COM Study Guide 2012 - Complete

COM
Computer Communications
Written by: N.Sadiq Ali Unit Assessor: Rachakonda Balaraju
Unit Information
Welcome to Students
Congratulations on being offered a place in a Diploma in Information Technology (DIT) at Institute of Business Studies. If this is your first year with us, and you have selected this unit as one of your initial units, I would like to extend a special welcome to you and wish you every success in your studies. This unit will give you a fundamental understanding of computer communications technology, the underlying principles of data transmission, the electronic equipment and computers that provide the connectivity. You will also study standard and the role of standards in data communication. As a practical component of this unit, you will also gain skills in the use of the worlds largest network, the Internet. To successfully complete this unit of study, it will be necessary to have access to a personal computer and the Internet. To ensure that you are up-to-date, with respect to your studies, you should cover one topic each week and try not to fall behind. Wishing you a very successful year! N. SADIQ ALI, DIRECTOR
B.Sc, M.C.A, PGDHRD, MACS, FPNGCS, MPNGHRI, MPNGID,
UNIT STATEMENT
Unit Title: Unit Code: Type of Unit: Prerequisites: Mode of Study: Semester: Teaching Unit: Staffing: Computer Communications COM Core Unit Diploma in Information Technology Nil Internal 1 School of Computing Mr. Shaik Dawood Ansari
Aims Global networks, wireless data communication, and client-server systems are just some of the telecommunication concepts driving industry today. The aim of this unit is to provide a unified overview of the broad field of data and computer communications and explore the networking components.
Objectives On successful completion of this subject, candidates should be able to
understand the principles of computer communications with emphasis on the roles played by different layers of a communication architecture;
describe different transmission media and data transmission techniques; understand operation principles of common local area networks and communication protocols;
describe and use of common Internet applications; realize the potential power of global computer networks and the ethical issues this raises.
Handbook Entry This unit serves as an introductory course in data and computer communication. The scope of this unit is broad, covering three general areas: data communication, networking and protocols. Data communication deals with the transmission of signals in a reliable and efficient manner, which covers single transmission, transmission media, encoding, interfacing, and data link control. Networking deals with the technology and architecture of the communications network used to interconnect communication devices. A discussion of
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communication protocols includes a treatment of protocol architectures as well as an analysis of individual protocols at various layers of the architecture.
By studying this unit students would attain the operational knowledge on networks, Internet, communication protocols and communication architecture. This unit will give students the skills to analyse the needs and specify network requirements.
Syllabus Topic 1 Topic 2 Topic 3 Topic 4 Topic 5 Topic 6 Topic 7 Topic 8 Topic 9 Topic 10 Topic 11 Topic 12 Introduction Protocols and Architecture Data Transmission Transmission Media Data Encoding The Data Communication Interface Data Link Control Circuit Switching Packet Switching LAN Technology LAN Systems Internet Protocols
Prescribed Text and Materials William Stallings, Data and Computer Communications, Prentice Hall, Sixth edition, 2000.
Recommended reference materials Tanenbaum, A. S., Computer Networks, 3rd edition, Prentice Hall, 1996. Forouzan, B. A., Data Communications and Networking, 2nd edition, McGraw-Hill, 2001.
Students Assessment Requirements The assessment for this unit comprises two assignments and a final three-hour examination. The allocation of marks is as follows: Revision Test 1 Revision Test 2 Attendance Assignment 1 Assignment 2 Final Examination Total 5% 5% 5% 10% 15% 60% 100%
To pass this unit, a total mark of 50% or more is required.
Final Examination All topics are assessable. To pass this unit, a total mark of 50% or more is required. Students should note that final results in this unit might be scaled in accordance with Institute policy on grade distributions.
Study Time Expectations All topics in this unit require engaging in approximately 60 hours of learning throughout the semester. This averages out to around 4 hours per week for 15 weeks but some weeks will always be heavier than others.
Program Schedule
WEEK / COMMENCING
TOPIC NO.
TOPICS
KEY DATES
0 13.02.2012 1 20.02.2012 2 27.02.2012 3 05.03.2012 4 12.03.2012 5 19.03.2012 6 26.03.2012 7 02.04.2012 8 09.04.2012 9 16.04.2012 10 23.04.2012 11 30.04.2012 12 07.05.2012 13 14.05.2012 14 & 15 24.05.12 02-06-12
Induction Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Introduction Protocols and Architecture Data Transmission Transmission Media Data Encoding The Data Communication Interface Data Link Control Multiplexing Switching Congestion Control Local Area Network Protocols Mock Exam Examination Period Exam Dates to be advised Exam Dates to be advised Revision Test 2 Assignment 2 due on 04.05.12 Revision Test 1 Assignment 1 due on 23.03.12
SAMPLE EXAM QUESTIONS

Answer all the five- (5) questions. All questions are worth equal marks. Time allowed: Reading 15 minutes Writing 3 hours
Question 1 Define or briefly describe the following terms. (i) Layered communication architecture (ii) Synchronous data transmission (iii) Packet switched network (iv) Internet Protocol (IP) (v) Multimedia communication
(Total marks 12)
(2 marks) (2 marks) (2marks) (3 marks) (3marks)
Question 2 (a) (i) What is a communication protocol? (ii) Briefly describe three key elements of a communication protocol.
(Total marks 12)
(6 marks)
(b) What are the similarities and differences between the ISO Open Systems Interconnection Reference Model and the Internet architecture? (6 marks)
Question 3
(Total marks 12)
(a) List three types of transmission media and describe their respective advantages and disadvantages. (4 marks)
(b) Use an example to describe an error correction technique for data transmission. (4 marks) (c) (i)What is Manchester coding? (ii) What is its advantage? (2 marks) (2 marks)
Question 4
(Total marks 12)
(a) (i) What is the main difference between flow control and congestion control? (ii) Briefly describe a (any) flow control mechanism / technique. (3 marks)
(b) In a network that has a maximum packet size of 100 bytes, a maximum packet lifetime of 10 seconds, and an 10-bit packet sequence number, what is the maximum data rate per
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connection (assuming that each packet over a connection must be uniquely identified using a sequence number)? (3 marks)
(c) Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is one of the main protocols of the Internet. Briefly describe the main functions of the TCP. (6 marks)
Question 5 (a) (i) What is MIME? (ii) What are the main functions of MIME?
(Total marks 12)
(3 marks)
(b) One of the main security services is privacy. How does public key encryption achieve privacy? (c) Briefly describe the basic operation principle of the World Wide Web (WWW). (6 marks) (3 marks)
COM
Written by: N.Sadiq Ali Unit Assessor: Rachakonda Balaraju
Study Guide
COMPUTER COMMUNICATIONS
INTRODUCTION
COM: Computer Communications
1.1
TOPIC 1
1.0 INTRODUCTION
We begin our study of computer communications with a topic called introduction to communications. The exchange of information between computers for the purpose of cooperative action is generally referred to as computer communications. Similarly, when two or more computers are interconnected via a communication network, the set The basic task of a communication system is exchange of data or information between two parties or two connected devices. 1.1 Communication model The fundamental purpose of any communication system is to transfer the data from one location to another location. E.g. Exchange of voice signals between two telephones over the same network. The simple communication model uses the following key elements: Source generates data to be transmitted Transmitter converts data into transmittable signals Transmission system carries data Receiver converts received signals into data Destination takes incoming data The key tasks that must be performed in a data communication system are: transmission system utilization, interfacing, signal generation, synchronization, exchange management, error detection and correction, flow control, addressing, routing, recovery, message formatting, security and network management. Textbook: Pages 4 7 This section gives you brief description of the communication model and the tasks performed in a data communication system. 1.2 Data Communication Networking In data communication point-to-point connection between two computers or devices is not usually practical because of one for the following reasons: Devices are too far apart. Large set of devices would need impractical number of connections.
1.2
The solution to this problem is a communication network that is to attach each device to a communication network. Communication networks are traditionally classified into the following two major categorizes: LAN Local Area Network WAN Wide Area Network 1.2.1 Wide Area Networks Wide Area Networks is the connection between the computers or devices, which covers a large geographical area and crossing public rights of way. A WAN consists of a number of interconnected switching nodes. A transmission from any one device is routed through these internal nodes to the specified destination device and it relies in part on common carrier circuits. The alternative technologies are: Circuit Switching - dedicated communications path established for the duration of the conversation. E.g. telephone network. Packet Switching Data sent out of sequence, small chunks (packets) of data at a time Packets passed from node to node between source and destination Used for terminal to computer and computer to computer communications Frame Relay Packet switching systems have large overheads to compensate for errors. Modern systems are more reliable, errors can be caught in end system and most overhead for error control is stripped out
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) Evolution of frame relay and has little overhead for error control. Fixed packet (called cell) length, anything from 10Mbps to Gbps. Constant data rate using packet switching technique Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) Designed to replace public telecom system Wide variety of services; entirely digital domain
1.3
1.2.2 Local Area Networks Local Area Network is a communications network that interconnects a variety of devices and provides a means for information exchange among those devices in smaller scope, that is within a building or small campus. Usually owned by same organization as attached devices Data rates much higher Usually broadcast systems Now some switched systems and ATM are being introduced Textbook: Pages 7 12 This section gives you brief description of data communication networking, LAN, WAN and the technologies used in WAN. 1.3 Protocols A protocol is used for communication between entities in different systems. Here entities refer to user applications, e-mail facilities, terminals, database management systems and file transfer packages. Systems refer to computer, terminal and remote sensor. An entity is anything capable of sending or receiving information and a system is physically distinct object that contains one or more entities. If two entities communicate successfully then they must speak same language. The key elements of a Protocol are: Syntax - data formats, signal levels Semantics - control information, error handling Timing - speed matching, sequencing 1.3.1 Protocol Architecture Task of communication broken up into modules For example file transfer could use three modules File transfer application Communication service module Network access module
1.3.2 A Three Layer Model Communications can be said to involve three agents: applications, computers and networks. The transfer of data from one application to another involves first getting the data to the computer in which the application resides and then getting it to the intended application using
1.4
networks. With this concept the communication tasks can be organised into the following three independent layers: a) Network Access Layer Exchange of data between the computer and the network Sending computer provides address of destination May invoke levels of service Dependent on type of network used (LAN, packet switched etc.) b) Transport Layer Reliable data exchange Independent of network being used Independent of application c) Application Layer Support for different user applications. E.g. e-mail, file transfer
1.3.2.1 Addressing Requirements Each computer on the network must have a unique address; this allows the network to deliver data to the proper computer. Each application on the computer must have an address that is unique within the computer; this allows the transport layer to support multiple applications at each computer. This is also known as service access point or SAP. 1.3.2.2 Protocol Data Units (PDU) The combination of data and the control information is known as a protocol data unit (PDU). At each layer, protocols are used to communicate Control information is added to user data at each layer Transport layer may fragment user data Each fragment has a transport header added Destination SAP Sequence number Error detection code The Network PDU adds the following to the network header: network address for destination computer Facilities requests Textbook: Pages 12 19 This section gives you brief description of protocols, protocol architecture and the three-layer communication model.
1.5
1.4 TCP/IP Protocol Architecture The TCP/IP protocol architecture was developed by the US Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) for its packet switched network (ARPANET) and now it is used by the global Internet. It has no official model but a working one but the communication task can be organised into the following five independent layers: a) Application Layer - support for user applications. E.g. http, SMPT. b) Transport Layer (TCP) or Host-to-host layer Reliable delivery of data Ordering of delivery c) Internet Layer (IP) Systems may be attached to different networks Routing functions across multiple networks Implemented in end systems and routers d) Network Access Layer Exchange of data between end system and network Destination address provision Invoking services like priority e) Physical Layer Physical interface between data transmission device (e.g. computer) and transmission medium or network Characteristics of transmission medium are signal levels, data rates, etc. Textbook: Pages 19 20 This section gives you brief description of Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol architecture and its layers. 1.5 OSI Model The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model was developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as a model for computer communication architecture. It consists of the following seven layers: Application, Presentation, Session, Transport, Network, Data Link, and Physical Textbook: Pages 20 22 This section gives you brief description of Open Systems Interconnection model and its layers.
PROTOCOLS & ARCHITECTURE
2.1
TOPIC 2
2.0 PROTOCOLS AND ARCHITECTURE
Protocol architecture is the layered structure of hardware and software that supports the exchange of data between systems and supports distributed applications, such as electronic mail and file transfer. At each layer of protocol architecture, one or more common protocols are implemented in communicating systems. Each protocol provides a set of rules for the exchange of data between systems. 2.1 Characteristics of protocols Some important characteristics are as follows: Direct Systems share a point to point link or Systems share a multi-point link Data can pass without intervening active agent Indirect Switched networks or Internetworks or internets Data transfer depend on other entities Monolithic or Structured Communications is a complex task To complex for single unit Structured design breaks down problem into smaller units Layered structure Symmetric - Communication between peer entities Asymmetric - Client/server Standard or Nonstandard Nonstandard protocols built for specific computers and tasks K sources and L receivers leads to K*L protocols and 2*K*L implementations If common protocol used, K + L implementations needed
Textbook: Pages 32 55 This section gives you brief description of protocols and its characteristics.
2.2 COM: Computer Communications
2.2 Protocol Functions In the communication architecture a small set of functions forms the basis of the protocols and not all protocols have all functions. But in many instances the same type of function will present in protocols at different levels. The functions can be categorised as follows: Encapsulation The addition of control information to data is generally referred as encapsulation. The control information falls into the following three categories. Address information Error-detecting code Protocol control Segmentation (Fragmentation) A protocol is concerned with exchanging streams of data between two entities. Data blocks are of bounded size. Application layer messages may be large and Network packets may be smaller. Splitting larger blocks into smaller ones is segmentation (or fragmentation in TCP/IP). ATM blocks (cells) are 53 octets long Ethernet blocks (frames) are up to 1526 octets long Why Fragment? Advantages More efficient error control More equitable access to network facilities Shorter delays Smaller buffers needed Disadvantages Overheads Increased interrupts at receiver & More processing time Connection Control Connection Establishment Data transfer Connection termination May be connection interruption and recovery Sequence numbers used for Ordered delivery, Flow control, Error control
2.3
Ordered Delivery PDUs may traverse different paths through network PDUs may arrive out of order Sequentially number PDUs to allow for ordering
Flow Control Done by receiving entity Limit amount or rate of data Stop and wait Credit systems - Sliding window Needed at application as well as network layers
Error Control Guard against loss or damage Error detection Sender inserts error detecting bits Receiver checks these bits If OK, acknowledge If error, discard packet Retransmission - If no acknowledge in given time, re-transmit Performed at various levels
Addressing Addressing level Addressing scope Connection identifiers Addressing mode Addressing level Level in architecture at which entity is named Unique address for each end system (computer) and router Network level address IP or internet address (TCP/IP) Network service access point or NSAP (OSI) Process within the system Port number (TCP/IP), Service access point or SAP (OSI) Addressing Scope Global nonambiguity Global address identifies unique system There is only one system with address X
Global applicability It is possible at any system (any address) to identify any other system (address) by the global address of the other system Address X identifies that system from anywhere on the network. e.g. MAC address on IEEE 802 networks
Connection Identifiers Connection oriented data transfer (virtual circuits) Allocate a connection name during the transfer phase Reduced overhead as connection identifiers are shorter than global addresses Routing may be fixed and identified by connection name Entities may want multiple connections - multiplexing State information
Addressing Mode Usually an address refers to a single system Unicast address, Sent to one machine or person May address all entities within a domain Broadcast Sent to all machines or users May address a subset of the entities in a domain Multicast, Sent to some machines or a group of users
Multiplexing Supporting multiple connections on one machine Mapping of multiple connections at one level to a single connection at another Carrying a number of connections on one fiber optic cable Aggregating or bonding ISDN lines to gain bandwidth
Transmission Services Priority - e.g. control messages Quality of service - Minimum acceptable throughput, Maximum acceptable delay Security - Access restrictions
Textbook: Pages 35 44 This section gives you brief description of protocol functions.
2.5
2.3 OSI - The Model A layer model Each layer performs a subset of the required communication functions Each layer relies on the next lower layer to perform more primitive functions Each layer provides services to the next higher layer Changes in one layer should not require changes in other layers
Elements of Standardization Protocol specification Operates between the same layer on two systems May involve different operating system Protocol specification must be precise Format of data units, Semantics of all fields allowable sequence of PCUs Service definition - Functional description of what is provided Addressing - Referenced by SAPs
OSI Layers (1) Physical - Physical interface between devices Mechanical, Electrical, Functional, Procedural Data Link - Means of activating, maintaining and deactivating a reliable link Error detection and control Higher layers may assume error free transmission OSI Layers (2) Network - Transport of information Higher layers do not need to know about underlying technology Not needed on direct links Transport - Exchange of data between end systems Error free, In sequence, No losses No duplicates & Quality of service OSI Layers (3) Session - Control of dialogues between applications Dialogue discipline, Grouping & Recovery Presentation Data formats and coding, Data compression & Encryption
Application - Means for applications to access OSI environment
Textbook: Pages 44 54 This section gives you brief description of open systems interconnection model. 2.4 TCP/IP Protocol Suite Dominant commercial protocol architecture Specified and extensively used before OSI Developed by research funded US Department of Defense Used by the Internet TCP/IP Protocol Architecture (1) Application Layer - Communication between processes or applications End to end or transport layer (TCP/UDP/) End to end transfer of data May include reliability mechanism (TCP) Hides detail of underlying network Internet Layer (IP) - Routing of data
TCP/IP Protocol Architecture (2) Network Layer- Logical interface between end system and network Physical Layer Transmission medium & Signal rate and encoding
Textbook: Pages 54 60 This section gives you brief description of transmission control protocol and Internet protocol.
Review Activities:
2.1 Briefly describe Layered protocol architecture 2.2 What is a communication protocol and why is it needed? 2.3 Briefly describe the similarities and differences between OSI Reference Model and the TCP/IP architecture. 2.4 (a) The ISO OSI Reference Model and TCP/IP both use layered network architectures. Briefly describe how the layered architectures are implemented (i.e. how layers communicate with each other?) (b) The protocol used at the network layer of the Internet is called IP (Internet Protocol). Describe the main functions of the IP.
2.7
Feedback to the Review Activities:

Review Activity 2.1 Refers to the communication architecture which consists of a number of layers and each layer has its own protocols. For example, OSI reference model consists of seven layers and the Internet architecture consists of five layers. Review Activity 2.2 Communication protocol is a set of rules that governs the required communications. It is needed to ensure that the communication entities can understand each other and can carry out meaningful communication Review Activity 2.3 Similarity: both are layered architecture and most layers are similar in the two architectures. Differences: the OSI reference model has seven layers while the TCP/IP architecture has only five layers. The main functions of session later, presentation layer and application layer of the OSI model are combined to form the application layer in the TCP/IP architecture Review Activity 2.4 (a) A network is a complicated system. The layered architecture makes the design and implementation of a network manageable. Another advantage of the layered architecture is that it makes the network more modular so that we can change/upgrade one layer without affecting the functions / implementation of the other layers. Each layer implements the well-defined function and interface between layers. It works based on the concept of encapsulation, whereby functions/instructions of one layer are included in the header for other layers to use. (b) The main functions of the network layer are to inter-connect different networks to form a large network and to route packets from the source to destination.
DATA TRANSMISSION
3.1
TOPIC 3
3.0 DATA TRANSMISSION
Transferring information (voice, data, image, and video) from one device to another device is called as data transmission. The successful transmission of data depends on two factors: the quality of the signal being transmitted and the characteristics of the transmission medium. 3.1 Concepts Data transmission occurs between transmitter and receiver over some transmission medium. The transmission medium can be classified as
Guided media and Unguided media. In guided media, the waves are guided along a physical path. E.g. twisted pair, coaxial cable and optical fiber. In unguided media it do not guide them. E.g. propagation through air, vacuum and sea water. Direct link - No intermediate devices Point-to-point - Direct link, Only 2 devices share link. Multi-point - More than two devices share the link. The data transmission may be simplex, half-duplex or full duplex. Simplex - One direction e.g. Television Half-duplex -Either direction, but only one way at a time. E.g. police radio Full duplex - Both directions at the same time. E.g. telephone Textbook: Pages 69 78 V7: 57 - 67 This section gives you brief description of data transmission concepts and terminology. 3.2 Analog and digital transmission Data are entities that convey meaning. Signals are the electric or electromagnetic representations of data. Transmission - Communication of data by propagation and processing of signals. The data can be classified as analog and digital data. Analog - continuous values within some interval. E.g. sound, video. Digital - Discrete values e.g. text, integers
Signals - Means by which data are propagated Analog Continuously variable Various media - wire, fiber optic, space Speech bandwidth 100Hz to 7kHz Telephone bandwidth 300Hz to 3400Hz Video bandwidth 4MHz Digital - Use two DC components Data and Signals Usually use digital signals for digital data and analog signals for analog data Can use analog signal to carry digital data - Modem Can use digital signal to carry analog data - Compact Disc audio
Analog Transmission Analog signal transmitted without regard to content May be analog or digital data Attenuated over distance Use amplifiers to boost signal Also amplifies noise
Digital Transmission Concerned with content Integrity endangered by noise, attenuation etc. Repeaters used Repeater receives signal Extracts bit pattern Retransmits Attenuation is overcome Noise is not amplified
3.3
Advantages of Digital Transmission Digital technology - Low cost LSI/VLSI technology Data integrity - Longer distances over lower quality lines Capacity utilization - High bandwidth links economical; High degree of multiplexing easier with digital techniques Security & Privacy - Encryption Integration - Can treat analog and digital data similarly
Textbook: Pages 79 89 V7: 68 - 76 This section gives you brief description of analog and digital data transmission. 3.3 Transmission Impairments Signal received may differ from signal transmitted Analog - degradation of signal quality Digital - bit errors Caused by Attenuation and attenuation distortion Delay distortion Noise Attenuation Signal strength falls off with distance Depends on medium Received signal strength: must be enough to be detected must be sufficiently higher than noise to be received without error Attenuation is an increasing function of frequency
Delay Distortion Only in guided media Propagation velocity varies with frequency
Noise Additional signals inserted between transmitter and receiver
Thermal Due to thermal agitation of electrons Uniformly distributed White noise
Intermodulation Signals that are the sum and difference of original frequencies sharing a medium
Crosstalk A signal from one line is picked up by another Impulse Irregular pulses or spikes e.g. External electromagnetic interference Short duration High amplitude
Textbook: Pages 89 98 V7: 76 - 86 This section gives you brief description of different data transmission impairments. Review Activities: 3.1 Suppose an analog audio signal has the frequency range of 0 to 20 kHz. This analog signal is to be converted into digital signal. (i) What should be the minimum sampling rate in order to convert the signal correctly? (ii) Assume that 16 bits are used to represent each sample. Calculate the amount of storage required to store 2 hours of above digital signal
Solution: (i) According to Nyquist theorem, the sampling rate should be at least 20 kHz. (ii) Amount of storage = 20000 x 2 x 3600 x 16/8= 288, 000, 000 bytes = 274.66 Mbytes.
3.5
3.2 Bandwidth Is the maximum amount of data that can travel a communication path in a given time period and is often measured in bits per second. Latency Latency is the amount of time that it takes a packet to travel from the source to the destination. Throughput Is the data transfer rate that is achieved by combining the effects of Bandwidth and Latency putting it simple bandwidth is what you pay for and throughput is what you actually receive. Capacity Is the practical maximum data carrying capability. Bottleneck A bottleneck is a delay that occurs when part of a network is slower than others. Collisions Are Frames that were not sent successfully on a shared medium because the senders tried to send frames at the same time.
TRANSMISSION MEDIA
4.1
TOPIC 4
4.0 TRANSMISSION MEDIA
Transmission media is used to convey the information and which carries the information from one device to another device. The transmission media can be classified as guided and unguided.
4.1 Guided transmission media The transmission medium is the physical path between transmitter and receiver and the communication is in the form of electromagnetic waves. In the guided medium, the waves are guided along a solid medium, such as copper twisted pair, copper coaxial cable, and optical fiber. Twisted pair wire Twisted pair wire consists of two insulated wires arranged in a regular spiral pattern. A wire pair acts as a single communication link. Often bundles into cables and usually installed in buildings during construction. Twisted Pair Applications Most common medium Telephone network Between house and local exchange (subscriber loop) Within buildings - To private branch exchange (PBX) For local area networks (LAN) - 10Mbps or 100Mbps
Twisted Pair - Pros and Cons Cheap Easy to work with Low data rate Short range
Twisted Pair - Transmission Characteristics Analog - Amplifiers every 5km to 6km Digital - Use either analog or digital signals; repeater every 2km or 3km Limited distance
Limited bandwidth (1MHz) Limited data rate (100MHz) Susceptible to interference and noise
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) Cat 3 up to 16MHz Voice grade found in most offices Twist length of 7.5 cm to 10 cm Ordinary telephone wire Cheapest Easiest to install Suffers from external EM interference
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) Metal braid or sheathing that reduces interference More expensive Harder to handle (thick, heavy)
Cat 4 - up to 20 MHz Cat 5 up to 100MHz Commonly pre-installed in new office buildings Twist length 0.6 cm to 0.85 cm
Coaxial Cable The coaxial cable consists of a hallow outer cylindrical conductor that surrounds a single inner wire conductor. The inner conductor is held in place by either regularly spaced insulating rings or a solid dielectric material. The outer conductor is covered with a jacket or shield. Coaxial Cable Applications Most versatile medium Television distribution - Ariel to TV, Cable TV Long distance telephone transmission
4.3
Can carry 10,000 voice calls simultaneously Being replaced by fiber optic Short distance computer systems links Local area networks
Coaxial Cable - Transmission Characteristics Analog Digital Repeater every 1km Closer for higher data rates Amplifiers every few km Closer if higher frequency Up to 500MHz
Optical Fiber An optical fiber is a thin, flexible capable of guiding an optical ray. Various glasses and plastics can be used to make optical fibers. An optical fiber cable has a cylindrical shape and consists of three concentric sections: the core, the cladding, and the jacket.
Optical Fiber Benefits Greater capacity - Data rates of hundreds of Gbps
Smaller size & weight Lower attenuation Electromagnetic isolation Greater repeater spacing - 10s of km at least
Optical Fiber Applications Long-haul trunks Metropolitan trunks Rural exchange trunks Subscriber loops LANs
Textbook:
Pages 110 119
V7: 95 - 106
This section give you brief description of guided transmission media.
4.2 Wireless Transmission Unguided media Transmission and reception via antenna Directional Focused beam Careful alignment required Omnidirectional Signal spreads in all directions Can be received by many antennae Terrestrial Microwave Parabolic dish Focused beam Line of sight Long haul telecommunications Higher frequencies give higher data rates
Satellite Microwave Satellite is relay station Satellite receives on one frequency, amplifies or repeats signal and transmits on another frequency Requires geo-stationary orbit - Height of 35,784km
Television Long distance telephone Private business networks
Broadcast Radio Omnidirectional FM radio UHF and VHF television
4.5
Line of sight Suffers from multipath interference
Text book:
Pages 119 126
V7: 107 - 123
This section gives you brief description of wireless data transmission.
Review Activities:
4.1 List three types of transmission media and describe their respective
advantages and disadvantages. Solution: Advantages Cheap High bandwidth Secure Disadvantages Low bandwidth Expensive to install Short distance and cannot penetrate solid objects
Twisted pair Optical fiber Infrared
4.2 Name three different transmission media and describe their strengths and weaknesses. Solution: Media type strength Coaxial cable Large capacity / bandwidth Twisted pair Optic fiber Cheap High bandwidth weakness More expensive than twisted par Low capacity/bandwidth Relatively expensive in initial cost
DATA ENCODING
5.1
TOPIC 5
5.0 DATA ENCODING
Both digital and analog information can be encoded as either analog or digital signals. The particular encoding that is chosen depends on the specific requirements to be met and the media and communications facilities available. Encoding Techniques Digital data, digital signal Analog data, digital signal Digital data, analog signal Analog data, analog signal
5.1 Digital Data, Digital Signal Digital signal Polar One logic state represented by positive voltage the other by negative voltage Data rate - Rate of data transmission in bits per second Duration or length of a bit - Time taken for transmitter to emit the bit Modulation rate Mark and Space Rate at which the signal level changes Measured in baud = signal elements per second Binary 1 and Binary 0 respectively Discrete, discontinuous voltage pulses Each pulse is a signal element Binary data encoded into signal elements
Unipolar All signal elements have same sign
Comparison of Encoding Schemes Signal Spectrum Lack of high frequencies reduces required bandwidth
Lack of dc component allows ac coupling via transformer, providing isolation Concentrate power in the middle of the bandwidth
Clocking Synchronizing transmitter and receiver External clock Sync mechanism based on signal
Error detection - Can be built in to signal encoding Signal interference and noise immunity - Some codes are better than others Cost and complexity - Higher signal rate (& thus data rate) lead to higher costs. Some codes require signal rate greater than data rate Encoding Schemes Nonreturn to Zero-Level (NRZ-L) Nonreturn to Zero Inverted (NRZI) Bipolar -AMI Pseudoternary Manchester Differential Manchester B8ZS HDB3 Textbook: Pages 132 142
V7: 131 - 141
This section gives you brief description of digital to digital data encoding. 5.2 Digital Data, Analog Signal Public telephone system 300Hz to 3400Hz Use modem (modulator-demodulator) Amplitude shift keying (ASK) Frequency shift keying (FSK) Phase shift keying (PK)
Text book:
Pages 142 148
V7: 142 152
This section gives you brief description of digital to analog encoding.
5.3
5.3 Analog Data, Digital Signal Digitization Conversion of analog data into digital data Digital data can then be transmitted using NRZ-L Digital data can then be transmitted using code other than NRZ-L Digital data can then be converted to analog signal Analog to digital conversion done using a code. Pulse code modulation Delta modulation
Pulse Code Modulation(PCM) If a signal is sampled at regular intervals at a rate higher than twice the highest signal frequency, the samples contain all the information of the original signal - (Proof - Stallings appendix 4A) Voice data limited to below 4000Hz Require 8000 sample per second Analog samples (Pulse Amplitude Modulation, PAM) Each sample assigned digital value 4 bit system gives 16 levels Quantized Quantizing error or noise Approximations mean it is impossible to recover original exactly 8 bit sample gives 256 levels Quality comparable with analog transmission 8000 samples per second of 8 bits each gives 64kbps Pages 148 155 V7: 152 158
Text book:
This section gives you brief description of digital to analog encoding. 5.4 Analog Data, Analog Signals Why modulate analog signals? Higher frequency can give more efficient transmission Permits frequency division multiplexing (chapter 8)
Types of modulation Amplitude Frequency Phase Spread Spectrum Analog or digital data Analog signal Spread data over wide bandwidth Makes jamming and interception harder Frequency hoping Signal broadcast over seemingly random series of frequencies Direct Sequence Each bit is represented by multiple bits in transmitted signal Chipping code Pages 155 166 V7: 159 165
Textbook:
This section gives you brief description of wireless data transmission. Review Activities: 5.1 In pulse code modulation, how is the sampling rate decided? The sampling rate is determined by the Nyquist theorem, i.e., the sampling rate should be at least being twice of the signal frequency in order to represent the signal completely.
5.2 Briefly describe the Manchester encoding format. In the Manchester code, there is a transition at the middle of each bit period. The mid-bit transition serves as a clocking mechanism and as data: a low to high transition represents a 1, and a high to low transition represents a 0. In Differential Manchester, the mid bit transition is used only to provide clocking. The encoding of a 0 is represented by the presence of a transition at the beginning of a bit periods and a 1 is represented by the absence of a transition at the beginning of a bit periods. Differential Manchester has the added advantage of employing differential encoding.
DATA COMMUNICATION INTERFACE
6.1
TOPIC 6
6.0 DATA COMMUNICATION INTERFACE
The transmission of a stream of bits from one device to another across a transmission link involves a great deal of cooperation and agreement between the two sides. One of the most fundamental requirements is synchronization. The receiver at regular intervals to determine the value of each received bit. Two techniques are in common for this purpose. They are synchronous transmission and asynchronous transmission.
6.1 Asynchronous transmission Data transmitted on character at a time - 5 to 8 bits Timing only needs maintaining within each character Resync with each character
Asynchronous Behavior In a steady stream, interval between characters is uniform (length of stop element) In idle state, receiver looks for transition 1 to 0 Then samples next seven intervals (char length) Then looks for next 1 to 0 for next char Simple Cheap Overhead of 2 or 3 bits per char (~20%) Good for data with large gaps (keyboard)
Synchronous - Bit Level Block of data transmitted without start or stop bits Clocks must be synchronized Can use separate clock line Good over short distances Subject to impairments
Embed clock signal in data Manchester encoding Carrier frequency (analog)
Synchronous - Block Level Need to indicate start and end of block Use preamble and postamble e.g. series of SYN (hex 16) characters e.g. block of 11111111 patterns ending in 11111110 More efficient (lower overhead) than async Pages 174 178 V7: 173 - 176
Text book:
This section gives you brief description of asynchronous and synchronous transmission. 6.2 Line Configuration Topology Physical arrangement of stations on medium Point to point Multi point - Computer and terminals, local area network
Half duplex Only one station may transmit at a time Requires one data path
Full duplex Simultaneous transmission and reception between two stations Requires two data paths (or echo canceling)
Text book:
Pages 178 180
V7: 191 - 193
This section gives you brief description of line configurations and its characteristics..
6.3
6.3 Interfacing Data processing devices (or data terminal equipment, DTE) do not (usually) include data transmission facilities Need an interface called data circuit terminating equipment (DCE) e.g. modem, NIC DCE transmits bits on medium DCE communicates data and control info with DTE Done over interchange circuits Clear interface standards required Characteristics of Interface Mechanical - Connection plugs Electrical - Voltage, timing, encoding Functional - Data, control, timing, grounding Procedural - Sequence of events Text book: Pages 180 190 V7: 193 - 203
This section gives you brief description of interfacing and its characteristics. Review Activities: 6.1 Briefly describe the following: Synchronous data transmission Asynchronous data transmission
Synchronous data transmission In this transmission mode, synchronization between the transmitter and receiver fully depends on the clock synchronization. No start bit and stops bit are used. Asynchronous data transmission It refers to data transmission where start bits and stop element are used for each character (represented by a number of bits) so that the transmitter and the receiver can be synchronized. This is opposed to synchronous transmission where no start and stop bits are used and synchronization between the transmitter and receiver fully depends on the clock synchronization.
DATA LINK CONTROL
7.1
TOPIC 7
7.0 DATA LINK CONTROL
Because of the possibility of transmission errors and because the receiver of data may need to regulate the rate at which data arrive, synchronization and interfacing are insufficient by themselves. It is necessary to impose a layer of control in each communicating device that provides functions such as flow control, error detection, and error control. This layer of control is known as a data link control protocol.
7.1 Flow Control Ensuring the sending entity does not overwhelm the receiving entity Preventing buffer overflow Transmission time Time taken to emit all bits into medium Propagation time Time for a bit to traverse the link
Stop and Wait Source transmits frame Destination receives frame and replies with acknowledgement Source waits for ACK before sending next frame Destination can stop flow by not send ACK Works well for a few large frames
Fragmentation Large block of data may be split into small frames Limited buffer size Errors detected sooner (when whole frame received) On error, retransmission of smaller frames is needed Prevents one station occupying medium for long periods Stop and wait becomes inadequate
Sliding Windows Flow Control Allow multiple frames to be in transit Receiver has buffer W long Transmitter can send up to W frames without ACK Each frame is numbered ACK includes number of next frame expected Sequence number bounded by size of field (k) Frames are numbered modulo 2k
Sliding Window Enhancements Receiver can acknowledge frames without permitting further transmission (Receive Not Ready) Must send a normal acknowledge to resume If duplex, use piggybacking If no data to send, use acknowledgement frame If data but no acknowledgement to send, send last acknowledgement number again, or have ACK valid flag (TCP)
Text book:
Pages 194 200
V7: 208 - 215
This section gives you brief description of flow control and its techniques. 7.2 Error Detection Additional bits added by transmitter for error detection code Parity - Value of parity bit is such that character has even (even parity) or odd (odd parity) number of ones. Even number of bit errors goes undetected
Cyclic Redundancy Check For a block of k bits transmitter generates n bit sequence Transmit k+n bits which is exactly divisible by some number
7.3
Receive divides frame by that number - If no remainder, assume no error.
Text book:
Pages 201 207
V7: 177 - 185
This section gives you brief description of error detection and parity checking. 7.3 Error Control Detection and correction of errors Lost frames Damaged frames Automatic repeat request Error detection Positive acknowledgment Retransmission after timeout Negative acknowledgement and retransmission
Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) Stop and wait Go back N Selective reject (selective retransmission)
Stop and Wait Source transmits single frame Wait for ACK If received frame damaged, discard it Transmitter has timeout If no ACK within timeout, retransmit If ACK damaged, transmitter will not recognize it Transmitter will retransmit Receive gets two copies of frame Use ACK0 and ACK1
Go Back N Based on sliding window If no error, ACK as usual with next frame expected Use window to control number of outstanding frames If error, reply with rejection Discard that frame and all future frames until error frame received correctly Transmitter must go back and retransmit that frame and all subsequent frames
Selective Reject Also called selective retransmission Only rejected frames are retransmitted Subsequent frames are accepted by the receiver and buffered Minimizes retransmission Receiver must maintain large enough buffer More complex login in transmitter Text book: Pages 208 213 V7: 215 - 220 This section gives you brief description of error control techniques. 7.4 High Level Data Link Control (HDLC) The HDLC is not only widely used but it is the basis for many other important data link control protocols, which use the same or similar formats and the same mechanisms as employed in HDLC. HDLC Station Types Primary station Controls operation of link Frames issued are called commands Maintains separate logical link to each secondary station Secondary station Under control of primary station Frames issued called responses Combined station May issue commands and responses Text book: Pages 213 223 V7: 221 - 228
This section gives you brief description of high-level data link control and other data link control protocols.
7.5
Review Activities: 7.1 Describe Flow control Flow control is a technique for assuring that a transmitting entity does not overwhelm a receiving entity with data. The receiving entity typically allocates a data buffer of some maximum length for a transfer. When data are received, the receiver must do a certain amount of processing before passing the data to the higher-level software. In the absence of flow control, the receivers buffer may fill up and overflow while it is processing old data. 7.2 What are the main functions of the data link layer? Data link layer is the second layer of the OSI reference model. Its main function is to break the continuous bit stream of physical layer into meaningful frames/blocks. In addition, it provides medium access control function. 7.3 Briefly describe two flow control techniques. Stop-and-wait: the transmitter sends a packet and waist for the acknowledgement from the receiver before sending another packet. Sliding-window flow control: it can be treated as an extension of stop-andwait. Instead of sending one packet and then waiting, a transmitter can continuously sends a fixed number of packets (window size) without needing acknowledgement from the receiver. When a packet is acknowledged, the number of packets equal to the window size can be transmitted. 7.4 Using an example, explain how parity check is used to detect data error. OR Use an example to describe an error detection technique for data transmission. Parity check is a simple error detection method where a parity bit is added to detect if a bit error occurred. For example, if we want to send data 10101110 and even parity is used, then the data including parity bit is 101011101. If any bit is changed, the number of 1 bits will be odd and we will be sure that one error has occurred.
MULTIPLEXING
8.1
TOPIC 8
8.0 MULTIPLEXING
To make efficient use of high-speed telecommunication lines, some form of multiplexing is used. Multiplexing allows several transmission sources to share a larger transmission capacity. The two common multiplexing are frequency division multiplexing (FDM) and time division multiplexing (TDM).
8.1 Frequency Division Multiplexing Useful bandwidth of medium exceeds required bandwidth of channel Each signal is modulated to a different carrier frequency Carrier frequencies separated so signals do not overlap (guard bands) e.g. broadcast radio Channel allocated even if no data
Analog Carrier Systems Hierarchy of FDM schemes Group 12 voice channels (4kHz each) = 48kHz Range 60kHz to 108kHz
Supergroup 60 channel FDM of 5 group signals on carriers between 420kHz and 612 kHz
Mastergroup - 10 supergroups
Text book:
Pages 237 244
V7: 243 - 250
This section gives you brief description of frequency division multiplexing.
8.2 Synchronous Time Division Multiplexing Data rate of medium exceeds data rate of digital signal to be transmitted Multiple digital signals interleaved in time May be at bit level of blocks Time slots preassigned to sources and fixed Time slots allocated even if no data Time slots do not have to be evenly distributed amongst sources
TDM Link Control No headers and tailers Data link control protocols not needed Flow control Data rate of multiplexed line is fixed If one channel receiver can not receive data, the others must carry on The corresponding source must be quenched This leaves empty slots Error control - Errors are detected and handled by individual channel systems Framing No flag or SYNC characters bracketing TDM frames Must provide synchronizing mechanism Added digit framing One control bit added to each TDM frame - Looks like another channel - control channel Identifiable bit pattern used on control channel e.g. alternating 01010101unlikely on a data channel Can compare incoming bit patterns on each channel with sync pattern Pulse Stuffing Problem - Synchronizing data sources Clocks in different sources drifting
8.3
Data rates from different sources not related by simple rational number Solution - Pulse Stuffing Outgoing data rate (excluding framing bits) higher than sum of incoming rates Stuff extra dummy bits or pulses into each incoming signal until it matches local clock Stuffed pulses inserted at fixed locations in frame and removed at demultiplexer
Text book:
Pages 244 256
V7: 250 - 259
This section gives you brief description of synchronous time-division multiplexing.
8.3 Statistical TDM In Synchronous TDM many slots are wasted Statistical TDM allocates time slots dynamically based on demand Multiplexer scans input lines and collects data until frame full Data rate on line lower than aggregate rates of input lines
Performance Output data rate less than aggregate input rates May cause problems during peak periods Buffer inputs Keep buffer size to minimum to reduce delay
Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line Link between subscriber and network - Local loop Uses currently installed twisted pair cable - Can carry broader spectrum; 1 MHz or more ADSL Design Asymmetric - Greater capacity downstream than upstream
Frequency division multiplexing - Lowest 25kHz for voice; Plain old telephone service (POTS) Use echo cancellation or FDM to give two bands Use FDM within bands Range 5.5km
Textbook:
Pages 257 268
V7: 260 - 271
This section gives you brief description of statistical time division multiplexing.
Review Activities: 8.1 Describe Synchronous data transmission. Compare synchronous timedivision multiplexing and statistical time-division multiplexing In this transmission mode, synchronization between the transmitter and receiver fully depends on the clock synchronization. No start bit and stop bit are used. In both types of multiplexing, the transmission time is divided into fixed length time slots. In synchronous time division, a transmitter can use certain time slots (for example, every 4th slot). But in statistical time division, a transmitter can use any un-used slot. Statistical time division is more efficient that synchronous time division multiplexing.
SWITCHING
9.1
TOPIC 9
9.0 SWITCHING
For Transmission of data beyond a local area, communication is typically achieved by transmitting data from source to destination through a network of intermediate switching nodes; this switched network design is sometimes used to implement Local Area Networks as well.
9.1 Switching Networks Nodes Nodes may connect to other nodes only, or to stations and other nodes Node to node links usually multiplexed Network is usually partially connected - Some redundant connections are desirable for reliability Two different switching technologies : Circuit switching, Packet switching Long distance transmission is typically done over a network of switched nodes Nodes not concerned with content of data End devices are stations - Computer, terminal, phone, etc. A collection of nodes and connections is a communications network Data routed by being switched from node to node
9.2 Circuit Switching Dedicated communication path between two stations Three phases Establish, Transfer and, Disconnect Must have switching capacity and channel capacity to establish connection Must have intelligence to work out routing
Circuit Switching - Applications Inefficient - Channel capacity dedicated for duration of connection, If no data, capacity wasted Set up (connection) takes time Once connected, transfer is transparent Developed for voice traffic (phone)
Telecommunication Components Subscriber -Devices attached to network Local Loop - Subscriber loop, Connection to network Exchange - Switching centers, End office - supports subscribers Trunks - Branches between exchanges - Multiplexed
Circuit Switching Concepts Digital Switch - Provide transparent signal path between devices Network Interface Control Unit Establish connections Generally on demand Handle and acknowledge requests Determine if destination is free construct path
Maintain connection Disconnect Blocking or Non-blocking Blocking A network is unable to connect stations because all paths are in use A blocking network allows this Used on voice systems - Short duration calls
Non-blocking Permits all stations to connect (in pairs) at once Used for some data connections
Space Division Switching Developed for analog environment
9.3
Separate physical paths Crossbar switch Number of crosspoints grows as square of number of stations Loss of crosspoint prevents connection Inefficient use of crosspoints - All stations connected, only a few crosspoints in use Non-blocking
Time Division Switching Partition low speed bit stream into pieces that share higher speed stream e.g. TDM bus switching based on synchronous time division multiplexing Each station connects through controlled gates to high speed bus Time slot allows small amount of data onto bus Another lines gate is enabled for output at the same time Routing Many connections will need paths through more than one switch Need to find a route Efficiency, Resilience Public telephone switches are a tree structure - Static routing uses the same approach all the time Dynamic routing allows for changes in routing depending on traffic - Uses a peer structure for nodes
Text book:
Pages 276 288
v7: 299 - 307
This section gives you brief description of circuit switching networks and circuit switching concept..
9.3 Control Signaling Functions Audible communication with subscriber Transmission of dialed number
Call can not be completed indication Call ended indication Signal to ring phone Billing info Equipment and trunk status info Diagnostic info Control of specialist equipment
Text book:
Pages 289 300
V7: 307 - 316
This section gives you brief description of control signaling.
9.4 Packet Switching Packet switching was designed to provide a more efficient facility than circuit switching for bursty data traffic. With packet switching, a station transmits data in small blocks, called packets. Each packet contains some portion of the user data plus control information needed for proper functioning of the network. Basic Operation Data transmitted in small packets Typically 1000 octets Longer messages split into series of packets Each packet contains a portion of user data plus some control info Control info - Routing (addressing) info Packets are received, stored briefly (buffered) and past on to the next node - Store and forward Advantages Line efficiency Single node to node link can be shared by many packets over time Packets queued and transmitted as fast as possible
Data rate conversion Each station connects to the local node at its own speed
9.5
Nodes buffer data if required to equalize rates
Packets are accepted even when network is busy Delivery may slow down
Priorities can be used Switching Technique Station breaks long message into packets Packets sent one at a time to the network Packets handled in two ways : Datagram, Virtual circuit
Datagram Each packet treated independently Packets can take any practical route Packets may arrive out of order Packets may go missing Up to receiver to re-order packets and recover from missing packets Virtual Circuit Preplanned route established before any packets sent Call request and call accept packets establish connection (handshake) Each packet contains a virtual circuit identifier instead of destination address No routing decisions required for each packet Clear request to drop circuit Not a dedicated path
Routing - Complex, crucial aspect of packet switched networks Characteristics required : Correctness, Simplicity, Robustness, Stability, Fairness, Optimality and Efficiency,
Text book:
Pages 304 332
V7: 316 - 332
This section gives you brief description of packet switching network, routing and X.25.
Review Activities: 9.1 What is circuit switching? What is packet switching? What are their respective advantages and disadvantages? This is a switching technique in which a physical path is set up between the transmitter and receiver for the duration of data transmission. Circuit switching definition A dedicated physical connection between transmitter and receiver is established for the duration of Communication Routers are used to send packets to different destinations. advantages disadvantages Low delay and May be expensive and delay jitter. Can less efficient. Guarantee quality. Cheap efficient. and Difficult to guarantee quality.
Packet switching
9.2 In a network that has a maximum packet size of 100 bytes, a maximum packet lifetime of 10 seconds, and an 10-bit packet sequence number, what is the maximum data rate per connection (assuming that each packet over a connection must be uniquely identified using a sequence number)? Within the lifetime of 10 second, each packet must be uniquely identified with 10 bits. That is, within 10 seconds, 210=1024 packets can be sent. The number of packet per second = 1024/10 packets. So the maximum data rate = the number of packets per second x packet size = (1024/10) x 100 x 8 =81920 bps (bits per second).
9.3 In a network that has a maximum packet size of 128 bytes, a maximum packet lifetime of 20 seconds, and an 8-bit packet sequence number, what is the maximum data rate per connection (assuming that each packet over a connection must be uniquely identified using a sequence number)? Within the lifetime of 20 second, each packet must be uniquely identified with 8bits. That is within 20 seconds, 28=256 packets can be sent. The number of packet per second = 256/20 packets. So the maximum data rate = the number of packets per second x packet size = (256/20) x 128 x 8 =13107.2 bps (bits per second).
10
CONGESTION CONTROL
10.1
TOPIC 10
10.0 CONGESTION CONTROL
Congestion occurs when the number of packets being transmitted through the network approaches the packet handling capacity of the network. Congestion control aims to keep number of packets below level at which performance falls off dramatically. Data network is a network of queues, Generally 80% utilization is critical. Finite queues mean data may be lost.
10.1 Effects of Congestion Packets arriving are stored at input buffers Routing decision made Packet moves to output buffer Packets queued for output transmitted as fast as possible Statistical time division multiplexing If packets arrive to fast to be routed, or to be output, buffers will fill Can discard packets Can use flow control Can propagate congestion through network
Text book:
Pages 385 389
V7: 397 - 401
This section gives you brief description of the effect of the congestion.
10.2 Congestion Control Backpressure If node becomes congested it can slow down or halt flow of packets from other nodes May mean that other nodes have to apply control on incoming packet rates Propagates back to source
Can restrict to logical connections generating most traffic Used in connection oriented that allow hop by hop congestion control (e.g. X.25) Not used in ATM nor frame relay Only recently developed for IP
Choke Packet Control packet Generated at congested node Sent to source node e.g. ICMP source quench From router or destination Source cuts back until no more source quench message Sent for every discarded packet, or anticipated
Rather crude mechanism
Implicit Congestion Signaling Transmission delay may increase with congestion Packet may be discarded Source can detect these as implicit indications of congestion Useful on connectionless (datagram) networks. E.g. IP based (TCP includes congestion and flow control ) Used in frame relay LAPF
Explicit Congestion Signaling Network alerts end systems of increasing congestion End systems take steps to reduce offered load Backwards o Congestion avoidance in opposite direction to packet required
10.3
Forwards -Congestion avoidance in same direction as packet required
Text book:
Pages 390 393
V7: 401 - 404
This section gives you brief description of various congestion control techniques.
Review Activities: 10.1 What is the main difference between flow control and congestion control? Flow control is concerned with if the receiver can cope with the data sent by the transmitter and congestion control is concerned with if the network is overload to the extent that performance is reduced dramatically. Flow control is an issue specific to a pair of hosts while congestion control is a global issue. (b) In a network that has a maximum packet size of 1000 bytes, a maximum packet lifetime of 10 seconds, and an 8-bit packet sequence number, what is the maximum data rate per connection (assuming that each packet over a connection must be uniquely identified using a sequence number)? Within 10 second, only 256 packets can be sent, so the data rate = 256 x 1000 x 8/10=204.8 kbps
10.2 A 8920-octet IP datagram is to be transmitted and needs to be fragmented because it has to pass through an Ethernet with a maximum payload of 1500 octets. (i) How many fragments are needed? (ii) Explain how these fragments can be reassembled into the original datagram at the destination. (i) Since the IP header has 20 octets, the 8920-octets Datagram contains 8900 octets of actual data.
A payload of 1500 octets can carry a maximum 1480 octets of data (the remaining are IP header and other Headers). 8900/1480= 6.014. So at least 7 fragments are needed. (ii) Each fragment contains the fields of length of the fragment and the offset from the start of the datagram and a flag to indicate if it is the last fragment of the datagram. The destination can assemble the original datagram based on these three pieces of information.
10.3 Data transfer rate The speed with which data can be transmitted from one device to another. Data rates are often measured in megabits (million bits) or megabytes (million bytes) per second. These are usually abbreviated as Mbps and MBps, respectively.
11
LOCAL AREA NETWORK
11.1
TOPIC 11
11.0 LOCAL AREA NETWORK
A Local Area Network (LAN) consists of a shared transmission medium and a set of hardware and software for interfacing devices to the medium and regulating the orderly access to the medium. The topologies that have been used for LANs are ring, bus, tree and star. Traditional LAN provides data rate in a range from about 1 to 20 Mbps and high-speed LANs provides data rate of 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps.
11. LAN Applications Personal computer LANs Low cost Limited data rate Back end networks and storage area networks Interconnecting large systems (mainframes and large storage devices) High data rate High speed interface Distributed access Limited distance Limited number of devices
High speed office networks Desktop image processing High capacity local storage
Backbone LANs Interconnect low speed local LANs Reliability Capacity & Cost
Text book:
Pages 425 427
V7: 466 - 475
This section gives you brief description of Local area network applications.
1.2
11.2 LAN Architecture Protocol Architecture Lower layers of OSI model IEEE 802 reference model Physical Logical link control (LLC) Media access control (MAC)
Media Access Control Assembly of data into frame with address and error detection fields Disassembly of frame Address recognition Error detection Govern access to transmission medium Not found in traditional layer 2 data link control For the same LLC, several MAC options may be available
LAN Topologies Bus and Tree Multipoint medium Transmission propagates throughout medium Heard by all stations Need to identify target station - Each station has unique address Full duplex connection between station and tap Allows for transmission and reception Need to regulate transmission To avoid collisions To avoid hogging - Data in small blocks - frames Terminator absorbs frames at end of medium
Ring Topology Repeaters joined by point to point links in closed loop
11.3
Receive data on one link and retransmit on another Links unidirectional Stations attach to repeaters Data in frames Circulate past all stations Destination recognizes address and copies frame Frame circulates back to source where it is removed Media access control determines when station can insert frame
Star Topology Each station connected directly to central node Usually via two point to point links Central node can broadcast Physical star, logical bus Only one station can transmit at a time Central node can act as frame switch
Text book:
Pages 428 439
V7: 475 - 483
This section gives you brief description of protocol architecture LAN topologies and media access control.
11.3 Ethernet The most commonly used medium access control technique for bus and star topologies is carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD). CSMA/CD and its precursors can be termed random (stations access medium randomly) or contention (station content for time on medium) techniques. ALOHA Packet Radio When station has frame, it sends Station listens (for max round trip time)plus small increment If ACK, fine. If not, retransmit
1.4
CSMA
If no ACK after repeated transmissions, give up Frame check sequence (as in HDLC) If frame OK and address matches receiver, send ACK Frame may be damaged by noise or by another station transmitting at the same time (collision) Any overlap of frames causes collision Max utilization 18%
Slotted ALOHA Time in uniform slots equal to frame transmission time Need central clock (or other sync mechanism) Transmission begins at slot boundary Frames either miss or overlap totally Max utilization 37%
Propagation time is much less than transmission time All stations know that a transmission has started almost immediately First listen for clear medium (carrier sense) If medium idle, transmit If two stations start at the same instant, collision Wait reasonable time (round trip plus ACK contention) No ACK then retransmit Max utilization depends on propagation time (medium length) and frame length Longer frame and shorter propagation gives better utilization
CSMA/CD With CSMA, collision occupies medium for duration of transmission Stations listen whilst transmitting If medium idle, transmit If busy, listen for idle, then transmit
11.5
If collision detected, jam then cease transmission After jam, wait random time then start again Binary exponential back off
Collision Detection On baseband bus, collision produces much higher signal voltage than signal Collision detected if cable signal greater than single station signal Signal attenuated over distance Limit distance to 500m (10Base5) or 200m (10Base2) For twisted pair (star-topology) activity on more than one port is collision Special collision presence signal
Text book:
Pages 470 481
V7: 502 - 515
This section gives you brief description of carrier sense multiple access with collision detection technique.
Review Activities: 11.1 Describe three medium access control techniques commonly used in local area networks. (i) Carrier sense multiple access (CSMA): It is a contention media access control mechanism. The access rules are: (1) Check if the transmission medium is busy. If the medium is idle, transmit; otherwise, go to step (2). (2) If the medium is busy, continue checking until it is idle, then transmit data immediately. (ii) Carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD): It is a contention media access control mechanism. The access rules are: (1) Check if the transmission medium is busy. If the medium is idle, transmit; otherwise, go to step (2). (2) If the medium is busy, continue checking until it is idle, then transmit data immediately.
1.6
(3) If a collision is detected during transmission, send a signal to ensure all stations know the collision and then stop transmission. (4) After sending the collision signal, wait a random amount of time and then transmit again. (repeat from step (1)). (iii) Token passing: A token circulates around the network. A station captures a free token can send certain amount of data. Once completing data transmission, the station set the token free and another station can capture it and send data.
11.2 Describe the operating principle of the token ring network. The following are layers and corresponding common protocols: Network access: CSMA/CD, token bus. Internet layer: IP Transport layer: TCP, UDP Application layer: SMTP, FTP, MIME, and HTTP.
11.3 What is a medium access control (MAC) layer? Describe two MAC protocols? 11.4 WAN Connection Types (Public Carriers): When designing a wide area network (WAN), one of the most challenging issues is choosing the correct connection type. You need to consider several factors before implementation can beginand a solid understanding of all the connection types is critical to making the right choice. Most carriers offer three connection types: 1. Circuit-switched connections 2. Packet-switched or cell-switched connections 3. Dedicated connections Each type of connection has its advantages and disadvantages. This article will summarize what each connection type has to offer, with consideration given to bandwidth, availability, cost, and ease of management.
11.7
Circuit-switched connections Circuit-switched connections are currently the most popular type of WAN connection. Circuit switching transmits data streams and datagrams across dedicated physical circuits. To provide asynchronous dial-in and ISDN services, the telephone companies use circuit switching.
Asynchronous dial-in The public switched telephone network (PSTN) uses circuit-switched technology to provide asynchronous services (otherwise known as normal telephone service). Asynchronous dial-in connections offer a lowbandwidth, easily managed, cost-effective solution that is available almost anywhere in the world.
ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) is a digital circuit switching technology used to transport voice, data, and video. With speeds up to 1.54 Mbps (T1) in North America and 2.048 Mbps (E1) in Europe, ISDN is a low- to medium-bandwidth solution with relatively low cost. However, availability is somewhat limited and configuration and support are more difficult than for asynchronous communication.
Packet-switched or cell-switched connections Packet-switched and cell-switched networks are point-to-point connections that travel across a public carriers network. While these types of connections are more expensive than asynchronous dial-in and ISDN connections, packet-switched and cell-switched services can provide very high bandwidth solutions at a lower cost than dedicated connections. Examples of packet-switched and cell-switched networks include Frame Relay (packet-switched), X.25 (packet-switched), and Asynchronous Transfer Mode or ATM (cell-switched).
1.8
Frame relay Frame Relay is one of the most popular methods of packet-switched networks. With support for a variety of network protocols, Frame Relay can provide flexible, high-bandwidth solutions for most any network. Frame Relay service charges are usually based on the Committed Information Rate (CIR). The CIR is the amount of bandwidth guaranteed by the service provider. The larger the CIR, the more costly the Frame Relay solution becomes. In addition, designing and supporting Frame Relay networks can be a nightmare. Therefore, a highly skilled network professional is required to install and troubleshoot Frame Relay networks.
X.25 X.25 is a legacy, packet-switched, data link layer protocol designed in the 1970s. X.25 was designed to run over noisy analog lines and, therefore, has built-in error-checking mechanisms. The overhead required to perform error checking makes X.25 a low-bandwidth solution by todays standards. However, if you must deploy a WAN in an environment that contains noisy lines and legacy network equipment, X.25 is still a viable solution.
ATM ATM is quickly becoming the connection method of choice for high-speed communications. ATM is a cell-switching, multiplexing technology, which provides connection-oriented, guaranteed delivery of fixed-length cells. ATM supports speeds of up to OC-192 (thats 10Gbps), making ATM the solution for high-speed networks supporting voice, video, and data. Of course, all these features come with a price, and when you calculate the monthly carrier fees and the salaries of the highly skilled staff required to support an ATM network, that price can be astronomical.
11.9
Dedicated connections Dedicated connections are point-to-point serial connections that offer fixed, permanent connections to remote networks. Dedicated links can provide up to T3 (44.736 Mbps) speeds over a public carriers network. Since dedicated connections are fixed, permanent connections, there is less overhead required to establish communication between two sites. And because dedicated connections offer low overhead and high-speed transmissions, theyre excellent solutions for companies requiring highbandwidth, 24/7 WAN connections. However, carrier fees and support costs for dedicated connections are on the high side.
12
PROTOCOLS
12.1
TOPIC 12
12.0 PROTOCOLS
Protocol architecture is the layered structure of hardware and software that supports the exchange of data between systems and supports distributed applications, such as electronic mail and file transfer. At each layer of protocol architecture, one or more common protocols are implemented in communicating systems. Each protocol provides a set of rules for the exchange of data between systems.
12.1 Routing Protocols Routing protocols in an Internet function in a similar fashion to those used in packet-switching networks. An Internet routing protocol is used to exchange information about reachability and traffic delays, allowing router to construct a next-hop routing table for paths through the Internet. The router in an Internet is responsible for receiving and forwarding packets through the interconnected set of networks. Each router makes routing decision based on knowledge of the topology and conditions of the Internet. To make dynamic routing decision, routers exchange routing information using a special routing protocol for that purpose. In considering the routing function, it is important to distinguish two concepts: Routing Information - About topology and delays in the Internet. Routing Algorithm - Used to make routing decisions based on information.
Autonomous Systems (AS) Group of routers Exchange information Common routing protocol Set of routers and networks managed by single organization A connected network There is at least one route between any pair of nodes
Interior Router Protocol (IRP) Passes routing information between routers within AS May be more than one AS in internet Routing algorithms and tables may differ between different AS Routers need some info about networks outside their AS Used exterior router protocol (ERP) IRP needs detailed model ERP supports summary information on reachability
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) For use with TCP/IP internets Preferred EGP of the Internet Messages sent over TCP connections Open, Update, Keep alive, Notification Procedures Neighbor acquisition Neighbor reachability Network reachability BGP Routing Information Exchange Within AS, router builds topology picture using IGP Router issues Update message to other routers outside AS using BGP These routers exchange info with other routers in other AS Routers must then decide best routes
Text book:
Pages 571 581
V7: 626 - 637
This section gives you brief description of routing protocols.
12.2 Transmission Control Protocol TCP Services Reliable communication between pairs of processes Across variety of reliable and unreliable networks and internets
12.3
Two labeling facilities Data stream push TCP user can require transmission of all data up to push flag Receiver will deliver in same manner Avoids waiting for full buffers Urgent data signal Indicates urgent data is upcoming in stream User decides how to handle it
TCP passes some parameters down to IP Precedence Normal delay/low delay Normal throughput/high throughput Normal reliability/high reliability Security
TCP Mechanisms Connection establishment Three way handshake Between pairs of ports One port can connect to multiple destinations
Data transfer Logical stream of octets Octets numbered modulo 223 Flow control by credit allocation of number of octets Data buffered at transmitter and receiver
Connection termination Graceful close TCP users issues CLOSE primitive Transport entity sets FIN flag on last segment sent Abrupt termination by ABORT primitive
Entity abandons all attempts to send or receive data RST segment transmitted
Implementation Policy Options Send Accept Segments may arrive out of order In order : Only accept segments in order, Discard out of order segments In windows - Accept all segments within receive window If no push or close TCP entity transmits at its own convenience Data buffered at transmit buffer May construct segment per data batch May wait for certain amount of data
Deliver In absence of push, deliver data at own convenience May deliver as each in order segment received May buffer data from more than one segment
Retransmit TCP maintains queue of segments transmitted but not
acknowledged TCP will retransmit if not ACKed in given time : First only, Batch, Individual
User Datagram Protocol (UDP) Connectionless service for application level procedures Unreliable Delivery and duplication control not guaranteed Reduced overhead e.g. network management
UDP Uses Inward data collection Outward data dissemination
12.5
Request-Response Real time application
Text book:
Pages 627 646
V7: 683 - 701
This section gives you brief description of transmission control protocol and user datagram protocols.
12.3 Network Security Passive Attacks Eavesdropping on transmissions To obtain information Release of message contents - Outsider learns content of transmission Traffic analysis - By monitoring frequency and length of messages, even encrypted, nature of communication may be guessed Difficult to detect Can be prevented
Active Attacks Masquerade - Pretending to be a different entity Replay Modification of messages Denial of service Easy to detect - Detection may lead to deterrent Hard to prevent
Requirements for Security Strong encryption algorithm - Even if known, should not be able to decrypt or work out key. Even if a number of cipher texts are available together with plain texts of them. Sender and receiver must obtain secret key securely Once key is known, all communication using this key is readable
Attacking Encryption Crypt analysis - Relay on nature of algorithm plus some knowledge of general characteristics of plain text. Attempt to deduce plain text or key. Brute force - Try every possible key until plain text is achieved
Algorithms Block cipher - Process plain text in fixed block sizes producing block of cipher text of equal size. Data encryption standard (DES), Triple DES (TDES) Link Encryption Each communication link equipped at both ends All traffic secure High level of security Requires lots of encryption devices Message must be decrypted at each switch to read address (virtual circuit number) Security vulnerable at switches - Particularly on public switched network End to End Encryption Encryption done at ends of system Data in encrypted form crosses network unaltered Destination shares key with source to decrypt Host can only encrypt user data - Otherwise switching nodes could not read header or route packet Traffic pattern not secure Use both link and end to end
Public Key Encryption Based on mathematical algorithms Asymmetric - Use two separate keys Ingredients - Plain text, Encryption algorithm, Public and private key, Cipher text, Decryption algorithm
12.7
Public Key Encryption - Operation Steps User generates pair of keys User places one key in public domain To send a message to user, encrypt using public key User decrypts using private key One key made public - Used for encryption Other kept private - Used for decryption Infeasible to determine decryption key given encryption key and algorithm Either key can be used for encryption, the other for decryption
Text book:
Pages 651 676
V7: 707 - 735
This section gives you brief description of security threats and data encryption techniques.
12.4 Electronic Mail Most heavily used application on any network Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) - TCP/IP - Delivery of simple text messages Multi-purpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) - Delivery of other types of data - Voice, images, video clips SMTP Not concerned with format of messages or data - Covered in RFC 822 SMTP uses info written on envelope of mail - Message header Does not look at contents - Message body Except: Standardize message character set to 7 bit ASCII, Add log info to start of message Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) Extension to RFC822
SMTP can not transmit executables - Uuencode and other schemes are available - Not standardized Can not transmit text including international characters (e.g. , , , , , , ) - Need 8 bit ASCII Servers may reject mail over certain size Translation between ASCII and EBCDIC not standard SMTP gateways to X.400 can not handle none text data in X.400 messages Some SMTP implementations do not adhere to standard - CRLF, truncate or wrap long lines, removal of white space, etc.
Text book:
Pages 711 725
V7: 746 - 761
This section gives you brief description of simple mail transfer protocol and multi-purpose Internet mail extension.
12.5 Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) Underlying protocol of the World Wide Web Not a protocol for transferring hypertext - For transmitting information with efficiency necessary for hypertext jumps Can transfer plain text, hypertext, audio, images, and Internet accessible information Transaction oriented client/server protocol Usually between Web browser (client) and Web server Uses TCP connections Stateless Each transaction treated independently Each new TCP connection for each transaction Terminate connection when transaction complete
Text book:
Pages 726 739
V7: 762 - 774
This section gives you brief description of hypertext transfer protocol.
12.9
Review Activities: 12.1 Briefly describe the following terms. Communication protocol Communication protocol is a set of rules that govern the required communications. It is essential to carry out meaningful communications. HTTP HyperText Transfer Protocol refers to the application level protocol used in the World Wide Web to transfer documents between the client and server. MIME Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension defines and encodes the nontext documents so that SMTP (Simple Mail Transport Protocol) can send the document without corrupting it.
12.2 Briefly describe the Internet architecture and its layers? The Internet architecture has the following layers: Physical layer: specifying the characteristics of the transmission medium, the nature of the signals, the transmission speed etc. Network access layer: is concerned with the exchange of data between an host (end system) and the network. Internet layer: allowing data to transverse multiple interconnected networks. Transport layer or host to host layer: concerned with reliable transfer of data. Application layer: supporting various user applications such as email.
12.3 What is conventional encryption? What is public-key encryption? How does public-key encryption achieves privacy? Secret-key/conventional encryption uses a single key for encryption and decryption. A public-key cryptosystem uses two keys: a public key and a companion private key. One can use either key for encryption and the other for decryption.
When A wants to send a confidential document to B, A should use B's public key to encrypt the document and then send the encrypted document to B. B then uses its private key to decrypt and read the document. None else can decrypt the document, as only B knows the matching private key to decrypt the document, thus achieving privacy.
12.4 Describe the layers and their main functions of the Internet architecture. Application layer: supports various user applications. Transport layer: provides reliable delivery of messages. Internet layer: interconnects different networks and provides routing. Network access layer: transfers data between the end system and the network it attaches. Physical layer: provides transmission medium and physical interface.
12.5 For a digital video with frame size of 500x600 pixels, 24 bits per pixel and 30 frames per second, what is the bit rate of this video? Bit rate = 500 x 600x24x30=216 Mbps
12.6 What is a communication protocol? Briefly describe three key elements of a communication protocol. A communication protocol is a set of rules governing the communication. Three key elements of a protocol are: Syntax: specifying data format and signal levels etc. Semantics: specifying control information for coordination and error handling Timing: specifying transmission speed and sequencing.
12.7 List the five layers of the Internet protocol architecture. What layer does UDP belong to? What layer does HTTP belong to? Five layers of the Internet are: Physical, Network access, Internet, Transport and Application. UDP (user datagram protocol) belongs to the transport layer.
COM: Computer Communications 12.11
HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) belongs to the application layer.
12.8 Describe two enhancements of IP version 6 over IP version 4. Two enhancements are: (i) Increased IP address space from 32 bits to 128 bits. (ii) Improved option mechanism: IPv6 options are placed in separate optional headers, which are only examined by relevant routers/processes, making the routing of packets more efficient.
Describe three main enhancements of IPv6 over IPv4. Three enhancement of IPv6 over IPv4 are: (1) IPv6 has wider address space, so has more IP addresses. (2) IPv6 has improved option mechanism in that options are placed in separate headers for efficient processing. (3) IPv6 can better support real time traffic by labeling packets for special handling.
12.9 Describe respective strengths and weaknesses of conventional (single-key) encryption and public-key encryption techniques. Secret-key use a single key for encryption and decryption. A public-key cryptosystem uses two keys: a public key and a companion private key. Their strengths and weaknesses are shown in the following table. Secret-key encryption Security Public-key Encryption provide privacy,
Can provide privacy and Can
authentication but not non- authentication and nonrepudiation Key distribution The secret key safely repudiation need No need to distribute among keys parties,
distributed
communication
which is difficult to achieve
Computation Cost/ complexity Scalability
Low
High
Not scalable well as a key is Scalable as each person required for each just need one pair keys for communicating with any number of parties.
communication party
12.10 Describe three security risks of data communication over the Internet. Losing confidentiality: confidential information may be obtained by unauthorized people. Masquerade: one may pretend to be someone else. Modification of message: message may be altered before reaching the recipient.
12.11 What is MIME and why is it needed? MIME stands for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension. It is needed so that non- ASCII messages can be transferred using SMTP. Its main functions are: introducing new message header fields and specifying the conversion of non-7-bit ASCII characters into 7-bit ASCII format so that SMTP can be used to transfer all types of messages.
12.12 A working network normally consists of a number of layers, each of which has one or more protocols. Briefly describe the layers and protocols of the Internet. Physically, the token bus is a linear or tree-shaped cable onto which the stations are attached. Logically, the stations are organized into a ring, with each station knowing the address of the station on its "left" and "right". A control frame called token circulates around the ring. A station can transmit data for certain time when it receives the token. The token is passed to the next station when the station completes the allocated
transmission time or when there is no data to transmit. In this architecture, it is guaranteed that each station will have a turn to transmit data within certain time period.
12.13 Why data compression is necessary? Describe the compression principle of ADPCM. Data compression is necessary because multimedia data including audio and video are very data intensive. Without data compression, storage devices and communication networks would have difficulty in coping the amount of data. DPCM stands for Differential Pulse Code Modulation. In this compression technique, only the difference between the current sample and the previous sample is coded and transmitted (or stored). As neighboring samples are correlated, the sample difference is normally smaller than the sample itself. Thus few bits are needed to represent the difference than the sample, leading to data compression.
12.14 Network layer is one of the most important layers of the Internet. What are the main network layer protocols and their functions of the Internet? The main protocols and their functions of the network layer of the Internet are: Internet Protocol (IP): to provide connectionless datagram transfer. Internet Control Message Protocol (IMCP): to provide feedback and error control to hosts. Border Gateway Protocol (BGP): to provide routing function. Application layer: SMTP, FTP, MIME, and HTTP.
12.15 For a digital video with frame size of 500x600 pixels, 24 bits per pixel and 30 frames per second, what is the bit rate of this video? Name three data compression techniques. Amount of storage = 20000 x 2 x 3600 x 16/8= 288, 000, 000 bytes = 274.66 Mbytes.
Huffman coding, Transform coding, vector quantization and a number of hybrid techniques such as JPEG and MPEG.
12.16 (a) Briefly describe two applications of the Internet. (b) (i) Briefly describe two security risks of carrying out business transactions over the Internet? (ii) Describe ways/techniques to overcome/reduce these two risks.
(a) The Internet has many applications. Candidates can describe any two of the following: electronic mail, www, file transfer, and audio/video steaming services. (b) Risk 1: confidential messages are read by unauthorized persons. Risks 2: Someone may pretend to be someone else. Security measures: To overcome risk 1, we can encrypt the message using either conventional encryption or public key encryption. To reduce risk 2, we can use digital certificate in combination of digital signature.
12.17 The two main protocols at the transport layer of the Internet are TCP and UDP. What are main differences between TCP and UDP? TCP (Transport Control Protocol) is a reliable connection oriented protocol, while UDP (User datagram protocol) is an unreliable connectionless protocol. UDP is simpler, lighter and more efficient, but it is not reliable. It is more suited for real time traffic.
12.18 Assume a digital video has a resolution of 400 lines by 600 pixels per frame, 16 bits per pixel and 25 frames per second. What is the storage requirement of 1 minute of this digital video without compression? Each video frame has: 400 x 600 pixels Each pixel has 16 bits = 2 bytes 1 minute has: 25 x 60 frames So the required storage = 400 x600x2x25x60 =720 000 000 bytes.
12.19 (a) What is connectionless internetworking? What are the advantages of connectionless internetworking? (b) In the Internet Protocol (IP), the maximum datagram length is 64 Kbytes. Describe how the IP handles the situation when the length of a datagram is greater than the allowed packet size of the network the datagram is passing through.
12.20 Digital signature : A digital signature (not to be confused with a digital certificate) is an electronic signature that can be used to authenticate the identity of the sender of a message or the signer of a document, and possibly to ensure that the original content of the message or document that has been sent is unchanged. Digital signatures are easily transportable, cannot be imitated by someone else, and can be automatically time-stamped. The ability to ensure that the original signed message arrived means that the sender cannot easily repudiate it later. A digital signature can be used with any kind of message, whether it is encrypted or not, simply so that the receiver can be sure of the sender's identity and that the message arrived intact. A digital certificate contains the digital signature of the certificate-issuing authority so that anyone can verify that the certificate is real. How It Works Assume you were going to send the draft of a contract to your lawyer in another town. You want to give your lawyer the assurance that it was unchanged from what you sent and that it is really from you. 1. You copy-and-paste the contract (it's a short one!) into an e-mail note. 2. Using special software, you obtain a message hash (mathematical summary) of the contract. 3. You then use a private key that you have previously obtained from a public-private key authority to encrypt the hash.
4. The encrypted hash becomes your digital signature of the message. (Note that it will be different each time you send a message.) At the other end, your lawyer receives the message. 1. To make sure it's intact and from you, your lawyer makes a hash of the received message. 2. Your lawyer then uses your public key to decrypt the message hash or summary. If the hashes match, the received message is valid.
12.21 IP Phones : If you've never heard of VoIP, get ready to change the way you think about long-distance phone calls. VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a method for taking analog audio signals, like the kind you hear when you talk on the phone, and turning them into digital data that can be transmitted over the Internet. How is this useful? VoIP can turn a standard Internet connection into a way to place free phone calls. The practical upshot of this is that by using some of the free VoIP software that is available to make Internet phone calls, you are bypassing the phone company (and its charges) entirely. VoIP is a revolutionary technology that has the potential to completely rework the world's phone systems. VoIP providers like Vonage have already been around for a little while and are growing steadily. Major carriers like AT&T are already setting up VoIP calling plans in several markets around the United States, and the FCC is looking seriously at the potential ramifications of VoIP service. The interesting thing about VoIP is that there is not just one way to place a call. There are three different "flavors" of VoIP service in common use today:
ATA - The simplest and most common way is through the use of a device called an ATA (analog telephone adaptor). The ATA allows you to connect a standard phone to your computer or your Internet connection for use with VoIP. The ATA is an analog-to-digital
converter. It takes the analog signal from your traditional phone and converts it into digital data for transmission over the Internet. Providers like Vonage and AT&T CallVantage are bundling ATAs free with their service. You simply crack the ATA out of the box, plug the cable from your phone that would normally go in the wall socket into the ATA, and you're ready to make VoIP calls. Some ATAs may ship with additional software that is loaded onto the host computer to configure it; but in any case, it is a very straightforward setup.
IP Phones - These specialized phones look just like normal phones with a handset, cradle and buttons. But instead of having the standard RJ-11 phone connectors, IP phones have an RJ-45 Ethernet connector. IP phones connect directly to your router and have all the hardware and software necessary right onboard to handle the IP call. Soon, Wi-Fi IP phones will be available, allowing subscribing callers to make VoIP calls from any Wi-Fi hot spot.
Computer-to-computer - This is certainly the easiest way to use VoIP. You don't even have to pay for long-distance calls. There are several companies offering free or very low-cost software that you can use for this type of VoIP. All you need is the software, a microphone, speakers, a sound card and an Internet connection, preferably a fast one like you would get through a cable or DSL modem. Except for your normal monthly ISP fee, there is usually no charge for computer-to-computer calls, no matter the distance.
Advantages VoIP technology uses the Internet's packet-switching capabilities to provide phone service. VoIP has several advantages over circuit switching. For example, packet switching allows several telephone calls to occupy the amount of space occupied by only one in a circuit-switched network. Using PSTN, that 10-minute phone call we talked about earlier consumed
10 full minutes of transmission time at a cost of 128 Kbps. With VoIP, that same call may have occupied only 3.5 minutes of transmission time at a cost of 64 Kbps, leaving another 64 Kbps free for that 3.5 minutes, plus an additional 128 Kbps for the remaining 6.5 minutes. Based on this simple estimate, another three or four calls could easily fit into the space used by a single call under the conventional system. And this example doesn't even factor in the use of data compression, which further reduces the size of each call. 12.22 IP V6 Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is a network layer standard used by electronic devices to exchange data across a packet-switched internetwork. It follows IPv4 as the second version of the Internet Protocol to be formally adopted for general use. IPv6 is intended to provide more addresses for networked devices, allowing, for example, each cell phone and mobile electronic device to have its own address. IPv4 supports 4.3109 (4.3 billion) addresses, which is inadequate for giving even one address to every living person, much less support the burgeoning market for connective devices. IPv6 supports 3.41038 addresses, or 51028(50 octillion) for each of the roughly 6.5 billion people alive today.
Invented by Steve Deering and Craig Mudge at Xerox PARC, IPv6 was adopted by the Internet Engineering Task Force in 1994, when it was called "IP Next Generation" (IPng). (Incidentally, IPv5 was not a successor to IPv4, but an experimental flow-oriented streaming protocol intended to support video and audio.) As of December 2005, IPv6 accounts for a tiny percentage of the live addresses in the publicly-accessible Internet, which is still dominated by IPv4. The adoption of IPv6 has been slowed by the introduction of network address translation (NAT), which partially alleviates address exhaustion. The U.S. Government has specified that all federal agencies must deploy IPv6 by 2008.
Features of IPv6 To a great extent, IPv6 is a conservative extension of IPv4. Most transportand application-layer protocols need little or no change to work over IPv6; exceptions are applications protocols that embed network-layer addresses (such as FTP or NTPv3).
Larger address space Stateless auto configuration of hosts Multicast Faster routing Network-layer security
Addressing - (128-bit length) The primary change from IPv4 to IPv6 is the length of network addresses. IPv6 addresses are 128 bits long (as defined by RFC 4291), whereas IPv4 addresses are 32 bits.

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Objectives On successful completion of this subject, candidates should be able to

To pass this unit, a total mark of 50% or more is required.

SAMPLE EXAM QUESTIONS

(Total marks 12)

(2 marks) (2 marks) (2marks) (3 marks) (3marks)

(Total marks 12)

(Total marks 12)

(Total marks 12)

(Total marks 12)

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PROTOCOLS & ARCHITECTURE

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Application - Means for applications to access OSI environment

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Feedback to the Review Activities:

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3.2 COM: Computer Communications

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Noise Additional signals inserted between transmitter and receiver

3.4 COM: Computer Communications

Thermal Due to thermal agitation of electrons Uniformly distributed White noise

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Optical Fiber Benefits Greater capacity - Data rates of hundreds of Gbps

4.4 COM: Computer Communications

Pages 110 119

This section give you brief description of guided transmission media.

Television Long distance telephone Private business networks

Broadcast Radio Omnidirectional FM radio UHF and VHF television

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Line of sight Suffers from multipath interference

Pages 119 126

V7: 107 - 123

This section gives you brief description of wireless data transmission.

Twisted pair Optical fiber Infrared

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Unipolar All signal elements have same sign

5.2 COM: Computer Communications

V7: 131 - 141

Pages 142 148

V7: 142 152

This section gives you brief description of digital to analog encoding.

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DATA COMMUNICATION INTERFACE

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Embed clock signal in data Manchester encoding Carrier frequency (analog)

Pages 178 180

V7: 191 - 193

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