Computer Networking Introduction

Describe the applications and benefits of computer networks Describe the characteristics of computer networks and internetworks Use the facilities provided by computer networks Investigate an aspect of internetworking
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What is a Computer Network?

A computer network is a linked set of computer systems capable of sharing computer power and resources such as printers, large disk drives, CD-ROM and other databases. There are two types of network:

Local Area Network (LAN) Wide Area Network (WAN)

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Local Area Networks

A local area network is a computer network across one building or site.

Printer Work Station Fileserver Network Cable

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Peer to Peer Network

This describes a very simple network structure where shared resources such as printers are available but where there are very few other facilities. All computers on the network have similar specification and status.

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Client-Server Network
This method of network organisation requires one or more servers to which a number of clients may obtain services. The servers act as central resource managers for the network. A star topology is often used for this form of network.
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Network Hardware
Network hardware will include:

stations servers
file, print, application communication, intranet

passive components
cables, connections, etc

active components
repeaters, hubs, switches
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Network Stations
The network station (often called the client) will normally comprise:

PC Network interface card (NIC).

The NIC allows the computer to communicate with the network

Network Operating Systems

e.g. Windows 95/98, Windows NT, Appleshare, etc
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Network Servers
A network server is a computer which acts as a central storage point for files and applications. Servers also act as a connection point to shared peripherals such as printers.
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Passive Components
The most important passive component in any network is the cabling. There are three main types of cabling commonly used in local area networks.

Twisted pair coaxial fibre optic

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Cabling - Twisted Pair

A pair of wires are twisted together. Suitable for bit rates of 1Mbps for up to 100m. There are several standards of twisted pair cabling:

unshielded twisted pair (UTP) category 3 (10 Base T) category 5 (10 Base 2)
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Cabling - Coaxial
Coaxial cable looks like TV aerial cable. More expensive than twisted wire pair. The outer shield reduces electrical interference.

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Cabling - Fibre Optic

A very fine glass strand allows fast transmission of data with little error. Fibre optic is not susceptible to electrical interference. Most often used as a bridge between buildings.

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Active Components
Active components are required for all but the simplest of networks. These include:

repeaters hubs switches

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Repeaters
Due to loss of signal strength it is often necessary to use a repeater to boost the signal. A repeater is a hardware device to link together two cable segments. The repeater amplifies the signal it receives before passing it on.

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Hubs
A hub is a device which allows the interconnection of a group of users. A hub will forward any packet of data it receives over one port from one station to all of the remaining ports. Hubs are used in the star topology.

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Switches
A switch is smarter than a hub and offers more bandwidth. A switch forwards data packets only to the appropriate port for the intended recipient.The switch establishes a temporary connection between the source and the destination.

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Network Topologies
The network topology is the theoretical arrangement of components on a network. There are three network topologies which need to be aware of:

bus star ring

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Bus Topology
Each device is connected to a main communications line called a bus.

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Star Topology
In the star topology all stations are connected to a central node, called a hub.

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Ring Topology
Each device is connected to a ring around which signals are sent. The devices are connected to the ring via spurs, or the connection may pass through the interface card
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Protocols
A protocol is a standard set of rules used to ensure the proper transfer of data between devices. In network design it is vital that a recognised protocol is used.

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Ethernet
Ethernet is a common local area network structure. It is commonly used in offices and schools The transmission rate is 10 Mb/s or 100 Mb/s Will normally use UTP or coaxial cabling and a star topology
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Transferring Data
When data is to be transferred from one computer to another there must be a way of knowing which computer is to send and which to receive the data and also a format for sending the data (frame).

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CSMA/CD
CSMA/CD is a communications protocol and is an integral part of the Ethernet structure. CSMA/CD stands for carrier sense, multiple access / collision detection. CSMA/CD is a method of managing traffic on a local area network.

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CSMA/CD (2)
Each computer is responsible for ensuring that the network is free before transmitting data. If two messages are sent at the same time then there will be a collision. If a collision occurs then the network interface detects this and waits a short time before retransmitting.

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MAC Address
Every computer must have a network interface card to allow communications on the network. The NIC must have a unique address on the network to allow identification. This is known as the Media Access Control (MAC) address. This is part of the manufacture of the NIC.

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Frames
Data is sent round the network in the form of a frame. The frame contains the source and destination MAC addresses, the data and error detection.

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Preamble Start delimiter Source address length Logical link control Error detection
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7 6 1 byte bytes bytes 2 bytes 461500 bytes 4 bytes 96 bytes

Frames (2)

delay

Bandwidth
The transmission rate for Ethernet is either 10Mb/s or 100Mb/s. This is greatly reduced by the number of computers competing for access to the network. The more collisions there are the more retransmissions there must be.

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Connecting LANs
It may be necessary to connect two local area networks together. This is known as internetworking. Whilst Ethernet is a good protocol for LANs it is not appropriate for use on internetworks. There are other hardware devices which must considered as well.
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TCP/IP
TCP/IP is a protocol which allows computer on different networks to communicate. TCP/IP is a pair of protocols

TCP - transmission control protocol IP Internet Protocol

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IP Addressing
Every computer station on the internetwork must have an IP address. This IP address must be unique but is not encoded in the network interface. It is set by software in the computer.

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IP Addressing (2)
The IP address is in the form of a 4 byte number in the following form: 192.226.32.125

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TCP/IP
The two protocols work together like this:

TCP splits the data into being transmitted into packets adding a header. TCP then passes these packets to the IP. IP adds its own header to each TCP packet IP routes the IP data frames around the internetwork to their destination.
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Packet Switching
In a larger internetwork packets may be sent different routes to get to the destination computer. This is known as packet switching. As a result of this packets may arrive at the destination in a different order from which they were sent. TCP must be able to sort this out.
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Internetwork Hardware
Connecting LANs together will require extra hardware:

bridges routers gateways

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Bridges
A bridge acts as a link between LANs. This will allow two LANs to appear to users as though they are a single LAN.

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Routers
A router is a device which receives data packets and sends them on via an appropriate route. It will have a number of network interface ports to allow connection to different segments to which data packets may be directed.

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Gateways
A gateway is a link between two dissimilar networks.. The communications between the networks are usually via public telecommunications networks. A gateway will normally be used to connect a LAN to the Internet.

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Internetwork Topologies
If a number of LANs are connected together then the link will be known as a backbone. A common example of this is an FDDI backbone (fibre distributed data interface)

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FDDI
stands for Fibre Distributed Data Interface is a protocol for sending digital data over fibre optic cable. supports data rates of up to 100 Mbps networks are typically used as backbones for wide-area networks.

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OSI
OSI stands for Open Systems Interconnection A set of protocols relating to open systems A seven layer design for OSI protocols Designed by ISO (International Standards Organisation)
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7 Layer Network Organisation Model

Level 7 Level 6 Level 5 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1 Applications Presentation Session Transport Network Data Link Physical
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The Layers
Applications Layer

specific applications, e.g. Data transfer, messaging, distributed databases, etc data transformation, syntax adjustments and output device formatting establishes, manages and maintains the dialogue between computer and user
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Presentation Layer

Session Layer

The Layers (2)

Transport

provides the functions necessary to bridge the gap between upper and lower layers allows the transparent transmission of data from one transport layer in one system to a transport layer in another

Network

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The Layers (3)

Data Link

shields the higher layers from the characteristics of the physical medium and provides a reliable and error free data link connection responsible for the transparent transmission of data across the physical medium.
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Physical

Implications of Networks
Computer networks have developed as a result of a perceived need and as a result of economic and technical factors. Computer networks have social, legal and ethical implications

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Economic Factors
The cost of communication technology

equipment costs are continually reducing and improving features mean that more is available for the same money. printers and mass storage are expensive so it makes sense to share them. video-conferencing and email, etc allow organisations to cope with geographic isolation.
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Access to expensive equipment

Geographic spread of organsiations

Technical Factors
Adoption of Internet technology

TCP/IP ISO OSI

Adoption of International Standards

Development of Communication Technology

fast modems, ISDN, etc

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Social Implications
Individuals may become withdrawn from society Personal privacy may be compromised as a result of monitoring network use People may not have to move from rural communities to find Home working may allow strengthening of family life (?)
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Ethical Implications
Bogus doctors could easily offer medical advice over the Internet. Availability of unacceptable and inappropriate material within education Antisocial, criminal, racist or other prejudiced material may be distributed freely.
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Legal Implications
Copyright law

British law makes it illegal to copy someone else's copyright material. A lot of material on web pages is copyright Sometimes the breaking of this law is unwitting but in others it is deliberate (e.g. MP3 files of commercial recordings)

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