OSI MODEL

OSI or Open Systems Interconnection is a conceptual model to represent the theory

behind the computer networking and its function. It helps to standardize how computers
send/share information. Understanding OSI model provides us the knowledge to
familiarize with the concept of Internet. The figure on the right represents the 7 layers of
OSI model. They are mentioned as such:

1. Physical Layer
2. Data Link Layer
3. Network Layer
4. Transport Layer
5. Session Layer
6. Presentation Layer
7. Application Layer

Mnemonics:
i. Anxious Pale Shakespeare Treated Nervous Drinks Patiently
ii. Please Do Not Tell(the) Secret(to) Anyone

Let us take a brief tour to understand what happens in each of these layers:

1. Physical Layer:
a. Cabling = How to cable wires, etc.
b. Signal Type, Transmission methods, etc.
c. Conversion of binary data to signals.
d. Transmission of data across network.

2. Data Link Layer:

a. Present the data in a suitable format for transmission.
b. Data referred to as frames.
c. Checks information to make sure data isn’t corrupted.
d. Focuses on physical addressing (MAC Address) of the transmission.
e. Receives a packet from the network layer and adds in mac address of receiving endpoint.

3. Network Layer:
a. Transmission of info using routers.
b. Data referred to as packets.
c. Each data packet includes a data frame and IP
address. [IPsec]
d. Responsible for locating the destination of your
request.
e. Data being transmitted in a packet is often called
payload.
f. IP addresses are attached with MAC address via
Address Resolution Protocol, which resolves MAC
address to the IP.

4. Transport Layer: Figure 1 - IPSec

a. Chooses which protocol to use to transport data.
b. Two protocols: TCP, UDP, each with pros and cons – depends on the situation.
c. Provides end-to-end transmission by segmenting message into multiple data packets.
5. Session Layer:
a. Establishes, maintains and manages session in this layer.
b. Two concepts:
i. Client and Server Model
ii. Request and Response Model

6. Presentation Layer:
a. Involves data formatting, character encoding, data encryption
b. Three data formatting methods:
i. ASCII = American Standard Code for Information Interchange, 7-bit encoding technique.
ii. EBCDIC = Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code
iii. Unicode = Provided unique code for every character.
c. Data Encryption  SSL/TLS

7. Application Layer:
a. Responsible for providing support to end-to-end applications. Applications  Installed on OS i.e. Internet
browsers(Edge) or Software (Microsoft Word).
b. Controls end users interaction, example: Security Checks  MFA.
c. Protocols that operate on this level are:
i. File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
ii. Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)
iii. Secure Shell (SSH)
iv. Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP)
v. Domain Name System (DNS)
vi. Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
 How does URL get converted into an IP address?

To convert URL to an IP address for the computer to understand, a series of processes are performed wherein,
TCP/IP protocol called DNS plays a major role. Let us view a step-by-step as to how things work:

1. User Request:
When you enter a URL (e.g., www.example.com) into your browser and press enter, your computer starts the
process to resolve this URL into an IP address.

2. Browser Cache:
The browser first checks its own cache to see if it has recently resolved this URL. If it finds the IP address in the
cache, it uses it immediately.

3. Operating System Cache:

If the browser cache does not have the IP address, the request is passed to the operating system, which checks
its own local DNS cache. In older versions, it’d check its host file.

4. Hosts File:
Before querying DNS servers, the operating system checks the hosts file, a simple text file that maps hostnames
to IP addresses.

5. DNS Recursive Resolver:

If the IP address is not found in the hosts file, the operating system sends a DNS query to a DNS recursive
resolver (also known as a DNS resolver). This is usually provided by your Internet Service Provider (ISP) or a
third-party DNS service like Google DNS or OpenDNS.

6. Recursive Query Process:

The recursive resolver first checks its own cache. If the address is not cached, it starts the process of querying
other DNS servers in a hierarchical manner:

 Root DNS Servers:

The recursive resolver queries one of the root DNS servers. The root server responds with the address
of a Top-Level Domain (TLD) DNS server, such as one responsible for .com domains.

 TLD DNS Servers:

The resolver then queries the TLD DNS server.

The TLD server responds with the address of the
authoritative DNS server for the specific domain
(e.g., example.com).

 Authoritative DNS Servers:

Used to store DNS records for domains directly.

Every domain in the world will have its DNS record store in this level. When the request reaches this
level, it will send out a relevant information – if it exists.

7. Response to Computer:
The recursive resolver sends the IP address back to the operating system of your computer.

8. Response to Browser:
The operating system sends the IP address to the browser.
 9. Connection Establishment:
The browser uses the IP address to establish a connection to the web server using the HTTP or HTTPS protocol.

10. Webpage Retrieval:

Once the connection is established, the browser sends an HTTP request to the server and retrieves the
webpage content, which is then displayed to you.

This hierarchical and distributed system allows efficient and scalable resolution of URLs to IP addresses, ensuring
that your request to access a website is quickly routed to the correct server.
Terminologies:
a. TCP: Connection-oriented  No data loss, Slow in speed. Eg: Email, Skype.
b. UPD: Connectionless  data loss, Very fast in comparison. Eg: Game.
c. SSL/TLS:
i. Secure Socket Layer or SSL is the predecessor of TLS or Transport Layer Security.
ii. Initiates handshake with the devices to authenticate their identity.
iii. Digitally signs data in order to ensure data integrity when transferring data.
iv. It is done so as to avoid data tamper.
d. Ping: Allows you to check whether the destination IP exists or not. Ping <gateway>
e. Traceroute: Traces the route when called upon the said ‘gateway’, maps the route it takes.
 For Example: Traceroute google.com 

f. Dig: Sends a query to the DNS server – which further performs recursion to send back
information. Useful tool for network troubleshooting. Dig also provides us – TTL.
dig <domain> @<dns-server-ip>

g. TTL: ‘Time To Live’  Tells the computer when to stop considering a record as valid i.e. When to
request the data again and stop the search in its cache.
h. Recursive DNS Server: One DNS server communicates with several other DNS servers to hunt
down an IP address and return it to the client.

i. TLD: Top-Level Domain – Highest hierarchical in DNS after root domain.