

4) Windows

When a screen is split into several independent regions, each one is called a window.
Several applications can display results simultaneously in different windows. Figure I
presents a screen with two windows.
Operating System
Fundamentals &
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Figure 1: Screen with two windows

The end-user can switch from one application to another or share data between
applications. Windowing systems have capabilities to display windows either tiled or
over-lapped, Figure 2. Users can organise the screen by resizing the window or
moving related windows closer.

Figure 2: Overlapped Windows

5 ) Menus
A menu displays a list of commands available within an application (Figure 3). From
this menu, the end-user can select operations such as File, Edit or Search. Instead of
remembering commands at each stage, a menu can be used to provide a list of items.
Each menu item can be either a word or an icon representing a command or a
function. A menu item can be invoked by moving the cursor on the menu item and
selecting the item by clicking the mouse.
Instead of memorising commands to each stage, the user selects a command from a
menu bar displaying a list of available commands. For example, Figure 3 displays the
menu bar. This tnenu bar displays a list of commands available such as File, Edit and
the appropriate action is taken.
 Graphical User
Interface

Figure 3: Menu Bar

When a menu item is invoked it could cause other menus, called pull-down menus, to
appear. Pull-down menus (Figure 4 ) are used to present a group of related
commands or options for a menu item. Figure 4 presents the File pull-down menus.
Pull-down and pop-up menus display option commands available for each selection.
Figure 4 shows the pull-down menu displayed when the Character menu item is
selected. The user can then select from different character styles.

Figure 4: Pull-down M e n u

6) Dialog boxes
Dialog boxes (Figure 5) allow more complex interaction between the user and the
computer. Dialog boxes employ a collection of control objects such as dials, buttons,
scroll bars and editable boxes. For example, in Figure 5, a dialog box is used to open
a file.
In graphical user-interfaces, textual data is not only a form of interaction. Icons
represent concepts such as file folders, wastebaskets, and printers. Icons symbolize
words and concepts commonly applied in different situations. Figure 4 shows paint
utility with its palette composed of icons. Each one of these icons represents a certain
type of painting behaviour. Once the pencil icon is clicked, for example, the cursor can
behave as a pencil to draw lines. Applications of icons to the user-interface design are
still being explored in new computer systems and software such as the NeXT
computer user interface.
Dialog boxes are primarily used to collect information from the user or to present
information to the user.
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Operating System
Fundamentals &
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Figure 5: Dialog Box

Among the information obtained are the number of copies and page numbers to be
printed. Dialog boxes are also used to indicate error message in the form of alert
boxes. Dialog boxes use a wide range of screen control elements to communicate with
the user.
7) Icons
Icons are used to provide a symbolic representation of any systemluser-definedobject
such as file, folder, address, book, applications and so on. Different types of objects
are represented by a specific type of icon. In some GUIs, documents representing
folders are represented by a folder icon (Figure 6). A folder icon contains a group of
files or other folder icons. Double clicking on the folder icon causes a window to be
opened displaying a list of icons and folder icons representing the folder's
contents.

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Figure 6: Icons

8) Desktop Metaphor
The idea of metaphors has brought the computer closer to the natural environment of
the end-user. The concept of physical metaphor paradigm, developed by Alan Kay,
initiated most of the research for graphic user interfaces based on a new p r o g d m i n g
approach called object-oriented programming. Discussion of this subject is beyond this Graphical User
unit. The physical metaphor is a way of saying that the visual displays of a computer Interface
system should present the images of real physical objects.
For example, the wastepaper basket icon can be used to discard objects from the
system by simply dragging the unwanted objects into the dustbin, as in real life. The
desktop metaphor probably has been the most famous paradigm. Because of the
large set of potential office users, this metaphor can have the most dramatic effect.
In this paradigm, the computer presents information and objects as they would
appear and behave in an office, using icons for folders, in-baskets, out-baskets and
calendars.
In a desktop metaphor, users are not aware of applications. Users deal with files,
folders, drawers, a clipboard and an outbox. Instead of starting the word process and
loading file, users merely open the report document, which implicitly invokes the word
processor, Clicking the mouse on an icon representing the report causes the word
processor to get started and to load the report file implicitly. Today, several computing
environments provide this capability.
9) The3D GUI
The desktop metaphor GUI is 2% D. It is 2D because its visual elements are two-
dimensional: they lie in the xy plane, are defined in 2D coordinates, are flat and contain
only planar regions (areas). It is 2% D because where visual elements overlap they
obscure each other according to their priority. In a 3D GUI the visual elements are
genuinely three-dimensional: they are situated in xyz space, are defined in terms of 3D
coordinates, need not be flat and may contain spatial regions (volumes).
The design considerations for a 3D GUI appear more complex than for a 2% D GUI.
To begin with, the issues of metaphor and elements arise afresh. The desktop
metaphor with its windows, icons, menus and pointing device elements is firmly
established for 2!4D GUIs. Tn contrast no clearly defined metaphor and set of
elements for 3D GUIs are manifest -yet. 3D GUIs offer considerably more scope
for metaphors than 2%D GL.Tls; there are many metaphors which could be based on
our physical 3D environment, includingthe obvious extension of the desktop metaphor
into a 3D environment, including the obvious extension ofthe desktop metaphor into a
3D office metaphor. On the other hand, much more abstract metaphors are possible,
such as one based "starmaps" where objects are simply placed somewhere in
"cyberspace". Likewise the elements of a 3D GUI may resemble, or differ
substantially from, the elements of the 2% D GUI.
The various prototypes have been developed to design the same elements in the
3D GUI as in the 2 'I2Ddesktop GUI: windows, icons, menus, a general space in
which to arrange the visual elements, a cursor and an input device to manipulate
the cursor.

1.5 FUNCTIONALITY OF GRAPHICAL USER

INTERFACES
The development environment for most GUTSconsists of four major components:
A windowing system, .
An imaging model,
An application program interface (APT), and

A set of tools and frameworks for creating interfaces and developing integrated
applications.
Operating System Windowing systems allow programs to display multiple applications at the same time.
Fundamentals & Windowing systems include programming tools for building movable and resizeable
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windows, menus, dialog boxes and other items on the display. Some GUIs contain
proprietary windowing systems, such as Macintosh. Others use common windowing
systems such as X-window or simple X.
An imaging model defines how fonts and graphics are created on the screen. Imaging
models handle, for example, typeface and size in a word processor and lines in a
drawing program. This component of the system environment has taken on increasing
sophistication as applications incorporate complex curves, color, shading and dimension.
Some GUIs support more than one imaging model.
The API is a set of programming language functions that allow the programmer to
specify how the actual application will control the menus, scroll bars and icons that
appear on the screen. Like windowing models, APIs align with particular GUIs.
Finally, GUI development environments can include toolkits and frameworks. Most
of these toolkits are based on object-oriented approach.
Although the structure of the basic development for most GUIs is similar, there are
major differences in how the GUI is integrated with the operating system. Some, like
the Macintosh and NeXT GUIs, are closely integrated with the operating system.
Others, like X Window or Microsoft's Windows, can be set up as options to be selected
by the user when the computer boots up.
Programming of software for GUIs across these components is fairly complex and
challenging. Commercial developers who want to support multiple environments find
their task further complicated by the absence of standards across heterogeneous
computing platforms. The higher-level toolkit component is intended to mitigate much of
this difficulty.
Although the graphical user interface has become a standard component of most
systems, no standards in windowing systems, imaging models, APIs, or high-level
toolkits have emerged. However, three major camps of GUIs dominate. The first camp
is IBM's System Application Architecture (SAA), which includes primarily Microsoft's
Windows and PM (Presentation Manager). The second camp is UNIX systems,
usually built around X Window. The third camp is the Macintosh. In the next section we
will describe the object-oriented functionality of representative GlUs in these camps,
including Windows, X (upon which most of the UNIX camp is based), NeXT and
Macintosh.

G F Check Your Progress 1

1) What is GUI and what are its features?

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2) Define the features of the following:
a) Window
b) Pull-down menu
c) Dialogbox
d) Pointing devices
3) What is the difference between Bitmapped and character based displays? Graphical User
Interface
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1.6 GUI DESIGN CONSIDERATION:

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS
There are some empirical studies that have identified basic psychological factors that
one should consider in the design of a good GUI. In this section we focus our
discussion to three primary contributing human factors, which are: the physical limits
ofvisual acuity, the limits of absolute memory, and the Gestalt Principle.
Visual Acuity
Visual acuity is the ability of the eye to resolve detail. This refers to the amount of
information one can put on the screen. The retina of the eye can only focus on a very
small portion of a computer screen, or anything for that matter, at any one time. This
is because, at a distance greater than 2.5 degrees from the point of fixation, visual
acuity decreases by half. Therefore, a circle of radius 2.5 degrees around the point of
fixation is what the user can see clearly.
At a normal viewing distance of 19 inches, 5 degrees translates into about 1.7 inches
Assuming a standard screen format, 1.7 inches is an area about 14 characters wide .
and about 7 lines high. This is the amount of information that a user can take in at any
one time, and it limits the effective size of icons, menus, dialog boxes, etc. If the user
must constantly move his eyes across the screen to clearly focus, the GUI design is
causing a lot of unnecessary and tiring eye movement.
Information Limits
Once the user has a desired fixation point, there is a limit to the amount of information
that the person can process at one time. A GUI design rule of thumb is that the range
of options or choices should never be more than five or six. It has been shown that
absolute identification using one-dimensional criteria was about seven items, plus or
minus two. Miller introduced the concept of recoding as a method that people use to
store information. It has also been pointed out that by expanding the identification
criteria from one to more dimensions people could handle more choices and remember
more. Later researchers have expanded this work to develop the concept that people
chuck information together in order to remember more information. This research has
a direct impact on GUI design, especially concerning the number of menu items and
icons.
Gestalt Principle
The Gestalt Principle states that people use a top-down approach to organisiiig data.
This principle can influence how one should organise graphical information on the
screen. The Gestalt school of GUI designers have attempted to identify criteria that
cause people to group certain items together in a display. Proper grouping results in a
necessary redundancy of selection information that aids the user. For example, if the
user knows where one item in a group is on a screen, he will expect other like items to
be there also. If one groups the items in line with this expectation, it allows for
accurate locating and better transfer of information to the user.
The top-down approach also allows for the development of emergent features. An
emergent feature is a global property of a set that is not evident when one views each
Operating System item locally. Since global processing tends to be automatic, one can argue that an
Fundamentals & emerged feature reduces the attention demand as a user operates a multi-element
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display. For this performance enhancement, one must use the Gestalt Principle in the
initial placement, and the resulting organisation must be compatible with the user's
cognitive view of the task.

GUI DESIGN CONSIDERATION: STANDARDS

Considering the above psychological factors, one could come to the conclusion that
one could easily extrapolate these factors to the design of a good GUI. Empirical
studies of GUI show that this intuition is not always the case. It directly leads to the
conclusion that a good GUI would use a lot of icons. Unfortunately, too many
randomly placed icons violate the limits of absolute memory. Using the Gestalt
Principle, one can group like items together using factors like color to add more
informational dimensions. Too many colors, however, destroy the global visual
grouping of the items. The user then begins to concentrate on the GUI. Any primary
cognitive task attention devoted to the interface may interfere with the primary task.
One can derive basic GUI standards from basic human factors, however. The
standards are the presentation of information, the grouping of information, and
information sequencing.
Amount of Information Presented
The amount of information to present is the most basic of GUI design considerations.
H.E. Dunsmore showed that making screens less crowded improves screen clarity
and readability. As sucli, GUI designers usually follow the guidance that the interface
should display only what the user needs to perform the current operation. Empirical
researchers show that limiting the information to that necessary for the user reduces
errors and time to perform tasks. Errors and performance time increase as the GUI
presents more information. Of course, it requires a thorough analysis of the tasks that
the user must perform in order to display only the necessary amount of information.
Compared to a randomly placed screen, a well-designed screen can reduce the time
needed to perform a task by as much as 40%. Ways to conserve screen space are:

1) Appropriate use of abbreviations: Many design documents recommend using

complete words whenever possible. Due to screen sizing constraints, i{is not
always possible to use complete words. When complete words are not possible,
abbreviations should be contextual and consistent. A good contextual example is
"h," which is usually a good abbreviation to use for help. The number of
abbreviations should not only be contextual but also be kept to the minimum. As
a poor example, in the UNIX system, the "Is" command lists files in a directory.
The "Is" command has 17 different one-letter abbreviations that change the
output options of the "Is" command. The one-letter abbreviations have little
contextual link to the options they represent. In fact, the UNIX system is a good
example of what not to do.

2) Avoid unnecessary detail: For example, use whole numbers if one does not need
decimals. Keep the window and icon designs clear and simple. Even when
users prefer more complex icons, elaborate icons add nothing to performance.
Studies show that when icon designs are too complex, time to complete a task
actually increases. In studies with 3-D and 2-D graphical displays, users
preferred the 3-D displays. There were no differences in performance between
the two graphical displays, however.

3) Use concise wording: Screens have limited space. Screen designers should avoid
the tendency to place additional data on the screen just because the data is
available. More objective limits of screen density vary from the thresholds of
 25% to 80%. There is no empirical research that substantiates any performance Graphical User
enhancement with any specific threshold. Interface

1) Use familiar data formats: With more familiar formats, the user will need less
information to complete the task. An example for data entry is the standard
USA address format of street, city, state, and zip code. In addition to requiring
less instruction, the user will perform the operation faster than if the format is
unfamiliar.

5) Use tabular formats with column headings: Tabular formats allow for efficient
labeling of related data. It is especially preferable for data location tasks. Simply
splitting items on one long line into two lines result in productivity improvements
of 20%.

Grouping of Information
Given a set of information to display, there are many ways one can display the
information. Proper grouping improves the information's readability and can highlight
relationships between the information.
There are several techniques to aid in the grouping of information, which include:

1) Color: Presenting different groups in different colors clearly creates some degree
of grouping among the elements of the same color. GUIs that utilise color well
increase productivity. If like color items are in close proximity, the visual
association is stronger than if the like color items are further apart. In addition to
changing the item's colors, one can use different colors for the background and
foreground. The effectiveness of this technique decreases as the number of
screen colors increases. Overuse of color degrades performance, however.

2) Graphical Boundaries: Drawing boundaries around elements is the most common

method of grouping elements in GUI. Although there is no empirical evidence to
show that these groupings improve performance, users prefer this type of
groupings compared to other methods. Another method of grouping is to group
tasks within icons. Icon grouping is easy because many icons can have common
attributes. Icons are also small and therefore use less space. Another -
advantage of icons is that recognition is faster for pictures than for text. This
makes it easier for the novice to learn a system. Studies also show that icons
have smaller error rates than textual interfaces and the same as for menu
r interfaces. Conversely though, empirical studies have shown that, counter
intuitively, icons do not lead to greater increases in performance.

3) Highlighting: Besides color, there are several other methods of highlighting

including reverse video, brightness, underlining, and flashing. The most common
use of highlighting is reverse video to indicate an item that is currently selected.
GUIs usually use brightness to show which items are not active at a given time.
Underlining is effective if it does not interfere with the legibility of characters.
Flashing will both get attention and annoy if the user cannot turn offthe flashing.
Therefore, one should use flashing only to convey an urgent need. Apple
Macintosh uses flashing to signal only program or data destruction. Regardless
of which type of highlighting, one needs to apply it conservatively. Overuse of
highlighting causes confusion among users and defeats its purpose. Additionally,
if one highlights the wrong information, the user has more difficulty detecting the
important information.

Information Sequencing
One needs to lay out a screen in a manner that allows the user to easily find any
information 011 it. Most designers advocate the use of the de facto GUI screen
 Operating System standards. This is because many users now expect certain modes of operation in all
Fundamentals & GUIs. For example, most users expect the top of screen to contain the headings for
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the pull-down menus. The top right is the default location for icons representing the
disk availability. In the Macintosh GUI, the bottom right contains the trash icons used
for deleting files.
Within a window, there are also many standard modes. A window title is usually at the
top. Scroll bars are on the right and bottom for vertical and horizontal window
movement. A box for closing the window is at the top left. Icons for resizing the
window are at the four corners.
Studies show that most users initially scan the screen starting at the upper-left corner.
This corner should be the obvious starting point for applications invoked from within the
window. This permits a left-to-right and top-to-bottom reading, which is standard for
Western cultures.

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The optirnuni sequence for screen presentations is a collection of various factors,
including:

1) Sequence of use: One needs to present the user the information in the order that
the user will probably utilise it.

2) Conventional Usage: If a common convention is in general usage, the GUI design

should continue using it. For example, in the standard window layout, the file
option is usually to the far left of the menu bar.

3) Importance: The designer needs to place the more important information at a

prominent location. For example, if several entries are possible, the GUI should
lead off with the required ones and end with the optional ones.

4) Frequency of use: One should pace the most frequently utilised commands at the
beginning. For example, in a menu list, the most frequency utilised commands
should be at the top of the list.

5) Generality versus Specificity: The more general items should precede the more
specific items, especially when there is a hierarchical relationship among the data.

6) Alphabetical or Chronological: Ifthere is no other rules for ordering data element,

then one should adopt some other technique such as an alphabetical or a temporal
listing. Card [I I] showed that selection time was faster for alphabetical than for
any other functional grouping.

1.8 GUI EXAMPLES

The goal of any GUI is to allow the user to work through the computer and application
to concentrate on the primary cognitive task. The user should not be concerned with
the user interface. Any attention devoted to the interface interferes with the main task.
This section presents Graphical User Interfaces. Some popular GLTls will be covered to
provide a broad picture of the subject. There are a great many popular GUIs around
including X Windows, Microsoft Windows, NeXTYsNeXTStep and others.

1.8.1 Microsoft Windows (MS-WINDOWS)

MS-Windows is the most popular GUI for IBM personal computers. IBM and
Microsoft announced OS/2 as a new operating system for 80286 and 80386 personal
computers. The 0,912 Standard Edition 1 .I adds Presentation Manager (PM) for its
graphical user interface. The user interfaces of Windows and PM are very similar but
their APIs are different. Microsoft's strategy is to use Windows as a springboard for
PM.
Windows provides an environment that enhances DOS in many ways. The major Graphical User
benefits of Windows are: Interface

1) Common Look and Feel: All windows applications have the same basic look
and feel. Once you know one or two Windows applications, it is easy to learn
another one.
2) Device Independence: Windows presents a device-independent interface to
applications. Unlike most of today's DOS applications, a Windows application is
not bound to the underlying hardware such as mouse, keyboard or display.
Windows shields the application from this responsibility. The application deals
with the Windows API to manipulate any underlying devices.
3) Multitasking: Windows provides non-preemptive multitasking support. Users
can have several applications in progress at the same time. Each application can
be active in a separate window.
4) Memory Management: Windows also provides memory management to break
the 640K limitation of MS-DOS. An application has the ability to use the
extended memory, share data segments with other applications and unwanted
segments to disk.
5) Support for existing DOS applications: Windows allows most standard DOS
applications to run under it directly. Any application that does not control the
PC's hardware, use the PC BIOS or MS-DOS software interrupts, can run in its
own window.
6) Data Sharing: Windows allows a data transfer between application Clipboard.
Any type of data can be transferred from one window with the clipboard. The
Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) protocol defines how two applications can
share information. Information such as bitmap, metafile, character strings and
other data formats call be shared.
Support for Object Orientation
In order to create screen objects such as windows, the application developer defines a
class (similar to record) specifying the necessary properties. Instances of class can
then be created. Several applications can share the same windows simultaneously. To
communicate with Instances of a window class, messages are sent and received by a
special function called the window function. The windows handle all messages such
as re-drawing the screen, displaying icon or pop-up menus and changing the contents
of the client area.
Creation and Manipulation of a Window
MS Windows presents a pre-defined style for user-defined windows; it presents the
structure of a window, followed by a discussion of windows manipulation.
1) Structure of a window: Figure 7 displays possible elements for a window. The
caption bar (or title bar) displays the name of application within the window. The
system menu box contains names of commands available in all applications, such
as minimise, maximize, resize and close. The minimize boxclicked once reduces
the window to an icon. The maximize box enlarges the window to the full screen.
The menu bar contains a list of commands In the application. The client area is
the area inside the window, which is under the application control.

2) Creating windows: Each window created on the screen is a member of some

user defined window class. Window classes are created by the application
program. Several window classes can be active simultaneously. Each window
clads in turn can have several instances active at the same time. There are no
predefined generic window classes that come with MS-Windows.
 Operating System To create a window the following steps must be taken:
Fundamentals &
Networking a) Set up a window class structure which defines the attributes of the window
class. Attributes that can be defined include:

i) the window function, which handles all messages for this class

ii) the icon and the cursor used for this class of windows
iii) the background color of the client area
iv) the window class menu

v) the re-drawing filnction used when resizing horizontally or vertically.

Title Bar Menu Bar

System Menu

Document
CC
Window

Status Bar
Figure 7: MS-WINDOWS screen element

3) Manipulating windows: An application can choose to display the Windows, resize

the window, display additional information in the client area, and so on.
Pop-up and Child Windows

Pop-Up and child windows are special type of windows, and are used to communicate
information between the application and the end-user. They remain on the screen for a
sllort period of time. In this example, the pop-up Display information about a given file
such as date and time of creation and the size. Dialog boxes, as discussed earlier, are
a more sophisticated form of pop-up windows.
MS-Windows provides a collection of predefined child windows. These are the most
common usage of child windows. These predefined classes are button, scroll bars,
listbox, edit and static class. A developer can also define child windows that can be
controlled by any user-defined operation.

1 Resources
Resources are used to manage windows and user-defined object. MS-WINDOWS
provides nine kinds of resources to application developers. These resources are :
icons, cursors, menus, dialog boxes, fonts, bitmaps, char strings, user-defined
resources, and keyboard accelerators.
I) Icons and cursors: Windows defines a few types of icons and cursors. An icon Graphical User
or a cursor is essentially a bit-mapped region that is used to represent and Interface
symbolise a window or cursor. A developer can also define an original icon or
cursor using the ICONEDIT utility.

2) Menus: Each window can have its own menu bar. A menu item can be a
character string or a bitmap. Each item of a menu bar in turn can have a pop-up
menu presenting a list of options. Currently, Windows does not support nesting of
pop-up menus within other pop-up menus. (Windows 3.0 provides this
functionality). But a pop-up menu can invoke a dialog box. When a menu is
selected, Windows sends one or more messages to the Window function of the
Window containing the menu bar. These messages can be interpreted to perform
the function corresponding to the menu item.

3) Dialog boxes: These provide another mechanism besides pop-up menu and
menu bar to obtain information from the end-user. Dialog boxes are much inore
flexible than menu bars or pop-up menus. Dialog boxes usually contain a group of
child windows such as buttons, scroll bars, and'editable fields. Just like windows,
dialog boxes have a function that is used to process messages received from the
user upon selection of options. Generally, dialog boxes appear as pop-up
windows. The user selects the option needed from the dialog box and the dialog
box disappears. Figure 8 depicts an example of a dialog contains an edit box, a
list box, and open and cancel buttons. The end-user can specify the name of a
file either by selecting from the list box or by typing the name ofthe file in the
edit box. By clickingon the open button, the application will open the selected
file.

4) Fonts: Windows provides a few families of fonts with different sizes and shapes:
Modern, Roman, Swiss, Helvetica, and Script. Application processors and
desktop publishingcan define additional fonts as needed.

5) Bitmaps: They are used to represent icons, cursors, or draw picture on the
screen. Both mono and color bitmaps can be defined.

Figure 8: Dialog Box (MS-Windows) with an edit box, a list box, and push buttons

6) Character strings: Character strings are handled as resources mainly to

provide a manageable solution to internationalisation of a window application.
Instead of including a character string as part of the code, it can be placed in a
resource file handled as a resource. Once in a resource file, different versions of
 Operh. ~g System the same character string resource file can exist for different languages. This
Fundamentals & separation of the character strings from the code makes internationalising the
Networking
application much easier, and also makes maintaining the application much simpler.

7) User-Defined Resources: These can be used for many purposes and support
any user-defined data type. Any arbitrary data can be managed as a userdefined
resource.
Resources are defined in a text file called a resource script. They are compiled through
a utility called the Resource Compiler and linked with the windows application.
Resources are read only data. Once a resource script is compiled, it can be shared
with other window applications.
Graphics Device Interface
Graphics in Windows are handled by the Graphics Device Interface (GDI). Both vector
and raster color graphics are supported by GDI. GDI supports only two-dimensional
graphics. Vector graphics are supported by a set of vector drawing functions such as
drawing a line, point, and polygon etc. pie chart.
Raster graphics are supported by pixel manipulation. RaSter graphics can be stored or
manipulated either as a bitmap or as a metafile. A bit-mapped representation of the
graph can be manipulated using utilities such as BitBlt, PatBlt, and StretchBlt. A
metafile provides binary encoding of GDI functions such as to draw vectors and to fill
a region with a bitmap. Metafiles take up less disk space than a bit-mapped
representation since they do not represent each pixel directly on disk. When metafiles
are played, they execute the function encoding and perform the necessary graphics
operations to display the graphics output.

I @=

1)
Check Your Progress 2

What are the four major components of GUI? Explain the functioning of any one
component.

................................................................................................................
2) How does MS-Windows enhance DOS environment?

................................................................................................................................
I .3) How are graphics supported in MS-Windows?

................................................................................................................................
1.8.2 Macintosh Toolbox
The tremendous success of the Macintosh computer popalarized the window-style menu-
driven user interface. Macintosh got its earlv start from A ~ ~ l eLisa.
's
The Macintosh GUI is called the Toolbox. The Toolbox consists of a collection of Graphical User
utilities to manipulate Macintosh's resources. In this section we present an overview
of Tool box functionally, examine the object-oriented features of the Toolbox snd
discuss major components of the toolbox's user interface features.
Functional Overview
The Tool box provides a collection of utilities to access and manipulate Macintosh
hardware and software resources. It provides a set of utilities to manipulate interface
components such as windows, menu bar, and dialog boxes. These are discussed in the
following sections. Some ofthe other utilities provided are:

1) Fonts Manager: allows manipulation of system and user-defined fonts.

2) Event Manager: provides monitoring of events generated by keyboard and

keypad.

3) Desk Manager: provides access to desk utilities such as the calculation.

4) Text Edit: provides simple text editing capabilities such as cut and paste.

5) Memory Manager: provides a set of routines to manipulate dynamic memory.

6) Pile Manager: provides a set of routines to manipulate files and transfer data
between files and applications.

7) Silver Driver: provides access to sound and music capabilities.

8) Toolbox Utilities: provides a set of general routines to manipulate icons,

patterns, strings, fixed-point arithmetic, and so forth.
The Toolbox can be manipulated either from the assembly language or Macintosh
Programmer's Workshop (MPW) language (Pascal, C, C++). Toolbox can be
accessed from non-MPW languages including Think C. One of the major features of
the Toolbox is that most of the Toolbox utilities reside in ROM. This provides a very
responsive user interface.
From this point on, we will concentrate on the user components of the Macintosh
Toolbox such as the Window Manager, the Manager, the Menu Manager, the Dialog
Manager, the Scrap Manager, the Draw, and the Resource Manager.
Object-Oriented Features of Toolbox
Just like Microsoft Windows, the Macintosh Toolbox design is object-oriented. For
example, the applicatioii developer defines a new type of window by the template for
a new class of windows. Messages are sent between Toolbox application to change
the behaviour of screen objects such as windows and cursors. When a window needs
to be drawn or resized, a message is sent to the window definition function to
perform the appropriate action.

The Window Manager

The Window Manager allows the application developer to manipulate windows on the
screen. It deals with issues such as overlapping windows, resizing windows, moving
windows around the screen, or changing a window from a foreground to a background
window. Developers can create and manipulate pre-defined Toolbox windows with
any desired shape and form. For example, the user can create a circular or a
hexagonal window.

Toolbox comes with a series of pre-defined windows. The most popular of these
windows is the document window. The document window, depicted in Figure 9, has
Operating System the following regions: Title bar, Close Box, Scroll bar(s), Size Box and content region.
Fundamentals & The Title bar contains the title of the window. By clicking and holding the mouse
Networking
within the region, the window can be dragged to a different screen. The Close Box is
used to shut the window. Clicking inside this box will cause the window to disappear.
The Size Box is used to resize the window. The horizontal or vertical Scroll bars can
be used to scroll the contents of the window. The content region is the area that is
controlled by the application.
Case Box Title Bar

Courses Region ScroI Bar slit bar

Figure 9: Macintosh Toolbox Document Window

When crkating a document window anyone of the components described above can
be omitted. For example, anyone of the Scroll bars can be absent from the document
window.
New types of windows can be created through either the Window Manager or the
Resource Manager. The Resource Editor can be used to create a window template. A
window template essentially defines a class of windows that can be instantiated by an
application. For each class of window, defined by the system or there exists a function
called the window definition function. This function is used to handle the behaviour
and appearance of the window. When a window needs to be drawn or resized, a
message is sent to the window definition function to perform the action for that type
of window.
The Window Manager provides a large collection of routines to create, display, hide
and activate/deactivate windows on the screen.
The Resource Manager
The Resource Manager provides access to various resources such as the windows,
fonts, icons and menus. A user-defined resource such as a window is defined as Resource
Editor. The template of the window and the window definition function is stored in a file
called the resource file. A unique resource identifier is used to access a pre-defined
resource. Resource identifier can be used to recognise the type of resource and the
actual resource file to be read.
The Menu Manager
The Menu Manager provides a set of routines to create and manipulate menus. A
menu bar, &pic ted in Figure 10, can contain a list of one or more menu items. Each
menu item highlights itself when clicked with the mouse; this item is selected. The
developer can define a menu using the standard bar. Menus can be stored as a
resource and managed by the Resource Manager. Once given to Manager, a unique
identifier is used to reference the menu.
 Graphical User
Interface

Figure 10: Macintosh Menu Bar

A menu item can even invoke a pull-down menu, which can be used to or choose
additional selections, see Figure I l . A menu item in a pull-down menu can then
invoke a dialog or an alert box. A menu item can be a textual icon. Unlike MS
Windows, menus in Toolbox cannot be a part of a window Menus and only used to
define the menu bar, which is associated with one Macintosh screen.
The Control Manager
The Control Manager provides a set of routines to define objects like buttons, check
boxes and scroll bars. Controls are usually a window. For example, the scroll bars can be
defined as part of a document. Most often controls are defined as part of a dialog or an
alert box.

I
Figure 11: Macintosh Pull-down Menu

The Dialog Manager

I The Dialog Manager provides a set of routines and data structures to manipulate dialogs
I and alert boxes. Dialog boxes are used to get additional information from the end-user of
1
I
an application. An alert box is used to provide information such as a warning or a cautionary
message.
Operating System The Scrap Manager
Fundamentals &
Networking
The Scrap Manager allows the user to move data from one application to another. A
portion of one window can be cut and placed in the scrap manager and then pasted into
another window. Once a portion ofa window is cut, it is placed in the clipboard. The user
can paste the contents of the clipboard into another window.

The name X, as well as part of the initial design, was derived from an earlier window
system called W developed at Standford University. Currently, the X Window system
is supported by an X Consortium of primarily UNIX-based hardware and software
vendors as a standard base for user interfaces across most UNIX product lines.
Figure 12 illustrates the components of UNIX GUIs based on X Windows.

The X Window system does not define any particular style of interface but rather
provides a mechanism for supporting many styles. X is also network-based. In
contrast with PM, the X architecture is based on the premise that an application can
run one computer, while the graphical presentation of the application's output and
responses from the user can occur on another computer. As such, X provides a
flexible set of primitive window operations but carefully avoids dictating the look and
feel of any particular application. X's device-independent functionally allows it to
serve as a base for a variety of interface styles. X does not provide user interface
components such as buttons, menus, or dialog boxes.

CXI Motif DEC Open

Windows Look
API

Windowing
I HP X Widgets

X Window
.XU1 X View
r l Kits

System Window Server

~~~~i~~
Model
1
r
Proprietary II Un:itcikas I Display
Postscript
I News
Postscript

Operating I UNIX I
System I I
Figure 12: Components of major UNIX-based GUIs

An interface supporting X can theoretically use any X-Window display. The

application program sends calls to the X-Window Library, which packages the
requests as X packets and sends calls to the X-Window server. The server decodes
the X packets and displays them on the screen. Exactly how the packets will be
displayed (i.e. will look) on a workstation depends on the set of pre-designed window
elements called widgets that are unique to the particular workstation in the system
environment. The ultimate look on one workstation may differ substantially from that
on another, but the response to a user's action on these different-looking interfaces
wi I1 6e the same. Several hq brids of X exist.
The application-programming model for X, like PM and Windows, is event-driven, and
the categories of events are similar. Like PM, X programs rest in wait loops until the
underlying window-management system generates an event. Window hierarchy
management is also common to the architecture of both systems. Like PM's window,
windows in X are organized as parents and children, so attributes can be inherited and
effects of the events applied to related members.
 Since does not support any part~cularinterface style, most programmes build Graphical User
applications with libraries that provide an interface to the base window system. One Interface
standard programming interface to X is the C language library known as X Library or
Xlib. This library defines functions for access and control over the display, windows
and input devices. Although commonly used, the library can be difficult and tedious to
work with and often results in hundreds of lines of code for a GUI. A better solution is
a higher-level toolkit, such as the X Toolkit (Xt), upon wllicll many other X Window
toolkits are based.
X Toolkit is the foundation upon which most of the commercial toolkits are based and
is a good example for describing object-oriented functionally. The X Toolkit consists of
two parts: a layer known as Xt Intrinsics and a set of widgets. Xt Intrinsics supports
many of the available widget sets. The widget set implemellts user interface
components including scroll bars, menus and buttons. Xt intrinsics provides a
framework that allows the programmer to combine the components. Both parts are
integrated with Xlib, allowing programmers access to higher-level libraries. A typical
X programming environment is illustrated in Figure 13.

Application
7 Wldget Set

Xt lntrinsics

Xlib C Language Interface

r Network Connection

L X Server

Figure 13: Typical X Window Development Environment

The common distinction in object-oriented programming between an application

programmer (consumer) and a class library programmer (producer) fits well into the X
environment. The X application programmer is likely to use a combination of a higher-
level toolkit (e.g., theToolkit's Xt Intrinsic), Xlib, and a widget set. The class library
programmer, whose job is to create new widgets, is likely to use the capabilities from
within one of the higher-level toolkits.

Depending on the toolkit, the widget programmer may be able to take advantage of
object-oriented capabilities. Xt Intrinsic, for example, uses an object-oriented approach
and organises widgets into classes. Xt Intrinsic defines the basic architecture of a
widget. This allows widgets to work together smoothly when built by different
programmers or potentially when selected from different widget sets. /

I
A typical widget consists of two basic parts: a class record and an instance record.
Each of these components is implemented as a C structure containing data and
pointers to methods. Intrinsics defines the organisation of each structure. All widgets
belonging to a class share a copy of common data methods for that class. Each
individual widget has its own copy of instance-specific data. A widget's class record is
usually allocated and initialised statically at compile time; a unique copy of the instance
record is created at run time for each individual widget.

I
Since all widgets belonging to the same class share the same class record, the class
record must contain only static data that do not relate directly to the state of an
individual widget. For example, every widget's class record includes a field containing
the widget's class name. The class record also contains methods that define the
Operating System
Fundamentals &
Networking
appearance and behaviour ofall widgets in the class. Although most of these methods
operate on the data in the widget's instance records, the methods themselves are
shared by all widgets in a class.
Many object-oriented languages provide inheritance as a langcage construct. The
Xt Intrinsics Is written in the C language, which does not directly support object-
1
oriented programming. Xt itself supports inheritance with a subclassing mechanism.
'To use Xt's subclassi~lgcapabilities, the programmer first finds an existing widget
with similar functiolls (a common step in objt-t-criented design), writes a subclass
that can inherit existing data and methods, a!.,! then adds new data and methods as
needed.
If a similar widget cannot be found, then a foundation class called Core is subclassed.
All widget classes are subclasses of the core widget class. Like the class Window in
PM, Core contains the basic methods for initializing, displaying, and destroying widgets,
and reacting the external resizing. Core also stores basic properties (e.g., the
geometry) of widgets and the data for handling events.
New widget classes inherit the methods (called resources) defined by their superclass
by specifically including the definition ofthe superclass structure in the definition ofthe
new class. Xt Intrinsics provides two mechanisms for inheriting the methods defined by
a superclass. The first mechanism is referred to as chaining. When a method is
chained. Xt Intrinsics invokes the method defined by a widget's superclass first and
then invokes the widget's method. This allows a widget to inherit part of a method
from its superclass.
Xt Intrinsics also provides a mechanism for inheriting methods that are not chained.
This is done by using special symbols to specify methods in the widget's class records.
Each sylnbol is defined by the superclass that added the method to the widget's class
record. These symbols can be used by a subclass of the widget class Core and do not
have to be redefined by each widget class. Only classes that contribute new methods
to the class record need to define new symbols. When a widget class specifies one of
these symbols in the class record, Intrinsics copies the corresponding method used by
the widget's superclass into the widget's class structure at class initialisation time.
Figure 14 illustrates this architecture and shows the relationship between the class
record and instance records of several widgets belonging to widget class core.

Core: Class
Record Core Class

Basic: Class Record

Core Class Part Basic
Core Part

Basic: Instance Basic: Instance

Record Basic Core Record Basic Part
Core Part

I
Figure 14: Inheriting from Widget Class Core

The Xt Intrinsics uses a data-abstraction technique to hide the implementation of a

widget from applications that use the widget. Applications that use a widget see only
the incomplete definition of the widget and therefore cannot directly access fields in
the widget structure.
 Applications declare all widgets as type Widget, which is known as opaque type. This Graphical User
means the application has a pointer to the widget structure but does not have access Interface
to the real definition of the data that it represents. The application cannot access the
contents of the data structure.
Another object-oriented technique promoted in X Windows is to extract some general
functionality from two or more new widget classes and create a metaclass. A
metaclass is an abstract class that is not intended to be instantiated directly but serves
as a superclass for other similar widgets. Wlien creating a complete new widget set, it
is frequently useful to create a class of hierarchy or metaclasses. With this approach,
the top metaclass in the hierarchy defines elements that all widget classes in the set
have in common, and each subclass becomes more and more specialised. Such an
organisation allows the widget programmer to create new widget classes with the
least amount of effort, although there is some extra initial effort required to design and
create metaclasses. For example, this approach is used by the X Widget set from HP,
where most basic widgets inherit from the primitive metaclass and most composite
widgets inherit from the Manager widget class.

@= Check Your Progress 3

I) What types of utilities are provided in Toolbox? Explain their features.

...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
2) Explain the function~ngof Resources Manager and Menu Manager of Toolbox.

3) What is the basic philosophy of X-windows? How is it different from the rest of
GUIs?

1.8.4 NeXT
The NeXT computer, with its three-dimensional user interface, was introduced in
1988. It has grabbed the attention of the computer industry. The machine has been
L
hailed as the most innovative computer invented in recent times. The computer was
initially intended for the educational market. But the NeXT Corporation decided to
widen the market for its machine to the commercial arena.
We provide a brief overview of the IVeXT software tools and capabilities, followed by
!
a discussion of the capabilities of the user-interface design.
I
Overview of NeXT Software
I The NeXT computer is designed to reach a wide range of users from non-technical to
1

I
power users. The non-technical users can deal with the graphic user interface to perform
i
Operating System tasks by manipulating menus, icons, and dialog boxes. The power user can directly interact
Fundamentals & with its Mach Operating system.
Networking
The NeXT system software comprises three major pieces: the Mach operating system,
applications and the NeXT user interface. The Mach operating system, developed at
Carnegie Mellon University, is a re-designed UNIX. Mach re-designs the UNIX kernel
to reduce the size.
NeXT also comes with a set of bundled applications. Currently, there are new
applications being developed that take adv-lntageof NeXT hardware and sofhvare
capabilities. Some of the applications supported on NeXT are NeXT SQL Database i
Server, Mathematica (symbolic mathematics package, WYSIWYG editors and word I
processors, and more.
i
NeXT User Interface 1

The third and last component, the NeXT user interface, is the most impressive piece of
NeXT technology. The NeXT user interface draws heavily on direct manipulation and
modem graphic user interfaces.TheNeXT user interface is composed of four components.
Workspace Manager, Interface Builder, Application Kit, and NeXT Window Server.
The Workspace Manager allows the user to manage files and directories and to
execute programs. When a user logs into a NeXT machine, the Workspace Manager is
started, Figure 15. The Directory Browser window is used to navigate through the
files on disk.

Figure 15: NeXT Workspace Manager Directory Browser

The Interface Builder lets the user create interfaces on the screen without writing a
single line of code. Users simply select the menu, control and screen objects from a
palette, and then move the controls to the desired location.
The Application Kit is a library of user-interface objects. It is used in conjunction with
the Interface Builder to design user interfaces. The Application Kit is discussed in the
next section.
The Window Server handles all screen activities, such as drawing windows and
handling events such as mouse clicks. The window Server itself does not perform the
drawing and screen 110 commands. Display Postscript, designed by Adobe and NeXT,
handles all such activities. Up to now, Postscript has been used only as a language for
printer engines. With tlie advent of the Postscript, both screen and printer share the
same protocol. Therefore one drawing method is used to display objects on the screen
and the printer.
 I Objects
Graphical User
Interface

Figure 16: Application Kit

Application Kit
The Application Kit provides an extensive library of predefined classes. The hierarchy
of classes is shown in Figure 16. These classes provide functionality to define user
interfaces composed of menus, windows, buttons, slide bars, and sound. Each class
within the hierarchy defines the behaviour of its objects. For example, a menu knows
how to handle mouse events, when clicking on a menu item. Window objects know how
to resize the window.
The Application Kit can be extended by adding new s~~bclasses to the hierarchy. To
add new subclasses, the class definition is written using the Objective C language.
Each NeXT machine comes with a copy of Objective C. Objective C is an object-
oriented extension of C. The language is a superset of C incorporating object
orientation features from Smalltalk. Just like Smalltalk, it comes with a large
collection of predefined classes to simplify the software development task. The
language supports abstract data types, inheritance, and operator overloading. Unlike
C++, Objective C does not extend the definition of any existing C language construct.
It relies totally on the introduction of new colistructs and operates to perform tasks
such as class definition or message passing.
To develop user interfaces, designers can use Application Kit from Objective C
directly. This would be very much like developing an application using MacApp. They
call create instances of objects from the Application Kit hierarchy and modify the
Operating System attributes by calling the methods attached to the class definition. But the other niethod
Fundamentals & of defining user interface, using the Interface Builder, is much easier than coding it
entirely in Objective C.
Designing User Interfaces with Interface Builder
The Interface Builder provides an easy to use utility to design a user interface using the
muse and the screen. The Interface Builderis similar to an icon editor or screen
painter. Designers can define the screen layout by selecting the screen objects from the
lnterface Builder palettes. The Interface Builder also helps to define the user-defined
class and make connections between objects. Not all of the coding is automatic; the
Application Kit and the Objective C language are also needed.
Defining a user interface using the Interface Builder requires the following steps:
1) Define layout of screen: the interface designer defines a user interface by
simply selecting screen objects from the Interface Builder palettes, see Figure
17. After picking an object from a palette using the mouse, the object can be
dragged into the destination window and resized as desired.
The lnterface Builder palettes include objects such as windows, menus, buttons,
fields radio buttons and more. At the top of the palettes window, three buttons
allow the interface developer to select a wide array of user-interface objects.
2) Define the user-defined classes: the developer defines a new class definition
using the Classes Window. The Classes Window allows the developer to extend
the Application Kit class hierarchy. The developer navigates through the class
hierarchy and creates a new subclass within the hierarchy. Methods and outlets
(see next step) are defined for this new class definition. When a class is defined
this way, only the template of the class is created.

Figure 17: NeXT interface Builder palette .

3) Making connections: up to this point we have defined the layout of the user
interface. At this step, the developer needs to make connections among
application objects. For example, when a stroller's slide bar is moved, a message
is sent to an application object to perform certain actions like shifting the text.
Again the Inspector is used to connect user interface objects with methods of
classes within the application.
4) Actual application code: the previous stepsare handled by Interface Builder
directly. The last step is accomplished by writing the application code in Objective
C. When the developer is done with the first two steps, the lnterface Builder
defines the source files necessary to build the application. These files contain the
template for the class definitions and the connections made among objects. At this
stage, the developer needs to extend these source files. Extensions are made to
specify the logic of the program and the code for method definitions.
 Check Your Progress 4 Graphical User
Interface
1) What are the major components of NeXTSTEP? How do these elements

2) How are applications written in NeXTSTEP environment?

The GUI has already made a tremendous contribution to the increased usability of
computer systems. It is with great excitement that we look forward to future
innovations in human-computer interfaces. GUI development is at the vanguard of
I
creativity in many areas, such as ergonomics, software development tools, computer I

infancy of GUls. There remains much to be done in terms of increasing the 1

we discussed several issues related to GUI including functioninn of several popular

cp Check Your Progress 1

I
1) GUI is a system that allows creation and manipulation of user interfaces
employing windows, menus, icons, dialog boxes, etc.
The basic features of GUI are:
Pointing device such as mouse, which controls cursor.
Point and shoot functionality under control of device, which cause screen
menus to appear or disappear.
Support ofwindows, which graphically display the status of a computer
program.
Icons that represent files, directories and other application and system
entities.

and how to do it.

2) a) When a screen is split into several independent regions each one is called a
window. Several applications can display results simultaneously in different
windows. The user can switch from one window to another window.
Windowing systems have capabilities to display windows either tiled or
lapped. Users can organize the screen by resizing the window or moving
related windows closer. 31
Operating System b) No model answer is given.
Fundamentals &
c) No model answer is given.

d) No model answer is given.

3) Bit-mapped display is made up oftiny dots (pixel) that is independently

addressable and has much finer resolutions than character displays. Bit-mapped
displays have advantages over character displays. One of the major advantages is
of graphic capability.

2 Check Your Progress 2

1) There are four major components of GUI.

i) A windowing system
ii) An emerging model
iii) An application program interface

iv) A set of tools and frameworks for creating interfaces and developing
integrated application.
The API (Application Program Interface) is a set of programming language functions
that allow the programmer to specify how the actual application will control the menus
scroll bars and icons that appear on the screen. Like in windowing models, APIs align
with particular GUls. The features vary from package to package.

2) There are several ways MS-Windows enhance DOS environment.

i) Device independence. It presents a device independent interface to

applications. Unlike most oftoday's DOS applications, a window application
is not bound to the underlying hardware such as mouse, keyboard or display
windows.

ii) Multitasking. Users can have several applications in progress at the same
time. Each application can be active in a separate window.
iii) Memory management. Windows also provide memory management, the
640K limitation of MS-DOS. An application has the ability to extend
memory and share data segments with other applications.

iv) Data sharing. Clipboards allow data transfer between application clipboard.
Any type of data can be transferred from one window to another through
the clipboard.

3) No model answer is given.

Check Your Progress 3

1) The toolbox provides a collection of utilities to access and manipulate Macintosh

hardware and software resources. It provides a set of utilities to manipulate
windows menu bar and dialog boxes. Some of the other utilities provided are:

i) Fonts manager: allows manipulation of system and user defined fonts.

ii) Event manager: provides monitoring of events generated by keyboard and

iii) Text edit: provides simple text editing capabilities such as cut and paste.

iv) Toolbox utilities: provides a set of general routines to manipulate strings,

fixed point arithmetic and so forth.
Graphical User
Interface
 - "

UNIT 2 INTRODUCTION TO OPERATING

SYSTEM
Structure Page Nos.
2.0 Introduction 34
2.1 Objectives 33
2.2 What is an Operating System? 35
2.3 Evolution of ~ p & l ' t \ f lSystem
g
3.3, l Serial Processing
2.3.2 Batch Processing
2.3.3 Multi@Wgtnrntfling

2.4 Operating System Structure

2.4.1 Layered Structure Approach
2.4.2 Virtual Maehinl
2;4J elien't-server ~ o d e l
2.4.4 Kernel Approach
2.5 Classification ofAdvanced Operating System
2.5.1 Architecture Driven Operating System
2.5.2 Applikati~tlDrived Operating Systenl
2.6 ~harai:teristjcsof Modern Operating System
2.6.1 Microkernel Architecture
2.6.2 Multithreadifl%
2.6.3 symmetric Mi~tiprocessin~

2.9 Further ~ e ~ d f d g s 54
-

2.0 INTRODUCTION
An operatifig system is a system software which may be viewed as an organized
selletztion of software consisting of procedures for operating a computer and providing
an eflvironment for execution of programs. It acts as an interface between users and
the hardware of a computer system.

There are many important reasons for studying operating systems. Some of thcin are:

1) User interacts with the computer through the operating system in order to
accomplish his task since it is his primary interface with a computer.

2) It helps users to understand the inner functions of a computer very closely.

3) Many concepts and techniques found in the operating system have general
applicability in other applications.

The introductory concepts and principles of an operating system will be the main
issues for discussion in this unit. The unit starts with the basic definition and then goes
on to explain the stages of evolution of operating systems. It further gives details of
several approaches to operating system design.

111 the last two subsections of tile unit we classify an advanced opelati1:g system and
explain some characteristics of modern operating systerns.
Operating System etc., which replace assembly language for system programming. The use of system
Fundamentals & calls in C or Pascal programs very much resemble pre-defined fiinctions or subroutine

As an example of how system calls are used, let us consider a simple program to copy
data from one file to another. 111an interactive system, the following system calls will
be generated by the operating system:
Prompt message for inputting two file names and reading it from the terminal.
Open source and destination file.
Prompt error message in case the source file cannot be open because it is
protected against access or because the destination file cannot be created since
there is already a file with this name.
Read the source file
Write into the destination file
Display status information regarding various Read/Write error conditions. For
example, the program may find that the end of the file has been reached or that
there was a hardware failure. The write operation may encounter various errors,
depending upon the output device (no more disk space, physical end of tape,
printer out of paper and so on).
Close both files after the entire file is copied.
As we can observe, a user program makes heavy use of the operating system. All
interaction between the program and its environment must occur as the result of
requests from the program to the operating system.
Operating System Commands: Apart from system calls, users may interact with
the operating system directly by means of operating system commands.
For example, if you want to list files or sub-directories in MS-DOS, you invoke dir
command. In either case, the operating system acts as an interface between users
and the hardware of the computer system. The fundamental goal of computer
systems is to solve user problems. Towards this goal computer hardware is
designed. Since the bare hardware alone is not very easy to use, programs
(software) are developed. These programs require certain common operations,
such as controlling peripheral devices. The command function of controlling and
allocating resources are then brought together into one piece of software; the
operating system.
To see what operating systems are and what operating systems do, let us consider
how they have evolved over the years. By tracing their evolution, we can identi@ the
common elements of operating systems and examine how and why they have
developed as they have.

2.3 EVOLUTWN OF OPERATING SYSTEMS

An operating system may process its task serially (sequentially) or concurrently
(several tasks simultaneously). It means that the resources of the computer system
may be dedicated to a single program until its completion or they may be allocated
among several programs in different stages of execution. The feature of the operating
system to execute multiple programs interleaved fashion or different time cycles is
called multiprogramming systems. In this section, we will try to trace the evolution
of the operating system. In particular, we will describe serial processing, batch
processing and multiprogramming.
 2.3.1 Serial Processing Introduction to
Operating System
Programming i n 1's and 0's (machine language) was quite common for early computer
systems. lnstructions and data used to be fed into the computer by means of console
switches or perhaps through a hexadecimal keyboard. Programs used to be started by
loading the program comp~lterregister with the address of the first instruction of a
program and its result (program) used to be examined by the contents of various
registers and memory locations of the machine. Therefore. programming in this style
caused a low utilisatio~~of both users and machine.
The advent of lnputloutput devices, such as punched cards, paper tape and language
translators (Compiler IAsse~nblers)brought a significant step in computer system
utilisation. Programs started being coded into programming language first changed into
object code (binary code) by translator and then automatically loaded into memory by
a program called ioader. After transferring control to the loaded program, the
execution of a program begins and its result gets displayed or printed. Once in
memory, the program may be re-run with a different set of input data.
The process of develop~nentand preparation of a program in such an environment is
slow and cu~nbersomedue to serial processing and numerous manual processing. In a
typical sequence first the editor is called to create a source code of user program
written in programming language, then the translator is called to convert a source code
into binary code and then finally the loader is called to load the executable program
into the main memory for execution. If syntax errors are detected, the whole process
must be redone from the beginning.
The next development was the replacement of card-decks with standard inputloutput
and some useful I':jrary programs, which were further linked with user programs
through system software called linker. While there was a definite improvement over
machine language approach, the serial mode of operation is obviously not very
efficient. This results in low utilization of resources.
2.3.2 Batch Processing
Utilisation of compi~terresources and improvement in programmer's productivity was
still a major problem. During the time that tapes were being mounted or the
programmer was operating the console, the CPU was sitting idle.
The next logical step in the evolution of the operating system was to automate the
sequencing of operations involved in program execution and in the mechanical aspects
of program development. Jobs with similar requirements were batched together and
run through the computer as a group. For example, suppose the operator received one
FORTRAN program, one COBOL program and another FORTRAN program. If he
runs them in that order, he would have to set up for FORTRAN program environment
(loading the FORTRAN compiler tapes), then set up COBOL program and finally
FORTRAN program again. If he runs the two FORTRAN programs as a batch,
however, he could set up only once for FORTRAN thus saving operator's time.
Batching similar jobs brought utilisation of system resources quite a bit. But there were
still problems. For example, when ajob is stopped, theoperator would have to notice
that fact by observing the console, determine why the program stopped and then load
the card reader or paper tape reader with the next job and restart the computer.
During this transition from one job to the next, the CPU sat idle.
To overcome this idle time, a small program called a resident monitor was created
which is always resident in the memory. It automatically sequenced one job to another
job. The resident monitor acts according to the directives given by a programmer
through control cards, which contain information Iike marking ofjob's beginnings and
-ehdings, commands for loading and executing programs, etc. These co~nmandsbelong
to job control language. These job control language commands are included with
user program and data. Here is an example ofjob control language commands.
Operating System $COB - Execute the COBOL compiler
Fundamentals &
Networking $JOB - First card of a job
$END - Last card of a job
$LOAD - Load program into memory
$RUN - Execute the user program
Figure 2 shows a sample card deck set up for a simple batch system.

$ END
DATA FROM PROGRAM

$ RUN
$ LOAD
I - I

USER'S PROGRAM TO BE -
COMPOSED
-
1 $COB
$JOB -

Figure 2: Card Deck for Cobol Program for a Simple Batch Syscern

With sequencing of program execution mostly automated by batch operating system,

the speed discrepancy between the fast CPU and the comparatively slow inputloutput
devices such as card readers, printers emerged as a major performance bottleneck.
Even a slow CPU works in the microsecond range, with millions of instructions per
second. A fast card reader, on the other hand, might read 1200 cards per minute.
Thus, the difference in speed between the CPU and its inputloutput devices may be
three orders of magnitude or more.
The relative slowness of inputloutput devices can mean that the CPU is often waiting
for inputloutput. As an example, an assembler or compiler may be able to process
300 or more cards per second. A fast card reader, on the other hand, may be able to
read only 1200 cards per minute. This means that assembling or compiling a 1200
card program would require only 4 seconds of CPU time but 60 seconds to read.
Thus, the CPU would be idle for 56 out of 60 seconds or 93.3 per cent of the time.
The resulting CPU utilization is only 6.7 per cent. The process is similar for output
operations. The problem is that while an inputloutput is occurring, the CPU is idle,
waiting for the inputloutput to complete; while the CPU is executing, inputloutput
devices are idle.
Over the years, of course, improvements in technology resulted in faster inputloutput
devices. But CPU speed increased even faster. According to Moore's Law, CPU
speed is getting doubled every 18 months. Therefore, the need was to increase the
throughput and resources utilization by overlapping inputloutput and processing
operations. Channels, peripheral controllers and later dedicated inputloutput
processors brought a major improvement in this direction. DMA (Direct Memory
Access) chip which directly transfers the entire block of data from its own buffer to
main memory without intervention by the CPU was a major development. While the
CPU is executing, DMA can transfer data between high-speed inputloutput devices
and the main memory. The CPU requires to be interpreted per block only by DMA.
Apart from DMA, there are two other approaches to improving system performance
by overlapping input, output and processing. These are called buffering and
spooling.
 Quffering is a method of overlapping input, outppt and processing of a singlejob. The
idea is quite simple. After data bas been read and the CPU is about to start operating
on it, the input device is instructed to begin the jiext input immediately. The CPU and
iqput device are then both busy. With luck, by the time the CPU is ready for the next
data item, the input device will have finished readlng it. The CPU can then begin
processing the newly read data, while the input device starts to read the following data.
Similarly, this can be done for output. In this case, the CPU creates data that is put into
a buffer until an output device can accept it.

If the CPU is, on the average, much faster than an input device, buffering will be of
little use. If the CPU is always faster, then it always finds an empty buffer and has to
wait for the input device. For outpyt, the CPU can proceed at full speed until,
eventually, all system buffers are full. Then the CPU must wait for the output device.
This situation occurs with inputjoutput bound jobs where the amount af iaput/output
device, the speed of execution is controlled by the input/output devlce, not by the speed
of the CPU.

A more sophisticated form pf inputloutput buffering is called SPOOLING

(Simultaneous Plieripheyal Operation 011Cine) which essentially uses the hard disk
(secondary memory) as a very large buffer ( ~ i ~ u3)
output files.
r efor reading and for storing I

1 Figure 3: Spooling I
Buffering overlaps input, output and processing of a singlejob whereas Spooling
allows CPU to overlap the input of one job with computation and output of
other jobs. Therefore this approach is better than buffering. Even in a simple system,
the spooler may be reading the input of one job while printing the output of a different
I job.
2.3.3 Multiprogramming
Buffering and Spooling improve system performance by overlapping the input, output
and computation of a singlejob, but both ofthem have their limitations. A single user
cannot always keep CPU or I10 devices busy at all times. Multiprogramming offersa
more efficient approach to increase system performance. In order to increase the
resource utilisation, systems supporting multiprogramming approach allow more than
one job (program) to reside in the memory to utilise CPU time at any moment. More
number of programs competing for system resources better will mean better resource
uti lisation.
The idea is implemented as follows. The main memory of a system contains more than
one program (Figure 4).
 Operating System Primary Memory
Fundamentals &

MONITOR

PROGRAM 1

PROGRAM 2

. . .
. . .
PROGRAM N

Figure 4: Memory Layout in Multiprogramming Environment

The operating system picks one of the programs and starts executing. During
execution of program 1 it needs some I10 operation to complete in a sequential
execution environment (Figure 5a).The CPU would then sit idle whereas in a
multiprogramming system, (Figure 5b) the operating system will simply switch over to
the next program (program 2).
Program 1 Program 2

(a): Seauential Execution -

1 (b): Execution in Multiprogramming Environment

Figure 5: Multiprogramming

I
When that program needs to wait for some I10 operation, it switches over to program
3 and so on. Ifthere is no other new program left in the main memory, the CPU will
pass its control back to the previous programs.
Multiprogramming has traditionally been employed to increase the resources utilisation
of a computer system and to support multiple simultaneously interactive users
(terminals).
Compared to the operating system, which supports only sequential execution, the
multiprogramming system requires some form of CPU and memory management
strategies. which will be discussed in the next section.
 Introduction to
2.4 OPEFUTING SYSTEM STRUCTURE Operating System

Since operating system is a very large and complex software, supports a large number
of functions. It should be developed as a collection of several smaller modules with
carefully defined inputs, outputs and functions rather than a single piece of software. In
this section, we will examine different operating system structure.

2.4.1 Layered Structure Approach

The operating system architecture based on layered approach consists of a number of
layers (levels), each built on top of lower layers. The bottom layer is the hardware; the
highest layer is the user interface. The first system constructed in this way was the
THE system built by E.W. Dijkestra (1968) and his students. The THE system was a
simple batch operating system which had 32k of 27 bit words.
The system supported 6 layers (Figure 6).

Figure 6: The layered structure of THE operating system

As shown in Figure 6, layer 0 dealt with hardware; the higher layer 1 handled
allocation ofjobs to processor. The next layer implemented memory management.
Level 3 contained the device driver for the operator's console. By placing it, as well as
I10 buffering, at level 4, above memory management, the device buffers could be
placed in virtual memory. The 110 buffering was also above the operator's console, so
that VO error conditions could be output to the operator's console.
The main advantages of the layered approach is modularity which helps in debugging
and verification of the system easily. The layers are designed in such a way that it uses
operation and services only of a layer below it. A higher layer need not know how
these operations are implemented, only what these operations do. Hence each layer
hides implementation details from higher-level layers. Any layer can be debugged
without any concern about the rest of the layer.
The major difficulty with the layered approach is definition of a new level i.e. how to
differentiate one level from another. Since a layer can use the services of a layer below
it, it should be designed carefully. For example, the device driver for secondary memory
must be at a lower level than the memory management routines since memory
management requires the ability to use the backing store.

2.4.2 Virtual Machine

-
It is a concept which creates the illusion of a real machine. It is created bfa virtual
machine operating system that inakes a single real machine appear to be several real
machines. This type of situation is analogous to the communication line ofTelephone
Company, which enables separate and isolated conversations over the same wire(s).
41
 Operating System The following Figure illustrates this concept.
Fundamentals &
Networking
A Real Machine

Virtual
machine
operating
system OS

.-
1

I
I
CPU

O S I
'
I
1
. l l C I I .

'
I
I
CPU

OS2
'
I
I
,lllll.

I
u
I
I
CPU

OS3
I

I
I

I
Reader

Virtual
Disk
0Virtual
Disk Virtual
Input device

I Figure 7: Creation of several virtual machines by a single physical 111achine

I From the user's viewpoint, a virtual machine can be made to appear ve1.J.similar to an
existing real machine or they can be entirely different. An important aspect of this.
technique is that each user can run the operating system of his own choice. This fact
is depicted by OS, (Operating System I), OS,, OS, etc. as in Figure 7.

1 To understand this concept, let us try to understand the difference between

conventional multiprogramming system (Figure 8) and virtual tnacl~ine
multiprogramming (Figure 9). In conventional multiprogramming, processes are

I
allocated a portio~iof the real machine resources. The same machine resources are
distributed among several processes.

-
Conventional multi-
programming operating system

I 47 Figure 8: Conventional multiprogramming

 Virtual Machine
Operating System

'I
Virtual Virtual
Virtual
Machine Machine
Machine
1 2 N

Figure 9: Virtual Machine Multiprogramming

In the virtual multiprogramming system, a single real machine gives the illusion of
several virtual machines, each having its own virtual processor, storage and I10
devices possibly with much larger capacities.
The virtual machine has many uses and advantages:

1) Concurrent running of dissimilar operating systems by different users.

2) Elimination of certain conversion problems.

3) Software development: Programs can be developed and debugged for machine

configurations that is different from those of host (for example virtual operating system
VM1370 can produce virtual 370 that are different from the real 370 such as larger
main memory).

4) Security and Privacy: The high degree of separation between independent

virtual machines aids in ensuring privacy and security. The most widely used operating
system in this category is VMl370. It manages IBMl370 computer and creates the
illusion that each of several users has a complete system 370 (including wide range of
110 devices) which can run different operating systems at once, each of them on its
own virtual machine.
It is also possible through software to share files existing on physical disk and much
information through virtual communication software.
The virtual machines are created by sharing the resources of the physical computer.
CPU scheduling can be used to share the CPU and make it appear that users have
their own processor. Users are thus given their own virtual machine. They can run on
their virtual machines any software desired. The virtual machine software is
concerned with multiprogram~ningmultiple virtual machines onto a physical machine
but need not consider any other software support from user.
The heart of the system, know11as the virtual machine monitor, runs on the bare
hardware and does the multiprogramming, providing not one, but several virtual
machines to the next layer up, as shown in Figure 7. However, unlike all other
operating systems, these virtual machines are not extended machines, with files and
other nice features. Instead, they are exact copies of the bare hardware, including
kernelluser mode, 110, interrupts, and everything else the real machine has.

I
Because each virtual machine is identical to the true hardware, each one can run any
operating system that will run directly on the hardware. In fact, different virtual
machines can, and usually do, run different operating systems. SOIIIC run one of the
descendants of OS1360 for batch processing, while other ones run a simple, single-
user, interactive system called CMS (Conversational Monitor System) for time-sharing
Operating System When a CMS program executes a system call, the call is trapped to the operating
Fmodamentals & system in its own virtual machine, not to VMl370; just as it would if it were running on
a real machine instead of a virtual one. CMS then issues the normal hardware 110
instructions for reading its virtual disk or whatever is needed to carry out the call.
These 110 instructions are trapped by VM1370, which then performs them as part of
its simulation of the real hardware. By making a complete separation of the functions
of multiprogramming and providing an extended machine, each of the pieces can be
mush simpler and more flexible.
The virtual machine concept has several advantages. Notice that there is complete
protection. Each machine is completely isolated from all other virtual machines, so
there is no problem with protection. On the other hand, there is no sharing. To provide
sharing, two approaches have been implemented. First, it is possible to share a
minidisk. This scheme is modeled after a physical shared disk, but implemented by
software. With this technique, files can be shared. Second, it is possible to define a
network of virtual machines, each of which can send information over the virtual
communications network. Again, the network is modeled after physical communication
networks, but implemented in software.
Such a virtual machine system is a perfect vehicle for operating systems research and
development. Normally changing an operating system is a difficult process. Since
operating systems are large and complex programs, it is difficult to be sure that a
change in one point does not cause obscure bugs in some other part. This situation can
be particularly dangerous because of the power of the operating system. Since the
operating system executes in monitor mode, a wrong change in a pointer could cause
an error that would destroy the entire file system. Thus, it is necessary to test all
changes to the operating system carefully.
But the operating system runs on and controls the entire machine. Therefore, the
current system must be stopped and taken out of use, while changes are made and
tested. This is commonly called system development time. Since it makes the system
unavailable to users, system development time is often scheduled late at night or on
weekends.
A virtual machine system can eliminate much of this problem. System programmers
are given their own virtual machine and system development is done on the virtual
machine, instead of on a physical machine. The normal system operation seldom need
be disrupted for system development.

2.4.3 Client-Sewer Model

VM1370 gains much in simplicity by moving a large part ofthe traditional operating
system code (implementingthe extended machine) into a higher layer itself. VM1370
is still a complex program because stimulating a number of virtual 370s is not that
simple (especially ifyou want to do it efficiently).
A trend in modern operating systems is to take this idea of moving up into a higher
layers even further, and remove as much as possible from the operating system,
leaving a minimal kernel. The usual approach is to implement most of the operating
system functions in user processes. To request a service, such as reading a block of a
file, a user process (now known as the client process) sends the request to a server
process, which then does the work and sends back the answer.
In this model, shown in Figure 10, all that the kernel does is to handle the
communication between clients and servers. By splitting the operating system up into
parts, each part is made to handle one facet of the system, such as file service,
process service, and terminal service or memory service. This way, each part
becomes small and manageable. Furthermore, because all the servers run as user-
 {nodeprocesses, and not in kernel mode, they do not have direct access to the Introduction to
hardware. As a consequence, if a bug in the file server is triggered, the file service Operating System
niay crash, but this will not usually bring the whole machine down.

1I Client I Client I Process I Terminal I ....... I File I Manay I

Kernel
mode
Kernel

Figure 10: The Client-Server Model

Another advantage oftlie client-server model is its adaptability to use in distributed

systems (Figure 11). If a client communicates with a server by sending it messages,
the client need not know whether the message is handled locally in its own machine, or
whether it was sent across a network to a server on a remote machine. As far as the
client is concerned, the szme thing happens in both cases: a request was sent and a
reply came back.

Machine 1 Machine 2 Machine 3 Machine 4

Client File Process Terminal

----+ server server server
Kernel Kernel Kernel Kernel

Message from Client to Server

Figure 11: The Client-Server Model in a distributed System

'The picture painted above of a kernel that handles only the transport of messages from
clients to servers and back is not completely realistic. Some operating system functio~is
(such as loading commands into the physical 110 device registers) are difficult, if not
impossible, to do from user-space programs. There are two ways of dealing with this
problem. One way is to have some critical server processes (e.g., I10 device drivers)
actually run in kernel mode, with complete access to all the hardware, but still
communicate with other processes using the normal message mechanism.
The other way is to build a minimal amount of mechanism into the kernel, but leave
the policy decisions up to servers in user space. For example, the kernel might
recognize that a message sent to a certain special address means to take the contents
I of that message and load it into the I10 device registers from some disk, to start a disk
read. In this example, the kernel would not even inspect the bytes in the message to
see if they were valid or meaningful; it would just blindly copy them into the disk's
device registers. (Obviously some scheme for limiting such messages to authorized
. processes only must be used). The split between mechanism and policy is an important
concept; it occurs again and again in operating systems in various contexts.
2.4.4 Kernel Approach
Kernel is that part of operating system which directly makes interface with hardware
1
,

system. Its main functions are:

I
Operating System To provide a mechanism for creation and deletion of processes.
Fundamentals &
To provide processor scheduling, memory management and 110 management
To provide a mechanism for synchronisation of processes so that processes
synchronise their actions.
To provide a mechanism for interprocess communication.
The UNIX operating system is based on kernel approach (Figure 12). It consists of - ,

two separable parts: (i) Kernel (ii) System Programs.

As shown in the Figure 12, the kernel is between system programs and hardware.
The kernel supports the file system, processor scheduling, memory management and
other operating system functions through system calls. The UNIX operating system
supports a large number of system calls for process management and other operating
system functions. Through these system calls, the program utilises the services of the
operating system (kernel).

Figure 12: UNIX operating system structure

Check Your Progress 1

1) What is a system call?

...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................
2) Define the essential difference between:
a) Spooling
b) Buffering
 Introduction to
Operating System

1 The drive for advanced operating systems has come from two directions. First, it has
I come from advances in the architecture of multicomputer systems and is now driven
by a wide variety of high-speed architectures. Hardware design of extremely fast
parallel and distributed systems is fairly well understood. These architectures offer
great potential for speed up but they also present a substantial challenge to operating
I
system designers. The following Figure I3 gives a broad classification of the
advanced operating system.
t
1C Advanced operating ..

Architecture driven ~ ~ ~ l i c a tdriven

ion

Figure 13: Classification of Advanced OS

A second class advanced operating system is driven by applications. There are several
important applications that require special operating system support, as a requirement
as well as for efficiency. General-purpose operating systems are too broad in nature

time systems, have received considerable attention in the past and the operating system
issues for these systems have been extensively examined.
t
2.5.1 Architecture Driven Operating System
A brief discussion of three operating systems in the category of the Architecture

A network operating system is a collection of software and associated protocols that

allows a set of autonomous computers, which are interconnected by a computer network,
to be used together in a convenient and cost-effective manner. In a network operating
system, the users are aware of the existence of multiple computers and can log in to
remote machines and copy files from one machine to an other machine.
Some of typical characteristics of network operating systems which make it different
from a distributed operating system (discussed in the next section) are the followings:
Each computer has its own private operating system instead of running part of a
global system wide operating system.
I Each user normally works on hislher own system: using a different system
requires some kind of remote login, instead of having the operating system
, dynamically allocate processes to CPUs.
Users are typically aware of where each of their files are kept and must move
file from one system to another with explicit file transfer commands instead of
having file placement managed by the operating system.
Operating System The system has little or no fault tolerance; if 5% of the personal computers crash, only
Fundamentals & 5% of the users are out of business.
Networking
The network operating system offers many capabilities including:
Allowing users to access the various resources of the network hosts.
Controlling access so that only users in the proper authorization are allowed to
access particular resources.
Making the use of remote resources appear to be identical to the use of local
resources.
Providing up-to-the minute network documentation on-line.
As we said earlier, the key issue that distinguishes a network operating system from a
distributed one is how aware the users are of the fact that multiple machines are being
used. The visibility occurs in three primary areas; file system, protection and program
execution.

Distributed Operating System

Distributed operating systems are operating systems for a network of autonomous
computers connected by a communication network. A distributed operating system
controls and manages the hardware and software resources of a distributed system
such that its users view the entire system as a powerful monolithic computer system.
When a program is executed in a distributed system, the user is not aware of where
the program is executed or of the location of the resources accessed.

The basic issues in the design of a distributed operating system are the same as in a
traditional operating system, viz., process synchronisation, deadlocks, scheduling, file
systems, interprocess communication, memory and buffer management, failure
recovery, etc. However, several idiosyncrasies of a distributed system, namely, the
lack of both shared memory and a physical global clock, and unpredictable
communication delays make the design of distributed operating systems much more
difficult.

Network operating systems focus on the use of remote services and resources
existing on a network of computer systems. Distributed operating systems focus on
effective utilization of resources in distributed computing environments.

Distributed systems provide many advantages concerning cost-effectivenessof both

computations and resources. The primary advantages are:

Resource sharing

Reliability

Communication

Incremental growth

Resource sharing has been the main motivation for distributed systems. The
earliest form of a distributed system was a computer network which enabled the
use of specialized hardware and software resources by geographically distqnt
users. Resource sharing continues to be an important aspect of distributed systems
today. However, the nature of distribution and sharing of resources has changed
due to advances in networking technology. Sharing of resources is now equally
meaningful in a local area network (LAN), for example sharing laser printers in
the lab.
One aspect of reliability is availability of a resource despite failures in a system. A Introduction to
distributed environment can offer enhanced availability of resources through Operating System
redundancy of resources and communication paths. For example, availability of a disk
resource can be increased by having two or more disks located at different sites in the
system. If one disk is unavailable due to a disk or site failure, a program can use some
other disk. The availability of a data resource, e.g., a file, can be similarly enhanced by
keeping copies of the file at various sites in the system.

Communication between users at different locations is greatly facilitated using a

distributed system. There are two important aspects to communication. First, users
have unique id's in a distributed system. Their use in communication automatically
invokes the security mechanisms of the OS, thereby ensuring privacy and authenticity
of communication. Second, use of a distributed system also implies continued
availability of communication when users migrate to different sites of a system.

Distributed systems are capable of incremental growth, i.e., the capabilities of a system
(e.g. its processing power) can be enhanced at a price proportional to the nature and
size of the enhancement. A major advantage of this feature is that enhancements need
not be planned in advance. This is in contrast to the classical mainframe architectures
where enhancements often took the form of upgradation, that is, replacement of
subsystems by more powerful ones -hence enhancement costs tended ta be
disproportionate to the nature and size of an enhancement.

Distributed systems today cover a wide spectrum of computer hardware, software and
topological configurations; resource sharing services range from off-line access to real-
time access and topologies vary from locally distributed to geographically distributed.

Multiprocessor Operating Systems

A typical multiprocessor system consists of a set of processors that share a set of

physical memory blocks over an interconnection network. Thus, a multiprocessor
system is a tightly coupled system where processors share an address space. A
multiprocessor operating system controls and manages the hardware and software
resources such that users view the entire systems as a powerful uniprocessor system;
a user is not aware of the presence of multiple processors and the interconnection
network.

The basic issues in the design of a multiprocessor operating system are the same as in
a traditional operating system. However, the issues of process synchronisation,task
scheduling, memory management, and protection and security become more complex
because the main memory is shared by many physical processors.

2.5.2 Application Driven Operating System

A brief discussion of three operating systems in the category of the Architecture
Driven OS follows:

Multimedia Operating System

The operating system is the shield of the computer hardware against all software
components. It provides a comfortable environment for the execution of programs, and
it ensures effective utilisation of the computer hardware. The operating system offers
various services related to the essential resources of a computer: CPU, main memory,
storage and all input and output devices.

For the processi~igof audio and video, multimedia application demands that humans
perceive these media in a natural, error-free way. These continuous media data
Operating System originate at sources like microphones, cameras and files. From these sources, the data
Fundamentals & are transferred to destinations like loudspeakers, video windows and files located at
the same computer or at a remote station. On the way from source to sink, the digital
data are processed by at least some type of move, copy or transmit operation. In this
data manipulation process there are always many resources which are under the
control of the operating system. The integration of discrete and continuous multimedia
data demands additional services from many operating system components.

The major aspect in this context is real-time processing of continuous media data.
Process management must take into account the timing requirements imposed by the
handling of multimedia data. Appropriate scheduling methods should be applied. In
contrast to the traditional real-time operating systems, multimedia operating systems
also have to consider tasks without hard timing restrictions under the aspect of
fairness.

To obey timing requirements, single components are conceived as resources that are
reserved prior to execution. This concept of resource reservation has to cover all
resources on a data path, i.e. all resources that deal with continuous media. It also
may affect parts of the application that process continuous media data. In distributed
systems, for example, resource management also comprises nehrork capacity.

The communication and synchronization between single processes must meet the
restrictions of real-time requirements and timing relations among different media. The
main memory is available as a shared resource to single processes.

In multimedia systems, memory management has to provide access to data with a

guaranteed timing delay and efficient data manipulation functions. For instance,
physical data copy operations must be avoided due to their negative impact on
performance; buffer management operations (such as are known from communication
systems) should be used.

Database Operating System

Database systems place special requirements on operating systems. These

requirements have their roots in the specific environment that database systems
support. A database system must support: the concept of a transaction; operations to
store, retrieve, and manipulate a large volume of data efficiently; primitives for
concurrency control, and system failure recovery. To store temporary data and data
retrieved from secondary storage, it must have a buffer management scheme.

Real-time Operating System

The main characteristics of the real-time systems is the correctness of the

computation. This correctness does not apply to error-free computation, but also on
the time in which the result is processed and produced. Therefore, the real-time
systems must execute its critical workload in time to prevent failures. Examples of
applications requiring support of real-time systems are process control, air traffic
control, guidance of missile systems, etc.

Real-time systems also place special requirements on operating system, which have
their roots in the specific application that the real-time system is supporting. Adistinct
feature of real-time systems is that jobs have completion deadlines. A job should be
completed before its deadline to be of use (in soft real-time system) or to avert a
disaster (in hard real-time systems). The major issue in the design of real-time
operating systems is the scheduling ofjobs in such a way that a maximum number of
jobs satis@ their deadlines. Other issues include designing languages and primitives to
effectively prepare and execute a job schedule.
@= Check Your Progress 2 lntroduction to
Operating System
1) What are the basic design issues in the distributed operating systems.

2) What is the basic difference between Network operating systems and

Distributed operating systems.

2.6 CHARACTERISTICS OF MODERN

OPERATING SYSTEM
Over the years, there has been a gradual evolution of operating system structure and
capabilities. However, in recent years a number of new design elements have been
introduced into both new operating systems and new releases of existing operating
systems that create a major change in the nature of operating systems. These modern
operating systems respond to new developments in hardware and new applications.
Among the key hardware drivers are mdtiprocessor machines, greatly increased
machine speed, high speed network attachments, and increasing the'size and variety
of memory storage devices. In the application arena, multimedia applications, Internet
and Web access, and clientjserver computing have influenced operating system
design.
The rate of change in the demands on operating systems requires not just
modifications and enhancements to existing architectures but new ways of organising
the operating system. A wide range of different approaches and design elements has
been tried in both expiremental and commercial operating systems, but much of the
work fits into the following categories:
Microkernel architecture
Multithreading
Symmetricmultiprocessing
Most operating systems, until recently, featured a large monolithic kernel. Most of
what is thought of as operating system functionality is provided in these large kernels,
including scheduling, file system, networking, device drivers, memory management and
more. Typically, a monolithic kernel is implemented as a single process with all
elements sharing the same address space. A microkernel architecture assigns only
a few essential functions to the kernel, including address spaces, interprocessor
communication (IPC), and basic scheduling. Other OS services are provided by
processes, sometimes called servers, that run in user mode and are treated like any
other application by the microkemel. This approach decouples kernel and server
development. Servers may be customised to specific application or environment
requirements.The microkernel approach simplifies implementation, provides flexibility,
and is well suited to a distributed environment. In essence, a microkernel interacts
with local and remote server processes in the same way, facilitating construction of
distributed systems.
51
Operating System 2.6.1 Microkernel Architecture
Fundamentals &
A microkernel architecture assigns only a few essential functions to the kernel,
including address spaces, interprocess communication (IEBC), and basic scheduling.
Other OS services are provided by processes, soinetimes called servers, that run in
user mode and are treated like any other application by the microkernel. This
approach decouples kernel and server development. Servers may be customised to
specific application or environment requirements. The microkernels approach
simplifies implementation, provides flexit-ility, and is well suited to a distributed
environment. In essence, a microkernel interacts with local and remote server
processes in the same way, facilitating constructio~lof distributed systems.

2.6.2 Multithreading
Multithreading is a technique in which a process executing an application is divided
into threads that can run concurrently. We can make the following distinction:
r, Threads: A dispatchable unit of work. It includes a processor context (which
includes the program counter and stack pointer) and its owl1 data area for a stack
(to enable subroutine branching). A thread executes sequentially and is
interruptable so that the processor can turn to another thread.
Process: A collection of one or more threads and associated system resources
(such as memory containing code and data, open files, and devices). This
corresponds closely to the concept of a program in execution. By breaking a
single application into multiple threads, the programmer has great control over the
modularity of the application and the timing of application related events.
Multithreading is useful for applications that perform a number of essentially
independent tasks that do not need to be serialised. An example is a database server
that listens for and processes numerous client requests. With multiple threads running
within the same process, switching back and forth among threads involves less
processor overhead than a major process switch between different processes.
Threads are also useful for structuring processes that are part of the OS kernel as
described in subsequent chapters.

2.6.3 Symmetric Multiprocessing

Until recently, virtually all single-user personal computers and workstations contained
a single general-purpose microprocessor. As demands for performance increase and
as the cost of microprocessors continues to drop, vendors have introduced computers
with multiple microprocessors. To achieve greater efficiency and reliability, one
technique is to employ symmetric multiprocessing (SMP), a term that refers to a
computer hardware architecture and also to the operating system behaviour that
reflects that architecture. A symmetric multiprocessor can be defined as a standalone
computer system with the following characteristics:
1) There are multiple processors.

2) These processors share the same main memory and I10 facilities, interconnected
by a communications bus or other internal connection scheme.
3) All processors can perform the same functions (hence the term Symmetric).
The operating system of an SMP schedules processes or threads across all of the
processors. SMP has a number of potential advantages over uniprocessor
architecture, including the following:
8 Pesformancc: If the work to be done by a computer can be organised so that
some portions of the work can be done in parallel, then a sysfe.-.,with multiple
 processors will yield greater performance than one with a single processor of the Introduction to
Operating System
same type. With multiprogramming, only one process can execute at a time;
meanwhile all other processes are waiting for the processor. With
multiprocessing, more than one process can be running simultaneously, each on a
different processor.
Availability: In a symmetric multiprocessor, because all processors can perform
the same functions, the failure of a single processor does not halt the machine.
Instead, the system can continue to function at reduced performance.
Incremental growth: A user can enhance the performance of a system by
adding an additional processor.
Scaling: Vendors can offer a range of products with different price and
performance characteristics based on the number of processors configured in the
system.
It is important to note that these are potential rather than guaranteed benefits. The
operating system must provide tools and functions to exploit the parallelism in an SMP
system.
Multithreading and SMP are often discussed together, but the two are independent
facilities. Even on a uniprocessor machine, multithreading is useful for structuring
applications and kernel processes. An SMP machine is useful for non-threaded
processes, because several processes can run in parallel. However, the two facilities
complement each other and can be used effectively together.
An attractive feature of an SMP is that the existence of multiple processors is
transparent to the user. The operating system takes care of scheduling of threads
or processes on individual processors and of synchronisation among processors. A
different problem is to provide the appearance of a single system for a cluster of
I
I separate computers - a multicomputer system. In this case, we are dealing with a
collection of entities (computers), each with its own main memory, secondary
I
memory, and other I10 modules. A distributed operating system provides the illusion
I of a single main memory space and a single secondary memory space, plus other
unified access facilities, such as a distributed file system. Although clusters are
becoming increasingly popular, and there are many cluster products on the market,
I the state of the art for distributed operating systems lags that of uniprocessor and
I
SMP operating systems.
I The most recent innovation in operating system design is the use of object oriented
technologies. Object oriented design lends discipline to the process of adding modular
I extensions to a small kernel. At the operating system level, an object-based structure
enables programmers to customise an operating system without disrupting system
integrity. Object orientation also eases the development of distributed tools and a full-
blown distributed operating system.

2.7 SUMMARY
The operating system is an essential component of system software, which
consists of procedures for managing computer resources. Initially computers were
operated from the front console. System software such as Assemblers, Loaders
and Compilers greatly helped in software development but also required substantial
setup time. To reduce the setup time an operator was hired and similar jobs were
batched together.
Batch systems allowed automatic job sequenting by a resident monitor and improved
the overall utilisation of systems greatly. The computer no longer had to wait for
human operations - but CPU utilisation was still low because of slow speed of I10
Operating System devic s compared to the CPU. A new concept buffering was developed to improve
Fundamentals &
Networking
d'
syst m performance by overlapping the input, output and computation of a singlejob.
Spooling was another new concept in improving the CPU utilisation by overlapping
input of one job with the computation and output ofother jobs.
Operating systems are now almost always written in a higher-level language
(C, PASCAL, etc.). UNIX was the first operating system developed in C language.
This feature improves their implementation, maintenance and portability.
The operating system provides a number of services. At the lowest level, there are
system calls, which allow a running program to make a request from the operating
system directly. At a higher level, there is a command interpreter, which supports a
mechanism for a user to issue a request without writing a program.
In this unit, we began with tracing the evolution of the operating system through serial
processing, batch processing and multiprogramming. We also presented different
operating system models: Layered structured, Kernel based, virtual machine system
and client server model.
At the end we presented classification and characteristics of emerging operating
systems.

Check Your Progress 1

1) System calls provide the interface between a running program and the operating
system. User programs receives OS services through the set of system calls.,
2) Both buffering and spooling are used to improve system performance. Buffering
overlaps input, output and processing of a singlejob whereas spooling allows
CPU to overlap the input of the job with computation and output of another jabs.
Spooling is better than buffering.
Check Your Progress 2
1) The basic design issues of a distributed operating system are the ~alneas in a
conventional operating system, viz., process synchronisation, deadlocks,
scheduling, file systems, interprocess communication, memory and buffer 1

management, failure recovery, etc., but what makes its design complexity are the
lack of shared memory and common physical global clock and unpredictable
communication delays.
2) The basic difference between the two is that the network operating system I
focuses on the use of remote services and resources existing on a network
operating system whereas the distributed operating system focuses on the
effective utilisation of resources on distributed environment.

2.9 FURTHER READINGS d

1) Operating System Concepts by Abraham Silberschatz and James L. Peterson,

1
Addision Wesely.
2) Operating Systems Design and Implenlentation by Andrew S . Tanenbaum,
Prentice Hall of India.
4
 UNIT 3 INTRODUCTION TO NETWORKING
CONCEPT
Structure Page Nos.
3.0 Introduction 55
3.1 Objectives 56
3.2 Why Computer Networks? 56
3.3 The Topologies 57
3.4 Characteristics of the OSI Layers 59
3.5 OSI Model and Communication Between Systems 60
3.6 Interaction Between OSI Model Layers 60
3.7 Protocols 60
3.8 Types of Networks 61
3.8.1 Local Area Networks (LANs)
3.8.2 Metropolitan Networks (MANS)
3.8.3 Wide Area Networks (WANs)
3.9 Medium
3.10 Data Flow
3.11 Physical Connection
3.12 Transmission Media
3.13 Connecting Devices
3.13.1 Repeaters
3.13.2 Hubs
3.13.3 Bridges
3.13.4 Routers
3.13.5 Gateways
3.14 Summary 84
3.15 Solutions/Answers 84
3.16 Further Readings 86

i
3.0 INTRODUCTION
A network can consist of two computers connected together on a desk or it can
consist of many Local Area Networks (LANs) connected together to form a Wide
Area Network (WAN) across a continent. In simple terms it is an interconnected set
of some objects. For decades, we have been familiar with the Radio, Television,
Railways, Banks and various other types of networks. In recent years, the computer
network, a new form of network is becoming more and more visible in our day-to-day
life. A computer network is an interconnected set of autonomous computers.
Autonomous means each of them can function independent of others, i.e., each
computer has individual processors. Simply we can say each computer (terminal,
node) should not be a dump terminal. The key is that two or more computers are

. .

send and receive back information more quickly.

Networking
After going through this unit, you should be able to:
define what a network is?
understand what is the need of a computer network and the applications of networks;
list types of networks. topologies and mediums finally, and
how devices are connected though repeater, bridges, router, Gateway.

a) Communication medium: It offers a powerful communication medium among a

group of people widely separated on the earth.

b) Resource Sharing: Resources like files, printers, hard drives, or CPU can be
shared throu~ha com~uternetwork.

environment.

d) Higher flexibility: A heterogeneous system can be connected in a computer

network, by which users get better flexibility.

network.
Applications of computer network
a) Electronic Mail (e-mail or Email). The most widely used network application is
E-mail, which is forwarding of electronic files to an electronic post office for the
recipient to pick up.
b) Scheduling programs allow people across the network to schedule appointments
directly by calling up their fellow worker's schedule and selecting a time!
c) Videotext is the capability of having a two-way transmission of picture and sound.
Games like distance education lectures, etc. use videotext.
d) Groupware is the latest network application. It allows user groups to share
documents, schedules databases
e) Teleconferencingallows people in different regions to "attend" meetings using
telephone lines.

f) Automated Banking Machines allow banking transactions to be performed

everywhere: at grocery stores, drive-in machines etc.

h) Teleco~nmutingallows employees to perform office work at home by "Remote

Access" to the network.

i) Value Added Networks are common carriers such 'as ERNET, Satyam ,VSNL
etc. (they can be private or public companies) who provide additional leased line
 connections to their customers. These can be Frame Relay, ATM (Asynchronous
Transfer Mode), X.25, etc.

(i) Marketing and sales Marketing professionals use computer network to collect,
Introduction to
Networking Concept
I
exchange and analyse data relating to customer needs.

The topology is the geometric arrangement (either physically or logically) ofthe linking
devices (usually called nodes) and the links, connecting the individual computers or nodes
together. Five basic topologies:
I) Bus topology
2) Ring topology
3) Star topology
4) Mesh topology
5) Combined topologies.
1) The Bus Topology
1n the bus topology there is a single bus that carries all the data to the entire network.
A bus is a single continuous communication cable to which all the computers are
connected. A cable or bus runs throughout tlie office to which all the workstations are
connected. The bus topology is also kiiow~ias linear bus.
When one workstation wants to talk to another the message or signal travels down the
bus in both directions. Each one reads the message to see if it matches its address.
The bus topology is a passive topology. It means that the computers connected to the
bus amplify the signal on the bus.
The main advantage of bus topology is that it is quite easy to set up. Any workstation
can be easily moved to another location as bus runs throughout the office. Another
benefit of this layout is that if one computer on the bus fails, it does not affect the rest
of the traffic on the bus.
A network with bus topology cannot become too big as all the traffic is on a single bu;.
The entire network can be down only if the bus has a break. The open ends of bus
must be terminated to prevent signal bounce. If one or both ends of the bus are not
terminated, the whole network can be down.
Disadvantages include difficult reconfiguration and fault isolation I
2) The Ring Topology
In the ring topology all the workstations are connected in the shape of a ring. The ring
does not have an end. It is made up of short segments that' connect one PC to the next
and so on, until all the computers are joined in a circle. The signals travel only in one
direction and from one PC to tlie next until it reaches the appropriate node. It is also
difficult to move a workstation or to add more computers to an existing ring.
In ring topology the wiring for a ring could be arranged in a circle throughout a building
or a group of buildings. The signal travels in one direction only from one computer to
the next. The ring topology is an active topology. Each computer boosts the signal (like
a repeater) and passes to the next computer till it reaches the destination computer. A
drawback of this topology is that if one computer fails, tlie entire network is down.
Iiowever, now some ring networks are so designed that a faulty workstation is
automatically bypassed. Another drawback is that the traffic is in only one direction.
This topology is not used for a large number of nodes.
 --- -

Operating System 3) The Star Topology

Fundamentals &
Networking In tlie star topology all the stations are connected to a central computer or hub
creating a star configuration. The devices are not directly linked to each other
Messages pass from the nodes to the hub, where they are processed or passed along
to another node. The hub controls the traffic on tlie network. If the hub fails, the
entire network becomcs inoperative, but if a node fails it does not affect the rest of
the traffic on the network.
All clientlserver networks use this topology. But since cable from each node must
be connected to a central hub, tlie length of total wiring required increases very
much. A hub can be an active hub or a passive hub. A passive hub simply organizes
the wiring and works just like a wiring panel for various connections. It does not
need any power connection. An active hub does what a passive hub does, but
besides this it regenerate and retransmits the signals the way a repeater does. An
active hub needs a power connection.
4) Mesh Topology

In a mesh topology, every node has a dedicated point-to point link to every other
node. Simply dedicated means that the links carry traffic only between the two nodes.
So mesh topology does not have traffic congestion proble~nsevery node has n-1
link,for a fully connected mesh topology Iiaviug n nodes. So the total number of links
will be 11 (n-I).This also means that every node has (n-1) 110 ports.
Advantages of Mesh topology

1) Use of dedicated links guarantees that each connection can carry its own data
load. Thus eliminates the traffic problem.

2) If one link fails, it does not affect the rest of network. This means it is robust.
3) Point to point links make fault identification and fault isolation easy.

4) Privacy or security is high, since the other link cannot gain access to the
dedicated link where the message is travelling.

Disadvantages of mesh topology

1) More cabling and I t 0 ports are required, because every node must be connected
to every other node.

2) Cost is very high, because more number of node and cabling required.

3) Installation and reco~lfigurationis difficult.

5) Combined Topologies
A network does not have to stick with one topology. Any two topologies or all the
topologies can be used in a network. For example, a hub may be connected to other
hubs using a bus and the workstations may be connected by a star.
Two maln hybrid topologies are:

1 ) The Star Bus Topology

The star bus topology is a cornbination of bus and star topologies. I11 this topology the
hubs of many star topology networks are linked together with a linear bus or trunk. or
example, we want to link three star topology ~etworkstogether. In each network, the
nodes are connected to its own hub. Thus we have three hubs. These three hubs are
connected by a bus topology.
2) The Star Ring Topology Introduction to

three hubs of the networks are connected to a fourth hub (main hub) in star pattern.

3.4 CHARACTERISTICSOF THE OSI LAYERS

There are primarily two architectural models for designing computer networks. OSI
model & TCPIIP model. In this section we shall discuss one such model.
The seven layers of the OSI reference model can be divided into two categories:
upper layers and lower layers.
The upper layers of the OSI model deal with application issues and generally are
implemented only in software. The highest layer, the application layer, is czosest to the
end user. Both users and application layer processes interact with software
applications that contain a communications component. The term upper layer is
sometimes used to refer to any layer above another layer in the OSI model.
The lower layers of the OSI model handle data transport issues. The physical layer
and the data link layer are implemented in hardware and software. The lowest layer,
the physical layer, is closest to the physical network medium (the network cabling, for
example) and is responsible for actually placing information on the medium.
Figure I illustrates the division between the upper and lower OSI layers.

Application Presentation

Figure 1: Two Sets of Layers Make Up the OSI Layers

Each layer bas well defined filnctionalities and standard protocols for implementing
thes fuoctionalities.

BETWEEN SYSTEMS
Information being transferred from a software application in one computer system to a
software application in another must pass through the OSI layers. For example, if a
software application in System A has information to transmit to a software application
Operating System ' in System B, the application program in System A will pass its information to the
Fundamentals & application layer (Layer 7) of System A. The application layer then passes the
information to the presentation layer (Layer 6), which relays the data to the session
layer (Layer 5 ) , and so on down to the physical layer (Layer 1). At the physical layer,
the information is placed on the physical network medium and is sent across the
medium to System B. The physical layer of System B removes the information from
the physical medium, and then its physical layer passes the information up to the data
link layer (Layer 2), which passes it to the network layer (Layer 3), and so on, until it
reaches the application layer (Layer 7) of System B. Finally, the application layer of
System B passes the information to the recipient application program to complete the
communication process.

3.6 INTERACTION BETWEEN OSI MODEL

LAYERS
A given layer in the OSI model generally communicates with three other OSI layers:
the layer directly above it, the layer directly below it, and its peer layer in other
networked computer systems. The data link layer in System A, for example,
communicates with the network layer of System A, the physical layer of System A,
and the data link layer in System B. Figure 2 illustrates this example.

Figure 2: OSI Model ~ a ~ e Communicate

r; with Other Layers

3.7 PROTOCOLS
Just like human beings need to have a common languages to speak to one another,
digital devices and computers also need to have common 'languages' to be able to
communicate with one another. The binding function of 'common language' in cirg~tal
communication is performed by communication protocols.

connected but not communicating,just as a person speaking Hindi cannot be

understood by a person who speaks only Tamil.
A protocol defines the following three aspects of communication.

1) Syntax: The'format of data being exchanged, character set used, type of error
correction used, type of encoding scheme (e.g., signal level) being used. For
'
example, a simple protocol may use first eight bit for address of sender, the
second eight bit for address of receiver and the rest of bit for message itself.

2) Semantics: Type and order of messages used to ensure reliable and error free
information transfer.
 3) Timing: Define data rate sejection and correct timing for various events during Introduction to
data transfer. Simply when data should be sent and how fast they can be sent. Networking Concept

It has been accepted that the complexity of writing cornrnunication software can be
reduced by adapting the principle of protocol layering. The idea here is to partition
communication functions into a vertical set of layers. Each layer performs a related
set of functions. Division of work between layers is done in such a way that they are
manageable and provide a logical interface and break point. Each communication
layer provides certain services to layers above it and relies on the next lower layer to
perform more primitive functions. Each layer hides internal details from other layers.
Thus dividing the communication problem into several layers reduces its complexity
and makes the work of developing cornrnunication software a lot easier and error

The differences among different types of computer networks are usually based on
perspective. For example, computer networks are frequently classified by the geographical
area (LAN, MAN, WAN), their topologies (e.g., point to point or broadcast),or the type
of communication path they use and the manner in which data are transmitted across
this path (e.g., circuit-switched and packet-switched).
Computer networks are classified by the geographical area are:
1) Local Area Networks (LANs)
2) Metropolitan Network (MANS)

, 3) Wide Area Networks (WANs)

3.8.1 Local Area Networks (LANs)

LANs (local area networks), as show11in Figure 3 are privately-owned networks that
connect computers and resources together in a building or buildings that are close
together. LAN plays an important part in everyday functioning of schools, businesses,
and government.

Ethernet Bridge

Figure3: Local Area Network in a building

A LAN is a high-speed data network that covers a relatively small geographic area. It
typically connects workstations, personal computers, printers, servers, and other
devices, so that devices can communicate with each other to share resources. LANs
offer computer users many advantages, including shared access to devices and
applications, file exchange between collnected users, and communication between
users via electronic mail and other applications.
A Local Area Network is a system of computers that share resources such as disk
drives, printers, data, CPU power, fadmodem, applications, etc. They usually have
distributed processing, which means that there are many desktop computers
distributed around the network and that there is no central processor machine
(mainframe).
Operating System Location: In a building or individual rooms or floors of buildings or nearby buildings.
Fundamentals & Can be campus wide like a college or university.
LAN Characterisation
There are four key areas that characterise a local area network.
These are:
1) Transmission Medium a

2) Access Method
3) Topology
4) SignalingTechniques
LAN ~ e d i a - ~ c c e dMethods
s
Media contention occurs when two or more network devices have data to send at the
same time. Because multiple devices cannot talk on the network simultaneously, some
type of method must be used to allow one device access to the network media at a
time. This is done in two main ways: carrier senses multiple accesses collision detect
(CSMAICD) and token passing.
In networks using CSMAICD technology such as Ethernet, network devices contend
for the network media. When a device has data to send, it first listens to see if any
other device is currently using the network. If not, it starts sending its data. After
finishing its transmission, it listens again to see if a collision occurred.A collision occurs
when two devices send data simultaneously.When a collision happens, each device
waits a random length of time before resending its data. In most cases, a collision will
not occur again between the two devices. Because of this type of network contention,
the busier a network becomes, the more collisions occur. This is why performance of
Ethernet degrades rapidly as the number of devices on a single network increases.
In token-passing networks such as Token Ring and FDDI, a special network packet
called a token is passed around the network from device to device. When a device has
data to send, it must wait until it has the token and then send its data. When the data
transmission is complete, the token is released so that other devices may use the
network media. The main advantage of token-passing networks is that they are
deterministic. In other words, it is easy to calculate the maximum time that will pass
before a device bas the opportunity to send data. This explains the popularity of token-
passing networks in some real-time environments such as factories, where machinery
must be capable of communicating at determinable intervals.
For CSMAICD networks, switches segment the network into multiple collision
domains. This reduces the number of devices per network segment that must contend
for the media. By creating smaller collision domains, the performance of a network can
be increased significantly without requiring addressing changes.
Normally CSMAICD networks are half-duplex, meaning that while a device sends
information, it cannot receive at the same time. While that device is talking, it is
incapable of also listening for other traffic. This is much like a walkie-talkie. When one
person wants to talk, he presses the transmit button and begins speaking. While he is
talking, no one else on the same frequency can talk. When the sending person is
finished, he releases the transmit button and the frequency is available to others.
When switches are introduced, full-duplex operation is possible. Full-duplex works
much like a telephoneyou can listen as well as talk at the same time. When a
network device is attached directly to the port of a network switch, the two devices
may be capable of operating in full-duplex mode. In full-duplex mode, performance can
be increased, but not quite as much as some like to claiin.. However, full-duplex
operation does increase the throughput of most applications because the network
media is no longer shared. Two devices on a full-duplex connection can send data as Introduction to
soon as it is ready. Networking Concept

Token-passing networks such as Token Ring can also benefit from network switches.
In large networks, the delay between turns to transmit may be significant because the
token is passed around the network.
LAN Transmission Methods
For Transmission, LAN usually broadcast their message to all hosts on the LAN The
address in the packet or frame enables the destination to receive the packet, while the
rest of the hosts ignore the broadcast message.
LAN data transmissions fall into three classifications: unicast, multicast, and
broadcast. In each type of transmission, a single packet is sent to one or more nodes.
In a unicast transmission, a single packet is sent from the source to a destination on a
network. First, the source node addresses the packet by using the address of the
destination node. The package is then sent onto the network, and finally, the network
passes the packet to its destination.
A multicast transmission consists of a single data packet that is copied and sent to a
specific subset of nodes on the network. First, the source node addresses the packet
by using a multicast address. The packet is then sent into the network, which makes
copies of the packet and sends a copy to each node that is part of the multicast
address.
A broadcast transmission consists of a single data packet that is copied and sent to all
nodes on the network. In these types of transmissions, the source node addresses the
packet by using the broadcast address. The packet is then sent on to the network,
which makes copies of the packet and sends a copy to every node on the network
Topology: The most common LAN topologies are bus, ring, and star.
3.8.2 Metropolitan Networks (MANs)
Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), as shown in Figure 4, are networks that
connect LANs together within a city.

Warehwse

Figure 4: MANS use Local Exchange Carriers

The main criterion for a MAN is that the connection between LANs is through a local
exchange carrier (the local phone company) . The protocols that are used for MANs
are quite different from those used for LANs (except for ATM, which can be used for
both under certain conditions). It has been distinguished as a separate type of
network; because of the specific standard known as Distributed Queue Double Bus
(DQDB) that has been adopted for MAN. The DQDB comprises two unidirectional
buses for connecting computers.

A Metropolitan Area Network is a system of LANs connected throughout a city

(Figure 5) or metropolitan area. MAN can be considered as a bigger version of a
I Operating System
Fundamentals &
Networking
LAN, typically covering a city. It can be either public or privately owned. MANS have
the requirement of using telecommunication media such as voice channels or data
channels. Branch offices are connected to head offices through MANs. Examples of
organizations that use MANs are universities and colleges, hotels, and banks.

Figure 5: Location: Separate buildings distributed throughout a city

3.8.3 Wide Area Networks (WANs)

Wide Area Networks (WANs) connect LANs together between cities (Figure 6).

Communication is usually done through public communication systems such as

telephone line, fiber optic cable or wireless technology.

T ,T I Router Router

Figure 6: WANs use Long Distance Carriers

A Wide Area Network $ 1 .i tlctwork system connecting cities, countries, or continents

together Figure 7. WANs Jr c: c o n ~ i e cc d :wether using one of the telecommunications

L A
Figure 7: City to city, across a country or across a continent.
 The rnairi difference between a MAN and a WAN is that the WAN uses Long Distance Introduction to
Carriers. Otherwise the same protocols and equipment are used as in MAN. Networking Concept

Main differences between a LAN and a WAN are given in the following Tablel.
Tablel: Difference between LAN and MAN
-
Wide area Network Local Area Network

Distance up to thousands of Kilometer Within a local site

Typical data rates between 9.6k to High band widtli between 1- 16 M bps
1Mbps
Higher error rates (1 in lo5 )
Lower error rate (1 in 109)
Often use analog circuits from the
telephone systems Use digital signaling over private cables
Generally use bus or ring topology

Generally has point -to-point link with the same which

common topologies mesh and star owns the computers connected to LAN

May be managed by organizations LAN uses simple protocols and does not
independent of users employ any retransmission strategy for
lost frames
WAN uses complex protocols and
extej~siveerror recovery mechanisms Number of host on a LAN is limited
(usually up to 1024)
Number of node coinputers has no
theoretical limit and could be very large.
Tile practical limit comes from address-
ing schemes used to ide~itifjrindividual
system on the network and other
resource constrains.
1

Data communication system k made up of following components (Figure 8).

Source1 Host1
Sender Receiver

..

Figure 81 O r t r Communication-1

I
t

Source Sender: Sender can be Terniinals, Computers, Mainframes, workstation,

teleohone hand set. video camera. Main function of sender is to send data (message)

The com~nunicationsstream through which the data is being transmitted. Examples I

are: 65
Operating System Cables
Fundamentals &
Networking Microwave Link
Fiber optic Link
Radio Frequencies (RF)
Infrared Wireless
Receiver: The receiver receives the message (data) from sender. Receiver can be
Terminals, Computers, Mainframes, workstation, telephone hand set, printer, television
and so on.
Protocol: .A con~municationprotocol is a set of conventions or rules that must be
adhered to by both communicating parties to ensure that information being exchanged
between two parties is received and interpreted correctly.
Message: Message consists of text, numbers, pictures, sound, or video-or any
combination of these to be transmitted from sender to receiver.

DTE 1 DCE I Medium I DCE I DTE

1I I I
Source/ I I Host,
Sender 1 I Receiver
I I I I

I I I I
I I I I

Figure 9 : Data Communication-I1

DCE: The interface between the Source and the Medium, and the Medium and the
Receiver is called the DCE (Data Communication Equipment) (Figure 9) and is a
physical piece ofequipment.
DTE: Data Terminal Equipment is the telecommunications name given to the source
and receiver's equipment. Tt is any device that is a source of or destination for binary
digital data.
The DTE generates the data and passes them, through DCE. The DCE takes the generated
data by DTE and converts them to an appropriate signal. Then this signal is introduced to
telecommunication link. Most commonly used DCE is a modem, discussed in the section.

Data flow (transir7ission mode) is the flow of data between two points.
There are three types of dataflow (Figure 10): simplex, half duplex and full duplex.
 Simplex: data flows in only one direction (Figure 11) on the data communication line
(medium). Examples are radio and television broadcasts. They go from the TV station Netw
to your home television.

'
TV

rransmitter
station 1 One direction

SIMPLEX

Figure 11: Simplex

-
Home
Television

Half-Duplex: Data flows in both directions but only one direction at a time (Figure 12)
on the data communication line. Each of the stations can both transmit and receive. For
example; a conversation on walkie-talkie is a half-duplex data flow. Each person takes
turns talking. If both talk at once - nothing occurs!

Figure 12: Half-Duplex

Bi-directional but only one direction at a time!

HALF-DUPLEX
Full-Duplex: data flows in both directions at thc same time (Figure 13).The system is
configured to flow data in bath directions.

Figure 13: Full Duplex

 Bi-directional both directions simultal~eously!
Networking Another example of full duplex is two-way street with traffic flowing in both directions.
at the same time.

Modems

A modem (MOdulator/DEModulator) connects a terminal/computer (DTE) to the

Voice Channel (dial-up line).

Voice Channel
(Phclne Line)

Figure 14: Modems

Basic Definition

The modem (DCE - Data Communication Equipment) is connected between the

terminal/computer (DTE - Data Terminal Equipment) and the phone line (voice
channel). Amodem converts the DTE (Data Terminal Equipment) digital signal to an
analog signal (or vice versa) that the voice channel can use.

Amodem is connected to the terminal/computer's RS-232 serial port ( 2 5 pin male D

connector) and the outgoing phone line with an RJI I cable connector (the same as on
a telephone extension cord). Male connectors have pins, female connectors have
sockets.

Digital Connection

The connection between the modem and terminal/computer is a digital connection. A

basic connection consists of a Transmit Data (TXD) line, a Receive Data (RXD) line
and many hardware handshaking control lines (Figure 15).

T@XD(2) T'xD O
RXD (3).

Contrd Lines Modem

The control lines determine whose turn it is to talk (modem or terminal), ifthe terminal1 Introduction to
Networking Concept
cbmputer is turned on, if the modem is turned on, if there is a connection to another
modem, etc.
Analog Connection
The connection between the modem and the outside world (the phone line) is an analog
connection (Figure 16).The voice channel has a bandwidth of 0-4 kHz but only 300 -
3400 Hz is usable for data communications.

0-4kHzBW

Analog
Voice Band
Modem

Figure 16: Analog Connection

The modem converts digital information into tones (frequencies) for transmitting
through the phone lines.
ExternalIInternal Modems
There are 2 basic physical types of mode'ms: Internal & External modems. External
modems (Figure 17) sit next to the computer i~ndconnect to the serial port using a
straight-through serial cable.

Serial Cable
External
Modem

Figure 17: Exter~~al

Modems

Internal modems (Figure 18) are a plug-in circuit board that sits inside the computer. It
incorporates the serial port on-board. They are less expensive than external modems
because they do not require a case, power supply and serial cable. They appear to the
communication programs as if they were an external modem for all practical purposes.
------- a if~ it
Internal ~ ~ d Ie *n ~~ p as
were an External

Figure 18: Internal Modems

Operating System Modem Types
Fundamentals &
Netwnrkin~ There are many types of modems, the most common of which are:

called a media adapter or transceiver).

(2) Short Haul Modem: A modem used to transmit data over 30 km or less. Modems
we use at home or to connect computers together among different offices in the
same building are short haul modems.

(3) Acoustic Modem: A modem that couples to the telephone handset with what looks
like suction cups that contain a speaker and microphones. Used by travelling sales
people to connect to hotel phones.

(4) Smart Modem: A modem with a CPU (microprocessor) on board that uses the
Hayes AT command set. This allows auto-answer & dial capability rather than
manuallv dialine & answering.

for transmission. (Also called a media adapter or transceiver).

(6) V.32 Modem: A milestone modem that uses a 2400-baud modem with 4 bit
encoding. This results in a 9600 bps (bits per second) transfer rate.

Baud (Figure 19) is the speed at which the analog data is changing on the voice
channel and bps is the speed at which the decoded digital data is being transferred.

Features of Modems

(1) Speed: The speed at which the modem can send data in bps (bits per second).

bps.

(2) Auto DialIRe Dial: Smart modems can dial the phone number and auto re dial if a
busy signal is received.

(3) Auto Answer: Most modems have Ring Detect capability and can automatically
answer the telephone when an incoming call comes in.

(4) Self-Testing: Newer modems have self-testing features. They can test the digital
connectio~~ to the terminallcomputer and the analog connection to a remote
modem. Thcv call also check the modem's internal electronics.
(5) Voice Over Data: Voice Over Data modems allow a voice conversation to take
place while data is being transmitted. This requires both the source and
destination modems to have this feature.
Introduction to
Networking Concept I
(6) Synchronousor Asynchronous Transmission: Newer modems allow a choice of
synchronous or asynchronous transmission of data. Normally, modem
transmission is asynchronous (we send individual characters with just start and
stop bits). Synchronous transmission or packet transmission is used in specific

The physical connection determines how many bits (1's or 0's) can be transmitted in
a single instance of time. If only 1 bit of information can be transmitted over the
data transmission medium at a time then it is considered a serial communication

Receives

I ~ i arr a rime
1 bit at a time

If more than 1 bit of information is transmitted over the data transmission medium at a
time then it is considered a parallel communication (Figure 21). By grouping, we can
send data n bits at a time instead of one, through n wires.

Data Traosm~ssionMedium - 8 W i n s
0- 0-
Sends ~n ~n Receives
Parallel Data 0- 0- Parallel Data
8bitsatarime 0- 0- 8 bits at a tin
Byte: OlM 1010 ~n
0-
1J l Byte: 0100 1010
Separate wire D- Separate w i r ~
L
n
for each bit! 0- for each bit!
0-

Communications Advantages Disadvantages

Parallel Fast Transfer Rates Short distances only More cost

due to more number of lines
Serial Long Distances Slow transfer rates Less cost due
to only one line required for
serialtransmission.
Operating System
Fundamentals & TRANSMISSION MEDIA
Networking
The transmission media provide the physical path for communication among the nodes.
I11 a computer network, where all the nodes are geometrically interconnected, it is
known as its topology.
Transmission media can be broadly categorised in to two types: guided and unguided
(Figure 22).

Trans~nissionMedia

Unguided

Figure 22: Type of Transmission Media

Guided transmission uses a cabling system that guides the data signals along a specific
path. The data signals are bound by the cabling system. Guided media is also known as
bound media. "Cabling" is meant in a generic sense, and is not meant to be interpreted
as copper wire cabling only. Guided media are commonly used for point-to-point
connection. The cllaracteristics of the medium mainly decide the nature and quality of
transmission. Guided media are commonly used for LAN application.

Unguided transrr~issionmedia also called wireless communication consists of a means

for the data signals to travel but nothing to guide them along a specific path. The data
signals, not bound to a cabling media transport electromagnetic waves without using a
physical conductor and are therefore often called unbound media. Unguided media are
commonly used for broadcast type communication. Some examples of unguided media
are sea water, free space and air. Unguided media are commonly used for WAN
application.

Transmission Media Guided

There are 4 basic types of guided media:

a) Open Wire

b) Twisted Pair

C) Coaxial Cable

d) Optical Fiber

Open Wire

Open wire 1s (Figure 23) traditionally used to describe the electrical wire strung along
power poles. There is a single wire strung between poles. No shielding or protection
from noise interference IS used. We are going to extend the traditional definition of
open wire to include any data signal path without shieldingor protection from noise
' interference. This can include multi conductor cables or single wires. This medium is
susceptible to a large degree of noise and interference and consequently is not
acceptable for data transmission except for short distalices of less than 20 ft.

Figure 23: Open Wire

Twisted Pair

The wires in twisted pair (Figure 24) cabling are twisted together in pairs. Each pair
consists of a wire used for the +ve data signal and a wire used for the -ve data signal.
Each pair is twisted together to minimize electromagnetic interference between the
pairs.Ar1y noise that appears on 1 wire of the pair will also occur on the other wire.
Because the wires are opposite pojarities, they are 180 degrees out of phase (180
degrees - phasor definition of opposite polarity). When the noise appears on both
wires, it cancels or nulls itself out at the receiving end.

Jacket Twisted Pair Bare wice

Figure 24: Unshielded Twisted Pair

The degree of reduction in noise interference is determined specifically by the number

of turns per foot. Increasing the number of turns per foot reduces the noise
interference. To further improve noise rejection, a foil or wire braid "shield" is woven
around the twisted pairs. This shield (Figure 2.5) can be woven around individual pairs
or around a multi-pair conductor (several pairs).

Jacket Shield Twisted Pair

Figure 25: Shielded Twisted Pair

Operating System Shielded Twisted Pair
Fundamentals &
Networking The twisted-paircan be shielded (Figure 25) with metallic braid, to reduce the
interference Cables with a shield are called shielded twisted pair and are commonly
abbreviated STP. Cables without a shield are called unshielded twisted pair or UTK
Twisting the wires together results in characteristic impedance for the cable. Typical
impedance for UTP is 100 ohm for Ethernet 10BaseT cable.
UTP or unshielded twisted pair cable is used on Ethernet 1OBaseT and can also be
used with Token Ring. It uses the RJ line of connectors (RJ45, RJ11, etc.)
Use Twisted pair can be used for both analog and digital communication. Twisted pair
cables are most effectively used in systems that use a balanced line method oftransmission:
polar line coding (Manchester Encoding) as opposed to unipolar line coding (TTL logic).
Most popular use of twisted pair is in our oldest telephone system. It is also used in LAN
for point-to point short distance communication

Coaxial Cable

Coaxial cable (Figure 26) consists of two conduotors. The inner conductor is held I

inside an insulator with the other conductor woven around it providing a shield. An
insulating protective coating called a jacket covers the outer conductor.

Jacket Shield Insulator Center

The outer shield protects the inner conductor from outside electrical signals. The
distance between the outer conductor (shield) and inner conductor plus the type of
material used for insulating the inner conductor determine the cable properties or
impedance. Typical impedances for coaxial cables are 75 ohms for Cable TV, 50 ohms
for Ethernet Thinnet and Thicknet. The excellent control ofthe impedance
characteristics of the cable allow higher data rates to be transferred than with twisted
pair cable.
Optical fiber
Optical fiber consists of thin glass fibers that can carry information at frequeit-ies in
the visible light spectrum and beyond. The typical optical fiber consists of a very

Typically Cladding has a diameter of 125 microns. Coating the cladding is a protective
coating consisting of plastic, it is called the Jacket.
Optical fibers work on the principle that the core refracts the light and the cladding.
reflects the light. The core refracts the light and guides the light along its path. The

Advantages of Optical Fiber

Noise immunity: RFI and EM1 immune (RFI - Radio Frequency Interference,
EM1 -Electromagnetic Interference) because fiber -optic transmission uses light
rather than electricity, noise is not a factor.

74 Security: cannot tap into cable.

 Large Capacity due to BW (bandwidth). Introduction to
Networking Concept
No corrosion.
Longer distances than copper wire.
Smaller and lighter than copper wire.
Faster transmission rate.
Disadvantages of optical fiber
Physical vibration will show up as signal noise!
Limited physical arc of 'cable. Bend it too much and it will break!
Difficult to splice.
The cost of optical fiber is a trade-off between capacity and cost. At higher
transmission capacity, it is cheaper than copper. At lower transmission capacity, it is
more expensive.
Infrared
Infrared (IR) transmission is another line of sight medium .Infrared technology uses
electromagneticradiation of wave lengths between radio waves and visible light, operation
between 1OOGHZ and 1OOTHZ (terahertz). Tliese frequencies are very high offering
nice data transfer rates. We are used to seeing infrared technology utilised for our television
or VCR remotes. IR is generally restricted to LAN within or between buildings
Advantages

I) Higher bandwidth means superior throughput to radio

2) Inexpensive to produce

3) No longer limited to tight interroom line-of-sight restrictions

Disadvantage
1) Limited in distance

2) Cannot penetrate physical barriers like walls, ceilings, floors, etc.

3.13 CONNECTING DEVICES

As companies grow, so do their networks. When a network outgrows its original
design, the network becomes slow and print jobs take longer to be completed. In such
cases it is a better idea to segment the existing LAN so thqt each segment becomes a
separated LAN.
We can connect two or more networks together to create larger networks. A LAN
(local area network) can be connected to another LAN. A LAN (local area network)
can be connected to another WAN (wide area network). The components or devices
that are employed to connect two or more networks together are:
1) Repeaters
2) Hubs
3) Bridges
4) Routers
I
5) Gateways I
Operating System 3.13.1 Repeaters
Fundamentals &
Networking Repeaters, also called regenerator, are physical hardware devices. They connect two
network segments and broadcast packets between them, thus extending your network
beyond the maximum length of your cable segment. They have the primary function to
regenerate the electrical signal (shown below):
Reshaping the waveform
AmplifLing the waveform
Retiming the signal, to avoid collision on the network
As signal travels along a cable, its strength or amplitude decreases. This is called
attenuation. In other words, the signal attenuates as it travels along a cable. This limits
tlie length of a cable used to connect the computers together.
Since signal is a factor in the maximum length of a segment, repeater can
regenerate (or amplify) the weak sig~ialsso that they can travel additional cable
lengths. A repeater has intellige~ice,so that it takes a weak signal from one cable
segment, regenerates it and passes it on to the next segment. Simply we can say that
it recreates the bit pattern of the original signal . No more than four repeaters are
used to join segments together to keep collision detection working properly. We
should not confi~se repeater with amplifiers. As the amplifier uses analog signal, it
cannot differentiate between original signal and noise, therefore it amplifies both
original signal and noise. The repeater does not amplify the original signal, it
regenerates the original bit pattern.
Purpose of a Repeater
The purpose of a repeater (Figure 27) is to extend the LAN Segment beyond its
physical limits (as defined by the Physical Layer's Standards: e.g. Ethernet is
5OOm for 10Base5). A LAN Segment is a logical path, such as the logical bus
used by all 802.3 Ethernet types. A LAN Segment is given an identification
number, called a Segment Number or Network Number, to differentiate it from
other segments.

100 100
John Ware I
Building I I Building
I I

Figure 27: Repeater

Typically, repeaters are used to connect two physically close buildings together (when
they are too far apart to just extend the segment). They can be used to connect floors
of a building that would normally surpass the maximum allowable segment length.
Note: for large extensions, as in the above example, two Repeaters are required. For
shorter extensions, only one Repeater may be required.

Repeater's OSI Operating Layer

Repeaters operate at the OSI Model Physical Layer (Figure 28).

 Introduction to
Networking Concept
Network
Repeater
Datalink Datalid

Physical Physical
100

Figure 28: Repeater's Segment-to-Segment Characteristics

A repeater cannot join two cable segments using different access methods. A repeater
is not used to connect a segment using CSMAJCD access method to a segment using
token passing access. Repeaters can join two different physical media, but they must
use the same access method. Thus a repeater can have physical connections to join a
coaxial cables segment to a fiber optic segment.
Repeaters do not "de-segment" a network. All traffic that appears on one side of the
repeater appears on both sides. Repeaters handle only the electrical and physical
characteristics of the signal.
Repeaters work only on the same type of Physical Layer: Ethernet-to-Ethernet, or
Token Ring-tc-Token Ring. They can connect 10BaseS to 10BaseT because they both
use the same 802.3 MAC layer.
You can run into problems with the transfer rate (1 Mbps vs. 10 Mbps) when you
connect 1Base5 to 10BaseT. A repeater cannot connect Token Ring to Ethernet
because the Physical Layer is different for each network topology.
Repeater Addressing: MAC Layer and Network Segment
The MAC Layer Address is used to identify the Network Card to the Network. The
Repeater is transparent to both sides of the segment and both sides can "see" all the
Mac Addresses (regardless of which side they are on). This means that any network
traffic on Floor 1 will also appear on Floor 5, and vice versa (Figure29).

I
A B C Rep-er I 13 E F
1

100
1, ,I rTP7,
I loo
I
Floor 5 I Floor 1

Figure 29: Repeater Addressing

Nodes A & B could be furiously are exchanging files; this network traffic would also
appear on Floor 1. Repeaters don't provide isolation between segments (there is only
one collision domain).
Because Repeaters provide no isolation between segments, and the repeater is
transparent to both sides of the segment, both sides of the repeater appear as one long
segment. The Network Number, or Segment Number, is the same on both sides of the
Repeater.
3.13.2 Hubs
Hubs can also be called either Multi port Repeaters or Concentrators. They expand
one Ethernet connection into many. They are physical hardware devices. A hub is
Operating System similar to a repeater, except that it broadcasts data received by any port to all other
Fundamentals & ports on the hub.
Networking
Some hubs are basic hubs with minimum intelligence (i.e. no microprocessors),
Intelligent Hubs can perform basic diagnostics, and test the nodes to see if they are
operating correctly. Kf they are not, the Smart Hubs (or Intelligent Hubs) will remove
the node from the network. Some Smart Hubs can be polled and managed remotely.
Purpose of Hubs
Hubs are used to provide a Physical Star Topology (Figure 30). The Logical Topology
is dependent on the Medium Access Control Protocol. At the center of the star is the
Hub, with the network nodes located on the tips of the star.

Network Node

Figure 30: Position of Hub

Star Topology
The Hub is installed in a central wiring closet (Figure 3 1) with all the cables extending
out to the network nodes. The advantage of having a central wiring location is that it is
easier to maintain and troubleshoot large networks. All of the network cables come to
the central hub. This way, it is especially easy to detect and fix cable problems. You
can easily move a workstation in-a star topology- by changing the connection to the
hub at the central wiring closet.
Wice #1 Office #2 mice #3 Office #4 Office #5

Mfice #6 Office #7 Office #8 Office #9 Office#lo

Figure 31: Example of Hub

Hub's OSI Operating Layer Introduction to
Networking Concept
Hubs are multi port repeaters, and as such they obey the same rules as repeaters
(See previous section OS1 Operating Layer). 'They operate at the OSI Model Physical
Operating System IfA wanted to communicate with B, a dedicated 10 Mbps connection would be established
Fundamentals & between the two. If C wanted to communicate with D, another dedicated 10 Mbps
Networking
connection would be established.

3.13.3 Bridges
Bridges have all the features of the repeater. Besides regenerating the signals, a bridge
can segment (or divide) a network to isolate traffic related problems. A bridge sends
the data frames only to the concerned segment, thus preventing excess traff~c.A
bridge can split an overloaded network into two separate networks, reducing the
amount of traffic on each segment and thus making each network more efficient. Just
like repeaters, the bridges can be used to link different physical media. Bridges can
also be used to connect dissimilar networks like Ethernet system to a Token Ring
system. Thus bridges can be used to join networks using CSMAtCD access and token
passing access.
Bridges are both hardware and software devices. They can be standalone devices -
separate boxes specifically designed for bridging applications- or they can be
dedicated PCs (with 2 NlCs and bridging software). Most server software will
automatically act as a bridge when a second NIC card is installed.
Bridge OSI Operating Layer
Bridges (Figure 34) operate on the OS1 Model Data Link Layer, while repeaters work
at the physical layer. Since bridges work on a higher layer than repeaters, they are
more complex than repeaters and cost more than repeaters. They look at the MAC
addresses for Ethernet and Token Ring, and determine whether or not to forward--or
ignore-a packet.
Router

Network Nawodi Nttwmk

Dadink Datalink Datalink

Physical Physical Physiml Physical

*
L I
Figure 34: Bridge OSI Operating Layer

Bridges have their own routing tables. Initially the bridge's routing table is empty. As
nodes send packets, the source address is copied to the routing table. With this address
information, the bridge learns where the computers are situated. When any packet is
received by a bridge it reads its source and destination address. If the bridge knows the
location of the destination node it forwards the packet to the segment on which the
destination node is situated. If it does not know the destination, it forwards the packet
to all the segments.
Purposes of a Bridge
The purposes of a Bridge are the following:
Isolates networks by MAC addresses
Manages network traffic by filtering packets
Translates from one protocol to another
Isolates networks by MAC addresses Introduction to '
Networking Concept
For example, you have one segment called Segment 100: it has 50 users (in several
departments) using this network segment. The Engineering Dept. is CAD (Computer
Aided Design) -oriented, while the Accounting Dept. is into heavy number crunching
(vear end reports, month end statements, etc.).

Accounting I ~eneric 1 CAD

100 100
Accounting I "Other" I Engineering
I ~ P L
Dept I I D~P

Figure 35: Bridge Example 1

On this network, any traffic between Clients A, B or C and the Accou~ltingFile Server
(in the Accounting Dept.) will be heard across the Segment 100. Likewise, any traffic
between the Engineering Dept. clients G, H or I (to the CAD File Server) will be
heard throughout the Network Segment. The result is that "Other" Department
accesses to the Generic File Server are incredibly slow: this is because of the
unnecessary traffic that is being generated from other departments (Engineering &
Accounting).
The solution is to use one Bridge (Figure 36) to isolate the Accounting Dept., and
another bridge to isolate the Engineering Department. The Bridges will only allow
packets to pass through that are not on the local segment. The bridge will first check
its "routing" table to see ifthe packet is on the local segment. If it is, it will ignore the
packet, and not forward it to the remote segment. If Client A sent a packet to the
Accounting File Server then Bridge # I will check its routing table (to see if the
Accounting File Server is on the local port). If it is on the local port, then Bridge #1
will not forward the packet to the other segments.

I I
Accounting I Generic I CAD
, File Server I ,, ,File Server1 Fileserver , .. .

100
Accounting
ha1 ~anotc
II "Other" iaaa Engineering 100 I

Figure 36: Bridge Example 2

If Client A sent a packet to the Generic File Server, Bridge #1 will again check its
routing table to see if the Generic File Server is on the local port. If it is not, then
Bridge #1 will forward the packet to the remote port.
Note: The terms local and remote ports are arbitrarily chosen to distinguish between
the two network ports available on a bridge. R1 I
Operating System In this manner, the network is segmented, and the local department traffic is isolated
Fundamentals & from the rest of the network. Overall network bandwidth increases because the
Networking
Accounting Dept. does not have to fight with the Engineering Dept. (for access to the
segment). Each segment has reduced the amount of traffic on it and the result is faster
access. Each department still has complete access to the other segments, but only
when required.

3.13.4 Routers
A router is a special -purpose computer having a processor (CPU) and memory like
any other computer. But unlike any other computer, it has more than one 110 interface
that allows it to connect to multiple computer networks.
Routers are both hardware and software devices. Just like bridges, Router can connect
network segments and filter and isolate traffic. Unlike a bridge, a router can connect
networks that use different technologies, addressing methods, media types, frame
formats, and speeds. Routers are used in complex network situations because they
provide better traffic management than bridges. A router keeps track of the address of
all the segment of a network and can even determine the best path for sending data.
Routers do not pass broadcast traffic.
Like bridges, the routers also maintain routing tables in their memories to store
information about physical connections on the network. The router examines each
packet of data, checks the routing table , and then forwards the packet if necessary.
Routers are more inelegant than bridges, as routers can share status and routing
information with one another and use this information to bypass slow or malfunctioning
connections. Routers do not maintain any state information about the packets; they
simply move them along the network. Routers are usually employed by wide area
networks using dissimilar addressing schemes and different communication protocols.
Routers do not allow bad data to get passed on to the network. Thus they save
networks from broadcast storms.
There are two types of routers - static routers and dynamic routers.
Static routers require an administrator to manually set up and configure the routing
table and to specify each route.
Dynamic routers maintain a routing table automatically and require minimal set up and
configuration.
Router OSI Operating Layer
Routers operate on the OSI Model's Network Layer as shown in Figure 37. The
Internet work must use the same Network Layer protocol. Routers allow the
transportation of the Network Layer PDU through the Internetwork, even though the
Physical and Data Link Frame size and addressing scheme may change.

Bridge

Daralink Daralink

Physical Physical

82 Figure 37: Router Segment-to-Segment Characteristics

Routers that only know Novel1 IPX (Internetwork Packet Exchange) will not forward Introduction to
Unix's IP (Internetwork Packet) PDUs, and vice versa. Routers only see the Network Networking Concept
Layer protocol that they have been configured for. This means that a network-can have
multiple protocols running on it (e.g. SPXAPX, TCPIIP, Appletalk, XNS, etc.).
Router Addressing
Routers know the address of all known networks. They maintain a table of pathways
between networks and can select an optimal route over which to send data. Routers
look only at network address and not at destination node address. Routers talk to other
routers, but not to remote computers.
Routers combine the Network Number and the Node Address to make Source and
Destination addresses (in routing Network Layer PDUs across a network). Routers
have to know the name of the segment that they are on, and the segment name or
number where the PDU is going. They also have to know the Node Address: MAC
Address for Novell, and the IP address for TCP/IP.
3.13.5 Gateways
A Gateway is the Hardware/Software device that is used to interconnect LANs &
WANs
Gateways are much more complex and powerful than a router. They are slower than a
router and are expensive. A Gateway incorporates the functions of routers and
bridges, but it can translate instruction set on sending network into corresponding
instruction set of the receiving network. Gateways make communication possible
between different architectures and environments.
Often, the router that is used to connect a LAN to the Internet will be called a
gateway. It will have added capability to direct and filter higher layer protocols (layer 4
and up) to specific devices (such as Web servers, ftp servers and e-mail servers).
A Gateway links two systems that do not use the same communication protocols, data
formatting structures, languages and architecture, which can not be done by a router.
Gateways perform protocol and data conversion.
Gateway's OSI Operating Layer
A Gateway operates at the Transport Layer and above and it typically translates eqch
source layer protocol into the appropriate destination layer protocol. Gateways use all
the seven layers of the OSI model A mainframe gateway may translate all OSI Model
layers. For example, IBM's SNA (System Network Architecture) does not readily
conform to the OSI Model, and requires a gateway to translate between the two
architectures.
Check Your Progress 1
1) Compare the advantage of fiber over copper wire.

2) Discuss the advanthges and d~sadvantagesof Bus & Mesh Topologies.

3) What are the roles of protocols in a computer network?

 Operating System
Fundamentals & 3.14 SUMMARY
Networking

1 a A network allows one to share access to information devices.

a Communication protocol is a set of convelltions or rules that must be adhered

to by both communicating parties to ensure that information being exchanged
between the two parties is received and interpreted correctly.

a The major criteria to judge a data communicatio~~

network are: performance
Consistency, Reliability, Recovery, Security.

a The topology is the geometric arrangement (either physically or logically) of

the linking devices (usually called nodes) and the links, connecting the
individual computers or nodes together. Different topologies are mesh, star,
ring or combined topology.

a Communication between two devices can occur in three transmission modes:

simplex, half-duplex or full duplex.

a Computer network is classified into three types: LAN, MAN and WAN.

The network of networks is called the Internet.

a The most familiar type of DCE is the modem that modulates and demodulates
signals.

Guided transmission media use a cabling system that guides the data signals
along a specific path.

Unguided transmission media consist of a means for the data signals to travel
but nothing to guide them along a specific path.

Repeater is a device that operates at the physical layer, bridge at the data link
layer, router at the network layer and Gateway at all seven layers of the OSI
model.

3.15 SOLUTIONS/ANSWERS
Check Your Progress 1

Noise immunity: RFI and EM1 immune (RFI - Radio Frequency Interference,
EM1 -Electromagnetic Interference) Because fiber -optic transmission uses
light rather than electricity, noise is not a factor.

Security: cannot tap into cable.

Large Capacity due to BW (bandwidth).

No corrosion.

Longer distances than copper wire.

Smaller and lighter than copper wire.

Faster transmission rate.

The cost of optical fiber is a trade-off between capacity and cost. At higher Introduction to
transmission capacity, it is cheaper than copper. At lower transmission capacity, it is Networking Concept
more expensive.

2) The Bus Topology

The main advantage of bus topology is that it is quite easy to set up. Any
workstation can be easily moved to another location as bus runs throughout the
office. Another benefit of this layout is that if one computer on the bus fails, it does
not affect the rest of the traffic on the bus.

A network with bus topoiogy cannot become too big as all the traffic is on a single
bus. The entire network can be down only if the bus has a break. The open ends of
the bus must be terminated to prevent signal bounce. If one or both ends of the bus
are not terminated, the whole network can be down.

Disadvantages include difficult reconfiguration and fault isolation

Mesh Topologies

In a mesh topology, every node has a dedicated point-to point link to every other
node. Simply dedicated means that the links carry traffic only between the two
nodes. So mesh topology ddes not have traffic congestion problems. Every node
has n-1 link, for a fully connected mesh topology having n nodes. So total number of
links will be n (n-l).This also means that every node has (n-1) I10 ports

Advantages of Mesh topology

1) Use of dedicated links guarantees that each connection can carry its own data
load. This eliminates the traffic problem.

2) If one link fails, it does not affect the rest of network. This means it is robust.

3) Point to point links make fault identification and fault isolation easy.

4) Privacy or security is high; as any other link cannot gain access to dedicated link
where the message is travailing.

Disadvantages of mesh topology

1) More cabling and I10 ports are required, because every node must be connected
to every other node.

2) Cost is very high, because more number of nodes and cabling required.

3) Installation and reconfiguration is difficult.

4) The complexity of writing communication software can be reduced by

adopting the principle of protocol layering. The idea here is to partition
communication functions into a vertical set of layers. Each layer performs a
related set of functions. Division of work between layers is done in such a
way that they are manageable and provide a logical interface and break
point. Each communication layer provides certain services to layers above it
and relies on the next lower layer to perform more primitive functions. Each
layer hides internal details from other layers. Thus dividing the
communication problem into several layers reduces its complexity and
makes the workof developing communication soit~\area lot casier and
error free.
 - - - - - - -

UNIT 4 INTERNETWORKING: CONCEPT,

ARCHITECTURE AND PROTOCOLS
Structure Page Nos.
4.0 Introduction 87
4.1 Objectives 88
4.2 History of Internetworking 88
4.3 Packet Switching 89
4.4 Internetworking Concepts 90
4.5 Internet Addresses 91
4.6 Configuring IP Addresses 92
4.7 TCP/IP 93
4.8 Additional TCP/IP-Related Protocols 94
1 4.9 Application Layer Protocols
4.9.1 File Transfer Protocol
4.9.2 Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP)
4.9.3 TELNET
4.9.4 Remote Login
4.9.5 Electronic Mail (Email)

4.10 World Wide Web

.4.11 Domain Name System
4.12 SNMP AND UDP
4.13 Summary

4.15 Further Readings

4.0 INTRODUCTION
An internetwork is a collection of packet-switching and broadcast networks,
connected by bridges, switches, or routers which are intermediate networking
devices, that functions as a single large network. So a11 users and devices can
communicate, regardless of the network segment to which they are attached.
Figure I illustrates some different kinds of network technologies that can be
interconnected by routers and other networking devices to create an internetwork.

Figure 1: Internetworking
Operating System In this unit we will explain the concepts, architecture and protocols of internetworking.
Fundamentals &
Networking
4.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit you should be able to:

define packet switching concept;

differentiate between virtual circuit & datagram, and

understand the functioning of a large number of protocols.

4.2 HISTORY OF INTERNETWORKING

Networking allows computers to share information, applications and even hardware
devices. For any two computers to communicate with each other, they must follow
a set of rules called protocol. In early years of networking, every vendor was
concerned only with his own product. Each vendor defined its own standard for
communication between its computers. This resulted in many different types of
standards for network hardware and software that did not share a common protocol.
This meant that different systems could not interact with each other .Two computers
using network products of different vendors could not be connected together.

In the late 1970s, the networking community came together in an effort to replace
these closed systems with open systems. They wanted that all networking products
should be conipatible with other vendor products. The International Standards
Organisation (ISO) developed Open Systems Interconnection (OS1) reference model
for networking the model gives guidelines about how the parts of a network
communication system should work together.

The Open System Interconnection (OS1) reference model describes how

information from a software application in one computer moves through a network
medium to a software application in another computer. The OSI reference model is
a conceptual moclel composed of seven layers, each specifying particular network
functions. The model was developed by the lnternational Standards Organisation
(1SO) in 1984, and it is now considered the primary architectural model for inter
computer communications. The OSI model divides the tasks involved with moving
information between networked computers into seven smaller, more manageable
task groups. A task or group of tasks is then assigned to each of the seven OSI
layers. Each layer is reasonably self-contained so that the tasks assigned to each
layer can be irnplemented independently. This enables the solutions offered by one
layer to be updated without adversely affecting the other layers. The following list
details the seven layers of the Open System Interconnection (OSI) reference
model:

Layer 7-Application
Layer 6-Presentation
Layer 5-Session
Layer 4-Transport
Layer 3-Network
Layer 2-Data link
Layer 1-Physical
 Internehorking:
Concept, Architecture
and Protocols

Presentation

Figure 2 : The OSI Reference Model Contains Seven Independent Layers

4.3 PACKET SWITCHING

l ~ a t communication
a takes place between two devices that are directly connected
through some form of transmission medium. It is impractical for two devices to be
connected directly. Instead, a network of switching nodes provides a transfer path
between two devices. Packet switching involves the breaking up of messages into
smaller components called packets. Packets often range in size from about 128
bytes to over 4096 bytes depending on the system involved. Each packet contains
source and destination information, and is treated as an individual message. These
mini-messages are received and routed through optimal routes by various nodes on
a wide area network. Far example a file to be transmitted between two machines
may be broken into many packets that are sent across the network one at a time.
The network H/W delivers the packet to the end where the network software
reassembles them into a single file again. There are two major types of packets to
be switched. They are datagram and virtual circuit.

In the datagram approach, each packet is treated independently and may follow a
different path through the network. Packets may be re-ordered, dropped or
delivered in wrong sequence. The communication protocols will have to provide
error recovery and sequencing of packets at the destination.

In the virtual circuit approach, a tixed logical path through the network from
sender to destination is established before any packets are sent. This path remains
unchanged for the duration of the connection or session. Although no resources
are reserved along the path, packets are buffered at intermediate nodes awaiting
transmission.

Thus, a virtual circuit only defines a path for packets to follow without actually
reserving dedicated channels along the route as is the case with circuit switching.
Virtual circuit may provide a number of services including sequencing, error control
and flow control.
Operating System In comparing datagram and virtual circuit switching with other switching technologies,
Fundamentals & there are several factors to be considered. First of all, packet switching is faster
because messages are not stored in their entirety for later retrieval. Each packet is
small enough to be stored in a router's machine memory until it can be routed an
instant later. Secondly, packet switching allows the avoidance of route failure due to
excessive traffic loads. This is accomplished by routing packets along routes that are
the most free and clear. Thirdly, packet switching spreads the load of communication
across several paths.

The motivation for adopting packet switching are cost and performance. Because
multiple machines can share network fewer interconnections are required an'd cost is
kept low. Packet switched networks that span large geographical distances are
fundamentally different from those that span short distances. To help characterize the
differences in capacity and intended use, packet switched technologies are often
divided into three broad categories: Wide Area Network (WAN), Metropolitan Area
Network (MAN) and Local Area Network. There are structural protocols for each
category. In the next section we will examine one such protocol.

4.4 INTERNETWORKING CONCEPTS

We have seen how machines connect to individual networks. The question arises,
"How are networks interconnected to form an internetwork?" The answer has two
parts. Physically, two networks can only be connected by a computer that attaches to
both of them. A physical attachment does not provide the interconnection we have in
mind, however, because such a connection does not guarantee that the computer will
cooperate with other machines that wish to communicate. To have a viable internet,
we need computers that are willing to shuffle packets from one network to another.
Computers that interconnect two networks and pass packets from one to the other are
called internet gateways+ or internet routers.
Consider an example consistiiig of two physical networks shown in Figure 3. In the
figure, machine G connects to both network 1 and network 2. For G to act as a
gateway, it must capture packets on network 1 that are bound for machines on
network 2, and packets on network 2 that are destined for machines on network 1 and
transfer them.

Figure 3: Two networks interconnected by G,a gateway (router)

Interconnection through IP Gateways or Routers

When internet connections become more complex, gateways need to know about the
topology of the internet beyond the networks to which they connect. For example,
Figure 4 shows three networks interconnected by two gateways.

Figure 4: Three networks interconnected by two gateways

In this example, gateway G must move from network 1 to network 2 all packets Internetworking:
destined for machines on either network 2 or network 3. As the size of the internet Concept, Architecture
expands, the gateway's task of making decisions about where to send packets and Protocols
becomes more complex.
The idea of a gateway seems simple, but it is important because it provides a way to
interconnect networks, not just machines. In fact, we have already discovered the
principle of interconnectionused throughout an internet:
In a TCP/JP internet, computers called gateways provide all interconnections
among physical networks.

You might suspect that gateways, which must know how to route packets to their
destination, are large machines with enough primary or secondary memory to hold
information about every machine in the internet to which they attach. However,
gateways used with TCP/IP internets are usually minicomputers; they often have little
or no disk storage and limited main memories. The trick to building a small internet
gateway lies in the following concept:

Gateways route packets based on destination network, not on destination host.

If routing is based on networks, the amount of information that a gateway needs to

keep is proportional to the number of networks in the internet, not the number of
machines.

4.5 INTERNET ADDRESSES

In the previous section we defined a TCPIIP internet as a virtual network built by
interconnecting several physical networks through gateways which are usually
controlled by the internet service providers think of internet as a large network like any
other network. The difference of course is that the internet is a virtual structure
imagined by its designers and implemented entirely in TCP/IP s/w. Each machine
(host) on an internet is assigned a unique 32 bit internet address that is used in all
communication with that machine. Conceptually each address is a paid (netid, hosted)
where netid identifies a network and hosted identifies a host on that network.
Because IP addresses comprise both a network as a host on that network they do not
specifiy an individual machine but a connection to a network. For example a getway
connecting networks has distinct IP address, one for each network connection.

Unicasting, Broadcasting, and Multicasting

When an IP datagram is sent to an individual IP address, it is called a unicast IP
datagram. The process of sending the datagram is called unicasting. Unicasting is used
when two IP nodes are communicating with each other.

When an IP datagram is sent to all nodes on a specific network, it is called

broadcasting.
There is a third mode of sending an IP datagram called multicasting. In multicasting
the IP datagram is delivered to a group of systems identified by a class D address. The
systems that have the same multicast address are said to belong to a multicast group.
Members of the multicast group, while being assigned a class D address, must also be
assigned an IP address (from the class A, B, or C address group). The multicast group
can receive an IP datagram in two ways:
IP datagrams sent directly to their individual IP address (class A, B, C).

0 IP datagrams sent to their multicast address (class Dl.

 Operating System
Fundamentals & 4.6 CONFIGURING IP ADDRESSES
Networking
Hosts on a TCP/IP network need to be configured using proper IP addresses. The actual
configuration procedure depends on the operating system. The configuration procedure
can be classified into the following categories.
Command line based
Menu interface
Graphical User Interface based
Obtained dynamically when host boots from a central server

I Table 1: Configuring IP Address and other Parameters for Hosts

Method Operating System1 Protocol

Command line Unix, VMS, Router, devices, and
MS-DOS
Menu interface Router devices, Unix, NetWare
servers, and MS-DOS
Graphical User Interface Microsoft Windows products.
Dynamically assigned DHCP and BOOTP protocols.
Available on almost all major
operating system platforms.
Many systems offer a command that can be executed to modify the IP address. In
these systems, the command line is often placed in the startup script for the operating
system. The menu interface is built using extended line drawing character sets. You are
prompted to enter the IP address and other IP parameters. The Graphical User
Interface is for systems -such as X-windows and Microsoft's Windows operating
systems-that offer a pixel-based graphical view. The dynamically assigned IP address
is used in conjunction with BOOTP or DHP protocol. When starting up, a device
requests its IP address and other parameters from a central server that can deliver this
information using either the BOOTP or the DHCP protocol.
The IP address information for the host is recorded in a number of places. When the 1P
address information is entered, it is cached in memory and is available for use by the
TCPI IP software. Alternatively, this information can be recorded on a system file in
the operating system. IP addresses of ofhersystems can be discovered by consulting a
special file, usually called the "hosts" file, or by using the DNS protocol. The DNS
service is typically used to determine a host's 1P address given its symbolic DNS name.
In some systems, proprietary protocols can be used to discover an IP address on a
network. An example of this is the WINS service used in Microsoft's operating
systems.
You must consult your operating system manuals for actual details on configuring IP
addresses. The following sidebar provides examples of configuring IP addresses for
most Unix implementations, and for the Windows NT operating System.
Imagine that you are configuration network interface to IP ~ddress144.19.74.102,
subnet mask 255.255.0.0, and directed broadcast address 144.19.255.255.
For a Unix Configuration
1) Log on as root user
2) Run the followingcommand:
Ifconfig etl~0 144.19.74.102 netmask 255.255.0.0. broadcast 144.19.255.255. Internetworking:
Concept, Architecture
Replace ethO with the Unix logical name of the network interface. and Protocols

For Windows NT

1) Log on as Administrator user.

2) Select the following:
Start

Settings
Control Panel

Network

Select the TCPIIP protocol

Select Properties

3) You will see a dialog box in which you can enter the IP address and subnet mask.
Windows NT, by default, uses the appropriate directed broadcast address of 144.19.255.255
based on the subnet mask that you specify.

4.7 TCPJIP
Perhaps no other protocols designed to work above the Data Link and Physical OSI
layers are as popular as TCPIIP. That's primarily because this global protocol suite
has been used by and continually promulgated by thousands of government and
educational institutions world-wide.

The Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and the Internet Protocol (IP) are
commonly referred to collectively as TCPIIP. TCP represents a transport layer
protocol that provides end to end reliable transmission. To do so, TCP includes such
functions as flow control, error control, and exchange of status information. In
comparison, IP represents a connectionless-modenetwork layer protocol designed to
route message between networks. In addition to TCP, the Internet suite specifies an
optional connection less -mode layer 4 transport protocol known as the User
Datagram Protocol(UDP).UDP is used for transaction - based applications, such as
transmission of network management information when transmission efficiency is
more important than reliability.

Figure 5 illustrates the layering structure of the TCPIIP protocol suite to include a
few of the application services included in the suite.

Application Layer
Transport Layer
Internet Layer
Host-to-Network
Layer

Figure 5: TCPIIP reference model

I Operating System
Fundamentals &
Networking
The advantage of TCPIIP for a network operating system is simple: Interconnectivity i>
possible for any type of operating system and hardware platform that you might want
to add.

TCPIIP is not a single protocol but a set of more than a dozen protocols. Each protocol
within the TCPIIP family is dedicated to a different task. All the protocols that make up
TCPIIP use the primary components of TCPIIP to send packets of data.

Transmission Control PrvLocoland Internet Protocol are two ofthe primary protocols in
the TCPIIP family. The different protocols and services that make up the TCPIIP
family can be grouped according to their purposes. The groups and their protocols are
the following:

1 Transport: These protocols control the movement of data between two macliines.

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol): Aconnection-based service, meaning that the

sending and receiving machines co~nmunicatewith each other through a stream of
messages. TCP has message delivery assurance routines incorporated into it.
CPCheck Your Progress 1

1) What is a packet?

2) Which layer of the OSI model has been divided into two sublayers, and what
are they?

.................................................................................................................................

3) Although UDP is connection less, what is the benefit of UDP?

.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................

4) Describe how a TCP message gets from one place to another in step sequence?

.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................

4.8 ADDITIONAL TCPIIP-RELATED PROTOCOLS

Illere are several additional protocols designed to assist TCP and IP. Since routing is
so inlpor-tant on a packet-switched network like the Internet, specialized protocols
have been designed to assist in this function. Special protocols for deter~nining
addressing on the Internet have also been devised. Additionally, some additional Internetworking:
protocols may be involved in error-checking and flow control,just to name a few. Concept, Architecture '
and Protocols
Let's explore some of these additional protocols that are included in the TCPIIP suite
of protocols.

FTP File Transfer Protocol allows the transfer of copies of files between one
node and another. FTP is not hardware-dependent so its services can function
just about anywhere. Using this utility to copy data is typical ly referred to as
"FTPing" a file.

NFS Network Filing System was developed by Sun Microsystems Inc. It

provides shared access to files in a very transparent and integrated way. This
protocol is discussed in more detail a little later.

TELNET Remote Terminal Emulation allows users to coninlunicate wit11

diverse hosts. The TELNET application provides terminal-type access to PC\

UDP User Datagram Protocol is a bare-bones rapid transmission prc.tocol

that uses IP packets to deliver data with no reliability features like co~lncctions
and ACKs. The forte of UDP is speed, not reliability. It is used in NFS.

SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol is the middleman that uses UDP to
move data around from one inter~ietworkhost to another. Applications run on
both hosts that make use of SMTP.

ICMP Internet Control Message Protocol offers flu\\ control and error-
detection to the unreliable delivery method of IP. It prcn,idcsa facility for
routers and gateways on the net to communicate with a source if there is a
problem. It also provides a mechanism for determining if a destination cannot
be reached.

RIP Routing Information Protocol provides information for routing devices

about pathways and number of hops to achieve them. RIP was popularized by
its use in a Berkeley UNIX application called "Routed". RIP is ideal for smaller
networks, but considered impractical for larger inter~ietworks.

ARP & RARP Address Resolution Protocol & Reverse Address

Resolution Protocol are special protocols to allow TCPAP to interact in
environments such as Ethernet. ARP maps TCPIIP addresses to Ethernet Data
Link layer addresses. RARP maps the Ethernet Data Link layer address to the
TCPIIP address.

That's an overview of some of the better-known additional protocols.

4.9 APPLICATION LAYER PROTOCOLS

The first generation of Internet applications from the late 1960s and early 1970s
addressed the need to transfer files between computers, to have remote access to
computing resources, and to support communication between users at different
hosts. The applications, wliich met these needs: FTP, Telnet, HTTP, SNMP and
DNS, were the predominant applications in the first decades of the Internet. The
emergence of the World Wide Web in the early 1990s quickly made web browsing
the most popular Internet application. Recently, applications for streaming audio and
video, telephony over the Internet. and ~eer-to-peerfile sharing have again changed
the landscape of Internet applicatloni
Operating System This section discusses knowledge about how applications interact with the Internet and
Fundamentals & how applications take advantage of the Internet to provide network services to end-
Networking
users.

4.9.1 File Transfer Protocol

The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) for copying files between computer systems is
one ofthe oldest application- layer protocols and was created before the TCPIIP
protocol suite. FTP is a client-server protocol where an FTP client accesses an FTP
server. The FTP client authenticates itself with a user name and a password to
establish an FTP session. A successful authentication results in the establishment of an
FTP session, where the FTP client can download ("get") and upload ("put") files and
file lists. When transferring files, FTP respects the ownership and access privileges of
files.

Most hosts have a utility program, generally also called FTP, which provides an
interactive command line interface to run an FTP session. . FTP clients can also be
integrated in other applications, such as web browsers. Anonymous FTP is a special
form of file transfer service that allows public access to files at an FTP server. An
FTP client can establish an anonymous FTP session by supplying the user name
"anonymous" and an arbitrary password (The FTP server usually requests to supply
an email address as password).

FTP employs TCP as its transport protocol, thereby ensuring a reliable transfer of
transmitted data. Two TCP connections are established for each FTP session, called
control connection and data connection The control connection is used for commands
from the client and messages from the server. The data connection is used for the
transport of files. FTP server uses the well-known TCP port 2 1 for the control
connection, and the well-known TCP port 20 for the data connection, and an FTP
client selects available ephemeral port numbers. The control connection is established
at the beginning of the FTP session and stays up for the entire lifetime of the session.
The control connection is used by the FTP client for authentication, for setting various
session parameters, and for commands to download or upload files. The data
connection is opened and closed for each transfer of a file or file list. As soon as a file
or a file list has been transferred, the data connection is closed. If there is another file
transfer, the data connection is re-opened. By default, the data connection is
established upon request by the FTP server. The FTP client starts a TCP server that
waits for a connection on an ephemeral port, and sends the port number of this p c r ~on
the control connection to the FTP server. After the FTP server receives the port, it can
request a data connection to the FTP client. A security concern with FTP is that the
user name and the password submitted by the FTP client on the control collne~tionat
the beginning of an FTP session are not encrypted. Therefore, anyolie with the abil~ty
to capture traffic from an FTP client can obtain the user name and password used by
an FTP client.

The FTP client sends commands to the FTP server, and the FTP server responds
with a three-digit response code and an explaining text message. The commands from
the FTP client as well as the responses from the FTP server are transmitted as ASCII

Characters. 13 The end of a client command and the end of a server response is
represented by an end-of-line sequence, which consists of the ASCII special
characters Carriage Retgrn (ASCII 10) followed by Line Feed (ASCII 13). When the
TCP connection to TCP port 21 of the FTP server is established, the FTP server sends
a message that it is ready to interact on a new FTP session. Then, the user supplies a
user name and a password. If the authentication is succc;ssfi~l,tiie user sends the I!'
address and port number of its ephemeral port for the data con~~ectiorr. The IP ciJdress
and port number is sent in dotted-decimal notation, where the first four numbers
specify the 1P address and the last two numbers specify the port number. By default, Internetworking:
tiles are transmitted as text files using ASCII characters. However, the FTP client can Concept, Architecture
and Protocols
change this default so that files are transmitted bit-by-bit without any interpretation.
When the file transfer has been completed, the FTP server sends a message to the
FTP client. At this 13 ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) is
an encoding format for textual data, which represents an alphanumeric character or
special character by seven bits. Application-layer protocols transmit each ASCII
character in a byte (octet) with the most significant bit set to zero. TheFTP client can
download or upload another files, or end the FTP sessions by issuing the command
"Quit".

4.9.2 Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP)

The Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) is a minimal protocol for transferring
files without authentication and no separation of control information and datd as in FTP.
Therefore TFTP must not be used on computer where sensitive /confidential
information is stored. TFTP is frequently used by devices without permanent storage
for copying an initial memory image (bootstrap) from a remote server when the
devices are powered on. Due to the lack of any security features, the use of TFTP is
generally restricted.

TFTP uses the unreliable transport protocol UDP for data transport, whereas FTP uses
TCP. Each TFTP message is carried in a separate UDP datagram. The first two bytes
of a TFTP message specify the type of message, which can be a request to download
a file, request to upload a file, a data message, or an acknowledgement or error
message. A TFTP session is initiated when a TFTP client sends a request to upload or
download a file from an ephemeral UDP port to the (well-known) UDP port 69 of a
TFTP server. When the request is received the TFTP server picks an ephemeral UDP
port of its own and uses this port to communicate with the TFTP client. Thus, both
client and server communicate using ephemeral ports.

Since UDP does not recover lost or corrupted data, TFTP is responsible for
maintaining the integrity of the data exchange. TFTP transfers data in blocks of 5 12
bytes. Each block is assigned a 2-byte long sequence number and is transmitted in a
separate UDP datagram. A block must be acknowledged before the next block can be
sent. When an acknowledgment is not received before a timer expires, the block is
retransmitted.

4.9.3 TELNET
Telnet is a remote login protocol for executing commands on a remote host. The Telnet
protocol runs in a client-server mode and uses the TCP protocol for data transmission.
A client initiates a Telnet session by contacting a Telnet server at a remote host.
Recently, the use of Telnet in public networks has been discouraged since Telnet does
not offer good protection against third parties that can observe ("snoopy7)traffic
between a Telnet client and a Telnet server. At the Telnet client, a character that is
typed on the keyboard is not displayed on the monitor, but, instead, is encoded as an
ASCII character and transmitted to a remote Telnet server. At the server, the ASCII
character is interpreted as if a user had typed the character on the keyboard of the
remote machine. If the keystroke results in any output, this output is encoded as
(ASCII) text and sent to the Telnet client, which displays it on its monitor. The output .
can be just the (echo of the) typed character or it can be the output of a command that
was executed at the remote Telnet server.

Telnet uses a single TCP connection for communications. The Telnet server uses
the well known TC:P port 23 and the Telnet client uses an ephemeral TCP port.
After establishin8 the TCP connection, the Telnet client and server negotiate a set
Operatlog System of parameters for the Telllet session, including terminal type, line speed, iftyped
Fundamentals & characters'should be echoed to the client or not, and so on. Unless a Telnet
Networking
session is explicitly configured not to do so, Telnet client sends one TCP segment
for each typed character. Telnet provides some independence from the
differences of hardware and software at hosts by mapping input and output to a
virtual device, called Network Virtual Terminal (NVT) or pseudo terminal. The
Telnet client and Telnet server map the input from a keyboard and the output to a
monitor to the ASCII character set. Thus, before a character is sent over the
network it is encoded as ASCII character. Also, when an ASCII character is
received on tlie TCP connection, the receiving host interprets the character and
translates it into its local character format.

4.9.4 Remote Login

IIQloglnis an alternative remote login application program for hosts that run the Unix
operating system. Rlogin takes advantage of the fact that both the client and server run
a similar operating system, and, for this reason, is simpler than Telnet. Rsh is an
application program for the execution of a single command on a remote Unix host.
There is also an application program for file transfers between Unix hosts, called rcp.
However, this group of applications has poor security features, and is, therefore, often
disabled.

The Secure Shell suite of protocols provides application layer services for remote
login and file transfer services, similar to FTP, Telnet, rlogin, rsh, and rcp, but ensures
secure encrypted communications between untrusted hosts. All components of Secure
Sliell provide authentication, confidentiality, and integrity of data, using a variety of
encryption and authentication algorithms, and protect against common attacks on the
security or integrity of co~nmunicationsbetween hosts.

4.9.5 Electronic Mail(Emai1)

Electronic Mail (email) is the primary Internet service for exchanging messages
between users at different hosts(computer) on the Internet. The exchange of email
messages is asynchronous, meaning that the transmission and retrieval of an email
message can occur at different times.

A user on a host prepares an email on a mail preparation program, called a user agent.
Examples of user agents on Unix operating systems are mail, xmail, elm, or pine 14.
Email messages are written in plain text and users can add non-text files to an email
message. The user agent passes the email to a mail server, where the message is
queued for transmission., the user agent and the mail server are on the same'host, but
it is also possible that they are on different hosts. The mail server uses the application-
layer protocol SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) to transmit the email message to
the mail server of the receiver of the email. The sending mail server uses DNS, the
domain name service, to locate the correct remote mail server. In addition to
translating host names into IP addresses, DNS also provides the IP addresses of mail
servers. For the email ,the mail server at Host A queries DNS for the IP address of the
mail server that is responsible for tlie domain of the email receiver. Once the IP
address of the remote mail server is obtained, the sending mail server starts an SMTP
client and initiates a TCP connection to the SMTP server of the remote mail server at
the.wel1-known TCP port 25. As soon as the TCP connection is established, the SMTP
client and server exchange SMTP commands and transfer the email message. These
are user agents for hosts with a UNJX operating system. Commands and the email
message are transmitted as plain text using ASCII characters. If an email message
contains parts that are not text files, these parts are converted to ASCII characters
using the end-of-line sequence to indicate the end of a command. The SMTP client Internetworking:
issues commands to the server, and the server responds to each command with a Concept, Architecture
and Protocols
three-digit response code and explaining text. Aftzr the TCP connection is established,
the remote mail server sends a brief message.

411 email message may traverse multiple SMTP servers before reaching its destination.
For example, on most networks a single host is dedicated to handle all outgoingemail
messages for all hosts of the network. In this case, all hosts forward their outgoing
email message to the dedicated mail server, which relays the elnails to the proper
destinations. Also, in many networks, the receiving mail server does not have access to
the receiver's mailbox, and relays incoming messages to the mail server on a host
where the receiver's mailbox resides. When a mail server relays an email message, it
adds lines to the header of an email message. These lines can be used by the receiver
of an email message to trace the path of an incoming email. A mail server adds
incoming emails to the mailbox of a user, and assumes that the user has aLcess to the
mailbox. Often, however, a user is not permanently connected to its mail server. In
such situations, the user can employ mail access protocols to retrieve mail messages
from their mailboxes at a remote host. Currently, two popular mail access protocols are
in wide use: Post Office Protocol Version 3 (POP3) and Internet Mail Access Protocol
([MAP). Mail access protocols are generally integrated as a component of the user
agent.

Exchange of POP3 messages between a POP3 cli'ent and a POP3 server. An

exchange of POP3 commands between a POP3 client and a POP3 scrver. All
co~nmandsand messages are in plain ASCII text, and lines are separated by an end-
ofline sequence (CR and LF). The POP3 server acknowledges each command from
the client.

For outgoing messages, the user agent at Host X still uses SMTP. , The SMTP client
of the user agent at Host X connects to the SMTP server of Host A. Here, Host A
acts as a relay and forwards the message to the mail server of the email receiver.
Alternatively, the SMTP client at Host X can directly connect to the mail server of the
receiver.

Browser-based Emails

Browser based emails allow user to access emails through web browser. The user
agent (the web browser) is used HTTP (not POPIIMAP) for the interaction between
the browser and email server. When a user wants to send or view the received mail,
the browser sends all such commands in the form of HTTP

Example of browser based emails are rediffinail, Gmail, etc.

Multipurpose Internet Mail extensions (MIME)

Traditional email systems are text based. Multipurpose Internet Mail extensions
(MIME) system extends the basic elnail system by permitting users to send binary file,
e.g., multimedia file, any other arbitrary format

4.10 WORLD WIDE WEB (WWW OR WEB)

The World Wide Web (WWW or Web) emerged in the early 1990s as a new
application for access to content stored on Internet hosts. Within a few years, the Web
beca~nethe most popular Internet application, and traffic on the Internet was
do~ninatedby Web applications. The Web is a distributed hypertext system, which is
implemented as a client-server application.
Operating System A Web client program, called a Web browser, retrieves and displays documents from a
Fundamentals & Web server. The documents, often referred to as web pages, are formatted using the
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). HTML documents are text files that contain
HTML tags, which describe how text should be displayed in the user interface of a Web
browser. A hyperlink is special type oftag. It is a reference to another document, which
may be located at a different Web server. When displayed in a browser, hyperlinks can
be activated with a mouse click.

When activated, the browser retrieves the document that is referenced in tlie
hyperlink. A Web browser makes it convenient to access a variety of documents at
different web servers, which refer to each other by hyperlinks, thus, providing users
with a feeling of navigating a global database of documents. On the Web, tlie location
of a document is expressed in terms of a Uniform Resource Locator (URL). A URL
specifies a unique location for a document on the web. It can reference an HTML
document, but also any other file that can be accessed with a Web browser. An
example of a URL is http://www.ignou.ac.in/index.html, which specifies that an
HTML document with name index.htnz1 can be accessed via the protocol HTTP
from a host with the name www.ignou.ac.in

There is no notion of sessions, as, for example, in Telnet and FTP.

In older versions of HTTP, which are still in use today, an HTTP client initiates one
TCP connection for each request to the HTTP server. When a single client issues
multiple requests to the HTTP server, the number of TCP connections between the
HTTP client and HTTP server can grow large. To reduce the number of TCP
connections, HTTP/ 1.1, the current version of HTTP, permits multiple HTTP
requests and responses on the same TCP connection, leaves the TCP connection
open after a request has been served. The HTTP client does not need to wait until
a request is completed before issuing new requests. As i n many other application
layer protocols of the Internet, HTTP messages are tranmitted as ASCII text,
using the end-of-line character sequence to indicate the end of a message. The
most common HTTP messages sent by a client are requests for HTML or other
documents. The server responds to such a request either with a message that
contains the requested document or, if the request cannot be satisfied, with an error
code. Let us now discuss a request and a response between an HTTP client and an
HTTP. Suppose a user has typed the URL is http://www.ignou.ac.in/index.html in a
web browser.
When the URL is typed, the web browser starts an HTTP client, which establishes a
TCP connection to port 80 of the HTTP server of host www.ignou.ac.in

4.11 DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM

The Internet Protocol address is a 32- bit integer. If somebody wants to send a
message it is necessary to include the destination address, but people prefer to assign
machines pronounceable, easily remembered names (host names). For this reason the
Domain Name System is used. These logical names also allow independence from
knowing the physical location of a host. A host may be moved to a different network,
while the users continue to use the same logical name. The idea behind domain names
is simple: Rather than forcing people to memorize IP numbers, why not give them
cryptic names to remember instead?
Domain Name System maps a name to an IP address and conversely an address to a
name. Initially when the size of the Internet was small all machines used to maintain a
host.txt file, which was passed on, incase of Updates. This host.txt file was centrally
managed but looking at the present Internet scenario this does not seem to be a
feasible option due to the following reasons:
 Size ofthe file will be very large, scalability also becomes an issue Internetworking:
Concept, Architecture
This is centrally managed but since the Internet has distributed management, the
management of name space should also be of distributed nature.
There can be inconsistent results for queries.
Because of the centralized management as the frequency of lookups increases
the time for reply can be very large.
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database used by TCPIIP
applications to map between hostnames and IP addresses, and to provide electronic
mail routing information. Each site (university department. campus, company, or
department within a company, for example) maintains its own database of information
and runs a server program that other systems across the Internet can query. The DNS
provides the protocol, which allows clients and servers to co~nmunicatewith each
other.
The system accesses the DNS through a resolver. The resolver gets the hostname and
returns the IP address or gets an IP address (Figure 6) and looks up a hostname. As
we can see in Figure 6, the resolver returns the 1P address before asking the TCP to
open a connection or sending a datagram using UDP.

hostname
hostname 1
IP a d d r e s s

9
send IP da agram

to the host

Figure 6: DNS working scheme

DNS Design Goals

The primary goal is a consistent name space, which w ~ ibel used for referring to
resources. Names should not be required to contain network identifiers, addresses,
routes, or similar information as part of the name. Name space should be maintained in
a distributed manner, with local caching to improve performance. Mechanisms for
creating and deleting names; these should also be distributed.

The costs of implementing such a facility dictate that it is generally useful, and not
restricted to a single application. We should be able to use names to retrieve host
addresses, mailbox data, and other as yet undetermined information. All data
associated with a name is tagged with a type, and queries can be limited to a single
type.

The name space should be useful in dissimilar networks and applications.

In short design goal of DNS:

1) Distributed ownership: Since the Internet has distributed v3,vnership;the

ownership of name space should also be of distributed nature.
Operating System 2) Have no obvious size limits for names, name components,data associated with a
Fundamentals & name, etc.
Networking
3) DNS protocol should be independent of the network topology.

4) OSIArchitecture independent

Design Principles
.
Hierarchy: The name space as well as management space should be hierarchical.
The name space can be represented as a tree with the root label as a null string. The
domain name system uses a hierarchical naming scheme known as domain names,
which is similar to the Unix file system tree. The root ofthe DNS tree is a special node
with a null label. The name of each node (except root) has to be up to 63 characters.
The domain name of any node in the tree is the list of labels, starting at that node,
working up to the root, usinga period ("dot") to separate the labels (individual sections
of a name might represent sites or a group, but the domain system simply calls each
section a label). Thus, the domain name "ignou.ac.in" contains three labels: "ignou",
"ac", and "in". Any suffix of a label in a domain name is also called a domain. In the
above example the lowest level domain is "ignou.ac.in" (the domain name for the
IGNOU in India), the second level domain is "ac.inY'(the domain name for Academic
organizations of India), and the top-level domain (for this name) is "in" (the domain
name for India). The node in is the second level node (after root) (Figure 7).

Figure 7: Hierarchical organisation of the DNS

Caching: A fundamental property of the DNS is caching. That is, when a name server
receives information about a mapping, it caches that information. Thus a later query for
the same mapping can use the cached result. The DNS uses the caching for optimizing
search cost. Caching is required as otherwise there will be:
long time for lookup
congestion at the root server
Every server has a cache for recently used names as well as a record of where the
mapping information for that name was obtained. When a client asks the server to
resolve certain name the server does as follows:

1) Check if it has authority for the name. If yes, the server doesn't need caching
information.

2) If not, the server checks its cache whether the name has been resolved recently.
If yes, the server reports the caching information to its clients.
Wc can examine the cache when the server cashed the information once, but didn't Internetworking:
ch:rnge it. Since information about a particular name can change, the server may Concept, Architecture
and Protocols
have incorrect information in its caching table. The Tiine to Live (TTL) value is used
to decide when to age information. Whenever an authority responds to a request, it
includes a TTL value in the response, which specifies how long it guarantees the
binding to remain.
DNS Architecture
k:
NAME SERVERS are server programs, which hold information about the domain
tree's structure and set information. A name server may cache structure or set
information about any part of the domain tree, but in general a particular name server
has complete information about a subset of the domain space, and pointers to other
name servers that can be used to lead to information from any part of the domain
tree.
REVOLVERS are programs that extract information from name servers in response
to client requests. Revolvers must be able to access at least one name server and use
that name server's information to answer a query directly.
Data in the DNS co~lsistsof Resource Records. There exists a data type for each
record. It is of the form (A, MX) where A is the 32-bit IP address, MX is a 16-bit
value along with a host name which acts as the mail exchange for the domain. DNS
can be used for both forward lookup (host name to 1P address) and reverse lookup
(IP address to host name). Name space has an entire subtree for reverse
n1apping.e.g. 1NADDR.ARPA for reverse lookup
DNS Zones
The zone (Figure 8) is a subtree of the DNS that is administered separately.
Whenever a new system is installed in a zone, the DNS administrator for the zone
allocates a name and an IP address for the new system and enters these into the
name server's database. W~thina zone DNS service for subsidiary zones may be

Zones are contiguous regions of the name space, where each can be forked into sub
zones. Each of these sub zones can have its independent management.
For example, the IGNOU zone has 2-sub zones cse and lib, which have their own
management.

ROOT

Figure 8: DNS Zones

A name server can support multiple zones; several sub zones can use the same name
server. Name servers have pointers among each other.
 Operating System Remarks on DNS
Fundamentals &
Networking DNS uses datagram based access, although a DNS query requires reliability, TCP
is not used, as it is a query response mechanism.

I Root server is replicated for improved reliability.

Address resolution is done recursively. Any DNS server will pass requests it
cannot handle to a higher-level server and so on until either the request can be
handled or until the root of the DNS name space is reached.
DNS for System break-in
DNS is highly vulnerable to attacks and spoofing. An intruder canintercept virtually all
requests to translate names to IP addresses, and supply the address of a subverted
machine instead; this would allow the intruder to spy on all traffic, and build a nice
collection of passwords if desired.
IP spoofing attacks can be prevented to an extent. Ssh provides an improved type of
authentication. The server has a list of host keys stored in letc/ssh~known~host, and
additionally each user has host keys in $HOME/.ssh/known~hosts.Ssh uses the name
servers to obtain the canonical name of the client host, looks for its public key in its
known host files, and requires the client to prove that it knows the private host key.
This prevents IP and routing spoofing attacks.
rlogin and rsh permit ordinary users to extend trust to remote host/user combinations.
In that case, individual users, rather than an entire system, may be targeted by source
routing attacks. The information required for this attack are the target hostname,
trusted hostname and the user name, which are obtained by the "finger" command.
Attack is done as below:
In spoofing a host or application to mimic the actions of another. The attacker pretends
to be an innocent host by following IP addresses in network packets. rlogin service can
use this method to mimic a TCP connection from another host by guessing TCP
sequence numbers.
These attacks can be prevented by:
Prevent datagram routing with invalid source addresses.
lntroduce unpredictability into connection control mechanisms, such as TCP
sequence numbers and the allocation of dynamic port addresses.
Letting rshlrlogin to do forward loop along with the reverse lookup.
Allowing to do forward lookup creates a problem called " poisoning the cache " where
the attacker sends an unsolicited record along with the PTR record( PTR-a pointer to
another part of the domain name space ).
This attack-can be subverted by rejecting with the record, which arrives along with the
PTR record.

4.12 SNMP AND UDP

Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
SNMP (Figure 9) is the simple network management protocol. It is used by network
management frameworks to manage and monitor network devices, such as hubs and
routers. Some computer systems also respond to SNMP queries
SNMP is not actually a protocol: it's a client server application that runs on the UDP
(User Datagram Protocol) service of the TCPIIP protocol suite to manage the
network. Network management means to ensure that network is up and running, Internetworking:
taking corrective measures and performing maintenance activities. It was developed Concept, Architecture
and Protocol-
to be an efficierlt means of sending network management information over UDP, using
Ports 161(SNMP) and 162 (SNMP TRAP).

SNMP Manager SNMP Aoent

Network management system contains two primary elements: a manager and agents.
The Manager is the console through which the network administrator performs
network management functions. Agents are the entities that interface to the actual
device being managed. Bridges, Hubs, Roilters or network servers are examples of
managed devices that contain managed objects. These managed objects might be
hardware, configuration parameters, performance statistics, and so on, that directly
relate to the current operation of the device in qilestion. These objects are arranged in
what is known as a virtual inforliiation database, called a managenlent information
base, also called MIB. SNMP allow u u

purpose of accessing these objects.

The model of network management architecture looks like fFipirre 10) this: I

SmIP
?.gent
Neturork
Engine

A typical agent usually:

Implements full SNMP protocol.
Stores and retrieves management data as defined by the Management
Information Base.
Can asynchronously signal an event to the manager.
Can be a vroxy for some non-SNMP manageable network node.
Operating System A typical manager usually:
Fundamentals &
Networking Implemented as a Network Management Station (the NMS)
Implements full SNMP Protocol

Query agents
Get responses from agents
Set variables in agents
Acknowledge asynchronous events from agents
SNMP uses the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) as the transport protocol for
passing data between managers and agents. UDP was chosen over the Transmission
Control Protocol (TCP) because it is connectionless; that is, no end-to-end
connection is made between the agent and the NMS when datagranzs (packets) are
sent back and forth. This aspect of UDP makes it unreliable, since there is no
acknowledgment of lost datagrams at the protocol level. It's up to the SNMP
application to determine ifdatagrams are lost and retransmit them if it so desires. This
is typically accomplished with a simple timeout. The NMS sends a UDP request to an
agent and waits for a response. The length of time the NMS waits depends on how it's
configured. If the timeout is reached and the NMS has not heard back from the agent,
it assumes the packet was lost and retransmits the request. The number of times the
NMS retransmits packets is also configurable.
At least as far as regular information requests are concerned, the unreliable nature of
UDP isn't a real problem. At worst, the management station issues a request and
never receives a response. For traps, the situation is somewhat different. If an agent
sends a trap and the trap never arrives, the NMS has no way of knowing that it was
ever sent. The agent doesn't even know that it needs to resend the trap, because the
NMS is not required to send a response back to the agent acknowledging receipt of
the trap.
The upside to the unreliable nature of UDP is that it requires low overhead, so the
impact on your network's performance is reduced. SNMP has been implemented over
TCP, but this is more for special-case situations in which someone is developing an
agent for a proprietary piece of equipment. In a heavily congested and managed
network, SNMP over TCP is a bad idea. It's also worth realizing that TCP isn't magic,
and that SNMP is designed for working with networks that are in trouble-if your
network never failed, you wouldn't need to monitor it. When a network is failing, a
protocol that tries to get the data through but gives up if it can't is almost certainly a
better design choice than a protocol that will flood the network with retransmissions in
its attempt to achieve reliability.
SNMP uses the UDP port 161 for sending and receiving requests, and port 162 for
receiving traps from managed devices. Every device that implements SNMP must use
these port numbers as the defaults, but some vendors allow you to change the default
ports in the agent's configuration. If these defaults are changed, the NMS must be
made aware of the changes so it can query the device on the correct ports.
Figure 11 shows the TCPIIP protocol suite, which is the basis for all TCPIIP
communication. Today, any device that wishes to communicate on the Internet (e.g.,
Windows NT systems, Unix servers, Cisco routers, etc.) must use this protocol suite.
This model is often referred to as a protocol stack, since each layer uses the
information from the layer directly below it and provides a service to the layer directly
 Concept, Architecture
and Protocols I

Figure 11: TCPIIP communication model and SNMP

When either an NMS or an agent wishes to perform an SNMP function (e.g., a

request or trap), the following events occur in the protocol stack:
Application
First, the actual SNMP application (NMS or agent) decides what it is going to do. For
example, it can send an SNMP request to an agent, send a response to an SNMP request
(this would be sent from the agent), or send a trap to an NMS. The application layer
provides services to an end user, such as operator requesting status information for a port
on an Ethernet switch.
LTDP
The next layer, UDP, allows two hosts to communicate with one another. The UDP
header contains, among other things, the destination port of the device to which it is
sending the request or trap. The destination port will either be 161 (query) or 162 (trap).
IP
The IP layer tries to deliver the SNMP packet to its intended destination, as'specified by
its IP address.
Medium Access Control (MAC)
The final event that must occur for an SNMP packet to reach its destination is for it to be
handed off to the physical network, where it can be routed to its final destination. The
MAC layer is comprised of the actual hardware and device drivers that put your data
onto a physical piece ofwire, such as an Ethernet card. The MAC laye? also is responsible
for receiving packets from the physical network and sending them back up the protocol
stack so they can be processed by the application layer (SNMP, in this case).
' @= Check Your Progress 2

1) What are the various categories of TCPIIP Well-known Services?

Operating System 2) What is standard HTTP port?
Fundamentals &
Networking ..............................................................................................................................

..............................................................................................................................
3) Can a server will work as an FTP server and a webserver?

..............................................................................................................................
4) Multiple choice

i) TCPIIP is tlie main protocol used by computers on the Internet

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

ii) If I wanted to login to a host computer via the Internet, I would use
a) telnet
b) traceroute

c) snmp

iii) To determine if another computer was reachable (alive), the utility I could use is

b) nslookup
c) telnet

iv) My computer is very slow. 1 wish to take advantage of a much faster computer
on the network and have my program run there. Which of the following would I
use?

b) snmp

C) rsh

5) 1 need to print a docume~iton a printer attached to a UNIX server. Which

command would I use?

b) ping
c) rsh
 I wish to gain some statistics fro111a network server about the number of data Internetworking:
packets being sent and received. Which ofthe following should I use? Concept, Architecture
and Protocols
a) snmp 1;
bj telnet

c) rsh

d) ftp

4.13
- SUMMARY
This unit introduced the building blocks on which internetworks are built. Internetworks
are complex systems that, when viewed as a whole, are too much to understand. Only
by breaking the network down into the collceptual pieces can it be easily understood.
As you read and experience internetworks, try to think of them in terms of OSI layers
and conceptual pieces.

Understanding the interaction between various layers and protocols makes designing,
configuring, and diagnosing internetworks possible. Without understanding of the
building blocks, you cannot uilderstand the interaction between them.

Assigning Internet address to the nodes on the network is a very common task you will
,,erform when building a TCP/IP network. Two types of TP addresses exist: those for
I P version 4 and those for TP version 6. IP addresses must be unique on a network. in
special cases, it is possible to introduce non-unique addresses, called private addresses.

IP addresses posses a certain structure; they are divided into a network number (netid)
and a host number (hostid) portion. This chapter examines the strengths and
weaknesses of this scheme. Not all IP addresses can be assigned as a unique
identification for network connections. Only class A, B, and C addresses are
assignable to individual network connections. Class D is used for IP multicasting. In
addition, there are several special addresses used for broadcasting, loop back
addresses, and special circumstances. Besides IP & TCP, we looked at several other
protocols.
-

4.14 SOLUTIONSIANSWERS
Check Your Progress 1

1) A packet is a unit of data that is sent from an originating host to a

destination host on a network.

2) Datalink; logical Link Control (LLC) and Media Access Control(MAC)

3) UDP can transfer data faster than TCP

4) (1) First, TCP receives a request from a higher-application that a connection to

a remote machine is needed.

(2) TCP sends a request message to the destination machine. The request
message contains a unique number called the socket number that identifies
the sending machine's IP address and a port number.

(3) The message is passed down to IP

(4) IP assembles a datagram and send it to the destination
Operating System (5) The destination's IP, when received the request, sends back its socket
Fundamentals & number. This process called "exchange of socket number".
Networking
(6) TCP sends back up message to the application.

(7) The application then sends data to TCP as a stream of data.

(8) TCP assembles the data in to packets, so called "TCP segments"

(9) TCP then adds a header (Protocol Data Unit) to the data.
(10) TCP send the packaged segment to IP.
(1 1) IP encapsulates it and sends it over the network, so called "datagram".If
there is several segments, a sequence number will created and added to the
datagram.

(12) If a segment is missing, TCP sends message back to the sending machine
with the faulty sequence number.

(13) After properly received, TCP generated either a pos;tive acknowledgment

(ACK), or a request to resend a segment.

Check Your Progress 2

1) The port numbers are divided into three ranges: the Well Known Ports, the Registered
Ports, and the Dynamic and/or Private Ports.

The well known ports are those from 0 through 1023.

The Registered Ports are those from 1024 through 491 5 1

The Dynamic and/or Private Ports are those from 49152 through 65535

2) standard port number :80

3) Yes , a server can be running several services and listening at different ports for
request

4) 1 (a)

2 (a)

3 (a)

4 (c)

5 (d)

6 (a)

4.15 FURTHER READINGS

"Internetworking with TCP/IR Douglas Comer, Volume I, Fourth Edition",
Prentice Hall, 2000.
Computer Networking, Kurose and Ross, Second Edition, Addison-Wesley, 2003
(optional, in RBR).
"Computer Networks: A Systems Approach ", Peterson & D ~ V I C Morgan
S,
-
Kaufmann, Second Edition, 2000 W.
 "TC'P/IP Illustrated', Voluine 1, The Protocols, Richard Stevens, Addison- Internetworking:
Wesley, 1994. Concept, Architecture
and Protocols
"lnternetworking with TCP/IP7, Douglas Comer, Volume 3, BSD Socket
Version, Prentice Hall, 1993.
"Computer Networks", Tanenbaum, Third Edition, Prentice-Hall 1996.
0 Data Networks, Dimitri Bertsekas and Robert Gallager, Second Edition,
Prentice-Hal1 1992.
0 "OSI A Model for Computer Communication Standards", Uyless Black,
Prentice Hall, 1991.
"Data a n d Computer Communications", U'ill iam Stallings, Fourth Edition,
MacMillan, 1994.