Computer Networks

A computer network is a system of interconnected computers that have software components

installed on them to facilitate communication and sharing of resources.

Advantages of Networking

 It allows the sharing of resources. Resources include data, applications and peripherals.
Some resources are very expensive such that it is difficult to buy or provide for each user
in an organization. These resources can be shared on a network, and this effectively cut
costs. For example, instead of buying a high quality printer for each member of an
organization, only one high quality printer can be shared on the network. Jobs are sent for
printing on the shared printer, where they are queued and printed according to the set
priories.

 It allows standardization of applications and software so that everyone on the network

uses the same application and the same version of the application. Standardisation of
applications greatly simplifies support for the applications as well.

 It allows online communication (sending messages back and forth), e.g. email
communication, and video conferencing where virtual meetings can take place between
users in different locations

 It also allows scheduling. Scheduling is the act of setting dates for events, activities and
appointments so that every member of the organization is made aware of upcoming
events. Most scheduling utilities use an electronic calendar and flash messages to users as
a reminder of upcoming events.

The Concept of Networking

At its most elementary level, a network consists of two computers connected to each other by
some communication medium so that they could share resources. All networking no matter how
sophisticated arose from this simple system.

Network Types
There are three basic types of networks:

 Local Area Network (LAN)

 Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
 Wide Area Network (WAN)

Local Area Network

This is a network confined to a small geographical area such as an office, building or a single
floor of a building.
Metropolitan Area Network
This is a network that covers an entire city by interconnecting multiple LANs within a city. It is
larger than a LAN but smaller than a WAN.

Wide Area Network

This is a network covering a large geographical area such as across cities, states and continents.
This is accomplished by connecting different LANs using services such as dedicated leased
phone lines, dial-up phone lines (both synchronous and asynchronous), satellite links, and data
packet carrier services.

Network categories

Networks can be divided into two main categories:

Peer-to-Peer

Server – based

Peer-to-peer networks require no dedicated servers and no administrators. There is no hierarchy

among the computers. All of the computers are equal and therefore known as peers. Normally
each computer functions as both a client and a server by accessing shared resources from other
computers on the network as well as sharing its resources with other computers on the network.
Peer–to-peer networks are also called workgroups. The term workgroup implies a small group of
people. Peer-to-peer networks typically have a practical limit of 10 computers. In a peer-to-peer
network there is no central administration since there are no dedicated servers.

Peer-to-peer

Fig 1-1 Peer-to-Peer Network

Each user has control over all their resources and decides how these resources get shared.
Security in a peer to peer is share-level. This means that a password is set on each shared
resource. Any user knowing the password can access the resource.
Share-level security is also called password-protected shares. The lack of dedicated servers in a
peer-to-peer network makes the network simple and easy to setup, and lowers the cost of setting
up the network. Servers are one of the most expensive pieces of equipment on a network.
Peer-to-peer networks are good choices for the needs of small organizations where the
users are located in the same general area such as a small office, and where security is not a
major concern and where the projected future growth of the network is limited.
Operating systems such as Microsoft Windows NT workstation, Windows 9x, etc, have inbuilt
peer-to-peer networking capabilities (no additional software is required to setup a peer-to-peer
networks when using them).
Server-based networks offer greater security as well as centralized, coherent administration of
resources. The network administrator centrally administers shared resources and network
security. The central administration of security creates consistent security policies that are
applied to each user on the network. Data is also centrally administered, making it easier to
backup critical data.
Server-based networks can accommodate a large number of computers and users, unlike peer-to-
peer networks that have a practical limit of 10 computers. A server-based network consists of
dedicated servers that hold various resources. Client computers access the shared resources from
the servers. The client computers usually have the ability to carry out some of the processing
locally. A dedicated server is a computer that only functions as a server (making its resources
available to the network and responds to requests from client computers) and will not function as
a client computer at any time. Dedicated servers quickly service the requests from the client
computers and ensure the security of the resources they hold.

sse
server

server

Fig 1-2 Server-Based Network

The servers are usually located in a separate room away from the client computers. Only the
Administrator and some authorized users have access to this location. This ensures physical
security of the servers and keeps the curious users from tempering with the servers. Each user
should give authentication information (identify yourself and verify that you are authorized to
use the network) by supplying a valid username and password combination to connect to the
network, and this logon determines access to shared resources. This type of security where a
username and password combination is required to log on is called user-level security or Access
permissions. User-level security is a more extensive security model and provides a higher level
of control over access to resources.
Specialised Servers
As the network increases in size and traffic, more than one server will be required on the network
to accommodate the expanding needs of users. Some tasks such as e-mail, application serving
and database can be resource-intensive. Each of these tasks often requires its own server to
provide acceptable performance. Spreading the load among many servers ensures that each task
is performed in the most efficient manner possible. The different types of dedicated servers
include the following:
 File and print server. It manages user access and the use of file and printer
resources.
  Application server. It provides user access to application programs.
 Mail server. It manages electronic messaging among network users.
Combination Networks
A combination network is one that combines peer-to-peer networking and server based
networking. This gives the users the benefit of both peer-to-peer and server based networks in
one network. In this type of network there are dedicated servers running server operating
systems, allowing client computers to access resources from them. The workstations or client
computers are running the client operating systems, and can still share resources among
themselves as in a peer-to-peer network.
2Network Topologies
Network topology refers to the geometric arrangement or physical layout of computers,
peripherals and cable links in a network. There are three primary topologies:
 Bus
 Star
 Ring

The Bus Topology

The bus topology is the simplest and most commonly used topology for networking computers.
It is also known as a linear bus because computers are attached or connected to a single linear
cable called a trunk or backbone. Computers on the bus network communicate by sending
packets of data to each other. A computer will send a packet of data to all computers on the
network (broadcast). Each computer listens and examines every packet on the wire to determine
if the packet is intended for it, and accepts only packets addressed to it. The bus topology is a
passive topology because computers on the network are not actively involved in the movement
of data. On an active topology computers regenerate the data signals and pass the signals to the
next computer on the network. The number of computers on the network affects network
performance. Performance degrades as more computers are added to the bus network.

Fig 2-1
Signal Bouncing
Because the electrical signal representing the data is broadcast to all computers on a bus network,
it will travel from one end of the cable to the other. If the signal is allowed to continue
uninterrupted, it would keep bouncing back and forth along the cable and prevents other
computers from putting data on the transmission medium. A terminator, which is a resistor
placed at each end of the cable provides electrical resistance to ensure that network traffic does
not echo back through network and be received again by the computers when it reaches the end
of the cable. One of the terminators should be grounded by attaching a conductor such as a wire
to a position of zero electrical potential.
Advantages
 It uses the least amount of cable and is easy to expand.
 It is relatively simple, inexpensive and reliable.
 Failure of one computer does not bring the whole network down.
Disadvantages
 A cable break can bring the entire network down.
 Network becomes slower and slower as more and more computers are added to the
network.
 It is difficult to troubleshoot and isolate problems.

Star Topology

On a star topology, each computer is connected by a cable segment to a central device, which
can be a hub, a switch or a repeater. Computers communicate with each other by passing data
through the hub. The network requires more cables because each computer requires a cable
segments to connect to the central device. If a computer fails or the cable segment that connects
the computer to the hub is broken, only that link is affected the rest of the network continues to
function normally.

Fig 2-2

Advantages
 Network expansion and reconfiguration are relatively simple. For instance, new
computers can be easily added to the network.
 Failure of one computer does not affect the rest of the network.
  Each computer is attached by its own cable segment to the central hub, which makes it
easy to isolate individual computers from the network by disconnecting them from the
wiring hub.
 Network management and monitoring can be centralized because all data goes through a
central device, which can be equipped with diagnostic features that make it easy to
troubleshoot network problems. For instance, a hub or switch may also have extra
features like LEDs that indicate activity and errors on each port, making it even easier to
isolate problems. Intelligent hubs can track network activity such as the number of
packets transferred and the occurrence of errors within the packet.
 Can accommodate different wiring.
Disadvantages
 Uses a large amount of cable because each computer must have a separate cable run from
the central device.
 If the central device fails, the entire network fails.

Ring Topology

On a ring topology, computers are connected one node to the other by a single cable forming a
circle. Computers on the ring network use a signal called a token to carry the data from one
computer to the other. The access method used by the computers to put data on the
communication medium is called token passing. Unlike the bus topology, the ring topology is an
active topology. Each computer on the ring acts as a repeater to boost the signal and pass it to the
next computer until it reaches the destination computer. The receiving computer strips the data
from the token and returns the token to the sending computer with an acknowledgment. After
verification, the token is regenerated and release for use by any other computer requiring data
transfer. While the token is in use by one computer, other computers on the ring cannot transmit,
because only the computer with the token can transmit data. This ensures that there are no
collisions and hence no times spend waiting for computers to resend data after a collision.

Fig 2-3

Advantages
  All computers have equal access to data. During peak usage performance is even for all
users. Ring networks perform well with heavy network traffic.
 Each computer acts as a repeater and as a result there is little signal degradation.
Disadvantages
 Network expansion or reconfiguration will disrupt network operations.
 If one computer fails, the whole network is goes down.

Mesh Topology

Apart from the three primary topologies, we also have the mesh topology. The mesh topology
connects each computer to every other computer on the network (each computer has a point-to-
point connection to every other computer on the network). Meshes use a significantly larger
amount of network cabling than the other network topologies, which makes it more expensive.
Every computer has multiple possible connection paths to the other computers on the network for
redundancy. As a result, a single cable break will not stop network communications between any
two computers.

Fig 2-4
The total number of connections required can be calculated using the following formula:

Where n is the number of stations.

Advantage
 Reliability is increased because there are alternative routes by which data can be
transmitted in the event of one of the links failing.
Disadvantages
 Additional hardware can make mesh topologies expensive.
 When a new computer or device is added, a connection to all existing devices or
computers must be made.
Hybrid Topologies

These are topologies made by combining the three primary topologies. Examples are the Star-
Bus and the Star-Ring topologies.

The Star-Bus

It is a combination of the bus and the star topologies. It consists of several star topology
networks linked together by a linear bus trunk.

The Star-Ring

The Star-Ring is a combination of the ring and star topologies. It is sometimes called a star-wired
ring. It contains a main hub that has a logical ring configuration internally. The main hub is
connected to other hubs that can have computers connected to them.
A network’s topology affects its capabilities. The choice of topology determines the following:
 The type of equipment required on the network
 The network growth
 The way a network is managed and ease of troubleshooting
 The type of cabling