Computer Networks I
Sem. 7 ULFG3Elect
Textbook: An Introduction to Computer Networks
By Peter L Dordal
PDF available
Course Outline
• Layers, protocols and Key concepts of computer Networks
• Basic concepts and keywords such as
• Packet Switching, Datagram Forwarding, Routing, Network Topology , LAN/WAN,
Internetworking, Protocols, Bandwidth, Congestion, Client-Server computing…
• Study LAN technologies with particular focus on Ethernet and its evolution
• LAN Protocols, Equipment, Ethernet hubs and switches, Virtual LAN
• IP technology.
• Internetworking with IPv4, addresses, subnets, routing tables, subprotocols such as ARP,
ICMP, DHCP, NAT, DNS…
Client Server Computing
• Any communication is initiated by one computer contacting another. The initiator of the
communication is the Client, the responder is the Server.
• www, email, YouTube, Netflix, eBay, Google, Databases…
• Client requests a service (i.e. a web page), server provides the service and responds.
• Your Web browser (Edge, Chrome, Firefox…) is a Web Client program. The server that responds and provides
the webpage is the Web Serve Program (i.e. Apache webserver, IIS, etc.)
• Cluster: many servers grouped together to provide a service and appear to the rest of the
world as a single unit, ex: most heavily used web servers, are actually clusters …
• Data Center: large set of collocated servers owned by a single company.
• Cloud: datacenters distributed in many geographical zones and managed by a single owner
• P2P: When the servers are not predefined, so a set of computers collaborate and provide
services to each other, we talk about P2P computing. BitTorrent, Skype, …
Layers
• Engineering complex systems requires a “divide and conquer” approach.
Layering means decomposing the system into levels, each level solves a
particular aspect of the problem.
• Each layer uses the services of the below layer, achieves more advanced
features and provides its services to the above layer.
• Entities belonging the same Application software Application
layer communicate and
collaborate according to a Process end-to-end TCP (& UDP)
Protocol. communication
Internetwork IP
Local Network Logical LAN
Physical media, signals, Physical LAN
transmitters, receivers
The TCP/IP Architecture
• Application: For example, HTTP, Hypertext Transport
Protocol, for web pages, includes encryption/decryption Application
• TCP: Transport Control Protocol ensures process end-to-end TCP
to process communication; all the data packets arrive at a IP
Port Number, without loss and in correct order.
LAN
• IP: Internet Protocol ensures that the packets are routed to
the correct IP address on a WAN (wide area network) such
as the World Wide Web. (IP Address)
• Logical LAN or Link: software that routes packets within a
local area network (LAN) based on client network card
addresses (MAC address)
• Physical LAN: wires, routers, access points, network
interface cards, wireless channels
Bandwidth
• It’s an abuse of language, correct name is Bitrate...
• Rate at which data is transmitted across a network
• Mbps: megabits (106) per second, Gbps: gigabits (109) per second, ( Wbps? )
• For example, Fast Ethernet LAN has bitrate 100 Mbps.
• A cluster of servers in a datacenters might have gigabit or 10 gigabit Ethernet.
• Packet Transmission Time T = L / B
• B: bitrate L: Length, number of bits in the packet T: Transmit time
• It is possible to achieve a bitrate higher than the “physical bandwidth” of a
medium: it depends on the Signal-to-Noise ratio. These concepts, techniques and
relationships are studied to “Coding Theory” course.
Packets aka Datagrams
• Modest-size data structure with predefined fields, that will be transmitted as a
whole unit over the network links.
• In addition to the payload (aka data, content…), the packets contain headers;
space reserved for address and protocol information.
header payload
• Since we are using a layered architecture, each layer has its own header. The
header fields are very specific to the used protocol. The header + payload
layout of a protocol is called PDU (Protocol Data Unit).
• Each PDU of a given layer fits in the payload of the layer below it. Think of putting
a letter in an envelop which is again put inside another envelop. The header is what you
write on the envelop outside, the payload is the content inside the envelop…
header1 header2 payload
Packet name and size by layer
Application
• Physical layer: Signal TCP
• LAN layer (or Link layer): frame IP
• Maximum size for Ethernet frame: 1518 bytes Logical LAN
• Network layer (IP): Packet Physical LAN
• Transport layer (TCP or UDP): segment
• Application layer : Message
• Typical header sizes header1 header2 data
• Ethernet: 18 bytes
• IP: 20 bytes
• TCP: 20 bytes UDP: 8 bytes
• Application: depends on the application…
MTU : Maximum Transfer Unit
Routing: How Packets Get To Their Destination
• The network infrastructure has routers (or switches, gateways…) with incoming links and
outgoing links attached to “interfaces” aka “ports”.
• Each router has a routing table to decide on which outgoing link the packet should be
forwarded to get closer to its destination, according to “destination address” field in
the packet’s header.
Routing Tables of S1 and S2
S1 S2
Destination Next Destination Next
address hop address hop
A 0 A 0
C 1 D 1
B 2 E 2
D 2 B 3
E 2 C 0
Stateless Packet Switching
“To improve robustness of the communication system, gateways are designed
to be stateless, forwarding each IP datagram independently of other datagrams.
As a result, redundant paths can be exploited to provide robust service in spite
of failures of intervening gateways and networks.” RFC 1122
State means data that you save, in a memory. The stateless idea is that the
routers don’t have to remember anything about packets going by. In particular,
packets belonging to the same “end-to-end flow” are routed individually and do
not have to follow the same network path or arrive in order! This schema used
in IP is called “best-effort networking”.
Robust means it doesn’t crash if some failure occurs.
Queues and Congestion
• Routers and switches hold the packets in “queues”. Typically every output line has its own queue.
• Congestion occurs when a link gets overwhelmed: too many incoming packets want to go on
the same output route. The queue grows big. The network becomes slow.
• The Congested router needs to drop packets. Algorithms (Congestion management) are used to
quench the sources, maintain fairness among users, etc.
Network
Card
Output
Input lines
lines Routing
Funtion Network
Card
(tabe)
Network
Card