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    Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP)
    Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP)
    Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP)
    Ebook300 pages1 hour

    Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP)

    By Dimitrios Voutsinas

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    About this ebook

    We often take the global network infrastructure and communications protocols that underpin the Internet, and everything else that enables digital communications for granted. How does an email, video or voice call transcend from a screen onto wires to arrive, at the speed-of-light, in a different part of the world? An email sent from London to Sydney takes roughly 70 milliseconds (ms) to reach the receiving end user. This is less than a tenth of a second! That is quite extraordinary! How does data, voice, video and photos transcend from our phone, computer or tablet and into ones and zeros across underground and undersea cables to reach our intended recipients?

    This eBook contains the culmination of 20 years network communications and Internet field experience as well as lecture and personal notes. The training course material and notes have been updated and converted into an easy to follow eBook that can help everyone understand the very basics of network communications and the Internet Protocol (IP). IP is the protocol that underpins the Internet of everything. This eBook can be used as a general reference or to learn more about specific network communications areas of interest. It is specifically aimed at the novice school student and aspiring network architect, designer and engineer of the future. In fact, it is aimed to anyone that is perhaps a little curious about how information travels at the speed-of-light, from one corner of the earth to another, to help us communicate and share experiences and ideas with one another.

    As we reflect on how the communications industry has evolved over the last 30 years, it is quite clear that the underlying network communications protocols used today to transport megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes and petabytes of data, are fundamentally the same as those used almost 30 years ago. What has changed is the capacity of the underlying physical infrastructure required to move quadrillions of bits (ones and zeros) around the world and as a consequence of our insatiable demand for more data and bandwidth.

    Network communications and as a consequence, the Internet, is perhaps one of the greatest technological revolutions of the twenty first century. It has had a profound impact on every aspect of our life. And we have all benefited immensely from this extraordinary discovery. As the Internet evolves and innovation continues, we are perhaps now in the midst of another great technological revolution – an Artificial Intelligence (AI), mobile and cloud based one.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDimitrios Voutsinas
    Release dateFeb 28, 2015
    ISBN9781310921278
    Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP)

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      Book preview

      Speed of Light Communications and the Internet Protocol (IP) - Dimitrios Voutsinas

      Internetworking Introduction

      Network communications and the concept of data communications emerged in the 1960s. During this period, computing was centralized, with all the computing and processing power residing in the mainframe.

      The 1970s and 1980s saw the birth and evolution of the network. This included the Local Area Network (LAN) and the Wide Area Network (WAN). But the most significant development was the introduction of the Personal Computer (PC). PCs encouraged the client server model and subsequently the growth and expansions of data networks. During this period, the proliferation of the distributed computer became popular. This allowed more computing power and storage to reside locally within individual users computer. During the last five years there has been a paradigm shift in the way computers, tablets and smartphones operate and communicate. Once again, a more centralized computer and data communications model has emerged, able to better exploit and leverage the ubiquity and global reach of the Internet. Only now we call this the ‘cloud’ and not a mainframe.

      Internetworking

      During the late 1980s and 1990s, LANs and WANs were fully integrated and interconnected. Companies could interconnect their client/servers between different buildings and even continents. Although these networks were privately owned and costly to build, there were no physical network barriers and users within a company could exchange and share information irrespective of distance and physical location.

      Networks and computing had by this time moved away from the early locally centralized mainframe model to a more distributed network model. Despite these improvements there were several inherent constraints with this network architecture. This concept was known as decentralized computing.

      The Internet

      The emergence of the Internet in the 1990s was one of the most significant and lasting contributions to the concept of global communications and internetworking.

      Previously, internetworks that spanned the globe were private and extremely expensive to build and operate. Dedicated private infrastructure and circuits were required. Corporations had to be very selective about which corporate buildings and departments they were going to interconnect. Only mission critical departments and locations were interconnected to each other and back into the head office. Hardware was also very large, requiring significant amounts of space. Memory and hardware was expensive and the latter produced a vast amount of heat. Only large resourceful corporations had the required scale able to justify global connectivity. Even when corporations could provide this level of network connectivity, it was still only available to a few privileged users.

      The Internet changed all of this and the future of data communications. By removing significant barriers, the Internet enabled a more efficient and cost effective method to interconnect thousands of hosts and networks from every corner of the world. These networks, hosts and servers were accessible to everyone and from nearly anywhere. All you now needed was a PC, modem and telephone line.

      There is no longer any doubt that the Internet has, and will perhaps forever, change the way we communicate, share, work, play and learn.

      Protocols – Computers and Networks

      Computers and networks need and use protocols to define several aspects of network interaction and data communications. One example is perhaps a physical connection, and how the electrons or photons are moved between systems. Systems need to use protocols in order to interact with each other and to make sense of the data transmitted. The protocol states how two end systems must and should engage in the communication process.

      This is very similar to human and social behavior that is also predicated on certain rules of engagement and protocols. Culture influences the way in which people interact and behave. In several ways this can be compared to the rules and protocols used by networks and computers to interact. Countries, organizations, diplomats and the military use protocols to define how interaction between entities will occur. Greeting people varies from country to country, some people shake hands, others kiss with lips on the check, others kissing with noses, while others simply bow and engage in no physical contact. Subject to culture, relationship and the situation, the most suitable ways of communicating with one another will be used.

      Standards

      Standards – De Facto and De Jure

      Standards are synonymous with protocols.

      De facto standards - These are standards based on something we do and is generally accepted and used. An example of a de facto standard is UNIX. When UNIX was developed by Bell Laboratories and used as an operating system for computer systems no one expected it would become the standard for computers in scientific, engineering and research environments. The ability of UNIX to scale and handle multiple processes and have no inherent memory constraints has contributed to its acceptance and now widespread use. LINUX, is another example of an operating system that has become widely prevalent

      De jure standards - These are standards developed by an organization or group. These standards define what working protocols are and how they should be implemented. Groups of people, representing a standards body or individuals representing various organizations, act as a steering committee. They usually form standards bodies that meet regularly to, ratify standards, discuss progress and to report on aspects that have been delegated and are still in a test or concept phase.

      Proprietary standards - These are standards developed and owned by corporations or other entities. They are usually standards that operate within a manufacture’s own hardware products. IBM’s SNA and Digital’s DNA are examples of architecture that are proprietary and which dominated networks in the late 1970s and 1980s. More recently, Apple - iOS, Microsoft, Cisco, Juniper, Arista and Google – Android, all have their own propriety standards and protocols that form the core of their operating systems and that run on their devices. In Google’s case, they have developed a proprietary standard operating system for smartphones and tablets that is used by several third party vendors. More corporations are now realizing the importance of open standards and the need to adopt and embrace them.

      Standards Bodies

      American National Standards Institute (ANSI). ANSI

      co-ordinates standards related activities in the US. It approves US national

      standards and represents the US in international standards organisations.

      Internet Architecture Board (IAB). The IAB is a board of researchers who discuss internet related issues. They also oversee other groups and oversee Request for Comments (RFC) documents, some of which are designated Internet standards.

      Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA). IANA oversees the allocation and distribution of IP addresses and Autonomous System numbers. It also delegates authority for domain name assignment.

      Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). The IETF comprises of several working groups that are responsible for the development and distribution of Internet standards.

      Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

      The IEEE is a professional standards body that develops communications and network standards. IEEE LAN standards are the most predominant standards used today.

      International Telecommunications Union Telecommunication Standardisation Sector (ITU-T). This is an international standards body that develops world-wide standards for telecommunications technologies. The ITU-T was formerly known as the CCITT.

      International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO). The ISO is an international standards body that has developed many standards and protocols. The most recognized and famous been the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI).

      Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF)

      The MEF is a global industry wide collaboration. It is represented by a broad alliance of service providers, network equipment and software manufacturers and semi conductor and test vendors. The MEF’s mission is to promote and accelerate the proliferation and adoption of Ethernet and carrier class networks and services across the world. The MEF develops Metro Ethernet and WAN Ethernet technical standards. It brings together the industry to agree on the implementation of standards that ensure interoperability across distinct networks and vendor equipment. Ultimately, helping

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