COMPUTER NETWORKS, CONNECTIONS AND

PROTOCOLS

A computer network is two or more computers or

devices that are linked together, either using cables or
wirelessly.
Advantages of computer networks
 share hardware resources
 exchange data between computers without
needing to use physical media
 communicate easily using email or video calls
.................................................

Disadvantages of computer networks

 Additional hardware is needed to set up a
network
 larger networks will need to be overseen by a
network manager
 hackers may target a network
 Networks and topologies
Types of network

LAN  local area network or LAN

 cover a small geographic area as the
computers and buildings are usually
located on one site
 often use both wired and wireless
connections

WA
N
 Factors that affect the performance of networks
Network performance refers to how quickly data is transmitted through a
network
Ban  refers to how much data can be transmitted over a network in a given period of
dwid time.
th  usually measured in bits (or megabits) per second
 depends on the equipment that makes up the network
Number  The available bandwidth is shared between all of the users on a network.
of users  cause network congestion, data packets are queued before transmitted.

Transmissi  Data can be sent around a network through cables or wirelessly

on media  Copper network cables have a bandwidth of up to 1000Mbps whereas Wi-Fi only has
a bandwidth of up to 300Mbps.

Error  transmission errors due to data packets colliding

rate  interference from other wireless networks nearby or due to a weak Wi-Fi signal
 Client–server and peer-to-peer networks
two main ways in which the computers in a network are organised Client–server
In a client–server network there are two types of computers: servers
and clients.
Servers are high-end computers that provide services for the rest of the
Server network. There may be more than one server in a network, and servers
s may be pecialised to perform specific functions

File Web
servers servers

Authenticat Print
ion servers servers
Application
Mail
servers
servers
Application
servers Client–server networks are the most common way to
organise a LAN, and are well-suited to schools or
organisations with large numbers of computers, or
 Client–server and peer-to-peer networks
two main ways in which the computers in a network are organised peer-to-peer networks

In a peer-to-peer (P2P) network

all of the computers have equal
status and are connected
directly, using cables or
wirelessly, without a central
server. P2P network activities include:
● wireless printing from a laptop, tablet or phone
● ad hoc file sharing, such as the use of AirDrop on iOS devices
● streaming audio from a device to a Bluetooth speaker
● sharing internet connections via personal hotspots.

P2P networks are easy to set up and can be suitable for

small organisations with few computers or less need to
share data, and are the model most often found in home
networks.
 Network hardware-NIC&Transmission media
All devices need some form of network
Copper Data is transmitted as electrical
interface controller/card (NIC) to
wire signals
connect to a network. bandwidth between 100Mb and
1Gb/s
Every NIC has a Media Access Control distance
transmitof up to
data as about
pulses100
of light
(MAC) address, which is a unique Fibre- metres
no electromagnetic interference
identifier used when transmitting data Transmissi optic
bandwidth up to 100 Tb/s
around a network. on media cable over distances of 100 KM or more

etherne connect to a wired Radio

t port network waves

NIC radio
transmitt
er/receiv connect to a wireless
er network
 Network hardware-Wireless access
point&Switch&Router
A wireless access point (WAP) is a piece of hardware that connects to a network
WAP switch and allows Wi-Fi devices to connect to a network
 broadcast a Service Set Identifier (SSID)
 sends the wireless data that it receives on to the main wired network
 usually connected to a network switch via a cable

Switc A network switch is the piece of hardware that allows multiple devices to connect
together
h
to form a wired network
 stores the MAC address of every device connected to it
 sends the wireless data that it receives on to the main wired network
 usually connected to a network switch via a cable

A router is the piece of hardware that connects

networks of different types together. Most
Router commonly, routers are used to connect a LAN to
the internet.
 have a crucial role on the Internet, directing
data (in units called packets) to their
destinationdetermine via IP address
 Routers are used in homes and offices to
connect the LAN to the Internet.Most home ‘routers’ are in fact a router, switch and WAP
 The internet
The internet is a worldwide collection of computer networks that are all linked together
as a WAN.
The World Wide Web (WWW) is a collection of websites that are hosted on web servers
and accessed through the http protocol.
IP e.g ： 172.217.14.206
address be used to send data from one device to another across the internet
Internet
Protocol
URL
(IP)
Domain Name Server
DNS keeps records of the IP address for each web server associated with a
particular domain name

user types the DNS server DNS sends the the user’s browser can
URL for a search for the required IP make a request to the
website into a matching IP address back to appropriate web server
browser address the user’s using its IP addressr.
 The internet
company that runs servers to provide different types
Hosting of content via the internet
e.g: GitHub,GitLab
Internet storage, services and applications that are accessed
Protocol The via the internet rather than being stored locally
(IP) cloud e.g: Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud Drive,BaiduYun
Web
web server is a dedicated computer on the internet
servers that responds to HTTP and HTTPS requests by
and returning web pages.
clients
Client computers request files from a server.
 Network topologies
The way in which devices in a network are arranged and connected together is called
its topology.
Stardevice connected to a network is referred to as a node.
Any
networ
k
topolog
y
 In a star network each computer or client is connected
individually to a central point, which is normally a  The central switch allows many
switch, a server or a hub. devices
 most common network layout,fast and reliable  to access the server
 easy to add new devices simultaneously
 require a lot of cabling Star networks may be wired or
 If the central server or switch fails then so will the wireless.
entire network.
 found in large organisations and home networks

Q ： What is the difference between star network and client–server network?

 Network topologies
The way in which devices in a network are arranged and connected together is called
its topology.
Mesh
Any device connected to a network is referred to as a node.
networ
k
topolog
y

Q ： What is the difference between mesh network and peer-to-peer networks

network?
COMPUTER NETWORKS, CONNECTIONS AND
PROTOCOLS
Wired and wireless networks, protocols and
layers
Modes of connection
 traditional protocol used to connect
ethern devices in a wired LAN
wired et  using MAC addresses to determine
which device the data should be sent
to
 a set of protocols that defines
Wi-Fi
how network devices can
communicate wirelessly using
radio waves
wirele  use radio waves in one of two
ss frequency bands, either 2.4GHz
or 5GHz.
 most wireless networks are
 wireless protocol that can
encrypted
bluetoot be used over short
h distances using ultra high
frequency (UHF) radio
 IP addressing and MAC addressing
In order to send data across a network, an address is needed,there are two types of address
used on networks.
IP  Every device in a network has a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address
 Every time a device connects to the internet, it is assigned an IP
address
address to use for that session by the Internet Service Provider (ISP).
es  The IP address is usually a dynamic address
Communication between different networks uses IP
IPv4  broken down into four Addresses
8-bit sections, each of which represents a
numberbetween
0 and 255. e.g:194.83.249.5.
 In theory, IPv4 provides or just over 4 billion different addresses
 IPv6 addresses use 128 bits, which are divided into eight 16-bit sections.
IPv6
 IPv6 addresses are written using hexadecimal,e.g:
2001:0db8:3c4d:0015:0000:1234:1a2f:1a21
 not yet implemented everywhere
Communication on the same network uses MAC
Addresses  Media Access Control (MAC) address is a unique number that identifies the
MAC actual device
address  The MAC address is part of the NIC inside the device and is assigned when the
es NIC is manufactured and cannot ever be changed.
 MAC address is made up of 48 bits, shown as six groups of two hexadecimal
 Standards
 A network standard is a set of agreed requirements for hardware and software.
 Standards are important as they allow manufacturers to create products and
programs that will be compatible with products and programs from other
manufacturers.
 Network protocols, or sets of rules, define how data is transmitted between devices.
 Communication protocols specify how communication between two devices must
start and end, how the data must be organised, and what the devices must do if data
goes missing
 TCP and IP almost always work
Standards together.
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP) Control
Transmission
Protocol(TCP)
 a protocol that splits
the data from
applications into
smaller data packets
that can be sent
across a network and
reassembling the
packets back into the
original data once they
reach the receiving
device
 It’s also responsible for
checking the data is
The Internet
correctly Protocol
sent and (IP)
defines how data packets should be sent between networks.
delivered.
 The concept of layers
 In order to simplify the network communication process, the different
activities involved in sending data packets are divided into layers.
 The layers are organised into the order in which their rules must be
applied.
benefits of using
layers:
 Concept of
Layering
 Cross-Domain
Application
 Modularity and
Interchangeabilit
y
 Independent
Component
Development
 Collaborative
Development
 Error
Identification and
Resolution
 ......................