CCNA2: Networking Media

Copper Media
Cable specifications
Coaxial cable
STP cable
UTP cable
Optical Media
Multimode fiber
Single-mode fiber
Other optical components
Signals and noise in optical fibers
Installation, care, and testing of optical fiber
Wireless Media
Wireless LAN organizations and standards
Wireless devices and topologies
How wireless LANs communicate
Authentication and association
The radio wave and microwave spectrums
Signals and noise on a WLAN
Wireless security
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 Cable Specifications
• Cables have different specifications and expectations pertaining to
performance:
• What speeds for data transmission can be achieved using a particular type
of cable? The speed of bit transmission through the cable is extremely
important. The speed of transmission is affected by the kind of conduit used.
• What kind of transmission is being considered? Will the transmissions
be digital or will they be analog-based? Digital or baseband transmission
and analog-based or broadband transmission are the two choices. 
• How far can a signal travel through a particular type of cable before
attenuation of that signal becomes a concern? In other words, will the signal
become so degraded that the recipient device might not be able to
accurately receive and interpret the signal by the time the signal reaches
that device? The distance the signal travels through the cable directly
affects attenuation of the signal. Degradation of the signal is directly
related to the distance the signal travels and the type of cable used.

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 Coaxial Media

Coaxial Pros and Cons

Shielding allows signal to travel 500m Limited to 10Mbps

unrepeated Relatively unreliable
Relatively inexpensive Only usable in bus topologies
Medium difficulty to install Not the easiest to install
Not the least expensive medium
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 Shielded Twisted Pair

In shielded cable, shielding material protects the data signal from external sources of noise and
From noise generated by electrical signals within the cable.
Benefits of shielding
– protects the inner conductor from external electrical noise
– keeps the transmitted signal confined to the cable
– protects each wire pair from noise generated by the other pairs

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 Unshielded Twisted Pair

UTP Pros and Cons

• Inexpensive media
•
• Signal can only travel 100m because of
Supports speeds up to 1 Gbps
no shielding (50m if used for Gigabit
• Easiest medium to install
Ethernet)
• Most widely used for workstation
connections, telephone, etc. • Highly susceptible to outside
interference
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 Optical Media
• Light is one type of electromagnetic
energy
• Electromagnetic energy is produced when
an electric charge moves back and forth,
or accelerates
• This energy in the form of waves can
travel through a vacuum, the air, and
through some materials like glass

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 Ray Model of Light
• Wavelengths that are not visible to the human eye are used to
transmit data over optical fiber.

• These wavelengths are slightly longer than red light and are called
infrared light

Think of light rays as narrow beams of light like those produced by

lasers. In the vacuum of empty space, light travels continuously in a
straight line at 300,000 kilometers per second

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 Optical Media
• Light travels at different, slower speeds
through other materials like air, water, and
glass.
– When a light ray called the incident ray, crosses
the boundary from one material to another, some
of the light energy in the ray will be reflected
back.
– That is why you can see yourself in window
glass. The light that is reflected back is called the
reflected ray

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 Refracted ray
• Refracted ray- light energy in the incident
ray that is not reflected will enter the glass.
– The entering ray will be bent at an angle from
its original path.
– How much the incident light ray is bent
depends on the angle at which the incident
ray strikes the surface of the glass & the
different rates of speed at which light travels
through the two substances

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 Angle of incidence
• Angle of incidence : angle between the incident ray and
a line perpendicular to the surface of the glass at the
point where the incident ray strikes the glass

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 Refraction
• Index of Refraction - ratio of the speed of light in a
material to the speed of light in a vacuum

• Total Internal Reflection - A light ray that is being turned

on and off to send data (1s and 0s) into an optical fiber
must stay inside the fiber until it reaches the far end

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 Total internal reflection
• Total Internal Reflection-
– 2 conditions
• Core of the optical fiber has to have a larger index of
refraction (n) than the material that surrounds it.
• The angle of incidence of the light ray is greater than the
critical angle for the core and its cladding.

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 Multimode Fiber

• Multimode Fiber
– diameter of the core of the fiber is large
enough so that there are many paths that light
can take through the fiber
• Single-mode fiber
– smaller core
– light rays to travel along one mode

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 Fiber optic

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 Fiber optic
• 2 glass fibers encased in separate sheaths
– One fiber carries transmitted data from device A to device B.
– The second fiber carries data from device B to device A.
• The fibers are similar to two one-way streets going in
opposite directions.
• Full-duplex communication link

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 Multimode fiber (62.5/125)
• Five parts make up each fiber-optic cable
– core
– cladding
– buffer
– strength material
– outer jacket

• Carry data distances of up to 2000 meters (6,560 ft)

• 2 types of light source

– Infrared Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
– Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs)

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 Single-mode Fiber
• Single-mode fiber consists of the same parts as multimode.
• core fiber has a diameter of 9 microns and the surrounding cladding
is 125 microns in diameter.
• infrared laser is used as the light source

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 Single-mode Fiber

– single-mode allows only one mode of light to

propagate through the smaller, fiber-optic
core.
– 3000 meters
– More expensive
– Used for inter-building connectivity

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 Single-mode Fiber

• Warning: The laser light used with single-mode has a

longer wavelength than can be seen. The laser is so
strong that it can seriously damage eyes.
• Never look at the near end of a fiber that is connected to
a device at the far end.
• Never look into the transmit port on a NIC, switch, or
router. Remember to keep protective covers over the
ends of fiber and inserted into the fiber-optic ports of
switches and routers. Be very careful.

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 Transmission Devices

• Optical fiber links use light to send data

– To convert light into electricity, you need a
transmitter & receiver
• There are 2 types of light sources used to
encode and transmit the data through the
cable
– LEDs
– LASERS

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 Signals & Noise in Optical Fibers

• Advantages
– not affected by the sources of external noise
– no problem with crosstalk

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 Signals & Noise in Optical Fibers

• Disadvantages
– Scattering
– Absorption
– Attenuation
– Dispersion

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 Scattering

• Reflects and scatters some of the light

energy

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 Absorption

• cause of light energy loss

– When a light ray strikes some types of
chemical impurities in a fiber, the impurities
absorb part of the energy.
– This light energy is converted to a small
amount of heat energy.
– Absorption makes the light signal a little
dimmer

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 Attenuation
Due to manufacturing irregularities or roughness in the core-to-cladding
boundary

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 Dispersion

• limits transmission distances on a fiber

– Dispersion is the technical term for the
spreading of pulses of light as they travel
down the fiber

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 Installation, care, and testing of optical fiber
• Too much attenuation
– improper installation.
• Fiber stretched or curved too tightly
– cause tiny cracks in the core that will scatter the light rays.
– Bending the fiber changes the incident angle of light rays striking the core-to-
cladding boundary
• Connectors and the ends of the fibers must be kept spotlessly clean.

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 Fiber noise
• Fiber noise- diminishes the strength of the
light signal
• Types of fiber noise
– Scattering
– absorption
– dispersion
– improper installation
– dirty fiber ends

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 Wireless LANs

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 Wireless Networking

• Increasingly important as computing devices

become smaller and more mobile
– Laptops
– Handhelds
– Cell phones
• Important Concerns
– Bandwidth
– Security
– Interoperability

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 Wireless LAN Standards

802.11 General Standards Number

Uses same
802.11b 11 Mbps WEP frequency range as
Security: some cordless
phones (2.4 Ghz)
64-bit or
Not interoperable
802.11a 54 Mbps 128-bit with other
standards – uses
encryption higher frequency
range (5 GHz)
Interoperable with
802.11g 54 Mbps 802.11b because it
uses the same
frequency range

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 Wireless Network Adapters

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 Wireless Access Point (WAP)

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 Wireless Access Point

WAP

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 Wireless Range

Typical Range is
300-500 feet.

As range from WAP increases, negotiated speed is reduced to

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 Authentication & Association

• Who has access to your network and where?

• WLAN Authentication occurs at Layer 2 and identifies the
DEVICE not the USER
• Authentication keys must match on the WAP and the
Wireless NIC
• ASSOCIATION means that your wNIC communicates
through a particular WAP. This assignment can be
changed manually, or automatically as he user moves
through the WLAN. Association can also be restricted
based on MAC address.

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 WLAN Communications Process

• Client probes, finds a WAP

• Client transmits authentication key
• WAP accepts/rejects key, notifies client of
result
• Client is associated with the WAP
• All other network processes begin (i.e.
dynamic IP address assignment, network
login, etc.)

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 Two Types of WLANs: Ad-Hoc

• Ad-hoc system
– Also known as an Independent Basic Service
Set (IBSS) or Wireless Peer-to-Peer network
– All clients communicate directly with one
another via their wireless adapters
– No WAP is used, and there is no access to a
wired network infrastructure

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 Two Types of WLANS: Infrastructure

• Uses a WAP to provide access to a wired

network
– Technical Term: Basic Service Set (BSS)
• Multiple WAPs can be used to form
microcells with overlapping coverage
areas
– Technical Term: Extended Service Set (ESS)
– Allows the user to roam

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 Roaming and WAPs

As client moves closer

to another WAP, it re-
authenticates and re-
associates.

This process occurs in

the background and is
transparent to the
user.

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 WLAN Roaming

• Network Admin configures multiple WAPs with

overlapping coverage, each one set to a
different radio channel
• When client probes, it chooses a WAP based on
signal strength and error rates
• If signal strength weakens, client will search for
another WAP and re-tune to a new frequency,
then authenticate and associate with the new
WAP

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 What Affects Range?

• Indoor/Outdoor Use
– Building structure (internal)
– WAP vs. wireless LAN relay
• Antenna type
– Most consumer wireless products equipped
with an Omnidirectional antenna
– Other antenna types shape the signal and can
extend distance in certain directions

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 Antennae

Omnidirectional- emits signal

equally in all directions.

Unidirectional- emits signal

in one direction only.

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 Noise
• Noise related to communications refers to undesirable signals.
• Noise can originate from natural and technological sources, and
is added to the data signals in communications systems
• Here are some possible sources of noise:
– Nearby cables which carry data signals
– Radio frequency interference (RFI), which is noise from
other signals being transmitted nearby
– Electromagnetic interference (EMI), which is noise from
nearby sources such as motors and lights
– Laser noise at the transmitter or receiver of an optical signal

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 Attenuation
• Attenuation is the decrease in signal amplitude over
the length of a link (cable)
 Causes:
• Long cable lengths

• High signal frequencies

• resistance of the copper cable

• leaks through the insulation

• impedance caused by defective connectors

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 Impedance
• Impedance is a measurement of the resistance of the cable to
alternating current (AC) and is measured in ohms

• Cat5 cable is 100 ohms

• A connector improperly installed will have a different impedance

value than the cable

• This is called an impedance discontinuity or an impedance

mismatch

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 Impedance Discontinuities
• Impedance discontinuities cause attenuation because a portion
of a transmitted signal will be reflected back

• This effect with other discontinuities create echoes making it

difficult for the receiver to accurately detect the signal.

• This is called jitter and results in data errors

• The effects of signal attenuation and impedance mismatch on a

communications link is called insertion loss

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 Noise on Copper Media
• TIA/EIA-568-B certification of a cable now requires testing for a
variety of types of noise.
• Crosstalk involves the transmission of signals from one wire to a
nearby wire
• Alien crosstalk is caused by a signal on another cable

• There are three distinct types of crosstalk (noise):

– Near-end Crosstalk (NEXT)

– Far-end Crosstalk (FEXT)

– Power Sum Near-end Crosstalk (PSNEXT)

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