ROLL NO 584

Networking
Assignment BSCS 6TH EVENING

Muhammad Awais Ejaz

IP Network
An IP network is a communication network that uses Internet Protocol (IP) to send
and receive messages between one or more computers. As one of the most
commonly used global networks, an IP network is implemented in Internet
networks, local area networks (LAN) and enterprise networks. An IP network
requires that all hosts or network nodes be configured with the TCP/IP suite.

The Internet is the largest and best known IP network.

Each host is assigned a unique logical IP address, which distinguishes it from other
nodes and helps initiate data communication with other hosts. IP network
communication occurs when a host sends a data packet to another host by
addressing its IP address. Similarly, the recipient identifies the sender by its IP
address.
Moreover, an IP network requires that all connected devices - such as servers,
switches, routers and other devices - be configured with the TCP/IP suite and have
a valid IP address to perform any network communication.

IP Networking

IP 101
This is a very brief introduction to IP networking. For more in-depth information, there are a number of
excellent references. In particular, Douglas Comer's Internetworking with TCP/IP (Prentice Hall) is one
of the standard references and provides a wealth of information on the subject.

IP Addresses

Each device on an IP network requires 3 different pieces of information in order to correctly

communicate with other devices on the network: an IP address, a subnet mask, and a broadcast address.
You will usually see each of these numbers written as four "octets" (e.g. 198.41.12.151, 255.255.255.0,
and 198.41.12.255).
Every IP address is really made up of two pieces: a "network" portion, which tells routers what group of
devices a packet should go to (e.g., any, a campus, etc.) and a "host" portion which tells routers what
specific device among that group the packet should go to.

By examining the destination address in an IP packet that must be forwarded, and by using information
that has either been statically configured or dynamically gathered from other routers, any router can
determine the optimal path for forwarding packets from one group to another.

Each group of devices on an IP internet needs to have a unique network portion, and each device within
that group also needs a unique host portion. In the case of the Internet, this uniqueness is made possible
by indirectly getting all network portion assignments through a central clearinghouse called the Network
Information Center or "NIC." The NIC assigns blocks of addresses to Internet Service Providers (ISPs),
who then assign these addresses to their customers.

If your network is, or will be, connected to the Internet, you will need to get a unique network address
from your ISP or network administrator.

How much of any given address is the network part and how much is the host part is determined by the
"class" of the network. In each case, the part of the address not used for the network portion is left as the
host portion.

Table A-1 describes how IP address classes are organized.

Table A-1 IP Address Classes

Class Network Portion Hosts Allowed

A from 1.0 to 127.0 approx. 16 million

B from 128.0 to 191.255 65,536
C from 192.0 to 223.255.255 255

You can always tell what class an address is by looking at the first octet and comparing it to the chart
above. For instance, the address at the top of this appendix has 198 as the first octet, so it is Class C.

Subnet Masks

A subnet mask tells a router how much of an address it should treat as the network portion. The masks for
traditional Class A, B and C networks are shown below in Table A-2

Table A-2 Standard IP Subnets

Class Subnet Mask

A 255.0.0.0
B 255.255.0.0
C 255.255.255.0

Comparing the masks above to the first chart, you can see that the 255s in a mask identify the network
portion of the address.

Just as the masks above specify what portion of the global IP address range a network is using, a subnet
mask can also be used to subdivide a Class A, B or C network range into multiple groups of hosts, or
"subnets."

This is done by telling the router that more than the traditional number of bits in the mask are to be treated
as the network portion of the address. Table A-3 shows all of the possible Class C subnet masks, and how
many hosts are then allowed on each subnet.

Table A-3 Subnetted Class C Host Ranges

Subnet Mask Host Ranges

255.255.255.0 1 to 254 (traditional C)

255.255.255.128 1-126, 129-254
255.255.255.192 1-62, 65-126, 129-190, 193-254
255.255.255.224 1-30, 33-62, 65-94, 97-126, 129-158,
161-190, 193-222, 225-254
255.255.255.240 1-14, 17-30, 33-46, 49-62, 65-78, 81-
94, 97-110, 113-126, 129-142, 145-158,
161-174, 177-190, 193-206, 209-222,
225-238, 241-254
255.255.255.248 1-6, etc.

The lowest calculated address in each range (0 in the traditional C range) is not shown, cannot be used,
and is skipped in the chart. The highest address in each range (255 in the traditional C range) is also not
shown, and is the broadcast address for the subnet.

With each mask above, the 1s in the binary value represent the network portion, and the 0s represent the
host portion (128 is 10000000, 192 is 11000000, etc.). As you use more bits to represent the network
portion, fewer bits are left to use as host addresses.
The same idea can be extended to Class A and Class B networks.

Broadcast Addresses

The broadcast address is the address to which devices send packets meant for all other devices. All
devices "listen" for broadcasts in addition to their own address. Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)
packets and routing information are examples of packets sent to the broadcast address. Most often, the
broadcast address is the last address in the network (or subnet) with the host portion being all 1's binary
(some networks use 0.0.0.0 or 255.255.255.255, however.). Table A-4 shows some examples of broadcast
addresses.

Table A-4 Broadcast Address Examples

Class Network Subnet Mask Broadcast

A 45.0.0.0 255.0.0.0 45.255.255.255

B 128.138.0.0 255.255.0.0 128.138.255.255
C 198.41.9.0 255.255.255.0 198.41.9.255
A* 45.21.16.0 255.255.252.0 42.21.19.255
C* 198.41.9.64 255.255.255.224 198.41.9.95

The first three entries are traditional Class A, B and C network addresses and use traditional masks. The
last two are less traditional, "real world" examples. Note in line 4 the change in the third octet between
network address and broadcast address. Line 5 shows what happens when a Class C network has been
subnetted.

Assigning an IP address

Use the network portion you were given by your administrator or ISP. Assign the router interface a
unique (i.e. unused) host portion. For example, if your ISP tells you your network portion is 198.41.9, you
could assign an interface to 198.41.9.1. If you have a router with more than one interface, the network (+
subnet) portions of each port's IP address must be different.

Assigning a Subnet Mask

If you are using traditional Class A, B or C networks, the VPN 5000 Manager will automatically calculate
the value for you. If you wish to compute it yourself, use the values in Table A-2.

If you are subnetting, use Table A-3 as a guide for Class C, or follow the same scheme for Class A or B.
Note that the IP address for a subnetted interface (including the router interface on that subnet) must be in
the correct subnet range, as shown in Table A-3.
Assigning a Broadcast Address

The VPN 5000 Manager will automatically compute the broadcast address for you. If you wish to
compute it yourself, use the examples in Table A-4 above as a guide. You can then use the Manager to
check your results.

What is a network switch?

A network switch is a device that connects devices together on a LAN. A switch

is essentially a multiport network bridge and performs the same basic functions as
a bridge, but at much faster speeds and with many additional features. Each port on
a switch is in a separate collision domain and can run in the full duplex mode,
which means that hosts connected to a switch port can transmit to the switch at the
same time that the switch transmits to them.
An Ethernet switch usually works at the Data link layer of the OSI model (Layer
2). It manages the flow of data across a network by inspecting the incoming
frame’s destination MAC address and forwarding the frame only to the host for
which the message was intended. Each switch has a dynamic table (called
the MAC address table) that maps MAC addresses to ports. With this
information, a switch can identify which system is sitting on which port and where
to send the received frame.
To better understand how a switch works, consider the following example:
 Host A is trying to communicate with Host C and sends a packet with the Host C’s
destination MAC address. The packet arrives at the switch, which looks at the
destination MAC address. The switch then searches that MAC address in its MAC
address table. If the MAC address is found, the switch then forwards the packet
only out the port connected to the frame’s destination. Hosts connected to other
ports will not receive the frame.


About Network Switches 

Ethernet switches are the most common type, but you'll also find switches
optimized for ATM, Fibre Channel, and Token Ring

Mainstream Ethernet switches like those inside broadband routers

support Gigabit Ethernet speeds per individual link, but high-performance
switches like those in data centers usually support 10 Gbps per link.

Different models of network switches support varying numbers of connected

devices. Consumer-grade network switches provide either four or eight
connections for Ethernet devices, while corporate switches typically support
between 32 and 128 connections.
Switches also connect to each other, a daisy chaining method to add a
progressively larger number of devices to a LAN.

Managed and Unmanaged Switches

Basic network switches like those used in consumer routers require no special
configuration beyond plugging in cables and power.

Compared to these unmanaged switches, high-end devices used on

enterprise networks support a range of advanced features designed to be
controlled by a professional administrator. Popular features of managed
switches include SNMP monitoring, link aggregation, and QoS support.

Traditionally managed switches are built to be controlled from Unix-style

command line interfaces. A newer category of managed switches called smart
switches, targeted at entry-level and midrange enterprise networks, support
web-based interfaces similar to a home router.

Network Switches vs. Hubs and Routers

A network switch physically resembles a network hub. Unlike hubs, however,
network switches are capable of inspecting incoming messages as they are
received and directing them to a specific communications port—a technology
called packet switching

A switch determines the source and destination addresses of each packet and
forwards data only to the specific devices, while hubs transmit the packets to
every port except the one that received the traffic. It works this way to
conserve network bandwidth and generally improve performance compared to
hubs.

Switches also resemble network routers. While routers and switches both
centralize local device connections, only routers contain support for interfacing
to outside networks, either local networks or the internet.