UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Introductory Concepts: Goals and applications of networks, Categories of networks,

Organization of the Internet, ISP, Network structure and architecture (layering principles,
services, protocols and standards), The OSI reference model, TCP/IP protocol suite, Network
devices and components. Physical Layer: Network topology design, Types of connections,
Transmission media, Signal transmission and encoding, Network performance and transmission
impairments, Switching techniques and multiplexing.

Goals and applications of networks

Computer Network means an interconnection of autonomous (standalone) computers for
information exchange. The connecting media could be a copper wire, optical fiber, microwave,
or satellite.
Networking Elements – The computer network includes the following networking elements:
1. At least two computers
2. Transmission medium either wired or wireless
3. Protocols or rules that govern the communication
4. Network software such as Network Operating System
Network Criteria:
The criteria that have to be met by a computer network are:

1. Performance – It is measured in terms of transit time and response time.

● Transit time is the time for a message to travel from one device to another
● Response time is the elapsed time between an inquiry and a response.
Performance is dependent on the following factors:
● The number of users
● Type of transmission medium
● Capability of connected network
● Efficiency of software
● Bandwidth
● Network topology
● Network protocols
● Distance
● Network congestion
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● Network hardware
2. Reliability – It is measured in terms of
● Frequency of failure
● Recovery from failures
● Robustness during catastrophe
● Quality of service (QoS)
● Reducing single points of failure
● Capacity planning
● Network architecture
3. Security – It means protecting data from unauthorized access.
4. Network topology- it is another crucial factor to consider when designing a computer
network. It refers to the way in which computers, devices, and links are arranged in a network.
Common topologies include bus, star, ring, mesh, and hybrid, each with its own advantages and
disadvantages in terms of cost, scalability, reliability, and performance. The choice of topology
depends on the specific needs and constraints of the network. Other important criteria that must
be met by a computer network include performance, reliability, and security.

Goals of Computer Networks: The following are some important goals of computer networks:
1. Resource Sharing – Many organization has a substantial number of computers in
operations, which are located apart. Ex. A group of office workers can share a
common printer, fax, modem, scanner, etc.
2. High Reliability – If there are alternate sources of supply, all files could be replicated
on two or more machines. If one of them is not available, due to hardware failure, the
other copies could be used.
3. Inter-process Communication – Network users, located geographically apart, may
converse in an interactive session through the network. In order to permit this, the
network must provide almost error-free communications.
4. Flexible access – Files can be accessed from any computer in the network. The
project can be begun on one computer and finished on another.
5. Security– Computer networks must be secure to protect against unauthorized access,
data breaches, and other security threats. This includes implementing measures such
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as firewalls, antivirus software, and encryption to ensure the confidentiality, integrity,

and availability of data.
6. Performance– Computer networks must provide high performance and low latency
to ensure that applications and services are responsive and available when needed.
This requires optimizing network infrastructure, bandwidth utilization, and traffic
management.
7. Scalability- Computer networks must be designed to scale up or down as needed to
accommodate changes in the number of users, devices, and data traffic. This requires
careful planning and management to ensure the network can meet current and future
needs.

Advantages:
● Resource sharing: Networks enable the sharing of resources such as printers, scanners,
storage devices, and software applications, which can reduce costs and increase
efficiency.
● Communication and collaboration: Networks provide a platform for communication
and collaboration among users, allowing for easy sharing of information and ideas.
● Centralized management: Networks allow for centralized management of devices,
users, and resources, making it easier to control and monitor the network.
● Scalability: Networks can be scaled up or down to accommodate changes in the number
of users, devices, or data volume.
● Accessibility: Networks can provide remote access to resources, enabling users to work
from anywhere and improving accessibility to information and resources.
Disadvantages:
● Security vulnerabilities: Networks can be vulnerable to security threats such as hacking,
viruses, and malware, which can compromise sensitive data and disrupt network
operations.
● Complexity: Networks can be complex to set up, configure, and maintain, requiring
specialized knowledge and expertise.
● Dependence on infrastructure: Networks depend on the underlying infrastructure such
as cables, routers, switches, and servers, which can be prone to failures or downtime,
disrupting network operations.
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● Cost: Networks can be expensive to set up and maintain, requiring investments in

hardware, software, and personnel.
● Performance limitations: Networks have performance limitations such as bandwidth
constraints, latency, and congestion, which can affect the speed and reliability of network
operations.

Categories of networks/Types of Computer Networks

There are mainly five types of Computer Networks
1. Personal Area Network (PAN)
2. Local Area Network (LAN)
3. Campus Area Network (CAN)
4. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
5. Wide Area Network (WAN)

Types of Computer Networks

1. Personal Area Network (PAN)

PAN is the most basic type of computer network. This network is restrained to a single person,
that is, communication between the computer devices is centered only on an individual’s
workspace. PAN offers a network range of 1 to 100 meters from person to device providing
communication. Its transmission speed is very high with very easy maintenance and very low
cost.
This uses Bluetooth, IrDA, and Zigbee as technology.
Examples of PAN are USB, computer, phone, tablet, printer, PDA, etc.
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Personal Area Network (PAN)

2. Local Area Network (LAN)

LAN is the most frequently used network. A LAN is a computer network that connects
computers through a common communication path, contained within a limited area, that is,
locally. A LAN encompasses two or more computers connected over a server. The two important
technologies involved in this network are Ethernet and Wi-fi. It ranges up to 2km &
transmission speed is very high with easy maintenance and low cost.
Examples of LAN are networking in a home, school, library, laboratory, college, office, etc.

Local Area Network (LAN)

3. Campus Area Network (CAN)

CAN is bigger than a LAN but smaller than a MAN. This is a type of computer network that is
usually used in places like a school or colleges. This network covers a limited geographical area
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that is, it spreads across several buildings within the campus. CAN mainly use Ethernet
technology with a range from 1km to 5km.
Its transmission speed is very high with a moderate maintenance cost and moderate cost.
Examples of CAN are networks that cover schools, colleges, buildings, etc.

Campus Area Network (CAN)

4. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

A MAN is larger than a LAN but smaller than a WAN. This is the type of computer network that
connects computers over a geographical distance through a shared communication path over a
city, town, or metropolitan area. This network mainly uses FDDI, CDDI, and ATM as the
technology with a range from 5km to 50km. Its transmission speed is average. It is difficult to
maintain and it comes with a high cost.
Examples of MAN are networking in towns, cities, a single large city, a large area within
multiple buildings, etc.
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Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

5. Wide Area Network (WAN)

WAN is a type of computer network that connects computers over a large geographical distance
through a shared communication path. It is not restrained to a single location but extends over
many locations. WAN can also be defined as a group of local area networks that communicate
with each other with a range above 50km.
Here we use Leased-Line & Dial-up technology. Its transmission speed is very low and it comes
with very high maintenance and very high cost.
The most common example of WAN is the Internet.
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Wide Area Network (WAN)

Comparison between Different Computer Networks

Parameters PAN LAN CAN MAN WAN
Full Name Personal Area Local Campus MetropolitanWide
Network Area Area Area NetworkArea
Network Network Network
Technology Bluetooth, Ethernet Ethernet FDDI, CDDi. Leased
IrDA,Zigbee & Wifi ATM Line,
Dial-Up
Range 1-100 m Upto 2km 1 – 5 km 5-50 km Above 50
km
Transmission Very High Very High High Average Low
Speed
Ownership Private Private Private Private or Private or
Public Public
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Maintenance Very Easy Easy Moderate Difficult Very

Difficult
Cost Very Low Low Moderate High Very
High

Other Types of Computer Networks

1. Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
2. Storage Area Network (SAN)
3. System-Area Network (SAN)
4. Passive Optical Local Area Network (POLAN)
5. Enterprise Private Network (EPN)
6. Virtual Private Network (VPN)
7. Home Area Network (HAN)
1. Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
WLAN is a type of computer network that acts as a local area network but makes use of wireless
network technology like Wi-Fi. This network doesn’t allow devices to communicate over
physical cables like in LAN but allows devices to communicate wirelessly.
The most common example of WLAN is Wi-Fi.

Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)

2. Storage Area Network (SAN)

SAN is a type of computer network that is high-speed and connects groups of storage devices to
several servers. This network does not depend on LAN or WAN. Instead, a SAN moves the
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storage resources from the network to its high-powered network. A SAN provides access to
block-level data storage.
Examples of SAN are a network of disks accessed by a network of servers.

Storage Area Network (SAN)

3. System Area Network (SAN)

A SAN is a type of computer network that connects a cluster of high-performance computers. It
is a connection-oriented and high-bandwidth network. A SAN is a type of LAN that handles high
amounts of information in large requests. This network is useful for processing applications that
require high network performance.
Microsoft SQL Server 2005 uses SAN through a virtual interface adapter.
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System Area Network (SAN)

4. Passive Optical Local Area Network (POLAN)

A POLAN is a type of computer network that is an alternative to a LAN. POLAN uses optical
splitters to split an optical signal from a single strand of single-mode optical fiber to multiple
signals to distribute users and devices. In short, POLAN is a point to multipoint LAN
architecture.

Passive Optical Local Area Network (POLAN)

5. Enterprise Private Network (EPN)

EPN is a type of computer network mostly used by businesses that want a secure connection over
various locations to share computer resources.

Enterprise Private Network (EPN)

6. Virtual Private Network (VPN)

A VPN is a type of computer network that extends a private network across the internet and lets
the user send and receive data as if they were connected to a private network even though they
are not. Through a virtual point-to-point connection users can access a private network remotely.
VPN protects you from malicious sources by operating as a medium that gives you a protected
network connection.
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Virtual Private Network (VPN)

7. Home Area Network (HAN)

Many of the houses might have more than a computer. To interconnect those computers and with
other peripheral devices, a network should be established similar to the local area network
(LAN) within that home. Such a type of network that allows a user to interconnect multiple
computers and other digital devices within the home is referred to as Home Area Network
(HAN). HAN encourages sharing of resources, files, and programs within the network. It
supports both wired and wireless communication.

Home Area Network (HAN)

Organization of the Internet

What is the Internet?
Internet is a global network that connects billions of computers across the world with each other
and to the World Wide Web. It uses standard internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to connect billions
of computer users worldwide. It is set up by using cables such as optical fibers and other wireless
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and networking technologies. At present, internet is the fastest mean of sending or exchanging
information and data between computers across the world.

It is believed that the internet was developed by "Defense Advanced Projects Agency" (DARPA)
department of the United States. And, it was first connected in 1969.
Why is the Internet Called a Network?
Internet is called a network as it creates a network by connecting computers and servers across
the world using routers, switches and telephone lines, and other communication devices and
channels. So, it can be considered a global network of physical cables such as copper telephone
wires, fiber optic cables, tv cables, etc. Furthermore, even wireless connections like 3G, 4G, or
Wi-Fi make use of these cables to access the Internet.
Internet is different from the World Wide Web as the World Wide Web is a network of computers
and servers created by connecting them through the internet. So, the internet is the backbone of
the web as it provides the technical infrastructure to establish the WWW and acts as a medium to
transmit information from one computer to another computer. It uses web browsers to display the
information on the client, which it fetches from web servers.
The internet is not owned by a single person or organization entirely. It is a concept based on
physical infrastructure that connects networks with other networks to create a global network of
billions of computers. As of 12 August 2016, there were more than 300 crores of internet users
across the world.
Set Up
Physical copper or optical fiber data transmission cables, as well as other networking
technologies like LAN, WAN, and MAN, are used to set up the internet. Even the 2g, 3g, and 4g
services, as well as Wi-Fi, need this physical cable arrangement in order to access the Internet
connection. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a US-based
organization, is in charge of overseeing the management of the Internet and its related protocols,
including IP addresses.
How does internet work?
Before understanding this let us understand some basics related to internet:
The internet works with the help of clients and servers. A device such as a laptop, which is
connected to the internet is called a client, not a server as it is not directly connected to the
internet. However, it is indirectly connected to the internet through an Internet Service Provider
(ISP) and is identified by an IP address, which is a string of numbers. Just like you have an
address for your home that uniquely identifies your home, an IP address acts as the shipping
address of your device. The IP address is provided by your ISP, and you can see what IP address
your ISP has given to your system.
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A server is a large computer that stores websites. It also has an IP address. A place where a large
number of servers are stored is called a data center. The server accepts requests send by the client
through a browser over a network (internet) and responds accordingly.
To access the internet we need a domain name, which represents an IP address number, i.e., each
IP address has been assigned a domain name. For example, youtube.com, facebook.com,
paypal.com are used to represent the IP addresses. Domain names are created as it is difficult for
a person to remember a long string of numbers. However, internet does not understand the
domain name, it understands the IP address, so when you enter the domain name in the browser
search bar, the internet has to get the IP addresses of this domain name from a huge phone book,
which is known as DNS (Domain Name Server).
For example, if you have a person's name, you can find his phone number in a phone book by
searching his name. The internet uses the DNS server in the same way to find the IP address of
the domain name. DNS servers are managed by ISPs or similar organizations.
Now after understanding the basics, let us see how internet works?

When you turn on your computer and type a domain name in the browser search bar, your
browser sends a request to the DNS server to get the corresponding IP address. After getting the
IP address, the browser forwards the request to the respective server.
Once the server gets the request to provide information about a particular website, the data starts
flowing. The data is transferred through the optical fiber cables in digital format or in the form of
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light pulses. As the servers are placed at distant places, the data may have to travel thousands of
miles through optical fiber cable to reach your computer.
The optical fiber is connected to a router, which converts the light signals into electrical signals.
These electrical signals are transmitted to your laptop using an Ethernet cable. Thus, you receive
the desired information through the internet, which is actually a cable that connects you with the
server.
Furthermore, if you are using wireless internet using wifi or mobile data, the signals from the
optical cable are first sent to a cell tower and from where it reaches to your cell phone in the
form of electromagnetic waves.
The internet is managed by ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers)
located in the USA. It manages IP addresses assignment, domain name registration, etc.
The data transfer is very fast on the internet. The moment you press enter you get the information
from a server located thousands of miles away from you. The reason for this speed is that the
data is sent in the binary form (0, 1), and these zeros and ones are divided into small pieces
called packets, which can be sent at high speed.
Uses of the internet
Generally speaking, the Internet may be used to exchange information with people all over the
world, communicate across great distances, and locate information or answers fast on almost any
subject.
Here are some examples of specific uses for the Internet:
○ Using social media and content sharing.
○ Instant messaging, video conferencing, Internet Relay Chat (IRC), Internet telephony, and
email are all examples of electronic communication. These all are used through the
Internet.
○ Access to online degree programs, courses, and workshops for education and
self-improvement.
○ Searching for jobs: To advertise available positions, submit job applications, and hire
candidates identified on social networking sites like LinkedIn, both employers and
applicants use the Internet.
Other examples include:
○ Online dating
○ Online gaming
○ Research
○ Reading electronic newspapers and magazines
○ Online shopping, or e-commerce.
○ Online discussion groups and forums
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Difference between the World Wide Web and the Internet

The World Wide Web (also known as the Web) and the Internet are fundamentally dissimilar
from one another because the Web is a collection of information that can be accessed using the
Internet, whereas the Internet is a global network of networks that offers access to almost all
types of information. In other words, the Web is a service that was added to the Internet's
foundation.
The Web is the part of the Internet that gets the greatest traffic. One unique aspect of this is
hypertext, a rapid cross-referencing method. The majority of websites feature text that highlights
keywords or phrases by being a different color than the rest of the text. When a user selects one
of these words or phrases, they will be sent to the chosen website or page. Buttons, graphics, and
even particular areas of images are also utilized as hyperlinks.
On the Internet, there are billions of pages of information. The most popular web browsers are
Google Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer. A web browser is used to surf the internet or do
online browsing. A certain Web site's look may vary slightly depending on the browser being
used. A certain browser's later or more updated versions have the potential to render more
complicated features like music files, sound, animation, and virtual reality.
Security and the Internet
Due to the volume of private and public information collected online, customers are at risk for
security attacks and data breaches. Crackers and hackers have access to networks and systems,
and they are able to steal personal data, such as login passwords or information on bank and
credit card accounts. Among the steps that may be taken to protect online privacy are:
○ You can install antivirus and antimalware on your system.
○ Generating complex, unique passwords that are impossible to decipher by anyone.
○ A virtual private network (VPN) can be used, or at least a private browsing mode like the
Incognito window in Google Chrome.
○ Only using HTTPS
○ Keep private your all-social media accounts.
○ Deactivate the autofill feature.
○ Turn off the GPS of the device.
○ Instead of just closing the tab or window, log out of accounts.
○ Update cookies so that if a cookie is set, an alert is sent anytime.
○ Spam emails should be avoided, and never open or download files from sources you are
not aware of.
○ Need to use caution when using hotspots or public Wi-Fi.
Furthermore, the "dark web" is an additional component of the Internet. Standard browsers do
not allow users to access the dark web, which is hidden. It instead makes use of the Tor and I2P
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browsers, which let users maintain complete anonymity. While this anonymity can be a fantastic
way to safeguard a user's security and freedom of speech online or for the government to conceal
confidential information, the dark web also fosters an environment that makes cybercrime, the
transfer of illicit commodities, and terrorism easier.
Social impact of the Internet
Both positive and negative effects of the Internet on society can be observed. On the one hand,
some people claim that the Internet has raised the risk of withdrawal, social exclusion, alienation,
and citing a rise in FOMO, or the fear of missing out, as evidence. On the other hand, some
people also believe that the Internet has had the opposite impact on society, increasing
sociability, civic participation, and the depth of connections.
The Internet has changed how society communicates and interacts, whether the effects are
positive or negative on society. The increased focus on personal growth is one example of
change and the fall in a community that is determined by space, job, and family. People
increasingly now build social connections on the basis of their unique projects, values, as well as
interests. In addition to offline and in person, communities are being created by like-minded
people through the Internet and the abundance of online settings it provides and produces. Social
networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn are the preferred platforms for both businesses and
individuals wishing to carry out various tasks and connect with others.
Internet Connection Protocols
Protocols are a set of guidelines that aid in regulating the operation of any specific organization
or technology.
Three main categories of Internet Connection Protocols are discussed below:
○ TCP/IP Network Model: The most popular protocols for linking networks are
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP). Any communication is
split up into a number of packets that are sent from source to destination.
○ File Transfer Protocol: With the help of FTP (File Transfer Protocol), a user can transfer
documents, text files, multimedia files, program files, etc., from one device to another.
○ Hypertext Transfer Protocol: It is used to move a hypertext between two or more
computers or other devices. Links can be made using HTML tags and can take the form
of text or graphics.

History of the Internet

The forerunner of the Internet, the ARPANet, went live for the first time in 1969. The TCP/IP,
open networking protocol suite, was adopted by the ARPANet in 1983, and the National Science
Foundation Network (NSFN) developed the network to link university computer science
departments across the US in 1985.
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When the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) was developed in 1989, it enabled different
computer platforms to connect to the same Internet sites, which dramatically improved
communications over the network. The Mosaic Web browser was developed in 1993.
Over the years of its existence, the Internet has remained a constant growth and development.
For instance, IPv6 was created to provide for a significant future rise in the number of IP
addresses that could be used. In a related development, the Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the
rapidly developing environment where nearly any entity or device can be given a unique
identifier (UID) and the capability to communicate data automatically over the Internet.

Advantages of the Internet:

● Instant Messaging: You can send messages or communicate to anyone using internet,
such as email, voice chat, video conferencing, etc.
● Get directions: Using GPS technology, you can get directions to almost every place in a
city, country, etc. You can find restaurants, malls, or any other service near your location.
● Online Shopping: It allows you to shop online such as you can be clothes, shoes, book
movie tickets, railway tickets, flight tickets, and more.
● Pay Bills: You can pay your bills online, such as electricity bills, gas bills, college fees,
etc.
● Online Banking: It allows you to use internet banking in which you can check your
balance, receive or transfer money, get a statement, request cheque-book, etc.
● Online Selling: You can sell your products or services online. It helps you reach more
customers and thus increases your sales and profit.
● Work from Home: In case you need to work from home, you can do it using a system
with internet access. Today, many companies allow their employees to work from home.
● Entertainment: You can listen to online music, watch videos or movies, play online
games.
● Cloud computing: It enables you to connect your computers and internet-enabled
devices to cloud services such as cloud storage, cloud computing, etc.
● Career building: You can search for jobs online on different job portals and send you
CV through email if required.

Disadvantages of the Internet

● Time wastage: Although, Internet has a lot of advantages, it also contains some
limitations. Time wasting is one of among them. It can decrease your productivity if you
are spending too much time on the Internet using social media apps while doing nothing.
Rather than squandering time, one should use that time to do something useful and even
more productive.
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● Bad impacts on health: You can get health related issues if you spend too much time
online; your body needs outside activities, exercise, and many other things. If you look at
the screen for a long time, it causes negative effects on the eyes.
● Cyber Crimes: These days, crimes including cyberbullying, spam, viruses, hacking, and
data theft are increasing day by day. Cybercriminals can quickly break into your system,
which store all of your private information.
● Effects on children: The constant watching of videos and playing games on the Internet
by young children is bad for their social and overall personality development.
● Bullying and spreading negativity: Social media applications have provided a free tool
to all those people who regularly attempt to spread negativity with really repulsive and
humiliating comments and try to bully each other, which is wrong and does bad impact
on society.

Different ways to Connect to the Internet

The various methods for connecting to the Internet are briefly discussed below:
● Dial-Up: Users must connect their phone line to a computer system in such connections
in order to access the Internet connection. The user is unable to make or receive calls
using the tier home phone service while connected.
● Broadband: Today's most popular high-speed internet connection, broadband is offered
either by cable or phone companies.
● Wireless Connection: This category includes Mobile and Wi-Fi services providers. No
matter where you are, you can connect to the Internet anywhere because connectivity is
made possible by radio waves. Several instances of wireless connections are provided
below:
● Wi-fi: Without the use of cables, wi-fi or wireless fidelity, enables high-speed internet
connectivity.
● Mobile Phones: In modern times, all smartphones include an Internet connectivity option
that can be availed using Internet packs and coupons. These don't require a wire or
external connection as well.
● Satellite: Satellites are utilized for wireless Internet connectivity in areas Where
broadband connections is not available.
● Integrated Services Digital Network: With the help of using telephone lines, ISDN
enables users to send audio or video data.

ISP: Internet Service Provider

ISP stands for Internet Service Provider. It is a company that provides access to the internet and
similar services such as Website designing and virtual hosting. For example, when you connect
to the Internet, the connection between your Internet-enabled device and the internet is executed
through a specific transmission technology that involves the transfer of information packets
through an Internet Protocol route.
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Data is transmitted through different technologies, including cable modem, dial-up, DSL, high
speed interconnects. Accordingly, based on the method of data transmission, the Internet access
provided by ISPs can be divided into many types, some of which are as follows:
Dial-up Internet access: It is the oldest technology to provide Internet access by modem to
modem connection using telephone lines. In this method, the user's computer is connected to a
modem with a telephone line. This method has become outdated today due to slow connection
speed. However, in remote areas, this method can be used where the broadband network is not
available.
DSL: DSL, which stands for 'digital subscriber line' is an advanced version of the dial-up
Internet access method. It uses high frequency to execute a connection over the telephone
network and allows the internet and the phone connection to run on the same telephone line. This
method offers an Asymmetric Digital Subscriber (ADSL), where the upload speed is less than
the download speed, and a Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL), which offers equal
upload and download speeds. Out of these two, ADSL is more popular among users and is
popularly known as DSL.
Wireless Broadband (WiBB): It is a modern broadband technology for Internet access. It
allows high-speed wireless internet within a large area. To use this technology, you are required
to place a dish on the top of your house and point it to the transmitter of your Wireless Internet
Service Provider (WISP).
Wi-Fi Internet: It is the short form for "wireless fidelity," which is a wireless networking
technology that provides wireless high-speed Internet connections using radio waves. To use the
internet, you are required to be within the range of wi-fi network. It is commonly used in public
places such as hotels, airports, restaurants to provide internet access to customers.
ISDN: It is a short form of Integrated Services Digital Network. It is a telephone system network
which integrates a high-quality digital transmission of voice and data over the same standard
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phone line. It offers a fast upstream and downstream Internet connection speed and allows both
voice calls and data transfer.
Ethernet: It is a wired LAN (Local Area Network) where computers are connected within a
primary physical space. It enables devices to communicate with each other via a protocol (a set
of rules or common network language). It may provide different speeds such as 10 Mbps, 100
Mbps and 10 Gbps.

Network structure and architecture (layering principles, services, protocols

and standards)

Computer Network Architecture

Computer Network Architecture is defined as the physical and logical design of the software,
hardware, protocols, and media of the transmission of data. Simply we can say that how
computers are organized and how tasks are allocated to the computer.
The two types of network architectures are used:

● Peer-To-Peer network
● Client/Server network
Peer-To-Peer network
● Peer-To-Peer network is a network in which all the computers are linked together with
equal privilege and responsibilities for processing the data.
● Peer-To-Peer network is useful for small environments, usually up to 10 computers.
● Peer-To-Peer network has no dedicated server.
● Special permissions are assigned to each computer for sharing the resources, but this can
lead to a problem if the computer with the resource is down.
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Advantages Of Peer-To-Peer Network:

● It is less costly as it does not contain any dedicated server.
● If one computer stops working but, other computers will not stop working.
● It is easy to set up and maintain as each computer manages itself.
Disadvantages Of Peer-To-Peer Network:
● In the case of Peer-To-Peer network, it does not contain the centralized system .
Therefore, it cannot back up the data as the data is different in different locations.
● It has a security issue as the device is managed itself.
Client/Server Network
● Client/Server network is a network model designed for the end users called clients, to
access the resources such as songs, video, etc. from a central computer known as
Server.
● The central controller is known as a server while all other computers in the network
are called clients.
● A server performs all the major operations such as security and network management.
● A server is responsible for managing all the resources such as files, directories,
printer, etc.
● All the clients communicate with each other through a server. For example, if client1
wants to send some data to client 2, then it first sends the request to the server for the
permission. The server sends the response to the client 1 to initiate its communication
with the client 2.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Advantages Of Client/Server network:

● A Client/Server network contains the centralized system. Therefore we can back up
the data easily.
● A Client/Server network has a dedicated server that improves the overall performance
of the whole system.
● Security is better in Client/Server network as a single server administers the shared
resources.
● It also increases the speed of the sharing resources.
Disadvantages Of Client/Server network:
● Client/Server network is expensive as it requires the server with large memory.
● A server has a Network Operating System(NOS) to provide the resources to the
clients, but the cost of NOS is very high.
● It requires a dedicated network administrator to manage all the resources.

Network Services

Computer systems and computerized systems help human beings to work efficiently and explore
the unthinkable. When these devices are connected together to form a network, the capabilities
are enhanced multiple-times. Some basic services computer network can offer are.
1. Directory Services
These services are mapping between name and its value, which can be variable value or fixed.
This software system helps to store the information, organize it, and provides various means of
accessing it.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

​ Accounting :In an organization, a number of users have their user names and passwords
mapped to them. Directory Services provide means of storing this information in cryptic
form and make available when requested.
​ Authentication and Authorization: User credentials are checked to authenticate a user
at the time of login and/or periodically. User accounts can be set into hierarchical
structure and their access to resources can be controlled using authorization schemes.
​ Domain Name Services: DNS is widely used and one of the essential services on which
internet works. This system maps IP addresses to domain names, which are easier to
remember and recall than IP addresses. Because network operates with the help of IP
addresses and humans tend to remember website names, the DNS provides website’s IP
address which is mapped to its name from the back-end on the request of a website name
from the user.

2. File Services
File services include sharing and transferring files over the network.
​ File Sharing:One of the reason which gave birth to networking was file sharing. File
sharing enables its users to share their data with other users. User can upload the file to a
specific server, which is accessible by all intended users. As an alternative, user can make
its file shared on its own computer and provides access to intended users.
​ File Transfer:This is an activity to copy or move file from one computer to another
computer or to multiple computers, with help of underlying network. Network enables its
user to locate other users in the network and transfers files.

3. Communication Services
​ Email:Electronic mail is a communication method and something a computer user
cannot work without. This is the basis of today’s internet features. Email system has one
or more email servers. All its users are provided with unique IDs. When a user sends
email to other user, it is actually transferred between users with help of email server.
​ Social Networking: Recent technologies have made technical life social. The computer
savvy peoples, can find other known peoples or friends, can connect with them, and can
share thoughts, pictures, and videos.
​ Internet Chat:Internet chat provides instant text transfer services between two hosts.
Two or more people can communicate with each other using text based Internet Relay
Chat services. These days, voice chat and video chat are very common.
​ Discussion Boards: Discussion boards provide a mechanism to connect multiple peoples
with same interests.It enables the users to put queries, questions, suggestions etc. which
can be seen by all other users. Other may respond as well.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

​ Remote Access:This service enables user to access the data residing on the remote
computer. This feature is known as Remote desktop. This can be done via some remote
device, e.g. mobile phone or home computer.

4. Application Services
These are nothing but providing network based services to the users such as web services,
database managing, and resource sharing.
​ Resource Sharing:To use resources efficiently and economically, network provides a
mean to share them. This may include Servers, Printers, and Storage Media etc.
​ Databases:This application service is one of the most important services. It stores data
and information, processes it, and enables the users to retrieve it efficiently by using
queries. Databases help organizations to make decisions based on statistics.
​ Web Services:World Wide Web has become the synonym for internet.It is used to
connect to the internet, and access files and information services provided by the internet
servers.

OSI Model
● OSI stands for Open System Interconnection is a reference model that describes
how information from a software application in one computer moves through a
physical medium to the software application in another computer.
● OSI consists of seven layers, and each layer performs a particular network function.
● OSI model was developed by the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) in 1984, and it is now considered as an architectural model for the
inter-computer communications.
● OSI model divides the whole task into seven smaller and manageable tasks. Each
layer is assigned a particular task.
● Each layer is self-contained, so that task assigned to each layer can be performed
independently.

Characteristics of OSI Model:

UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● The OSI model is divided into two layers: upper layers and lower layers.
● The upper layer of the OSI model mainly deals with the application related issues,
and they are implemented only in the software. The application layer is closest to the
end user. Both the end user and the application layer interact with the software
applications. An upper layer refers to the layer just above another layer.
● The lower layer of the OSI model deals with the data transport issues. The data link
layer and the physical layer are implemented in hardware and software. The physical
layer is the lowest layer of the OSI model and is closest to the physical medium. The
physical layer is mainly responsible for placing the information on the physical
medium.

7 Layers of OSI Model

There are the seven OSI layers. Each layer has different functions. A list of seven layers are
given below:
1. Physical Layer
2. Data-Link Layer
3. Network Layer
4. Transport Layer
5. Session Layer
6. Presentation Layer
7. Application Layer
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

1) Physical layer

○ The main functionality of the physical layer is to transmit the individual bits from one
node to another node.
○ It is the lowest layer of the OSI model.
○ It establishes, maintains and deactivates the physical connection.
○ It specifies the mechanical, electrical and procedural network interface specifications.

Functions of a Physical layer:

○ Line Configuration: It defines the way how two or more devices can be connected
physically.
○ Data Transmission: It defines the transmission mode whether it is simplex, half-duplex
or full-duplex mode between the two devices on the network.
○ Topology: It defines the way how network devices are arranged.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ Signals: It determines the type of the signal used for transmitting the information.
2) Data-Link Layer

○ This layer is responsible for the error-free transfer of data frames.

○ It defines the format of the data on the network.
○ It provides a reliable and efficient communication between two or more devices.
○ It is mainly responsible for the unique identification of each device that resides on a local
network.
○ It contains two sub-layers:
○ Logical Link Control Layer
○ It is responsible for transferring the packets to the Network layer of the
receiver that is receiving.
○ It identifies the address of the network layer protocol from the header.
○ It also provides flow control.
○ Media Access Control Layer
○ A Media access control layer is a link between the Logical Link Control
layer and the network's physical layer.
○ It is used for transferring the packets over the network.
Functions of the Data-link layer
○ Framing: The data link layer translates the physical's raw bit stream into packets known
as Frames. The Data link layer adds the header and trailer to the frame. The header which
is added to the frame contains the hardware destination and source address.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ Physical Addressing: The Data link layer adds a header to the frame that contains a
destination address. The frame is transmitted to the destination address mentioned in the
header.
○ Flow Control: Flow control is the main functionality of the Data-link layer. It is the
technique through which the constant data rate is maintained on both the sides so that no
data get corrupted. It ensures that the transmitting station such as a server with higher
processing speed does not exceed the receiving station, with lower processing speed.
○ Error Control: Error control is achieved by adding a calculated value CRC (Cyclic
Redundancy Check) that is placed to the Data link layer's trailer which is added to the
message frame before it is sent to the physical layer. If any error seems to occurr, then the
receiver sends the acknowledgment for the retransmission of the corrupted frames.
○ Access Control: When two or more devices are connected to the same communication
channel, then the data link layer protocols are used to determine which device has control
over the link at a given time.

3) Network Layer

○ It is a layer 3 that manages device addressing, tracks the location of devices on the
network.
○ It determines the best path to move data from source to the destination based on the
network conditions, the priority of service, and other factors.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ The Data link layer is responsible for routing and forwarding the packets.
○ Routers are the layer 3 devices, they are specified in this layer and used to provide the
routing services within an internetwork.
○ The protocols used to route the network traffic are known as Network layer protocols.
Examples of protocols are IP and Ipv6.
Functions of Network Layer:
○ Internetworking: An internetworking is the main responsibility of the network layer. It
provides a logical connection between different devices.
○ Addressing: A Network layer adds the source and destination address to the header of
the frame. Addressing is used to identify the device on the internet.
○ Routing: Routing is the major component of the network layer, and it determines the best
optimal path out of the multiple paths from source to the destination.
○ Packetizing: A Network Layer receives the packets from the upper layer and converts
them into packets. This process is known as Packetizing. It is achieved by internet
protocol (IP).
4) Transport Layer

○ The Transport layer is a Layer 4 ensures that messages are transmitted in the order in
which they are sent and there is no duplication of data.
○ The main responsibility of the transport layer is to transfer the data completely.
○ It receives the data from the upper layer and converts them into smaller units known as
segments.
○ This layer can be termed as an end-to-end layer as it provides a point-to-point connection
between source and destination to deliver the data reliably.
The two protocols used in this layer are:
○ Transmission Control Protocol
○ It is a standard protocol that allows the systems to communicate over the internet.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ It establishes and maintains a connection between hosts.

○ When data is sent over the TCP connection, then the TCP protocol divides the
data into smaller units known as segments. Each segment travels over the internet
using multiple routes, and they arrive in different orders at the destination. The
transmission control protocol reorders the packets in the correct order at the
receiving end.
○ User Datagram Protocol
○ User Datagram Protocol is a transport layer protocol.
○ It is an unreliable transport protocol as in this case receiver does not send any
acknowledgment when the packet is received, the sender does not wait for any
acknowledgment. Therefore, this makes a protocol unreliable.
Functions of Transport Layer:
○ Service-point addressing: Computers run several programs simultaneously due to this
reason, the transmission of data from source to the destination not only from one
computer to another computer but also from one process to another process. The transport
layer adds the header that contains the address known as a service-point address or port
address. The responsibility of the network layer is to transmit the data from one computer
to another computer and the responsibility of the transport layer is to transmit the
message to the correct process.
○ Segmentation and reassembly: When the transport layer receives the message from the
upper layer, it divides the message into multiple segments, and each segment is assigned
with a sequence number that uniquely identifies each segment. When the message has
arrived at the destination, then the transport layer reassembles the message based on their
sequence numbers.
○ Connection control: Transport layer provides two services Connection-oriented service
and connectionless service. A connectionless service treats each segment as an individual
packet, and they all travel in different routes to reach the destination. A
connection-oriented service makes a connection with the transport layer at the destination
machine before delivering the packets. In connection-oriented service, all the packets
travel in the single route.
○ Flow control: The transport layer also responsible for flow control but it is performed
end-to-end rather than across a single link.
○ Error control: The transport layer is also responsible for Error control. Error control is
performed end-to-end rather than across the single link. The sender transport layer
ensures that message reach at the destination without any error.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

5) Session Layer

○ It is a layer 3 in the OSI model.

○ The Session layer is used to establish, maintain and synchronizes the interaction between
communicating devices.
Functions of Session layer:
○ Dialog control: Session layer acts as a dialog controller that creates a dialog between two
processes or we can say that it allows the communication between two processes which
can be either half-duplex or full-duplex.
○ Synchronization: Session layer adds some checkpoints when transmitting the data in a
sequence. If some error occurs in the middle of the transmission of data, then the
transmission will take place again from the checkpoint. This process is known as
Synchronization and recovery.
6) Presentation Layer
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ A Presentation layer is mainly concerned with the syntax and semantics of the
information exchanged between the two systems.
○ It acts as a data translator for a network.
○ This layer is a part of the operating system that converts the data from one presentation
format to another format.
○ The Presentation layer is also known as the syntax layer.
Functions of Presentation layer:
○ Translation: The processes in two systems exchange the information in the form of
character strings, numbers and so on. Different computers use different encoding
methods, the presentation layer handles the interoperability between the different
encoding methods. It converts the data from sender-dependent format into a common
format and changes the common format into receiver-dependent format at the receiving
end.
○ Encryption: Encryption is needed to maintain privacy. Encryption is a process of
converting the sender-transmitted information into another form and sends the resulting
message over the network.
○ Compression: Data compression is a process of compressing the data, i.e., it reduces the
number of bits to be transmitted. Data compression is very important in multimedia such
as text, audio, video.

7) Application Layer
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ An application layer serves as a window for users and application processes to access
network service.
○ It handles issues such as network transparency, resource allocation, etc.
○ An application layer is not an application, but it performs the application layer functions.
○ This layer provides the network services to the end-users.

Functions of Application layer:

○ File transfer, access, and management (FTAM): An application layer allows a user to
access the files in a remote computer, to retrieve the files from a computer and to manage
the files in a remote computer.
○ Mail services: An application layer provides the facility for email forwarding and
storage.
○ Directory services: An application provides the distributed database sources and is used
to provide that global information about various objects.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

TCP/IP model
○ The TCP/IP model was developed prior to the OSI model.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ The TCP/IP model is not exactly similar to the OSI model.

○ The TCP/IP model consists of five layers: the application layer, transport layer, network
layer, data link layer and physical layer.
○ The first four layers provide physical standards, network interface, internetworking, and
transport functions that correspond to the first four layers of the OSI model and these four
layers are represented in TCP/IP model by a single layer called the application layer.
○ TCP/IP is a hierarchical protocol made up of interactive modules, and each of them
provides specific functionality.

Here, hierarchical means that each upper-layer protocol is supported by two or more lower-level
protocols.

Functions of TCP/IP layers:

Network Access Layer

○ A network layer is the lowest layer of the TCP/IP model.
○ A network layer is the combination of the Physical layer and Data Link layer defined in
the OSI reference model.
○ It defines how the data should be sent physically through the network.
○ This layer is mainly responsible for the transmission of the data between two devices on
the same network.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ The functions carried out by this layer are encapsulating the IP datagram into frames
transmitted by the network and mapping of IP addresses into physical addresses.
○ The protocols used by this layer are ethernet, token ring, FDDI, X.25, frame relay.

Internet Layer
○ An internet layer is the second layer of the TCP/IP model.
○ An internet layer is also known as the network layer.
○ The main responsibility of the internet layer is to send the packets from any network, and
they arrive at the destination irrespective of the route they take.

Following are the protocols used in this layer are:

1. IP Protocol: IP protocol is used in this layer, and it is the most significant part of the
entire TCP/IP suite.

Responsibilities:
○ IP Addressing: This protocol implements logical host addresses known as IP
addresses. The IP addresses are used by the internet and higher layers to
identify the device and to provide internetwork routing.
○ Host-to-host communication: It determines the path through which the data
is to be transmitted.
○ Data Encapsulation and Formatting: An IP protocol accepts the data from
the transport layer protocol. An IP protocol ensures that the data is sent and
received securely, it encapsulates the data into message known as IP
datagram.
○ Fragmentation and Reassembly: The limit imposed on the size of the IP
datagram by data link layer protocol is known as Maximum Transmission unit
(MTU). If the size of IP datagram is greater than the MTU unit, then the IP
protocol splits the datagram into smaller units so that they can travel over the
local network. Fragmentation can be done by the sender or intermediate
router. At the receiver side, all the fragments are reassembled to form an
original message.
○ Routing: When IP datagram is sent over the same local network such as
LAN, MAN, WAN, it is known as direct delivery. When source and
destination are on the distant network, then the IP datagram is sent indirectly.
This can be accomplished by routing the IP datagram through various devices
such as routers.
2. ARP Protocol
○ ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol.
○ ARP is a network layer protocol which is used to find the physical address from the IP
address.
○ The two terms are mainly associated with the ARP Protocol:
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ ARP request: When a sender wants to know the physical address of the device, it
broadcasts the ARP request to the network.
○ ARP reply: Every device attached to the network will accept the ARP request
and process the request, but only recipient recognize the IP address and sends
back its physical address in the form of ARP reply. The recipient adds the
physical address both to its cache memory and to the datagram header
3. ICMP Protocol
○ ICMP stands for Internet Control Message Protocol.
○ It is a mechanism used by the hosts or routers to send notifications regarding datagram
problems back to the sender.
○ A datagram travels from router-to-router until it reaches its destination. If a router is
unable to route the data because of some unusual conditions such as disabled links, a
device is on fire or network congestion, then the ICMP protocol is used to inform the
sender that the datagram is undeliverable.
○ An ICMP protocol mainly uses two terms:
○ ICMP Test: ICMP Test is used to test whether the destination is reachable or not.
○ ICMP Reply: ICMP Reply is used to check whether the destination device is
responding or not.
○ The core responsibility of the ICMP protocol is to report the problems, not correct them.
The responsibility of the correction lies with the sender.
○ ICMP can send the messages only to the source, but not to the intermediate routers
because the IP datagram carries the addresses of the source and destination but not of the
router that it is passed to.

Transport Layer
The transport layer is responsible for the reliability, flow control, and correction of data which is
being sent over the network.
The two protocols used in the transport layer are User Datagram protocol and Transmission
control protocol.
○ User Datagram Protocol (UDP)
○ It provides connectionless service and end-to-end delivery of transmission.
○ It is an unreliable protocol as it discovers the errors but not specify the error.
○ User Datagram Protocol discovers the error, and ICMP protocol reports the error
to the sender that user datagram has been damaged.
○ UDP consists of the following fields:
Source port address: The source port address is the address of the application
program that has created the message.
Destination port address: The destination port address is the address of the
application program that receives the message.
Total length: It defines the total number of bytes of the user datagram in bytes.
Checksum: The checksum is a 16-bit field used in error detection.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ UDP does not specify which packet is lost. UDP contains only checksum; it does
not contain any ID of a data segment.

○ Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)

○ It provides a full transport layer of services to applications.
○ It creates a virtual circuit between the sender and receiver, and it is active for the
duration of the transmission.
○ TCP is a reliable protocol as it detects the error and retransmits the damaged
frames. Therefore, it ensures all the segments must be received and acknowledged
before the transmission is considered to be completed and a virtual circuit is
discarded.
○ At the sending end, TCP divides the whole message into smaller units known as
segments, and each segment contains a sequence number which is required for
reordering the frames to form an original message.
○ At the receiving end, TCP collects all the segments and reorders them based on
sequence numbers.

Application Layer
○ An application layer is the topmost layer in the TCP/IP model.
○ It is responsible for handling high-level protocols, issues of representation.
○ This layer allows the user to interact with the application.
○ When one application layer protocol wants to communicate with another application
layer, it forwards its data to the transport layer.
○ There is an ambiguity occurs in the application layer. Every application cannot be placed
inside the application layer except those who interact with the communication system.
For example: text editor cannot be considered in application layer while web browser
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

using HTTP protocol to interact with the network where HTTP protocol is an
application layer protocol.

Following are the main protocols used in the application layer:

○ HTTP: HTTP stands for Hypertext transfer protocol. This protocol allows us to access
the data over the world wide web. It transfers the data in the form of plain text, audio,
video. It is known as a Hypertext transfer protocol as it has the efficiency to use in a
hypertext environment where there are rapid jumps from one document to another.
○ SNMP: SNMP stands for Simple Network Management Protocol. It is a framework used
for managing the devices on the internet by using the TCP/IP protocol suite.
○ SMTP: SMTP stands for Simple mail transfer protocol. The TCP/IP protocol that
supports the e-mail is known as a Simple mail transfer protocol. This protocol is used to
send the data to another e-mail address.
○ DNS: DNS stands for Domain Name System. An IP address is used to identify the
connection of a host to the internet uniquely. But, people prefer to use the names instead
of addresses. Therefore, the system that maps the name to the address is known as
Domain Name System.
○ TELNET: It is an abbreviation for Terminal Network. It establishes the connection
between the local computer and remote computer in such a way that the local terminal
appears to be a terminal at the remote system.
○ FTP: FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. FTP is a standard internet protocol used for
transmitting the files from one computer to another computer.

Difference between TCP/IP and OSI Model

OSI Model TCP/IP Model
It is developed by ISO (International StandardIt is developed by ARPANET (Advanced
Organization) Research Project Agency Network).
OSI model provides a clear distinction TCP/IP doesn’t have any clear distinguishing
between interfaces, services, and protocols. points between services, interfaces, and
protocols.
OSI refers to Open Systems Interconnection. TCP refers to Transmission Control Protocol.
OSI uses the network layer to define routing TCP/IP uses only the Internet layer.
standards and protocols.
OSI follows a vertical approach. TCP/IP follows a horizontal approach.
OSI layers have seven layers. TCP/IP has four layers.
In the OSI model, the transport layer is only A layer of the TCP/IP model is both
connection-oriented. connection-oriented and connectionless.
In the OSI model, the data link layer and In TCP, physical and data link are both
physical are separate layers. combined as a single host-to-network layer.
Session and presentation layers are a part of There is no session and presentation layer in
the OSI model. the TCP model.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

It is defined after the advent of the Internet. It is defined before the advent of the internet.
The minimum size of the OSI header is 5 The minimum header size is 20 bytes.
bytes.

Network devices and components.

Computer network components are the major parts which are needed to install the software.
Some important network components are NIC, switch, cable, hub, router, and modem.
Depending on the type of network that we need to install, some network components can also be
removed. For example, the wireless network does not require a cable.
Following are the major components required to install a network:

1. NIC
○ NIC stands for network interface card.
○ NIC is a hardware component used to connect a computer with another computer onto a
network
○ It can support a transfer rate of 10,100 to 1000 Mb/s.
○ The MAC address or physical address is encoded on the network card chip which is
assigned by the IEEE to identify a network card uniquely. The MAC address is stored in
the PROM (Programmable read-only memory).

Wired NIC: The Wired NIC is present inside the motherboard. Cables and connectors are used
with wired NIC to transfer data.
Wireless NIC: The wireless NIC contains the antenna to obtain the connection over the wireless
network. For example, laptop computer contains the wireless NIC.

2. Hub
A Hub is a hardware device that divides the network connection among multiple devices. When
computer requests for some information from a network, it first sends the request to the Hub
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

through cable. Hub will broadcast this request to the entire network. All the devices will check
whether the request belongs to them or not. If not, the request will be dropped.
The process used by the Hub consumes more bandwidth and limits the amount of
communication. Nowadays, the use of hub is obsolete, and it is replaced by more advanced
computer network components such as Switches, Routers.
3. Switch
A switch is a hardware device that connects multiple devices on a computer network. A Switch
contains more advanced features than Hub. The Switch contains the updated table that decides
where the data is transmitted or not. Switch delivers the message to the correct destination based
on the physical address present in the incoming message. A Switch does not broadcast the
message to the entire network like the Hub. It determines the device to whom the message is to
be transmitted. Therefore, we can say that switch provides a direct connection between the
source and destination. It increases the speed of the network.
4. Router
○ A router is a hardware device which is used to connect a LAN with an internet
connection. It is used to receive, analyze and forward the incoming packets to another
network.
○ A router works in a Layer 3 (Network layer) of the OSI Reference model.
○ A router forwards the packet based on the information available in the routing table.
○ It determines the best path from the available paths for the transmission of the packet.

Advantages Of Router:
○ Security: The information which is transmitted to the network will traverse the entire
cable, but the only specified device which has been addressed can read the data.
○ Reliability: If the server has stopped functioning, the network goes down, but no other
networks are affected that are served by the router.
○ Performance: Router enhances the overall performance of the network. Suppose there
are 24 workstations in a network generates a same amount of traffic. This increases the
traffic load on the network. Router splits the single network into two networks of 12
workstations each, reduces the traffic load by half.
○ Network range

5. Modem
○ A modem is a hardware device that allows the computer to connect to the internet over
the existing telephone line.
○ A modem is not integrated with the motherboard rather than it is installed on the PCI slot
found on the motherboard.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

○ It stands for Modulator/Demodulator. It converts the digital data into an analog signal
over the telephone lines.

Based on the differences in speed and transmission rate, a modem can be classified in the
following categories:
○ Standard PC modem or Dial-up modem
○ Cellular Modem
○ Cable modem

Physical Layer: Network topology design,

What is Network Topology?

Topology defines the structure of the network of how all the components are interconnected to
each other. There are two types of topology: physical and logical topology.

Types of Network Topology

Physical topology is the geometric representation of all the nodes in a network. There are six
types of network topology which are Bus Topology, Ring Topology, Tree Topology, Star
Topology, Mesh Topology, and Hybrid Topology.

1) Bus Topology
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● The bus topology is designed in such a way that all the stations are connected through a
single cable known as a backbone cable.
● Each node is either connected to the backbone cable by drop cable or directly connected
to the backbone cable.
● When a node wants to send a message over the network, it puts a message over the
network. All the stations available in the network will receive the message whether it has
been addressed or not.
● The bus topology is mainly used in 802.3 (ethernet) and 802.4 standard networks.
● The configuration of a bus topology is quite simpler as compared to other topologies.
● The backbone cable is considered as a "single lane" through which the message is
broadcast to all the stations.
● The most common access method of the bus topologies is CSMA (Carrier Sense Multiple
Access).

Advantages of Bus topology:

● Low-cost cable: In bus topology, nodes are directly connected to the cable without
passing through a hub. Therefore, the initial cost of installation is low.
● Moderate data speeds: Coaxial or twisted pair cables are mainly used in bus-based
networks that support upto 10 Mbps.
● Familiar technology: Bus topology is a familiar technology as the installation and
troubleshooting techniques are well known, and hardware components are easily
available.
● Limited failure: A failure in one node will not have any effect on other nodes.

Disadvantages of Bus topology:

● Extensive cabling: A bus topology is quite simpler, but still it requires a lot of cabling.
● Difficult troubleshooting: It requires specialized test equipment to determine the cable
faults. If any fault occurs in the cable, then it would disrupt the communication for all the
nodes.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Signal interference: If two nodes send the messages simultaneously, then the signals of
both the nodes collide with each other.
● Reconfiguration difficult: Adding new devices to the network would slow down the
network.
● Attenuation: Attenuation is a loss of signal leads to communication issues. Repeaters are
used to regenerate the signal.

2) Ring Topology

● Ring topology is like a bus topology, but with connected ends.

● The node that receives the message from the previous computer will retransmit to the
next node.
● The data flows in one direction, i.e., it is unidirectional.
● The data flows in a single loop continuously known as an endless loop.
● It has no terminated ends, i.e., each node is connected to other node and having no
termination point.
● The data in a ring topology flow in a clockwise direction.
● The most common access method of the ring topology is token passing.
○ Token passing: It is a network access method in which token is passed from one
node to another node.
○ Token: It is a frame that circulates around the network.

Working of Token passing

● A token moves around the network, and it is passed from computer to computer until it
reaches the destination.
● The sender modifies the token by putting the address along with the data.
● The data is passed from one device to another device until the destination address
matches. Once the token received by the destination device, then it sends the
acknowledgment to the sender.
● In a ring topology, a token is used as a carrier.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Advantages of Ring topology:

● Network Management: Faulty devices can be removed from the network without
bringing the network down.
● Product availability: Many hardware and software tools for network operation and
monitoring are available.
● Cost: Twisted pair cabling is inexpensive and easily available. Therefore, the installation
cost is very low.
● Reliable: It is a more reliable network because the communication system is not
dependent on the single host computer.

Disadvantages of Ring topology:

● Difficult troubleshooting: It requires specialized test equipment to determine the cable
faults. If any fault occurs in the cable, then it would disrupt the communication for all the
nodes.
● Failure: The breakdown in one station leads to the failure of the overall network.
● Reconfiguration difficult: Adding new devices to the network would slow down the
network.
● Delay: Communication delay is directly proportional to the number of nodes. Adding
new devices increases the communication delay.

3) Star Topology

● Star topology is an arrangement of the network in which every node is connected to the
central hub, switch or a central computer.
● The central computer is known as a server, and the peripheral devices attached to the
server are known as clients.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Coaxial cable or RJ-45 cables are used to connect the computers.

● Hubs or Switches are mainly used as connection devices in a physical star topology.
● Star topology is the most popular topology in network implementation.

Advantages of Star topology

● Efficient troubleshooting: Troubleshooting is quite efficient in a star topology as
compared to bus topology. In a bus topology, the manager has to inspect the kilometers of
cable. In a star topology, all the stations are connected to the centralized network.
Therefore, the network administrator has to go to the single station to troubleshoot the
problem.
● Network control: Complex network control features can be easily implemented in the
star topology. Any changes made in the star topology are automatically accommodated.
● Limited failure: As each station is connected to the central hub with its own cable,
therefore failure in one cable will not affect the entire network.
● Familiar technology: Star topology is a familiar technology as its tools are
cost-effective.
● Easily expandable: It is easily expandable as new stations can be added to the open ports
on the hub.
● Cost effective: Star topology networks are cost-effective as it uses inexpensive coaxial
cable.
● High data speeds: It supports a bandwidth of approx 100Mbps. Ethernet 100BaseT is
one of the most popular Star topology networks.
Disadvantages of Star topology
● A Central point of failure: If the central hub or switch goes down, then all the
connected nodes will not be able to communicate with each other.
● Cable: Sometimes cable routing becomes difficult when a significant amount of routing
is required.

4) Tree topology

● Tree topology combines the characteristics of bus topology and star topology.
● A tree topology is a type of structure in which all the computers are connected with each
other in hierarchical fashion.
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● The top-most node in tree topology is known as a root node, and all other nodes are the
descendants of the root node.
● There is only one path exists between two nodes for the data transmission. Thus, it forms
a parent-child hierarchy.

Advantages of Tree topology

● Support for broadband transmission: Tree topology is mainly used to provide
broadband transmission, i.e., signals are sent over long distances without being
attenuated.
● Easily expandable: We can add the new device to the existing network. Therefore, we
can say that tree topology is easily expandable.
● Easily manageable: In tree topology, the whole network is divided into segments known
as star networks which can be easily managed and maintained.
● Error detection: Error detection and error correction are very easy in a tree topology.
● Limited failure: The breakdown in one station does not affect the entire network.
● Point-to-point wiring: It has point-to-point wiring for individual segments.

Disadvantages of Tree topology

● Difficult troubleshooting: If any fault occurs in the node, then it becomes difficult to
troubleshoot the problem.
● High cost: Devices required for broadband transmission are very costly.
● Failure: A tree topology mainly relies on main bus cable and failure in main bus cable
will damage the overall network.
● Reconfiguration difficult: If new devices are added, then it becomes difficult to
reconfigure.

5) Mesh topology
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Mesh technology is an arrangement of the network in which computers are

interconnected with each other through various redundant connections.
● There are multiple paths from one computer to another computer.
● It does not contain the switch, hub or any central computer which acts as a central point
of communication.
● The Internet is an example of the mesh topology.
● Mesh topology is mainly used for WAN implementations where communication failures
are a critical concern.
● Mesh topology is mainly used for wireless networks.
● Mesh topology can be formed by using the formula:
Number of cables = (n*(n-1))/2;
Where n is the number of nodes that represents the network.

Mesh topology is divided into two categories:

● Fully connected mesh topology
● Partially connected mesh topology

● Full Mesh Topology: In a full mesh topology, each computer is connected to all the
computers available in the network.
● Partial Mesh Topology: In a partial mesh topology, not all but certain computers are
connected to those computers with which they communicate frequently.

Advantages of Mesh topology:

● Reliable: The mesh topology networks are very reliable as if any link breakdown will not
affect the communication between connected computers.
● Fast Communication: Communication is very fast between the nodes.
● Easier Reconfiguration: Adding new devices would not disrupt the communication
between other devices.

Disadvantages of Mesh topology

● Cost: A mesh topology contains a large number of connected devices such as a router
and more transmission media than other topologies.
● Management: Mesh topology networks are very large and very difficult to maintain and
manage. If the network is not monitored carefully, then the communication link failure
goes undetected.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Efficiency: In this topology, redundant connections are high that reduces the efficiency of
the network.

6) Hybrid Topology

● The combination of various different topologies is known as Hybrid topology.

● A Hybrid topology is a connection between different links and nodes to transfer the data.
● When two or more different topologies are combined together is termed as Hybrid
topology and if similar topologies are connected with each other will not result in Hybrid
topology. For example, if there exist a ring topology in one branch of ICICI bank and bus
topology in another branch of ICICI bank, connecting these two topologies will result in
Hybrid topology.

Advantages of Hybrid Topology

● Reliable: If a fault occurs in any part of the network will not affect the functioning of the
rest of the network.
● Scalable: Size of the network can be easily expanded by adding new devices without
affecting the functionality of the existing network.
● Flexible: This topology is very flexible as it can be designed according to the
requirements of the organization.
● Effective: Hybrid topology is very effective as it can be designed in such a way that the
strength of the network is maximized and weakness of the network is minimized.

Disadvantages of Hybrid topology

● Complex design: The major drawback of the Hybrid topology is the design of the Hybrid
network. It is very difficult to design the architecture of the Hybrid network.
● Costly Hub: The Hubs used in the Hybrid topology are very expensive as these hubs are
different from usual Hubs used in other topologies.
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● Costly infrastructure: The infrastructure cost is very high as a hybrid network requires a
lot of cabling, network devices, etc.

Types of connections

There are different types of communications connection in existence between two

endpoints., Home networks, and the Internet is the one of the most commonly used
examples. Many type of devices are and several different methods are used
connecting to these type of network architectures.
There are different advantages and disadvantages to this type of network architectures.
Connecting computers to a these type of networks, we requires some networking
framework to create the connections. The two different computer network connection
types are getting discussed in this page are Point-to-Point Connection and multipoint
connection. The main difference between them we can getting discussed with the help
of below definition.
We’ll be covering the following topics in this tutorial:

● Point-to-Point Connection
● Multipoint Connection

Point-to-Point Connection

A point-to-point connection is a direct link between two devices such as a computer

and a printer. It uses dedicated link between the devices. The entire capacity of the link
is used for the transmission between those two devices. Most of today’s point-to-point
connections are associated with modems and PSTN (Public Switched Telephone
Network) communications. In point to point networks, there exist many connections
between individual pairs of machines.
To move from sources to destination, a packet (short message) may follow different
routes. In networking, the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) is a data link protocol
commonly used in establishing a direct connection between two networking nodes. It
can provide connection authentication, transmission encryption, and compression PPP
is used over many types of physical networks including serial cable, phone line, trunk
line, cellular telephone, specialized radio links, and fiber optic links such as SONET.
PPP is also used over Internet access connections (now marketed as “broadband”).
Internet service providers (ISPs) have used PPP for customer dial-up access to the
Internet, since IP packets cannot be transmitted over a modem line on their own,
without some data link protocol. Two encapsulated forms of PPP, Point-to-Point
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) and Point-to-Point Protocol over ATM (PPPoA), are
used most commonly by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to establish a Digital
Subscriber Line (DSL) Internet service connection with customers.
PPP is commonly used as a data link layer protocol for connection over synchronous
and asynchronous circuits, where it has largely superseded the older Serial Line
Internet Protocol (SLIP) and telephone company mandated standards (such as Link
Access Protocol, Balanced (LAPB) in the X.25 protocol suite). PPP was designed to
work with numerous network layer protocols, including Internet Protocol (IP), TRILL,
Novell’s Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), NBF and AppleTalk.

Multipoint Connection

A multipoint connection is a link between three or more devices. It is also known as

Multi-drop configuration. The networks having multipoint configuration are called
Broadcast Networks. In a broadcast network, a message or a packet sent by any
machine is received by all other machines in a network. The packet contains address
field that specifies the receiver. Upon receiving a packet, every machine checks the
address field of the packet. If the transmitted packet is for that particular machine, it
processes it; otherwise it just ignores the packet.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Broadcast network provides the provision for broadcasting & multicasting.

Broadcasting is the process in which a single packet is received and processed by all
the machines in the network. It is made possible by using a special code in the address
field of the packet. When a packet is sent to a subset of the machines i.e. only to few
machines in the network it is known as multicasting. Historically, multipoint connections
were used to attach central CPs to distributed dumb terminals. In today’s LAN
environments, multipoint connections link many network devices in various
configurations.

What is Transmission media?

● Transmission media is a communication channel that carries the information from the
sender to the receiver. Data is transmitted through the electromagnetic signals.
● The main functionality of the transmission media is to carry the information in the form
of bits through LAN(Local Area Network).
● It is a physical path between transmitter and receiver in data communication.
● In a copper-based network, the bits are in the form of electrical signals.
● In a fiber based network, the bits are in the form of light pulses.
● In OSI(Open System Interconnection) phase, transmission media supports the Layer 1.
Therefore, it is considered to be as a Layer 1 component.
● The electrical signals can be sent through the copper wire, fibre optics, atmosphere,
water, and vacuum.
● The characteristics and quality of data transmission are determined by the characteristics
of medium and signal.
● Transmission media is of two types are wired media and wireless media. In wired media,
medium characteristics are more important whereas, in wireless media, signal
characteristics are more important.
● Different transmission media have different properties such as bandwidth, delay, cost and
ease of installation and maintenance.
● The transmission media is available in the lowest layer of the OSI reference model, i.e.,
Physical layer.

Some factors need to be considered for designing the transmission media:

● Bandwidth: All the factors are remaining constant, the greater the bandwidth of a
medium, the higher the data transmission rate of a signal.
● Transmission impairment: When the received signal is not identical to the transmitted
one due to the transmission impairment. The quality of the signals will get destroyed due
to transmission impairment.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Interference: An interference is defined as the process of disrupting a signal when it

travels over a communication medium on the addition of some unwanted signal.

Causes Of Transmission Impairment:

● Attenuation: Attenuation means the loss of energy, i.e., the strength of the signal
decreases with increasing the distance which causes the loss of energy.
● Distortion: Distortion occurs when there is a change in the shape of the signal. This type
of distortion is examined from different signals having different frequencies. Each
frequency component has its own propagation speed, so they reach at a different time
which leads to the delay distortion.
● Noise: When data is traveled over a transmission medium, some unwanted signal is
added to it which creates the noise.

Classification Of Transmission Media:

Guided Media
It is defined as the physical medium through which the signals are transmitted. It is also known
as Bounded media.
Types Of Guided media:

Twisted pair:Twisted pair is a physical media made up of a pair of cables twisted with each
other. A twisted pair cable is cheap as compared to other transmission media. Installation of the
twisted pair cable is easy, and it is a lightweight cable. The frequency range for twisted pair cable
is from 0 to 3.5KHz.
A twisted pair consists of two insulated copper wires arranged in a regular spiral pattern.
The degree of reduction in noise interference is determined by the number of turns per foot.
Increasing the number of turns per foot decreases noise interference.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Types of Twisted pair:

Unshielded Twisted Pair: An unshielded twisted pair is widely used in telecommunication.

Following are the categories of the unshielded twisted pair cable:
● Category 1: Category 1 is used for telephone lines that have low-speed data.
● Category 2: It can support upto 4Mbps.
● Category 3: It can support upto 16Mbps.
● Category 4: It can support upto 20Mbps. Therefore, it can be used for long-distance
communication.
● Category 5: It can support upto 200Mbps.
Advantages Of Unshielded Twisted Pair:
● It is cheap.
● Installation of the unshielded twisted pair is easy.
● It can be used for high-speed LAN.
Disadvantage:
● This cable can only be used for shorter distances because of attenuation.

Shielded Twisted Pair: A shielded twisted pair is a cable that contains the mesh surrounding the
wire that allows the higher transmission rate.
Characteristics Of Shielded Twisted Pair:
● The cost of the shielded twisted pair cable is not very high and not very low.
● An installation of STP is easy.
● It has higher capacity as compared to unshielded twisted pair cable.
● It has a higher attenuation.
● It is shielded that provides the higher data transmission rate.
Disadvantages
● It is more expensive as compared to UTP and coaxial cable.
● It has a higher attenuation rate.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Coaxial Cable
● Coaxial cable is very commonly used transmission media, for example, TV wire is
usually a coaxial cable.
● The name of the cable is coaxial as it contains two conductors parallel to each other.
● It has a higher frequency as compared to Twisted pair cable.
● The inner conductor of the coaxial cable is made up of copper, and the outer conductor is
made up of copper mesh. The middle core is made up of non-conductive cover that
separates the inner conductor from the outer conductor.
● The middle core is responsible for the data transferring whereas the copper mesh prevents
from the EMI(Electromagnetic interference).

Coaxial cable is of two types:

1. Baseband transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting a single signal at
high speed.
2. Broadband transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting multiple signals
simultaneously.
Advantages Of Coaxial cable:
● The data can be transmitted at high speed.
● It has better shielding as compared to twisted pair cable.
● It provides higher bandwidth.
Disadvantages Of Coaxial cable:
● It is more expensive as compared to twisted pair cable.
● If any fault occurs in the cable causes the failure in the entire network.

Fibre Optic
● Fibre optic cable is a cable that uses electrical signals for communication.
● Fibre optic is a cable that holds the optical fibres coated in plastic that are used to send
the data by pulses of light.
● The plastic coating protects the optical fibres from heat, cold, electromagnetic
interference from other types of wiring.
● Fibre optics provide faster data transmission than copper wires.
Diagrammatic representation of fibre optic cable:
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Basic elements of Fibre optic cable:

● Core: The optical fibre consists of a narrow strand of glass or plastic known as a core. A
core is a light transmission area of the fibre. The more the area of the core, the more light
will be transmitted into the fibre.
● Cladding: The concentric layer of glass is known as cladding. The main functionality of
the cladding is to provide the lower refractive index at the core interface as to cause the
reflection within the core so that the light waves are transmitted through the fibre.
● Jacket: The protective coating consisting of plastic is known as a jacket. The main
purpose of a jacket is to preserve the fibre strength, absorb shock and extra fibre
protection.
Following are the advantages of fibre optic cable over copper:
● Greater Bandwidth: The fibre optic cable provides more bandwidth as compared
copper. Therefore, the fibre optic carries more data as compared to copper cable.
● Faster speed: Fibre optic cable carries the data in the form of light. This allows the fibre
optic cable to carry the signals at a higher speed.
● Longer distances: The fibre optic cable carries the data at a longer distance as compared
to copper cable.
● Better reliability: The fibre optic cable is more reliable than the copper cable as it is
immune to any temperature changes while it can cause obstruct in the connectivity of
copper cable.
● Thinner and Sturdier: Fibre optic cable is thinner and lighter in weight so it can
withstand more pull pressure than copper cable.
UnGuided Transmission
● An unguided transmission transmits the electromagnetic waves without using any
physical medium. Therefore it is also known as wireless transmission.
● In unguided media, air is the media through which the electromagnetic energy can flow
easily.
Unguided transmission is broadly classified into three categories:
Radio waves
● Radio waves are the electromagnetic waves that are transmitted in all the directions of
free space.
● Radio waves are omnidirectional, i.e., the signals are propagated in all the directions.
● The range in frequencies of radio waves is from 3Khz to 1 khz.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● In the case of radio waves, the sending and receiving antenna are not aligned, i.e., the
wave sent by the sending antenna can be received by any receiving antenna.
● An example of the radio wave is FM radio.

Applications Of Radio waves:

● A Radio wave is useful for multicasting when there is one sender and many receivers.
● An FM radio, television, cordless phones are examples of a radio wave.
Advantages Of Radio transmission:
● Radio transmission is mainly used for wide area networks and mobile cellular phones.
● Radio waves cover a large area, and they can penetrate the walls.
● Radio transmission provides a higher transmission rate.

Microwaves

Microwaves are of two types:

● Terrestrial microwave
● Satellite microwave communication.
Terrestrial Microwave Transmission
● Terrestrial Microwave transmission is a technology that transmits the focused beam of a
radio signal from one ground-based microwave transmission antenna to another.
● Microwaves are the electromagnetic waves having the frequency in the range from 1GHz
to 1000 GHz.
● Microwaves are unidirectional as the sending and receiving antenna is to be aligned, i.e.,
the waves sent by the sending antenna are narrowly focussed.
● In this case, antennas are mounted on the towers to send a beam to another antenna which
is km away.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● It works on the line of sight transmission, i.e., the antennas mounted on the towers are the
direct sight of each other.
Characteristics of Microwave:
● Frequency range: The frequency range of terrestrial microwave is from 4-6 GHz to
21-23 GHz.
● Bandwidth: It supports the bandwidth from 1 to 10 Mbps.
● Short distance: It is inexpensive for short distance.
● Long distance: It is expensive as it requires a higher tower for a longer distance.
● Attenuation: Attenuation means loss of signal. It is affected by environmental conditions
and antenna size.
Advantages Of Microwave:
● Microwave transmission is cheaper than using cables.
● It is free from land acquisition as it does not require any land for the installation of
cables.
● Microwave transmission provides an easy communication in terrains as the installation of
cable in terrain is quite a difficult task.
● Communication over oceans can be achieved by using microwave transmission.
Disadvantages of Microwave transmission:
● Eavesdropping: An eavesdropping creates insecure communication. Any malicious user
can catch the signal in the air by using its own antenna.
● Out of phase signal: A signal can be moved out of phase by using microwave
transmission.
● Susceptible to weather condition: A microwave transmission is susceptible to weather
condition. This means that any environmental change such as rain, wind can distort the
signal.
● Bandwidth limited: Allocation of bandwidth is limited in the case of microwave
transmission.
Satellite Microwave Communication
● A satellite is a physical object that revolves around the earth at a known height.
● Satellite communication is more reliable nowadays as it offers more flexibility than cable
and fibre optic systems.
● We can communicate with any point on the globe by using satellite communication.
How Does Satellite work?
The satellite accepts the signal that is transmitted from the earth station, and it amplifies the
signal. The amplified signal is retransmitted to another earth station.
Advantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:
● The coverage area of a satellite microwave is more than the terrestrial microwave.
● The transmission cost of the satellite is independent of the distance from the centre of the
coverage area.
● Satellite communication is used in mobile and wireless communication applications.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● It is easy to install.
● It is used in a wide variety of applications such as weather forecasting, radio/TV signal
broadcasting, mobile communication, etc.
Disadvantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:
● Satellite designing and development requires more time and higher cost.
● The Satellite needs to be monitored and controlled on regular periods so that it remains in
orbit.
● The life of the satellite is about 12-15 years. Due to this reason, another launch of the
satellite has to be planned before it becomes non-functional.

Infrared
● An infrared transmission is a wireless technology used for communication over short
ranges.
● The frequency of the infrared in the range from 300 GHz to 400 THz.
● It is used for short-range communication such as data transfer between two cell phones,
TV remote operation, data transfer between a computer and cell phone resides in the
same closed area.
Characteristics Of Infrared:
● It supports high bandwidth, and hence the data rate will be very high.
● Infrared waves cannot penetrate the walls. Therefore, the infrared communication in one
room cannot be interrupted by the nearby rooms.
● An infrared communication provides better security with minimum interference.
● Infrared communication is unreliable outside the building because the sun rays will
interfere with the infrared waves.
Signal transmission and encoding
Data or information can be stored in two ways, analog and digital. For a computer to use the
data, it must be in discrete digital form.Similar to data, signals can also be in analog and digital
form. To transmit data digitally, it needs to be first converted to digital form.
Digital-to-Digital Conversion
This section explains how to convert digital data into digital signals. It can be done in two ways,
line coding and block coding. For all communications, line coding is necessary whereas block
coding is optional.
Line Coding
The process for converting digital data into digital signal is said to be Line Coding. Digital data
is found in binary format.It is represented (stored) internally as series of 1s and 0s.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Digital signal is denoted by discreet signal, which represents digital data.There are three types of
line coding schemes available:

Uni-polar Encoding
Unipolar encoding schemes use single voltage level to represent data. In this case, to represent
binary 1, high voltage is transmitted and to represent 0, no voltage is transmitted. It is also called
Unipolar-Non-return-to-zero, because there is no rest condition i.e. it either represents 1 or 0.

Polar Encoding
Polar encoding scheme uses multiple voltage levels to represent binary values. Polar encodings is
available in four types:
● Polar Non-Return to Zero (Polar NRZ)
It uses two different voltage levels to represent binary values. Generally, positive voltage
represents 1 and negative value represents 0. It is also NRZ because there is no rest
condition.
NRZ scheme has two variants: NRZ-L and NRZ-I.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

NRZ-L changes voltage level at when a different bit is encountered whereas NRZ-I
changes voltage when a 1 is encountered.
● Return to Zero (RZ)
Problem with NRZ is that the receiver cannot conclude when a bit ended and when the
next bit is started, in case when sender and receiver’s clock are not synchronized.

RZ uses three voltage levels, positive voltage to represent 1, negative voltage to represent
0 and zero voltage for none. Signals change during bits not between bits.
● Manchester
This encoding scheme is a combination of RZ and NRZ-L. Bit time is divided into two
halves. It transits in the middle of the bit and changes phase when a different bit is
encountered.
● Differential Manchester
This encoding scheme is a combination of RZ and NRZ-I. It also transit at the middle of
the bit but changes phase only when 1 is encountered.
Bipolar Encoding
Bipolar encoding uses three voltage levels, positive, negative and zero. Zero voltage represents
binary 0 and bit 1 is represented by altering positive and negative voltages.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Block Coding
To ensure accuracy of the received data frame redundant bits are used. For example, in
even-parity, one parity bit is added to make the count of 1s in the frame even. This way the
original number of bits is increased. It is called Block Coding.
Block coding is represented by slash notation, mB/nB.Means, m-bit block is substituted with
n-bit block where n > m. Block coding involves three steps:
● Division,
● Substitution
● Combination.
After block coding is done, it is line coded for transmission.
Analog-to-Digital Conversion
Microphones create analog voice and camera creates analog videos, which are treated is analog
data. To transmit this analog data over digital signals, we need analog to digital conversion.
Analog data is a continuous stream of data in the wave form whereas digital data is discrete. To
convert analog wave into digital data, we use Pulse Code Modulation (PCM).
PCM is one of the most commonly used method to convert analog data into digital form. It
involves three steps:
● Sampling
● Quantization
● Encoding.
Sampling

The analog signal is sampled every T interval. Most important factor in sampling is the rate at
which analog signal is sampled. According to Nyquist Theorem, the sampling rate must be at
least two times of the highest frequency of the signal.
Quantization
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Sampling yields discrete form of continuous analog signal. Every discrete pattern shows the
amplitude of the analog signal at that instance. The quantization is done between the maximum
amplitude value and the minimum amplitude value. Quantization is approximation of the
instantaneous analog value.
Encoding

In encoding, each approximated value is then converted into binary format.

Transmission Modes
The transmission mode decides how data is transmitted between two computers.The binary data
in the form of 1s and 0s can be sent in two different modes: Parallel and Serial.
Parallel Transmission

The binary bits are organized in-to groups of fixed length. Both sender and receiver are
connected in parallel with the equal number of data lines. Both computers distinguish between
high order and low order data lines. The sender sends all the bits at once on all lines.Because the
data lines are equal to the number of bits in a group or data frame, a complete group of bits (data
frame) is sent in one go. Advantage of Parallel transmission is high speed and disadvantage is the
cost of wires, as it is equal to the number of bits sent in parallel.
Serial Transmission
In serial transmission, bits are sent one after another in a queue manner. Serial transmission
requires only one communication channel.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Serial transmission can be either asynchronous or synchronous.

Asynchronous Serial Transmission
It is named so because there’is no importance of timing. Data-bits have specific pattern and they
help receiver recognize the start and end data bits.For example, a 0 is prefixed on every data byte
and one or more 1s are added at the end.
Two continuous data-frames (bytes) may have a gap between them.
Synchronous Serial Transmission
Timing in synchronous transmission has importance as there is no mechanism followed to
recognize start and end data bits.There is no pattern or prefix/suffix method. Data bits are sent in
burst mode without maintaining gap between bytes (8-bits). Single burst of data bits may contain
a number of bytes. Therefore, timing becomes very important.
It is up to the receiver to recognize and separate bits into bytes.The advantage of synchronous
transmission is high speed, and it has no overhead of extra header and footer bits as in
asynchronous transmission.

Network performance

Performance of a Network
The performance of a network pertains to the measure of service quality of a
network as perceived by the user. There are different ways to measure the
performance of a network, depending upon the nature and design of the network.
Finding the performance of a network depends on both quality of the network and
the quantity of the network.
Parameters for Measuring Network Performance
● Bandwidth
● Latency (Delay)
● Bandwidth – Delay Product
● Throughput
● Jitter
BANDWIDTH
One of the most essential conditions of a website’s performance is the amount of
bandwidth allocated to the network. Bandwidth determines how rapidly the
webserver is able to upload the requested information. While there are different
factors to consider with respect to a site’s performance, bandwidth is every now and
again the restricting element.
Bandwidth is characterized as the measure of data or information that can be
transmitted in a fixed measure of time. The term can be used in two different
contexts with two distinctive estimating values. In the case of digital devices, the
bandwidth is measured in bits per second(bps) or bytes per second. In the case of
analog devices, the bandwidth is measured in cycles per second, or Hertz (Hz).
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Bandwidth is only one component of what an individual sees as the speed of a

network. People frequently mistake bandwidth with internet speed in light of the fact
that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) tend to claim that they have a fast “40Mbps
connection” in their advertising campaigns. True internet speed is actually the
amount of data you receive every second and that has a lot to do with latency too.
“Bandwidth” means “Capacity” and “Speed” means “Transfer rate”.
More bandwidth does not mean more speed. Let us take a case where we have
double the width of the tap pipe, but the water rate is still the same as it was when
the tap pipe was half the width. Hence, there will be no improvement in speed.
When we consider WAN links, we mostly mean bandwidth but when we consider
LAN, we mostly mean speed. This is on the grounds that we are generally
constrained by expensive cable bandwidth over WAN rather than hardware and
interface data transfer rates (or speed) over LAN.
● Bandwidth in Hertz: It is the range of frequencies contained in a
composite signal or the range of frequencies a channel can pass. For
example, let us consider the bandwidth of a subscriber telephone line as 4
kHz.
● Bandwidth in Bits per Seconds: It refers to the number of bits per
second that a channel, a link, or rather a network can transmit. For
example, we can say the bandwidth of a Fast Ethernet network is a
maximum of 100 Mbps, which means that the network can send 100
Mbps of data.
Note: There exists an explicit relationship between the bandwidth in hertz and the
bandwidth in bits per second. An increase in bandwidth in hertz means an increase
in bandwidth in bits per second. The relationship depends upon whether we have
baseband transmission or transmission with modulation.
LATENCY
In a network, during the process of data communication, latency(also known as
delay) is defined as the total time taken for a complete message to arrive at the
destination, starting with the time when the first bit of the message is sent out from
the source and ending with the time when the last bit of the message is delivered at
the destination. The network connections where small delays occur are called
“Low-Latency-Networks” and the network connections which suffer from long
delays are known as “High-Latency-Networks”.
High latency leads to the creation of bottlenecks in any network communication. It
stops the data from taking full advantage of the network pipe and conclusively
decreases the bandwidth of the communicating network. The effect of the latency on
a network’s bandwidth can be temporary or never-ending depending on the source of
the delays. Latency is also known as a ping rate and is measured in
milliseconds(ms).
● In simpler terms latency may be defined as the time required to
successfully send a packet across a network.
● It is measured in many ways like a round trip, one-way, etc.
● It might be affected by any component in the chain utilized to vehiculate
data, like workstations, WAN links, routers, LAN, and servers, and
eventually may be limited for large networks, by the speed of light.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Latency = Propagation Time + Transmission Time + Queuing Time + Processing

Delay
Propagation Time
It is the time required for a bit to travel from the source to the destination.
Propagation time can be calculated as the ratio between the link length (distance)
and the propagation speed over the communicating medium. For example, for an
electric signal, propagation time is the time taken for the signal to travel through a
wire.
Propagation time = Distance / Propagation speed
Example:
Input: What will be the propagation time when the distance between two points is 12, 000 km?
Assuming the propagation speed to be 2.4 * 10^8 m/s in cable.

Output: We can calculate the propagation time as-

Propagation time = (12000 * 10000) / (2.4 * 10^8) = 50 ms
Transmission Time
Transmission Time is a time based on how long it takes to send the signal down the
transmission line. It consists of time costs for an EM signal to propagate from one
side to the other, or costs like the training signals that are usually put on the front of
a packet by the sender, which helps the receiver synchronize clocks. The
transmission time of a message relies upon the size of the message and the
bandwidth of the channel.
Transmission time = Message size / Bandwidth
Example:
Input: What will be the propagation time and the transmission time for a 2.5-kbyte
message when the bandwidth of the network is 1 Gbps? Assuming the distance between
sender and receiver is 12, 000 km and speed of light is 2.4 * 10^8 m/s.

Output: We can calculate the propagation and transmission time as-

Propagation time = (12000 * 10000) / (2.4 * 10^8) = 50 ms
Transmission time = (2560 * 8) / 10^9 = 0.020 ms

Note: Since the message is short and the bandwidth is high, the dominant factor is the
propagation time and not the transmission time(which can be ignored).
Queuing Time
Queuing time is a time based on how long the packet has to sit around in the router.
Quite frequently the wire is busy, so we are not able to transmit a packet
immediately. The queuing time is usually not a fixed factor, hence it changes with
the load thrust in the network. In cases like these, the packet sits waiting, ready to
go, in a queue. These delays are predominantly characterized by the measure of
traffic on the system. The more the traffic, the more likely a packet is stuck in the
queue, just sitting in the memory, waiting.
Processing Delay
Processing delay is the delay based on how long it takes the router to figure out
where to send the packet. As soon as the router finds it out, it will queue the packet
for transmission. These costs are predominantly based on the complexity of the
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

protocol. The router must decipher enough of the packet to make sense of which
queue to put the packet in. Typically the lower-level layers of the stack have simpler
protocols. If a router does not know which physical port to send the packet to, it will
send it to all the ports, queuing the packet in many queues immediately. Differently,
at a higher level, like in IP protocols, the processing may include making an ARP
request to find out the physical address of the destination before queuing the packet
for transmission. This situation may also be considered as a processing delay.
BANDWIDTH – DELAY PRODUCT
Bandwidth and Delay are two performance measurements of a link. However, what
is significant in data communications is the product of the two, the bandwidth-delay
product. Let us take two hypothetical cases as examples.
Case 1: Assume a link is of bandwidth 1bps and the delay of the link is 5s. Let us
find the bandwidth-delay product in this case. From the image, we can say that this
product 1 x 5 is the maximum number of bits that can fill the link. There can be
close to 5 bits at any time on the link.

Bandwidth Delay Product

Case 2: Assume a link is of bandwidth 3bps. From the image, we can say that there
can be a maximum of 3 x 5 = 15 bits on the line. The reason is that, at each second,
there are 3 bits on the line and the duration of each bit is 0.33s.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Bandwidth Delay
For both examples, the product of bandwidth and delay is the number of bits that can
fill the link. This estimation is significant in the event that we have to send data in
bursts and wait for the acknowledgment of each burst before sending the following
one. To utilize the maximum ability of the link, we have to make the size of our
burst twice the product of bandwidth and delay. Also, we need to fill up the
full-duplex channel. The sender ought to send a burst of data of
(2*bandwidth*delay) bits. The sender at that point waits for the receiver’s
acknowledgement for part of the burst before sending another burst. The amount:
2*bandwidth*delay is the number of bits that can be in transition at any time.
THROUGHPUT
Throughput is the number of messages successfully transmitted per unit time. It is
controlled by available bandwidth, the available signal-to-noise ratio, and hardware
limitations. The maximum throughput of a network may be consequently higher
than the actual throughput achieved in everyday consumption. The terms
‘throughput’ and ‘bandwidth’ are often thought of as the same, yet they are different.
Bandwidth is the potential measurement of a link, whereas throughput is an actual
measurement of how fast we can send data.
Throughput is measured by tabulating the amount of data transferred between
multiple locations during a specific period of time, usually resulting in the unit of
bits per second(bps), which has evolved to bytes per second(Bps), kilobytes per
second(KBps), megabytes per second(MBps) and gigabytes per second(Gbps).
Throughput may be affected by numerous factors, such as the hindrance of the
underlying analog physical medium, the available processing power of the system
components, and end-user behavior. When numerous protocol expenses are taken
into account, the use rate of the transferred data can be significantly lower than the
maximum achievable throughput.
Let us consider: A highway that has a capacity of moving, say, 200 vehicles at a
time. But at a random time, someone notices only, say, 150 vehicles moving through
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

it due to some congestion on the road. As a result, the capacity is likely to be 200
vehicles per unit time and the throughput is 150 vehicles at a time.

Example:
Input: A network with bandwidth of 10 Mbps can pass only an average of 12, 000 frames
per minute where each frame carries an average of 10, 000 bits. What will be the
throughput for this network?

Output: We can calculate the throughput as-

Throughput = (12, 000 x 10, 000) / 60 = 2 Mbps
The throughput is nearly equal to one-fifth of the bandwidth in this case.
JITTER
Jitter is another performance issue related to the delay. In technical terms, jitter is a
“packet delay variance”. It can simply mean that jitter is considered a problem when
different packets of data face different delays in a network and the data at the
receiver application is time-sensitive, i.e. audio or video data. Jitter is measured in
milliseconds(ms). It is defined as an interference in the normal order of sending data
packets. For example: if the delay for the first packet is 10 ms, for the second is 35
ms, and for the third is 50 ms, then the real-time destination application that uses the
packets experiences jitter.

Simply, a jitter is any deviation in or displacement of, the signal pulses in a

high-frequency digital signal. The deviation can be in connection with the
amplitude, the width of the signal pulse, or the phase timing. The major causes of
jitter are electromagnetic interference(EMI) and crosstalk between signals. Jitter can
lead to the flickering of a display screen, affects the capability of a processor in a
desktop or server to proceed as expected, introduce clicks or other undesired impacts
in audio signals, and loss of transmitted data between network devices.

Jitter is harmful and causes network congestion and packet loss.

● Congestion is like a traffic jam on the highway. Cars cannot move
forward at a reasonable speed in a traffic jam. Like a traffic jam, in
congestion, all the packets come to a junction at the same time. Nothing
can get loaded.
● The second negative effect is packet loss. When packets arrive at
unexpected intervals, the receiving system is not able to process the
information, which leads to missing information also called “packet
loss”. This has negative effects on video viewing. If a video becomes
pixelated and is skipping, the network is experiencing a jitter. The result
of the jitter is packet loss. When you are playing a game online, the effect
of packet loss can be that a player begins moving around on the screen
randomly. Even worse, the game goes from one scene to the next,
skipping over part of the gameplay.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Jitter
In the above image, it can be noticed that the time it takes for packets to be sent is
not the same as the time in which they will arrive at the receiver side. One of the
packets faces an unexpected delay on its way and is received after the expected time.
This is jitter.

A jitter buffer can reduce the effects of jitter, either in a network, on a router or
switch, or on a computer. The system at the destination receiving the network
packets usually receives them from the buffer and not from the source system
directly. Each packet is fed out of the buffer at a regular rate. Another approach to
diminish jitter in case of multiple paths for traffic is to selectively route traffic along
the most stable paths or to always pick the path that can come closest to the targeted
packet delivery rate.
Factors Affecting Network Performance
Below mentioned are the factors that affect the network performance.
● Network Infrastrucutre
● Applications used in the Network
● Network Issues
● Network Security
Network Infrastructure
Network Infrastructure is one of the factors that affect network performance.
Network Infrastructure consists of routers, switches services of a network like IP
Addressing, wireless protocols, etc., and these factors directly affect the
performance of the network.
Applications Used in the Network
Applications that are used in the Network can also have an impact on the
performance of the network as some applications that have poor performance can
take large bandwidth, for more complicated applications, its maintenance is also
important and therefore it impacts the performance of the network.
Network Issues
Network Issue is a factor in Network Performance as the flaws or loopholes in these
issues can lead to many systemic issues. Hardware issues can also impact the
performance of the network.
Network Security
Network Security provides privacy, data integrity, etc. Performance can be
influenced by taking network bandwidth which has the work of managing the
scanning of devices, encryption of data, etc. But these cases negatively influence the
network.
Transmission impairment
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Transmission impairment occurs when the received signal is different from the transmitted
signal. As we know, a signal can be transmitted as Analog signal or it can be transmitted as a
digital signal.
In Analog signals due to transmission impairment the resulting received signal gets different
amplitude or the shape. In the case of digitally transmitted signals at the receiver side we get
changes in bits (0's or 1's).
Causes
There are various causes of transmission impairments −
● Noise
● Distortion
● Attenuation
Let us understand them one by one.
Noise
Noise is the major factor for the transmission distortion as any unwanted signal gets added to the
transmitted signal by which the resulting transmitted signal gets modified and at the receiver side
it is difficult to remove the unwanted noise signal. These noises are various kinds like shot noise,
impulse noise, thermal noise etc.
Noise is diagrammatically represented as follows −

Distortion
This kind of distortion is mainly appearing in case of composite signals in which a composite
signal has various frequency components in it and each frequency component has some time
constraint which makes a complete signal.
But while transmitting this composite signal, if a certain delay happens between the frequencies
components, then there may be the chance that the frequency component will reach the receiver
end with a different delay constraint from its original which leads to the change in shape of the
signal. The delay happens due to environmental parameters or from the distance between
transmitter and receiver etc.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Distortion is diagrammatically represented as follows −

Attenuation
Attenuation is generally decreased in signal strength, by which the received signal will be
difficult to receive at the receiver end. This attenuation happens due to the majority factor by
environment as environment imposes a lot of resistance and the signal strength decreases as it
tries to overcome the resistance imposed.

The above picture shows that the signal loses power at its travels time.
Attenuation is diagrammatically represented as follows −
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Switching techniques
In large networks, there can be multiple paths from sender to receiver. The switching technique
will decide the best route for data transmission.
Switching technique is used to connect the systems for making one-to-one communication.
Classification Of Switching Techniques

Circuit Switching
● Circuit switching is a switching technique that establishes a dedicated path between
sender and receiver.
● In the Circuit Switching Technique, once the connection is established then the dedicated
path will remain to exist until the connection is terminated.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Circuit switching in a network operates in a similar way as the telephone works.

● A complete end-to-end path must exist before the communication takes place.
● In case of circuit switching technique, when any user wants to send the data, voice, video,
a request signal is sent to the receiver then the receiver sends back the acknowledgment
to ensure the availability of the dedicated path. After receiving the acknowledgment,
dedicated path transfers the data.
● Circuit switching is used in public telephone network. It is used for voice transmission.
● Fixed data can be transferred at a time in circuit switching technology.
Communication through circuit switching has 3 phases:
● Circuit establishment
● Data transfer
● Circuit Disconnect

Circuit Switching can use either of the two technologies:

Space Division Switches:
● Space Division Switching is a circuit switching technology in which a single transmission
path is accomplished in a switch by using a physically separate set of crosspoints.
● Space Division Switching can be achieved by using crossbar switch. A crossbar switch is
a metallic crosspoint or semiconductor gate that can be enabled or disabled by a control
unit.
● The Crossbar switch is made by using the semiconductor. For example, Xilinx crossbar
switch using FPGAs.
● Space Division Switching has high speed, high capacity, and nonblocking switches.
Space Division Switches can be categorized in two ways:
● Crossbar Switch
● Multistage Switch
Crossbar Switch
The Crossbar switch is a switch that has n input lines and n output lines. The crossbar switch has
n2intersection points known as crosspoints.
Disadvantage of Crossbar switch:
The number of crosspoints increases as the number of stations is increased. Therefore, it
becomes very expensive for a large switch. The solution to this is to use a multistage switch.
Multistage Switch
● Multistage Switch is made by splitting the crossbar switch into the smaller units and then
interconnecting them.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● It reduces the number of crosspoints.

● If one path fails, then there will be an availability of another path.
Advantages Of Circuit Switching:
● In the case of Circuit Switching technique, the communication channel is dedicated.
● It has fixed bandwidth.
Disadvantages Of Circuit Switching:
● Once the dedicated path is established, the only delay occurs in the speed of data
transmission.
● It takes a long time to establish a connection approx 10 seconds during which no data can
be transmitted.
● It is more expensive than other switching techniques as a dedicated path is required for
each connection.
● It is inefficient to use because once the path is established and no data is transferred, then
the capacity of the path is wasted.
● In this case, the connection is dedicated therefore no other data can be transferred even if
the channel is free.

Message Switching
● Message Switching is a switching technique in which a message is transferred as a
complete unit and routed through intermediate nodes at which it is stored and forwarded.
● In Message Switching technique, there is no establishment of a dedicated path between
the sender and receiver.
● The destination address is appended to the message. Message Switching provides a
dynamic routing as the message is routed through the intermediate nodes based on the
information available in the message.
● Message switches are programmed in such a way so that they can provide the most
efficient routes.
● Each and every node stores the entire message and then forward it to the next node. This
type of network is known as store and forward network.
● Message switching treats each message as an independent entity.

Advantages Of Message Switching

● Data channels are shared among the communicating devices that improve the efficiency
of using available bandwidth.
● Traffic congestion can be reduced because the message is temporarily stored in the nodes.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Message priority can be used to manage the network.

● The size of the message which is sent over the network can be varied. Therefore, it
supports the data of unlimited size.
Disadvantages Of Message Switching
● The message switches must be equipped with sufficient storage to enable them to store
the messages until the message is forwarded.
● The Long delay can occur due to the storing and forwarding facility provided by the
message switching technique.

Packet Switching
● The packet switching is a switching technique in which the message is sent in one go, but
it is divided into smaller pieces, and they are sent individually.
● The message splits into smaller pieces known as packets and packets are given a unique
number to identify their order at the receiving end.
● Every packet contains some information in its headers such as source address, destination
address and sequence number.
● Packets will travel across the network, taking the shortest path as possible.
● All the packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct order.
● If any packet is missing or corrupted, then the message will be sent to resend the
message.
● If the correct order of the packets is reached, then the acknowledgment message will be
sent.

Approaches Of Packet Switching:

There are two approaches to Packet Switching:
Datagram Packet switching:
● It is a packet switching technology in which packet is known as a datagram, is considered
as an independent entity. Each packet contains the information about the destination and
switch uses this information to forward the packet to the correct destination.
● The packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct order.
● In Datagram Packet Switching technique, the path is not fixed.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● Intermediate nodes take the routing decisions to forward the packets.

● Datagram Packet Switching is also known as connectionless switching.
Virtual Circuit Switching
● Virtual Circuit Switching is also known as connection-oriented switching.
● In the case of Virtual circuit switching, a preplanned route is established before the
messages are sent.
● Call request and call accept packets are used to establish the connection between sender
and receiver.
● In this case, the path is fixed for the duration of a logical connection.
Let's understand the concept of virtual circuit switching through a diagram:

● In the above diagram, A and B are the sender and receiver respectively. 1 and 2 are the
nodes.
● Call request and call accept packets are used to establish a connection between the sender
and receiver.
● When a route is established, data will be transferred.
● After transmission of data, an acknowledgment signal is sent by the receiver that the
message has been received.
● If the user wants to terminate the connection, a clear signal is sent for the termination.

Differences b/w Datagram approach and Virtual Circuit approach

UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

Datagram approach Virtual Circuit approach

Node takes routing decisions to forward the Node does not take any routing decision.
packets.

Congestion cannot occur as all the packets Congestion can occur when the node is busy,
travel in different directions. and it does not allow other packets to pass
through.

It is more flexible as all the packets are It is not very flexible.

treated as an independent entity.
Advantages Of Packet Switching:
● Cost-effective: In packet switching technique, switching devices do not require massive
secondary storage to store the packets, so cost is minimized to some extent. Therefore,
we can say that the packet switching technique is a cost-effective technique.
● Reliable: If any node is busy, then the packets can be rerouted. This ensures that the
Packet Switching technique provides reliable communication.
● Efficient: Packet Switching is an efficient technique. It does not require any established
path prior to the transmission, and many users can use the same communication channel
simultaneously, hence makes use of available bandwidth very efficiently.
Disadvantages Of Packet Switching:
● Packet Switching technique cannot be implemented in those applications that require low
delay and high-quality services.
● The protocols used in a packet switching technique are very complex and requires high
implementation cost.
● If the network is overloaded or corrupted, then it requires retransmission of lost packets.
It can also lead to the loss of critical information if errors are nor recovered.
What is Multiplexing?
Multiplexing is a technique used to combine and send the multiple data streams over a single
medium. The process of combining the data streams is known as multiplexing and hardware used
for multiplexing is known as a multiplexer.
Multiplexing is achieved by using a device called Multiplexer (MUX) that combines n input
lines to generate a single output line. Multiplexing follows many-to-one, i.e., n input lines and
one output line.
Demultiplexing is achieved by using a device called Demultiplexer (DEMUX) available at the
receiving end. DEMUX separates a signal into its component signals (one input and n outputs).
Therefore, we can say that demultiplexing follows the one-to-many approach.
Why Multiplexing?
● The transmission medium is used to send the signal from sender to receiver. The medium
can only have one signal at a time.
● If there are multiple signals to share one medium, then the medium must be divided in
such a way that each signal is given some portion of the available bandwidth. For
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

example: If there are 10 signals and bandwidth of medium is100 units, then the 10 unit is
shared by each signal.
● When multiple signals share the common medium, there is a possibility of collision.
Multiplexing concept is used to avoid such collision.
● Transmission services are very expensive.
History of Multiplexing
● Multiplexing technique is widely used in telecommunications in which several telephone
calls are carried through a single wire.
● Multiplexing originated in telegraphy in the early 1870s and is now widely used in
communication.
● George Owen Squier developed the telephone carrier multiplexing in 1910.
Concept of Multiplexing

● The 'n' input lines are transmitted through a multiplexer and multiplexer combines the
signals to form a composite signal.
● The composite signal is passed through a Demultiplexer and demultiplexer separates a
signal to component signals and transfers them to their respective destinations.
Advantages of Multiplexing:
● More than one signal can be sent over a single medium.
● The bandwidth of a medium can be utilized effectively.

Multiplexing Techniques
Multiplexing techniques can be classified as:

Frequency-division Multiplexing (FDM)

● It is an analog technique.
● Frequency Division Multiplexing is a technique in which the available bandwidth of a
single transmission medium is subdivided into several channels.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● In the above diagram, a single transmission medium is subdivided into several frequency
channels, and each frequency channel is given to different devices. Device 1 has a
frequency channel of range from 1 to 5.
● The input signals are translated into frequency bands by using modulation techniques,
and they are combined by a multiplexer to form a composite signal.
● The main aim of the FDM is to subdivide the available bandwidth into different
frequency channels and allocate them to different devices.
● Using the modulation technique, the input signals are transmitted into frequency bands
and then combined to form a composite signal.
● The carriers which are used for modulating the signals are known as sub-carriers. They
are represented as f1,f2..fn.
● FDM is mainly used in radio broadcasts and TV networks.

Advantages Of FDM:
● FDM is used for analog signals.
● FDM process is very simple and easy modulation.
● A Large number of signals can be sent through an FDM simultaneously.
● It does not require any synchronization between sender and receiver.
Disadvantages Of FDM:
● FDM technique is used only when low-speed channels are required.
● It suffers the problem of crosstalk.
● A Large number of modulators are required.
● It requires a high bandwidth channel.
Applications Of FDM:
● FDM is commonly used in TV networks.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● It is used in FM and AM broadcasting. Each FM radio station has different frequencies,

and they are multiplexed to form a composite signal. The multiplexed signal is
transmitted in the air.

Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM)

● Wavelength Division Multiplexing is same as FDM except that the optical signals are
transmitted through the fibre optic cable.
● WDM is used on fibre optics to increase the capacity of a single fibre.
● It is used to utilize the high data rate capability of fibre optic cable.
● It is an analog multiplexing technique.
● Optical signals from different source are combined to form a wider band of light with the
help of multiplexer.
● At the receiving end, demultiplexer separates the signals to transmit them to their
respective destinations.
● Multiplexing and Demultiplexing can be achieved by using a prism.
● Prism can perform a role of multiplexer by combining the various optical signals to form
a composite signal, and the composite signal is transmitted through a fibre optical cable.
● Prism also performs a reverse operation, i.e., demultiplexing the signal.

Time Division Multiplexing

● It is a digital technique.
● In Frequency Division Multiplexing Technique, all signals operate at the same time with
different frequency, but in case of Time Division Multiplexing technique, all signals
operate at the same frequency with different time.
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● In Time Division Multiplexing technique, the total time available in the channel is
distributed among different users. Therefore, each user is allocated with different time
interval known as a Time slot at which data is to be transmitted by the sender.
● A user takes control of the channel for a fixed amount of time.
● In Time Division Multiplexing technique, data is not transmitted simultaneously rather
the data is transmitted one-by-one.
● In TDM, the signal is transmitted in the form of frames. Frames contain a cycle of time
slots in which each frame contains one or more slots dedicated to each user.
● It can be used to multiplex both digital and analog signals but mainly used to multiplex
digital signals.
There are two types of TDM:
● Synchronous TDM
● Asynchronous TDM
Synchronous TDM
● A Synchronous TDM is a technique in which time slot is preassigned to every device.
● In Synchronous TDM, each device is given some time slot irrespective of the fact that the
device contains the data or not.
● If the device does not have any data, then the slot will remain empty.
● In Synchronous TDM, signals are sent in the form of frames. Time slots are organized in
the form of frames. If a device does not have data for a particular time slot, then the
empty slot will be transmitted.
● The most popular Synchronous TDM are T-1 multiplexing, ISDN multiplexing, and
SONET multiplexing.
● If there are n devices, then there are n slots.

Concept Of Synchronous TDM

UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

In the above figure, the Synchronous TDM technique is implemented. Each device is allocated
with some time slot. The time slots are transmitted irrespective of whether the sender has data to
send or not.
Disadvantages Of Synchronous TDM:
● The capacity of the channel is not fully utilized as the empty slots are also transmitted
which is having no data. In the above figure, the first frame is completely filled, but in the
last two frames, some slots are empty. Therefore, we can say that the capacity of the
channel is not utilized efficiently.
● The speed of the transmission medium should be greater than the total speed of the input
lines. An alternative approach to the Synchronous TDM is Asynchronous Time Division
Multiplexing.
Asynchronous TDM
● An asynchronous TDM is also known as Statistical TDM.
● An asynchronous TDM is a technique in which time slots are not fixed as in the case of
Synchronous TDM. Time slots are allocated to only those devices which have the data to
send. Therefore, we can say that Asynchronous Time Division multiplexor transmits only
the data from active workstations.
● An asynchronous TDM technique dynamically allocates the time slots to the devices.
● In Asynchronous TDM, total speed of the input lines can be greater than the capacity of
the channel.
● Asynchronous Time Division multiplexor accepts the incoming data streams and creates
a frame that contains only data with no empty slots.
● In Asynchronous TDM, each slot contains an address part that identifies the source of the
data.

● The difference between Asynchronous TDM and Synchronous TDM is that many slots in
Synchronous TDM are unutilized, but in Asynchronous TDM, slots are fully utilized.
This leads to the smaller transmission time and efficient utilization of the capacity of the
channel.
● In Synchronous TDM, if there are n sending devices, then there are n time slots. In
Asynchronous TDM, if there are n sending devices, then there are m time slots where m
is less than n (m<n).
UNIT 1 Computer Networks KCS603H

● The number of slots in a frame depends on the statistical analysis of the number of input
lines.
Concept Of Asynchronous TDM

In the above diagram, there are 4 devices, but only two devices are sending the data, i.e., A and
C. Therefore, the data of A and C are only transmitted through the transmission line.
Frame of above diagram can be represented as:

The above figure shows that the data part contains the address to determine the source of the
data.