Computer Network Work : Basics building blocks of a Computer network are Nodes and Links.

A Network
Node can be illustrated as Equipment for Data Communication like a Modem, Router, etc., or Equipment
of a Data Terminal like connecting two computers or more. Link in Computer Networks can be defined as
wires or cables or free space of wireless networks. The working of Computer Networks can be simply
defined as rules or protocols which help in sending and receiving data via the links which allow Computer
networks to communicate. Each device has an IP Address, that helps in identifying a device. Types of
Enterprise Computer Networks : LAN: A Local Area Network (LAN) is a network that covers a small area,
such as an office or a home. LANs are typically used to connect computers and other devices within a
building or a campus. WAN: A Wide Area Network (WAN) is a network that covers a large geographic
area, such as a city, country, or even the entire world. WANs are used to connect LANs together and are
typically used for long-distance communication. Cloud Networks: Cloud Networks can be visualized with a
Wide Area Network (WAN) as they can be hosted on public or private cloud service providers and cloud
networks are available if there is a demand. Cloud Networks consist of Virtual Routers, Firewalls, etc.
Types of Computer Network Architecture : Computer Network falls under these broad Categories:
Client-Server Architecture: Client-Server Architecture is a type of Computer Network Architecture in which
Nodes can be Servers or Clients. Here, the server node can manage the Client Node Behaviour.
Peer-to-Peer Architecture: In P2P (Peer-to-Peer) Architecture, there is not any concept of a Central
Server. Each device is free for working as either client or server.

Network Topology : In Computer Network ,there are various ways through which different components are
connected to one another. Network Topology is the way that defines the structure, and how these
components are connected to each other. Types of Network Topology : The arrangement of a network
that comprises nodes and connecting lines via sender & receiver is referred to as Network Topology. The
various network topologies are: 1. Point to Point Topology : Point-to-Point Topology is a type of topology
that works on the functionality of the sender and receiver. It is the simplest communication btw two nodes,
in which one is the sender and the other one is the receiver. Point-to-Point provides high bandwidth. 2.
Mesh Topology : In a mesh topology, every device is connected to another device via a particular
channel. In Mesh Topology, the protocol used are AHCP (Ad Hoc Configuration Protocols), DHCP
(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), etc. 3. Bus Topology : Bus Topology is a network type in which
every computer and network device is connected to a single cable. It is bi-directional. It is a multi-point
connection and a non-robust topology because if the backbone fails the topology crashes. In Bus
Topology, various MAC (Media Access Control) protocols are followed by LAN ethernet connections like
TDMA, Pure Aloha, CDMA, Slotted Aloha, etc. 4. Tree Topology : This topology is the variation of the Star
topology. This topology has a hierarchical flow of data. In Tree Topology, protocols like DHCP and SAC
(Standard Automatic Configuration ) are used. 5. Hybrid Topology : This topological technology is the
combination of all the various types of topologies we have studied above. Hybrid Topology is used when
the nodes are free to take any form. It means these can be individuals such as Ring or Star topology or
can be a combination of various types of topologies seen above. Each individual topology uses the
protocol that has been discussed earlier.

TCP/IP Model : The OSI Model we just looked at is just a reference/logical model. It was designed to
describe the functions of the communication system by dividing the communication procedure into smaller
and simpler components. TCP/IP was designed and developed by the Department of Defense (DoD) in
the 1960s and is based on standard protocols. It stands for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet
Protocol. The TCP/IP model is a concise version of the OSI model. It contains four layers, unlike the
seven layers in the OSI model. The number of layers is sometimes referred to as five or four. Here In this
article, we’ll study five layers. The Physical Layer and Data Link Layer are referred to as one single layer
as the ‘Physical Layer’ or ‘Network Interface Layer’ in the 4-layer reference. TCP/IP Model Work :
Whenever we want to send something over the internet using the TCP/IP Model, the TCP/IP Model
divides the data into packets at the sender’s end and the same packets have to be recombined at the
receiver’s end to form the same data, and this thing happens to maintain the accuracy of the data. TCP/IP
model divides the data into a 4-layer procedure, where the data first go into this layer in one order and
again in reverse order to get organized in the same way at the receiver’s end. Layers of TCP/IP Model :
Application Layer, Transport Layer(TCP/UDP), Network/Internet Layer(IP), Data Link Layer (MAC),
Physical Layer.
Packet Switching : Packet Switching in computer networks is a method of transferring data to a network in
the form of packets. In order to transfer the file fast and efficiently manner over the network and minimize
the transmission latency, the data is broken into small pieces of variable length, called Packet. At the
destination, all these small parts (packets) have to be reassembled, belonging to the same file. A packet
is composed of a payload and various control information. No pre-setup or reservation of resources is
needed. Packet Switching uses the Store and Forward technique while switching the packets; while
forwarding the packet each hop first stores that packet then forwards. This technique is very beneficial
because packets may get discarded at any hop for some reason. More than one path is possible between
a pair of sources and destinations. Each packet contains the Source and destination address using which
they independently travel through the network. In other words, packets belonging to the same file may or
may not travel through the same path. If there is congestion at some path, packets are allowed to choose
different paths possible over an existing network.

Circuit Switching : In circuit switching network resources (bandwidth) are divided into pieces and bit delay
is constant during a connection. The dedicated path/circuit established between sender and receiver
provides a guaranteed data rate. Data can be transmitted without any delays once the circuit is
established. Telephone system network is one of the example of Circuit switching. TDM (Time Division
Multiplexing) and FDM (Frequency Division Multiplexing) are two methods of multiplexing multiple signals
into a single carrier.

Virtual Circuit : Virtual Circuit is the computer network providing connection-oriented service. It is a
connection-oriented network. In virtual circuit resource are reserve for the time interval of data
transmission between two nodes. This network is a highly reliable medium of transfer. Virtual circuits are
costly to implement. Working of Virtual Circuit: In the first step a medium is set up between the two end
nodes. Resources are reserved for the transmission of packets. Then a signal is sent to sender to tell the
medium is set up and transmission can be started. It ensures the transmission of all packets. A global
header is used in the first packet of the connection. Whenever data is to be transmitted a new connection
is set up. Congestion Control in Virtual Circuit: No new connection – No new connections are established
when the congestion is detected. This approach is used in telephone networks where no new calls are
established when the exchange is overloaded. Participation of congested router invalid – Another
approach to control congestion is allow all new connections but route these new connections in such a
way that congested router is not part of this route.

OSI Model : OSI stands for Open Systems Interconnection, where open stands to say non proprietary. It
is a 7-layer architecture with each layer having specific functionality to perform. All these 7 layers work
collaboratively to transmit the data from one person to another across the globe. The OSI reference
model was developed by ISO – ‘International Organization for Standardization‘, in the year 1984. The OSI
model provides a theoretical foundation for understanding network communication. However it is usually
not directly implemented in its entirety in real-world networking hardware or software. Instead, specific
protocols and technologies are often designed based on the principles outlined in the OSI model to
facilitate efficient data transmission and networking operations. 7 layers of the OSI Model : Physical
Layer, Data Link Layer, Network Layer, Transport Layer, Session Layer, Presentation Layer, Application
Layer.

Transmission Media : Transmission media is a communication channel that carries the information from
the sender to the receiver. Data is transmitted through the electromagnetic signals. The main functionality
of the transmission media is to carry the information in the form of bits through LAN(Local Area Network).
It is a physical path between transmitter and receiver in data communication. In a copper-based network,
the bits in the form of electrical signals. In a fibre based network, the bits in the form of light pulses. In
data communication terminology, a transmission medium is a physical path between the transmitter and
the receiver i.e. it is the channel through which data is sent from one place to another. Transmission
Media is broadly classified into the following types: Guided Media: It is also referred to as Wired or
Bounded transmission media. Signals being transmitted are directed and confined in a narrow pathway by
using physical links. Features: High Speed, Secure, Used for comparatively shorter distances. There are
3 major types of Guided Media: Twisted Pair Cable – It consists of 2 separately insulated conductor wires
wound about each other. Generally, several such pairs are bundled together in a protective sheath. They
are the most widely used Transmission Media. Twisted Pair is of two types: (a.) Unshielded Twisted Pair
(UTP): UTP consists of two insulated copper wires twisted around one another. This type of cable has the
ability to block interference and does not depend on a physical shield for this purpose. It is used for
telephonic applications. Advantages: Least expensive, Easy to install, High-speed capacity.
Disadvantages: Susceptible to external interference, Lower capacity and performance in comparison to
STP, Short distance transmission due to attenuation. Applications: Used in telephone connections and
LAN networks. (b.) Shielded Twisted Pair (STP): This type of cable consists of a special jacket (a copper
braid covering or a foil shield) to block external interference. It is used in fast-data-rate Ethernet and in
voice and data channels of telephone lines. Advantages: Better performance at a higher data rate in
comparison to UTP, Eliminates crosstalk, Comparatively faster. Disadvantages: Comparatively difficult to
install and manufacture, More expensive, Bulky. Applications: The shielded twisted pair type of cable is
most frequently used in extremely cold climates, where the additional layer of outer covering makes it
perfect for withstanding such temperatures or for shielding the interior components.

Coaxial Cable : Coaxial cable is typically used by cable operators, telephone companies, and internet
providers to transmit data, video, and voice communications to customers. Its installation and
implementation are easy but it is less efficient than optical fiber also it provides moderately high
bandwidth in comparison to optical fiber. Coaxial Cable is a type of guided media made of Plastics, and
copper wires which transmit the signal in electrical form rather than light form. Coaxial cable is also known
as coax. The core copper conductor is used for the transmission of signals and the insulator is used to
provide insulation to the copper conductor the insulator is surrounded by a braided metal conductor which
helps to prevent the interference of electrical signals and prevent cross talk. This entire setup is again
covered with a protective plastic layer to provide extra safety to the cable. Coaxial Cables Work : Coaxial
cables consist of concentric layers of electrical conductors and insulating material. This structure ensures
that signals are protected within the cable and that electrical interference does not interfere with the
signal. The primary conductor layer consists of a thin conducting wire made of solid or braided copper. A
dielectric layer comprised of an insulating substance with well-defined electrical properties surrounds the
wire. The dielectric layer is then surrounded by a shield layer of metal foil or braided copper. The whole
thing is wrapped in an insulating covering. The outside metal shield layer of a coaxial cable is normally
connected in the connectors at both ends to filter the signals and reduce all unwanted transmission, so
this is how coaxial cable works. Types of Coaxial cables : 1. Flexible coaxial cable: The flexible coaxial
cables are very flexible and the inner conductor is surrounded by a flexible polymer. 2. Semi-rigid coaxial
cable: Semi-rigid coaxial cable uses a solid copper outer sheath with a dielectric of
Polytetrafluoroethylene. 3. Formable coaxial cable: It is an alternative to semi-rigid cable, instead of a
rigid copper outer sheath a flexible metal sheath is utilized. 4. Twinaxial cable: It has two central
conductors in the core and a single outer core and dielectric. these cables are best for low-frequency
digital and video transmission.

Fiber Optics : An Optical Fiber is a cylindrical fiber of glass which is hair thin size or any transparent
dielectric medium. The fiber which is used for optical communication is waveguides made of transparent
dielectrics. Main element of Fiber Optics : Core: It is the central tube of very thin size made of optically
transparent dielectric medium and carries the light transmitter to receiver and the core diameter may vary
from about 5um to 100 um. Cladding: It is outer optical material surrounding the core having reflecting
index lower than core and cladding helps to keep the light within the core throughout the phenomena of
total internal reflection. Buffer Coating: It is a plastic coating that protects the fiber made of silicon rubber.
The typical diameter of the fiber after the coating is 250-300 um. Types of Fiber optics : 1. On the basis of
the Number of Modes: Single-mode fiber: In single-mode fiber, only one type of ray of light can propagate
through the fiber. This type of fiber has a small core diameter (5um) and high cladding diameter (70um)
and the difference between the refractive index of core and cladding is very small. There is no dispersion
i.e. no degradation of the signal during traveling through the fiber. The light is passed through it through a
laser diode. 2. On the basis of Refractive Index: Step-index optical fiber: The refractive index of core is
constant. The refractive index of the cladding is also constant. The rays of light propagate through it in the
form of meridional rays which cross the fiber axis during every reflection at the core-cladding boundary.
Graded index optical fiber: In this type of fiber, the core has a non-uniform refractive index that gradually
decreases from the centre towards the core-cladding interface. The cladding has a uniform refractive
index. The light rays propagate through it in the form of skew rays or helical rays. it is not cross the fiber
axis at any time. 3. On the basis of Material Used: Plastic Optical Fibres: For transmission of light,
polymethylmethacrylate is used as core material. Glass Fibres: It is an extremely fine glass fibres, core
and cladding of the optical fibre is made of plastic.

Wireless Communication : Wireless communication is also referred to as Unguided Media or Unbounded

transmission media. In this mode, no physical medium is required for the transmission of electromagnetic
signals. In wireless communication, we can transfer our message through the air, water or vacuum i.e.
Infrared, Radio wave, Microwave wave. So, we don’t worry about the cables or any material to transfer
messages, as we can send out a message without and medium. Wireless communication has
advantages and also have disadvantages like it is less secure if we talk about security. Types : Infrared :
Infrared is used for short-range communication like TV remotes, mobile phones, personal computers etc.
In science, the Infrared is part of a spectrum that is not visible to the human eye. The limitation of infrared
rays is that they cannot penetrate any obstacles and can only use for short-range. Also, Infrared is used
in night vision cameras as it has thermal properties. The frequency range of infrared rays 300GHz –
400THz. Microwaves : Microwaves are a line of sight transmission, meaning both the antennas sending
and receiving should be properly aligned. Also, the distance covered by the signal is directly proportional
to the height of the antenna. Microwaves have a frequency Range between 1GHz – 300GHz. Basically,
we used Microwaves in mobile phones communication and television distribution. Radio Waves : The
limitation of infrared waves, so here’s another wireless communication that does not have limitations like
infrared. Here we are discussing radio waves. that can travel large distances as well as can penetrate any
wall ( Omni-directional, these waves can move in all directions). These are easy to generate and can
penetrate through buildings. The requirement of radio waves is antennas, sending antennas where one
can transmit its message and the other is receiving antennas. The frequency range of radio waves:3KHz
– 1GHz. Also, radio waves of frequency 300KHz-30MHz can travel long distances. Moreover, they are
Susceptible to interference meaning they can penetrate any walls.

Design Issues in Data Link Layer : Data-link layer is the second layer after the physical layer. The data
link layer is responsible for maintaining the data link between two hosts or nodes. The data link layer is
divided into two sub-layers : 1. Logical Link Control Sub-layer (LLC) – Provides the logic for the data link,
Thus it controls the synchronization, flow control, and error checking functions of the data link layer.
Functions are – (i) Error Recovery (ii) It performs the flow control operations. (iii) User addressing. 2.
Media Access Control Sub-layer (MAC) – It is the second sub-layer of data-link layer. It controls the flow
and multiplexing for transmission medium. Transmission of data packets is controlled by this layer. This
layer is responsible for sending the data over the network interface card. Functions are – (i) To perform
the control of access to media. (ii) It performs the unique addressing to stations directly connected to
LAN. (iii) Detection of errors. Design issues with data link layer are : 1. Services provided to the network
layer – The data link layer act as a service interface to the network layer. The principle service is
transferring data from network layer on sending machine to the network layer on destination machine.
This transfer also takes place via DLL (Data link-layer). 2. Frame synchronization – The source machine
sends data in the form of blocks called frames to the destination machine. The starting and ending of
each frame should be identified so that the frame can be recognized by the destination machine. 3. Flow
control – Flow control is done to prevent the flow of data frame at the receiver end. The source machine
must not send data frames at a rate faster than the capacity of destination machine to accept them. 4.
Error control – Error control is done to prevent duplication of frames. The errors introduced during
transmission from source to destination machines must be detected and corrected at the destination
machine.

Framing in Data Link Layer : Frames are the units of digital transmission, particularly in computer
networks and telecommunications. Frames are comparable to the packets of energy called photons in the
case of light energy. Frame is continuously used in Time Division Multiplexing process. Framing is a
point-to-point connection between two computers or devices consisting of a wire in which data is
transmitted as a stream of bits. However, these bits must be framed into discernible blocks of information.
Framing is a function of the data link layer. It provides a way for a sender to transmit a set of bits that are
meaningful to the receiver. Ethernet, token ring, frame relay, and other data link layer technologies have
their own frame structures. Frames have headers that contain information such as error-checking codes.
At the data link layer, it extracts the message from the sender and provides it to the receiver by providing
the sender’s and receiver’s addresses. The advantage of using frames is that data is broken up into
recoverable chunks that can easily be checked for corruption. The process of dividing the data into
frames and reassembling it is transparent to the user and is handled by the data link layer. Framing is an
important aspect of data link layer protocol design because it allows the transmission of data to be
organized and controlled, ensuring that the data is delivered accurately and efficiently. Types of framing
:1. Fixed-size: The frame is of fixed size and there is no need to provide boundaries to the frame, the
length of the frame itself acts as a delimiter. 2. Variable size: In this, there is a need to define the end of
the frame as well as the beginning of the next frame to distinguish.

Error Detection : Error is a condition when the receiver’s information does not match the sender’s
information. During transmission, digital signals suffer from noise that can introduce errors in the binary
bits traveling from sender to receiver. That means a 0 bit may change to 1 or a 1 bit may change to 0.
Data (Implemented either at the Data link layer or Transport Layer of the OSI Model) may get scrambled
by noise or get corrupted whenever a message is transmitted. To prevent such errors, error-detection
codes are added as extra data to digital messages. This helps in detecting any errors that may have
occurred during message transmission. Types of Errors: 1. Single-Bit Error : A single-bit error refers to a
type of data transmission error that occurs when one bit (i.e., a single binary digit) of a transmitted data
unit is altered during transmission, resulting in an incorrect or corrupted data unit. 2. Multiple-Bit Error : A
multiple-bit error is an error type that arises when more than one bit in a data transmission is affected.
Although multiple-bit errors are relatively rare when compared to single-bit errors, they can still occur,
particularly in high-noise or high-interference digital environments. 3. Burst Error : When several
consecutive bits are flipped mistakenly in digital transmission, it creates a burst error. This error causes a
sequence of consecutive incorrect values.

Elementary Data Link Protocols : Protocols in the data link layer are designed so that this layer can
perform its basic functions: framing, error control and flow control. Framing is the process of dividing bit -
streams from physical layer into data frames whose size ranges from a few hundred to a few thousand
bytes. Error control mechanisms deals with transmission errors and retransmission of corrupted and lost
frames. Flow control regulates speed of delivery and so that a fast sender does not drown a slow
receiver. Types of Data Link Protocols : 1. Simplex Protocol : The Simplex protocol is hypothetical
protocol designed for unidirectional data transmission over an ideal channel, i.e. a channel through which
transmission can never go wrong. It has distinct procedures for sender and receiver. The sender simply
sends all its data available onto the channel as soon as they are available its buffer. The receiver is
assumed to process all incoming data instantly. It is hypothetical since it does not handle flow control or
error control. 2. Stop – and – Wait Protocol : Stop – and – Wait protocol is for noiseless channel too. It
provides unidirectional data transmission without any error control facilities. However, it provides for flow
control so that a fast sender does not drown a slow receiver. The receiver has a finite buffer size with
finite processing speed. The sender can send a frame only when it has received indication from the
receiver that it is available for further data processing. 3. Stop – and – Wait ARQ : Stop – and – wait
Automatic Repeat Request (Stop – and – Wait ARQ) is a variation of the above protocol with added error
control mechanisms, appropriate for noisy channels. The sender keeps a copy of the sent frame. It then
waits for a finite time to receive a positive acknowledgement from receiver. If the timer expires or a
negative acknowledgement is received, the frame is retransmitted. If a positive acknowledgement is
received then the next frame is sent. 4. Go – Back – N ARQ : Go – Back – N ARQ provides for sending
multiple frames before receiving the acknowledgement for the first frame. It uses the concept of sliding
window, and so is also called sliding window protocol. The frames are sequentially numbered and a finite
number of frames are sent. If the acknowledgement of a frame is not received within the time period, all
frames starting from that frame are retransmitted. 5. Selective Repeat ARQ : This protocol also provides
for sending multiple frames before receiving the acknowledgement for the first frame. However, here only
the erroneous or lost frames are retransmitted, while the good frames are received and buffered.
Examples of Data Link Layer Protocols :-- Data Link Layer protocols are generally responsible to simply
ensure and confirm that the bits and bytes that are received are identical to the bits and bytes being
transferred. It is basically a set of specifications that are used for implementation of data link layer just
above the physical layer of the Open System Interconnections (OSI) Model. 1. Point to Point Protocol
(PPP) – PPP is a protocol that is basically used to provide same functionality as SLIP. It is most robust
protocol that is used to transport other types of packets also along with IP Packets. It can also be required
for dial-up and leased router-router lines. It basically provides framing method to describe frames. It is a
character-oriented protocol that is also used for error detection. It is also used to provides two protocols
i.e. NCP and LCP. LCP is used for bringing lines up, negotiation of options, bringing them down whereas
NCP is used for negotiating network-layer protocols. It is required for same serial interfaces like that of
HDLC. 2. Link Control Protocol (LCP) – It was originally developed and created by IEEE 802.2. It is also
used to provide HDLC style services on LAN (Local Area Network). LCP is basically a PPP protocol that
is used for establishing, configuring, testing, maintenance, and ending or terminating links for
transmission of data frames. 3. Link Access Procedure (LAP) – LAP protocols are basically a data link
layer protocols that are required for framing and transferring data across point-to-point links. It also
includes some reliability service features. There are basically three types of LAP i.e. LAPB (Link Access
Procedure Balanced), LAPD (Link Access Procedure D-Channel), and LAPF (Link Access Procedure
Frame-Mode Bearer Services). It is actually originated from IBM SDLC, which is being submitted by IBM
to the ISP simply for standardization. 4. Network Control Protocol (NCP) – NCP was also an older
protocol that was implemented by ARPANET. It basically allows users to have access to use computers
and some of the devices at remote locations and also to transfer files among two or more computers. It is
generally a set of protocols that is forming a part of PPP. NCP is always available for each and every
higher-layer protocol that is supported by PPP. NCP was replaced by TCP/IP in the 1980s.

Medium Access Control Sublayer : The medium access control (MAC) is a sublayer of the data link layer
of the open system interconnections (OSI) reference model for data transmission. It is responsible for flow
control and multiplexing for transmission medium. It controls the transmission of data packets via
remotely shared channels. It sends data over the network interface card. MAC Layer in the OSI Model :
The Open System Interconnections (OSI) model is a layered networking framework that conceptualizes
how communications should be done between heterogeneous systems. The data link layer is the second
lowest layer. It is divided into two sublayers − The logical link control (LLC) sublayer And The medium
access control (MAC) sublayer. Functions of MAC Layer : It provides an abstraction of the physical layer
to the LLC and upper layers of the OSI network. It is responsible for encapsulating frames so that they are
suitable for transmission via the physical medium. It resolves the addressing of source station as well as
the destination station, or groups of destination stations. It also performs collision resolution and initiating
retransmission in case of collisions. MAC Addresses : MAC address or media access control address is a
unique identifier allotted to a network interface controller (NIC) of a device. It is used as a network
address for data transmission within a network segment like Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. MAC address
is assigned to a network adapter at the time of manufacturing. It is hardwired or hard-coded in the network
interface card (NIC). A MAC address comprises of six groups of two hexadecimal digits, separated by
hyphens, colons, or no separators. An example of a MAC address is 00:0A:89:5B:F0:11.

Channel Allocation Problem : Channel allocation is a process in which a single channel is divided and
allotted to multiple users in order to carry user specific tasks. There are user’s quantity may vary every
time the process takes place. If there are N number of users and channel is divided into N equal-sized
sub channels, Each user is assigned one portion. If the number of users are small and don’t vary at times,
then Frequency Division Multiplexing can be used as it is a simple and efficient channel bandwidth
allocating technique. Channel allocation problem can be solved by two schemes: Static Channel
Allocation in LANs and MANs, and Dynamic Channel Allocation. Two Types : 1. Static Channel Allocation
in LANs and MANs: It is the classical or traditional approach of allocating a single channel among multiple
competing users using Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM). if there are N users, the frequency
channel is divided into N equal sized portions (bandwidth), each user being assigned one portion. since
each user has a private frequency band, there is no interference between users. 2. Dynamic Channel
Allocation : In dynamic channel allocation scheme, frequency bands are not permanently assigned to the
users. Instead channels are allotted to users dynamically as needed, from a central pool. The allocation is
done considering a number of parameters so that transmission interference is minimized.

Multiple Access Protocols : If there is a dedicated link between the sender and the receiver then data link
control layer is sufficient, however if there is no dedicated link present then multiple stations can access
the channel simultaneously. Hence multiple access protocols are required to decrease collision and avoid
crosstalk. For example, in a classroom full of students, when a teacher asks a question and all the
students (or stations) start answering simultaneously (send data at same time) then a lot of chaos is
created( data overlap or data lost) then it is the job of the teacher (multiple access protocols) to manage
the students and make them answer one at a time. Multiple access protocols can be subdivided further as
– Random Access Protocol: In this, all stations have same superiority that is no station has more priority
than another station. Any station can send data depending on medium’s state( idle or busy). It has two
features: There is no fixed time for sending data. There is no fixed sequence of stations sending data. The
Random access protocols are further subdivided as: (a) ALOHA – It was designed for wireless LAN but is
also applicable for shared medium. In this, multiple stations can transmit data at the same time and can
hence lead to collision and data being garbled. (A.) Pure Aloha : When a station sends data it waits for an
acknowledgement. If the acknowledgement doesn’t come within the allotted time then the station waits for
a random amount of time called back-off time (Tb) and re-sends the data. Since different stations wait for
different amount of time, the probability of further collision decreases. (B.) Slotted Aloha : It is similar to
pure aloha, except that we divide time into slots and sending of data is allowed only at the beginning of
these slots. If a station misses out the allowed time, it must wait for the next slot. This reduces the
probability of collision. Features of multiple access protocols: Collision Detection (CD): CD is a feature of
some multiple access protocols that allows devices to detect when a collision has occurred and take
appropriate action, such as backing off and retrying the transmission. Collision Avoidance (CA): CA is a
feature of some multiple access protocols that attempts to avoid collisions by assigning time slots to
devices for transmission. Token passing: Token passing is a multiple access protocol in which devices
pass a special token between each other to gain access to the communication channel. Devices can only
transmit data when they hold the token, which ensures that only one device can transmit at a time.

Carrier Sense Multiple Access – Carrier Sense Multiple Access ensures fewer collisions as the station is
required to first sense the medium (for idle or busy) before transmitting data. If it is idle then it sends data,
otherwise it waits till the channel becomes idle. However there is still chance of collision in CSMA due to
propagation delay. For example, if station A wants to send data, it will first sense the medium.If it finds the
channel idle, it will start sending data. However, by the time the first bit of data is transmitted (delayed due
to propagation delay) from station A, if station B requests to send data and senses the medium it will also
find it idle and will also send data. This will result in collision of data from station A and B. CSMA access
modes- 1-persistent: The node senses the channel, if idle it sends the data, otherwise it continuously
keeps on checking the medium for being idle and transmits unconditionally(with 1 probability) as soon as
the channel gets idle. Non-Persistent: The node senses the channel, if idle it sends the data, otherwise it
checks the medium after a random amount of time (not continuously) and transmits when found idle.
P-persistent: The node senses the medium, if idle it sends the data with p probability. If the data is not
transmitted ((1-p) probability) then it waits for some time and checks the medium again, now if it is found
idle then it send with p probability. This repeat continues until the frame is sent. It is used in Wifi and
packet radio systems. O-persistent: Superiority of nodes is decided beforehand and transmission occurs
in that order. If the medium is idle, node waits for its time slot to send data.

Collision-Free Protocols : Almost all collisions can be avoided in CSMA/CD but they can still occur during
the contention period. The collision during the contention period adversely affects the system
performance, this happens when the cable is long and length of packet are short. This problem becomes
serious as fiber optics network came into use. Here we shall discuss some protocols that resolve the
collision during the contention period. Bit-map Protocol, Binary Countdown, Limited Contention Protocols,
The Adaptive Tree Walk Protocol. Pure and slotted Aloha, CSMA and CSMA/CD are Contention based
Protocols: Try-if collide-Retry, No guarantee of performance. Collision Free Protocols : Pay constant
overhead to achieve performance guarantee, Good when network load is high. Interframe space –
Station waits for medium to become idle and if found idle it does not immediately send data (to avoid
collision due to propagation delay) rather it waits for a period of time called Interframe space or IFS. After
this time it again checks the medium for being idle. The IFS duration depends on the priority of station.
Contention Window – It is the amount of time divided into slots. If the sender is ready to send data, it
chooses a random number of slots as wait time which doubles every time medium is not found idle. If the
medium is found busy it does not restart the entire process, rather it restarts the timer when the channel is
found idle again. Acknowledgement – The sender re-transmits the data if acknowledgement is not
received before time-out.

Wireless LANs : WLAN stands for Wireless Local Area Network. WLAN is a local area network that uses
radio communication to provide mobility to the network users while maintaining the connectivity to the
wired network. A WLAN basically, extends a wired local area network. WLAN’s are built by attaching a
device called the access point(AP) to the edge of the wired network. Clients communicate with the AP
using a wireless network adapter which is similar in function to an ethernet adapter. It is also called a
LAWN is a Local area wireless network. The performance of WLAN is high compared to other wireless
networks. The coverage of WLAN is within a campus or building or that tech park. It is used in the mobile
propagation of wired networks. The standards of WLAN are HiperLAN, Wi-Fi, and IEEE 802.11. It offers
service to the desktop laptop, mobile application, and all the devices that work on the Internet. WLAN is
an affordable method and can be set up in 24 hours. WLAN gives users the mobility to move around
within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network. Most latest brands are based on IEE
802.11 standards, which are the WI-FI brand name. Working of WLAN : WLAN transmits data over radio
signals and the data is sent in the form of a packet. Each packet consists of layers, labels, and
instructions with unique MAC addresses assigned to endpoints. This enables routing data packets to
correct locations. Types of WLANs : 1. Infrastructure: In Infrastructure mode, all the endpoints are
connected to a base station and communicate through that; and this can also enable internet access. A
WLAN infrastructure can be set up with: a wireless router (base station) and an endpoint (computer,
mobile phone, etc). An office or home WiFi connection is an example of Infrastructure mode. 2. Ad Hoc: In
Ad Hoc mode WLAN connects devices without a base station, like a computer workstation. An Ad Hoc
WLAN is easy to set up it provides peer-to-peer communication. It requires two or more endpoints with
built-in radio transmission. WLAN Architecture : Stations: Stations consist of all the equipment that is used
to connect all wireless LANs. Each station has a wireless network controller. Base Service Set(BSS): It is
a group of stations communicating at the physical layer. Extended Service Set(ESS): It is a group of
connected Base Service Set(BSS). Distribution Service (DS): It connects all Extended Service Set(ESS).

Data link layer Switching : In computer networking, Switching is the process of transferring data packets
from one device to another in a network, or from one network to another, using specific devices called
switches. A computer user experiences switching all the time for example, accessing the Internet from
your computer device, whenever a user requests a webpage to open, the request is processed through
switching of data packets only. Switching takes place at the Data Link layer of the OSI Model. This means
that after the generation of data packets in the Physical Layer, switching is the immediate next process in
data communication. In this article, we shall discuss different processes involved in switching, what kind
of hardware is used in switching, etc. Process of Switching : Frame Reception: The switch receives a data
frame or packet from a computer connected to its ports. MAC Address Extraction: The switch reads the
header of the data frame and collects the destination MAC Address from it. MAC Address Table Lookup:
Once the switch has retrieved the MAC Address, it performs a lookup in its Switching table to find a port
that leads to the MAC Address of the data frame. Frame Transition: Once the destination port is found,
the switch sends the data frame to that port and forwards it to its target computer/network.Types of
Switching : 1. Message Switching: This is an older switching technique that has become obsolete. In
message switching technique, the entire data block/message is forwarded across the entire network thus,
making it highly inefficient. 2. Circuit Switching: In this type of switching, a connection is established
between the source and destination beforehand. This connection receives the complete bandwidth of the
network until the data is transferred completely. 3. Packet Switching: This technique requires the data to
be broken down into smaller components, data frames, or packets. These data frames are then
transferred to their destinations according to the available resources in the network at a particular time.

Bridges : Bridge is a local internetworking device that is used to connect two or more network segments
together. A bridge operates at the Data Link Layer (Layer 2) of the OSI model and uses the MAC
addresses of devices to make forwarding decisions. Bridges were first introduced in the 1980s as a way
to connect Ethernet segments together and extend the reach of a network. They were initially used to
overcome the distance limitations of Ethernet networks, allowing multiple segments to be connected
together to form a larger network. Ethernet Bridges – Ethernet bridging essentially involves combining an
ethernet interface with one or more virtual TAP interfaces and bridging them together under the umbrella
of a single bridge interface. Ethernet bridges represent the software analog to a physical ethernet switch.
The ethernet bridge can be thought of as a kind of software switch which can be used to connect multiple
ethernet interfaces (either physical or virtual) on a single machine while sharing a single IP subnet. By
bridging a physical ethernet NIC with an OpenVPN-driven TAP interface at two separate locations, it is
possible to logically merge both ethernet networks, as if they were a single ethernet subnet. A bridge
stores the hardware addresses observed from frames received by each interface and uses this
information to learn which frames need to be forwarded by the bridge. If a new host is connected then the
learning process of bridges is going to be a continuous process. Suppose if we move from LAN 1 to LAN
2 some machine, i.e. MAC address moves from LAN 1 to LAN 2, which means table entries should leave
after some time so that the data remains fresh and relevant.

Network Layer : The Network Layer is the third layer of the OSI model. It handles the service requests
from the transport layer and further forwards the service request to the data link layer. The network layer
translates the logical addresses into physical addresses. It determines the route from the source to the
destination and also manages the traffic problems such as switching, routing and controls the congestion
of data packets. The main role of the network layer is to move the packets from sending host to the
receiving host. The main functions performed by the network layer are:-- 1. Routing: When a packet
reaches the router's input link, the router will move the packets to the router's output link. For example, a
packet from S1 to R1 must be forwarded to the next router on the path to S2. 2. Logical Addressing: The
data link layer implements the physical addressing and network layer implements the logical addressing.
Logical addressing is also used to distinguish between source and destination system. The network layer
adds a header to the packet which includes the logical addresses of both the sender and the receiver. 3.
Internetworking: This is the main role of the network layer that it provides the logical connection between
different types of networks. 4. Fragmentation: The fragmentation is a process of breaking the packets into
the smallest individual data units that travel through different networks. Forwarding & Routing :-- In
Network layer, a router is used to forward the packets. Every router has a forwarding table. A router
forwards a packet by examining a packet's header field and then using the header field value to index into
the forwarding table. The value stored in the forwarding table corresponding to the header field value
indicates the router's outgoing interface link to which the packet is to be forwarded. For example, the
router with a header field value of 0111 arrives at a router, and then router indexes this header value into
the forwarding table that determines the output link interface is 2. The router forwards the packet to the
interface 2. The routing algorithm determines the values that are inserted in the forwarding table. The
routing algorithm can be centralized or decentralized.

Design Issues in Network Layer :- Network layer is majorly focused on getting packets from the source to
the destination, routing error handling and congestion control. 1. Addressing: Maintains the address at the
frame header of both source and destination and performs addressing to detect various devices in
network. 2. Packeting: This is performed by Internet Protocol. The network layer converts the packets
from its upper layer. 3. Routing: It is the most important functionality. The network layer chooses the most
relevant and best path for the data transmission from source to destination. 4. Inter-networking: It works to
deliver a logical connection across multiple devices. Network layer design issues: 1. Store and Forward
packet switching: The host sends the packet to the nearest router. This packet is stored there until it has
fully arrived once the link is fully processed by verifying the checksum then it is forwarded to the next
router till it reaches the destination. This mechanism is called “Store and Forward packet switching.” 2.
Services provided to Transport Layer: Through the network/transport layer interface, the network layer
transfers it’s services to the transport layer. These services are described below. But before providing
these services to the transfer layer following goals must be kept in mind :- Offering services must not
depend on router technology. 3. Implementation of Connectionless Service: Packet are termed as
“datagrams” and corresponding subnet as “datagram subnets”. When the message size that has to be
transmitted is 4 times the size of the packet, then the network layer divides into 4 packets and transmits
each packet to router via. a few protocol.Each data packet has destination address and is routed
independently irrespective of the packets. 4. Implementation of Connection Oriented service: To use a
connection-oriented service, first we establishes a connection, use it and then release it. In
connection-oriented services, the data packets are delivered to the receiver in the same order in which
they have been sent by the sender.

Routing Algorithms : Routing is the process of establishing the routes that data packets must follow to
reach the destination. In this process, a routing table is created which contains information regarding
routes that data packets follow. Various routing algorithms are used for the purpose of deciding which
route an incoming data packet needs to be transmitted on to reach the destination efficiently.
Classification of Routing Algorithms : 1. Adaptive Algorithms : These are the algorithms that change their
routing decisions whenever network topology or traffic load changes. The changes in routing decisions
are reflected in the topology as well as the traffic of the network. Also known as dynamic routing, these
make use of dynamic information such as current topology, load, delay, etc. to select routes. Optimization
parameters are distance, number of hops, and estimated transit time. 2. Non-Adaptive Algorithms : These
are the algorithms that do not change their routing decisions once they have been selected. This is also
known as static routing as a route to be taken is computed in advance and downloaded to routers when a
router is booted. 3. Hybrid Algorithms : As the name suggests, these algorithms are a combination of both
adaptive and non-adaptive algorithms. The network is divided into several regions, and each region uses
a different algorithm.

Shortest Path Algorithm : It refers to the algorithms that help to find the shortest path between a sender
and receiver for routing the data packets through the network in terms of shortest distance, minimum cost,
and minimum time. It is mainly for building a graph or subnet containing routers as nodes and edges as
communication lines connecting the nodes. Hop count is one of the parameters that is used to measure
the distance. Hop count: It is the number that indicates how many routers are covered. If the hop count is
6, there are 6 routers/nodes and the edges connecting them. Another metric is a geographic distance like
kilometers. We can find the label on the arc as the function of bandwidth, average traffic, distance,
communication cost, measured delay, mean queue length, etc. 1. Dijkstra’s Algorithm : The Dijkstra’s
Algorithm is a greedy algorithm that is used to find the minimum distance between a node and all other
nodes in a given graph. Here we can consider node as a router and graph as a network. It uses weight of
edge .ie, distance between the nodes to find a minimum distance route. 2. Bellman Ford’s Algorithm : The
Bell man Ford’s algorithm is a single source graph search algorithm which help us to find the shortest
path between a source vertex and any other vertex in a give graph. We can use it in both weighted and
unweighted graphs. This algorithm is slower than Dijkstra’s algorithm and it can also use negative edge
weight. Floyd Warshall’s Algorithm : The Floyd Warshall’s Algorithm is used to find the shortest path
between any two nodes in a given graph. It keeps a matrix of distances between each pair of vertices.it
will continue iterating the matrix until it reaches at a shortest path.

Flooding : In a computer network, flooding is a communication method where data packets are sent to all
connected devices, even if they are not the intended recipients of the data. Although this approach is
frequently used in specific network protocols and circumstances, it can be extremely inefficient and is
rarely employed in contemporary computer networks for routine data transmission. Flooding Work : 1.
Sending Data: When a network device wants to send data to another device but is unsure of the
recipient's precise location or address, it creates a data packet containing the desired information. 2.
Broadcasting: The sending device sends the data packet to every device on the network rather than
attempting to pinpoint its precise destination. The way to do this is to give the packet's destination
address a special value that denotes "broadcast" or "all devices." 3. Data Reception: The broadcasted
data packet is received by all devices connected to the network, including the one that sent it in the first
place. 4. Packet inspection: To ascertain whether it is the intended recipient of the data, each device
looks at the header of the packet. It verifies the packet's header's destination address. 5. Filtering: A
device will accept a packet and process its contents if the destination address in the packet matches the
address of that device. The device throws away the packet if the addresses do not match. 6. Data packet
propagation: After repeating steps 3, 4, and 5, the data packet keeps travelling through the network until it
eventually connects to the device with the correct destination address. 7. Loop Prevention: Flooding
frequently uses mechanisms like Time To Live (TTL) counters to prevent packets from circling endlessly
in the network. The TTL value in the packet's header is decreased each time a device forwards the
packet. The packet is no longer forwarded and is discarded when the TTL reaches zero. This aids in
preventing network infinite loops.

Hierarchical Routing : Hierarchical routing protocols consist of a hierarchical topology to organize the
network and routing information. Multiple layers and levels are introduced in a network. Each layer may
be assigned a different responsibility like forwarding packets, maintaining routing tables, etc. HRPs are
valuable for large networks, as they provide the capability of organizing network information and reducing
the amount of routing information that should be exchanged between nodes. Hence, HRPs demonstrate
significant scalability and fault tolerance. This is attributed to their hierarchical structure, which provides
redundancy and facilitates the efficient distribution of routing data throughout the network. Protocols of
Hierarchical Routing : 1. Hierarchical State Routing Protocol : The hierarchical state routing protocol
(HSR) is a multi-level and distributed routing protocol. It makes use of clustering, present on different
levels. Each level of cluster has the potential to manage its members efficiently. This improves resource
allocation and management. Leaders are elected in each cluster, which form the members of the
immediate higher level. Various clustering algorithms are employed for electing leaders in each level.
There can be two types of clustering: physical and logical. One level of physical clustering is done among
nodes that are available in a single wireless hop. The other level is made among nodes that act as cluster
heads of each of the first-level clusters. Logical clustering scheme of HSR is based on relationships
among nodes rather than their geographical locations. 2. Fisheye State Routing Protocol : Fisheye State
Routing (FSR) is an implicit hierarchical routing protocol most meant for mobile ad hoc networks. This
protocol makes use of the fisheye technique to reduce information required to represent graphical data, in
order to reduce routing overhead. It is based on the property of a fish’s eye that can capture pixel
information with greater accuracy near its eye’s focal point. As the distance from the centre of the focal
point decreases, accuracy decreases. Similarly, in FSR, accurate information about nodes in its local
topology is maintained, and not-so-accurate information about far-away nodes is recorded. Hence, we
can say accuracy of network information decreases with increasing distance.

Broadcasting : Broadcasting in computer networks is a type of communication mechanism that allows the
message to be received by all the nodes of a network. The term broadcast in general refers to the
transmission of signals from radio or televisions. Every broadcasted signal is stopped at layer-3 network
layer of OSI or to be more practical – at the router. A more technical example of Broadcasting would be:
The Address-Resolution-Protocol request (ARP-Request) whenever a host needs to resolve an IP
address to its corresponding MAC address it will broadcast a signal asking “Who this IP address belongs
to?” and this broadcasted signal is received by every single node in a network domain and then an
appropriate node will respond accordingly. Types of Broadcasting : 1. Limited Broadcast : It is a simplest
broadcasting in which a message is transmitted to every node within a same network (the destination
node exists within the same network), the scope of broadcast doesn’t go beyond the local network. And
an example IPv4 address would be – 255.255.255.255, and IPv6 : FF02::1. 2. Directed Broadcast : In
directed Broadcast, the message is sent to a specific group of hosts within a network that can be
identified by their subnets. And the host bits of the destination IPv4 address are all set to 1. Example:
192.168.1.255. 3. Subnet Broadcast : Subnetting refers to creating a smaller network within a larger
network that shares a common network address. Whenever a message is to be broadcasted to a specific
subnet within a larger network then its called subnet Broadcast. In this, the message is sent to the
broadcast address of a specific subnet and the broadcast address of a subnet is the highest possible
address. For example if the subnet address is : 192.168.1.0 & the subnet mask is 255.255.255.0 then the
broadcast address would be 192.169.1.255. Broadcasting Works : The sender of the message to be
broadcasted will initiate the process by setting the destination address as the broadcast address of the
network. The message is encapsulated into the network frame with the destination MAC Address set to
the broadcast MAC Address. The message is then finally broadcasted, and is received by all the devices
of the intended network and the devices that receive this message check if the broadcast matches with
their own IP Address. If its a match, then device proceeds with the message further else it discards it.

Multicasting in Computer Network :-- Multicast is a method of group communication where the sender
sends data to multiple receiver or node in the network simultaneously. Multicasting is a type of
one-to-many and many-to-many communication as it allows sender or senders to send data packets to
multiple receivers at once across LANs or WANs. This process helps in minimizing the data frame of the
network because at once the data can be received by multiple nodes. Multicasting is considered as the
special case of broadcasting as.it works in similar to Broadcasting, but in Multicasting, the information is
sent to the targeted or specific members of the network. This task can be accomplished by transmitting
individual copies to each user or node present in the network, but sending individual copies to each user
is inefficient and might increase the network latency. To overcome these shortcomings, multicasting
allows a single transmission that can be split up among the multiple users, consequently, this reduces the
bandwidth of the signal. IP Multicast : Multicasting that takes place over the Internet is known as IP
Multicasting. These multicast follow the internet protocol(IP) to transmit data. IP multicasting uses a
mechanism known as Multicast trees to transmit to information among the user of the network. Multicast
trees allow a single transmission to branch out to the desired receivers. The branches are created at the
Internet routers, the branches are created such that the length of the transmission will be minimum. IP
multicasts also use two other essential protocols to function; Internet Group Management Protocol
(IGMP), Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM). IGMP allows the recipients to access the data or
information i.e if any host wants to receive the message that is going to be multicasted, they must join the
group using this protocol. The network routers use PIM to create multicast trees. To sum up, Multicasting
is an efficient way of communication; it reduces the bandwidth usage and is used when a message is to
be sent to a large number of selected individuals.

Distance Vector Routing : A distance-vector routing (DVR) protocol requires that a router inform its
neighbors of topology changes periodically. Historically known as the old ARPANET routing algorithm (or
known as Bellman-Ford algorithm). Bellman Ford Basics – Each router maintains a Distance Vector table
containing the distance between itself & ALL possible destination nodes. Distances,based on a chosen
metric, are computed using information from the neighbors’ distance vectors. Distance Vector Algorithm –
A router transmits its distance vector to each of its neighbors in a routing packet. Each router receives
and saves the most recently received distance vector from each of its neighbors. A router recalculates its
distance vector when: It receives a distance vector from a neighbor containing different information than
before. It discovers that a link to a neighbor has gone down. Working of Distance Vector Routing
Algorithm: Knowledge about the whole network: Each router shares its knowledge through the entire
network. The Router sends its collected knowledge about the network to its neighbors. Routing only to
neighbors: The router sends its knowledge about the network to only those routers which have direct
links. The router sends whatever it has about the network through the ports. The information is received
by the router and uses the information to update its own routing table. Information sharing at regular
intervals: Within 30 seconds, the router sends the information to the neighboring routers.

Link State Routing :-- Link state routing is the second family of routing protocols. While distance-vector
routers use a distributed algorithm to compute their routing tables, link-state routing uses link-state routers
to exchange messages that allow each router to learn the entire network topology. Based on this learned
topology, each router is then able to compute its routing table by using the short path computation. Link
state routing is a technique in which each router shares the knowledge of its neighborhood with every
other router i.e. the internet work. The 3 keys to understand the link state routing algorithm. Knowledge
about the neighborhood: Instead of sending its routing table, a router send the information about it
neighborhood only. A router broadcast its identities and cost of the directly attached links to other routers.
Flooding: Each router sends the information to every other router on the internetwork except its
neighbors. This process is known as flooding. Every router that receives the packet sends the copies to
all the neighbors. Finally each and every router receives a copy of the same information. Information
Sharing: A router send the information to every other router only when the change occurs in the
information. Link state routing has two phase: 1. Reliable Flooding: Initial state– Each node knows the
cost of its neighbors. Final state- Each node knows the entire graph. 2. Route Calculation: Each node
uses Dijkstra’ s algorithm on the graph to calculate the optimal routes to all nodes. The link state routing
algorithm is also known as Dijkstra’s algorithm which is used to find the shortest path from one node to
every other node in the network. Features of Link State Routing Protocols :- 1. Link State Packet: A small
packet that contains routing information. 2. Link-State Database: A collection of information gathered
from the link-state packet. 3. Shortest Path First Algorithm (Dijkstra algorithm): A calculation performed on
the DB results in the shortest path. 4. Routing Table: A list of known paths & interfaces.

Quality-of-Service :-- Quality-of-Service refers to traffic control mechanisms that seek to either
differentiate performance based on application or network-operator requirements or provide predictable or
guaranteed performance to applications, sessions, or traffic aggregates. Basic phenomenon for QoS
means in terms of packet delay and losses of various kinds. Need for QoS – Video and audio
conferencing require bounded delay and loss rate. Video and audio streaming requires bounded packet
loss rate, it may not be so sensitive to delay. Time-critical applications (real-time control) in which
bounded delay is considered to be an important factor. Valuable applications should be provided better
services than less valuable applications. QoS requirements can be specified as: Delay, Delay
Variation(Jitter), Throughput, Error Rate. There are two types of QoS Solutions: 1. Stateless Solutions –
Routers maintain no fine-grained state about traffic, one positive factor of it is that it is scalable and
robust. But it has weak services as there is no guarantee about the kind of delay or performance in a
particular application which we have to encounter. 2. Stateful Solutions – Routers maintain a per-flow
state as flow is very important in providing the QoS providing powerful service such as guaranteed
service and high resource utilization, providing protection, and is much less scalable and robust.

Internetworking :-- Internetworking is combined of 2 words, inter and networking which implies an
association between totally different nodes or segments. This connection area unit is established through
intercessor devices akin to routers or gateway. The first term for associate degree internetwork was
catenet. This interconnection is often among or between public, private, commercial, industrial, or
governmental networks. Thus, associate degree internetwork could be an assortment of individual
networks, connected by intermediate networking devices, that function as one giant network.
Internetworking refers to the trade, product, and procedure that meet the challenge of making &
administering internet works. To enable communication, every individual network node or phase is
designed with a similar protocol or communication logic, that is Transfer Control Protocol (TCP) or
Internet Protocol (IP). Once a network communicates with another network having constant
communication procedure, it called Internetworking. Internetworking was designed to resolve the matter of
delivering a packet of information through many links. There is chiefly 3 units of Internetworking: 1.
Extranet – It’s a network of the internetwork that’s restricted in scope to one organization or entity
however that additionally has restricted connections to the networks of one or a lot of different sometimes,
however not essential. It’s the very lowest level of Internetworking, usually enforced in an exceedingly
personal area. Associate degree extranet may additionally be classified as a Man, WAN, or different form
of network however it cannot encompass one local area network i.e. it should have a minimum of one
reference to associate degree external network. 2. Intranet – This associate degree computer network
could be a set of interconnected networks, which exploits the Internet Protocol and uses IP-based tools
akin to web browsers and FTP tools, that are underneath the management of one body entity. That body
entity closes the computer network to the remainder of the planet and permits solely specific users. Most
typically, this network is the internal network of a corporation or different enterprise. An outsized computer
network can usually have its own internet server to supply users with browsable data. 3. Internet – A
selected Internetworking, consisting of a worldwide interconnection of governmental, academic, public,
and personal networks based mostly upon the Advanced analysis comes Agency Network developed by
ARPA of the U.S. Department of Defense additionally home to the World Wide Web (WWW) and cited as
the ‘Internet’ to differentiate from all different generic Internetworks. Participants within the web, or their
service suppliers, use IP Addresses obtained from address registries that manage assignments.

Fragmentation :-- Fragmentation is done by the network layer when the maximum size of datagram is
greater than maximum size of data that can be held in a frame i.e., its Maximum Transmission Unit
(MTU). The network layer divides the datagram received from the transport layer into fragments so that
data flow is not disrupted. Since there are 16 bits for total length in IP header so, the maximum size of IP
datagram = 216 – 1 = 65, 535 bytes. It is done by the network layer at the destination side and is usually
done at routers. Source side does not require fragmentation due to wise (good) segmentation by transport
layer i.e. instead of doing segmentation at the transport layer and fragmentation at the network layer, the
transport layer looks at datagram data limit and frame data limit and does segmentation in such a way
that resulting data can easily fit in a frame without the need of fragmentation. Receiver identifies the frame
with the identification (16 bits) field in the IP header. Each fragment of a frame has the same identification
number. Receiver identifies the sequence of frames using the fragment offset(13 bits) field in the IP
header. Overhead at the network layer is present due to the extra header introduced due to
fragmentation. Need of Fragmentation : 1. Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU): Different networks have
different Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) sizes, which determine the maximum size of a data packet
that can be transmitted over that network. If the size of a data packet exceeds the MTU, it needs to be
fragmented into smaller fragments that can be transmitted over the network. 2.Network Performance:
Large data packets can consume a significant amount of network resources and can cause congestion in
the network. Fragmentation helps to reduce the impact of large data packets on network performance by
breaking them down into smaller fragments that can be transmitted more efficiently.

IP Address : All the computers of the world on the Internet network communicate with each other with
underground or underwater cables or wirelessly. If I want to download a file from the internet or load a
web page or literally do anything related to the internet, my computer must have an address so that other
computers can find and locate mine in order to deliver that particular file or webpage that I am requesting.
In technical terms, that address is called IP Address or Internet Protocol Address. Let us understand it
with another example, like if someone wants to send you a mail then he/she must have your home
address. Similarly, your computer too needs an address so that other computers on the internet can
communicate with each other without the confusion of delivering information to someone else’s computer.
And that is why each computer in this world has a unique IP Address. Or in other words, an IP address is
a unique address that is used to identify computers or nodes on the internet. This address is just a string
of numbers written in a certain format. It is generally expressed in a set of numbers for example
192.155.12.1. Here each number in the set is from 0 to 255 range. Or we can say that a full IP address
ranges from 0.0.0.0 to 255.255.255.255. And these IP addresses are assigned by IANA(known as
Internet Corporation For Internet Assigned Numbers Authority). Working of IP addresses : The working of
IP addresses is similar to other languages. It can also use some set of rules to send information. Using
these protocols we can easily send, and receive data or files to the connected devices. There are several
steps behind the scenes. Your device directly requests your Internet Service Provider which then grants
your device access to the web. And an IP Address is assigned to your device from the given range
available. Your internet activity goes through your service provider, and they route it back to you, using
your IP address. Your IP address can change. For example, turning your router on or off can change your
IP Address. When you are out from your home location your home IP address doesn’t accompany you. It
changes as you change the network of your device.

IPv4: Internet Protocol version 4. It consists of 4 numbers separated by the dots. Each number can be
from 0-255 in decimal numbers. But computers do not understand decimal numbers, they instead change
them to binary numbers which are only 0 and 1. Therefore, in binary, this (0-255) range can be written as
(00000000 – 11111111). Since each number N can be represented by a group of 8-digit binary digits. So,
a whole IPv4 binary address can be represented by 32-bits of binary digits. In IPv4, a unique sequence of
bits is assigned to a computer, so a total of (2^32) devices approximately = 4,294,967,296 can be
assigned with IPv4. Classes of IPv4 Address: There are around 4.3 billion IPv4 addresses and managing
all those addresses without any scheme is next to impossible. Let’s understand it with a simple example.
If you have to find a word from a language dictionary, how long will it take? Usually, you will take less than
5 minutes to find that word. You are able to do this because words in the dictionary are organized in
alphabetical order. If you have to find out the same word from a dictionary that doesn’t use any sequence
or order to organize the words, it will take an eternity to find the word. If a dictionary with one billion words
without order can be so disastrous, then you can imagine the pain behind finding an address from 4.3
billion addresses. For easier management and assignment IP addresses are organized in numeric order
and divided into the following 5 classes : The 0.0.0.0 is a Non-routable address is that indicates an
invalid, or inapplicable end-user address. A loopback address is a distinct reserved IP address range that
starts from 127.0.0.0 ends at 127.255.255.255 though 127.255.255.255 is the broadcast address for
127.0.0.0/8. The loopback addresses are built into the IP domain system, enabling devices to transmit
and receive the data packets. The loopback address 127.0.0.1 is generally known as localhost.
IPv6: There is a problem with the IPv4 address. With IPv4, we can connect only the above number of 4
billion devices uniquely, and apparently, there are much more devices in the world to be connected to the
internet. So, gradually we are making our way to IPv6 Address which is a 128-bit IP address. In
human-friendly form, IPv6 is written as a group of 8 hexadecimal numbers separated with colons(:). But in
the computer-friendly form, it can be written as 128 bits of 0s and 1s. Since, a unique sequence of binary
digits is given to computers, smartphones, and other devices to be connected to the internet. So, via IPv6
a total of (2^128) devices can be assigned with unique addresses which are actually more than enough
for upcoming future generations. Need for IPv6 :-- The Main reason of IPv6 was the address depletion as
the need for electronic devices rose quickly when Internet Of Things (IOT) came into picture after the
1980s & other reasons are related to the slowness of the process due to some unnecessary processing,
the need for new options, support for multimedia, and the desperate need for security. IPv6 protocol
responds to the above issues using the following main changes in the protocol: 1. Large address space :-
An IPv6 address is 128 bits long .compared with the 32 bit address of IPv4, this is a huge(2 raised 96
times) increases in the address space. 2. Support for more security : The encryption and authentication
options in IPv6 provide confidentiality and integrity of the packet. 3. New options : IPv6 has new options to
allow for additional functionalities. 4. Allowance for extension : IPv6 is designed to allow the extension of
the protocol if required by new technologies or applications.

CIDR :-- Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) is a method of IP address allocation and IP routing that
allows for more efficient use of IP addresses. CIDR is based on the idea that IP addresses can be
allocated and routed based on their network prefix rather than their class, which was the traditional way of
IP address allocation. CIDR addresses are represented using a slash notation, which specifies the
number of bits in the network prefix. For example, an IP address of 192.168.1.0 with a prefix length of 24
would be represented as 192.168.1.0/24. This notation indicates that the first 24 bits of the IP address are
the network prefix and the remaining 8 bits are the host identifier. Characteristics of CIDR : It dynamically
allocates the IP addresses by using CIDR blocks on the requirement of the user based on certain rules.
The assignment of the CIDR block is handled by the Internet Assigned Number Authority (IANA). CIDR
block consists of IP addresses and it consists of some rules: All IP addresses which are allocated to host
must be continuous. The block size must be of power 2 and equal to the total number of IP addresses.
The size of the block must be divisible by the first IP address of the block.

Network Address Translation : To access the Internet, one public IP address is needed, but we can use a
private IP address in our private network. The idea of NAT is to allow multiple devices to access the
Internet through a single public address. To achieve this, the translation of a private IP address to a public
IP address is required. Network Address Translation (NAT) is a process in which one or more local IP
address is translated into one or more Global IP address and vice versa in order to provide Internet
access to the local hosts. Also, it does the translation of port numbers i.e. masks the port number of the
host with another port number, in the packet that will be routed to the destination. It then makes the
corresponding entries of IP address and port number in the NAT table. NAT generally operates on a
router or firewall. Network Address Translation (NAT) working – Generally, the border router is configured
for NAT i.e the router which has one interface in the local (inside) network and one interface in the global
(outside) network. When a packet traverse outside the local (inside) network, then NAT converts that local
(private) IP address to a global (public) IP address. When a packet enters the local network, the global
(public) IP address is converted to a local (private) IP address. Network Address Translation (NAT) Types
– 1. Static NAT – In this, a single unregistered (Private) IP address is mapped with a legally registered
(Public) IP address i.e one-to-one mapping between local and global addresses. This is generally used for
Web hosting. These are not used in organizations as there are many devices that will need Internet
access and to provide Internet access, a public IP address is needed. 2. Dynamic NAT – In this type of
NAT, an unregistered IP address is translated into a registered (Public) IP address from a pool of public
IP addresses. If the IP address of the pool is not free, then the packet will be dropped as only a fixed
number of private IP addresses can be translated to public addresses. 3. Port Address Translation (PAT)
– This is also known as NAT overload. In this, many local (private) IP addresses can be translated to a
single registered IP address. Port numbers are used to distinguish the traffic i.e., which traffic belongs to
which IP address. This is most frequently used as it is cost-effective as thousands of users can be
connected to the Internet by using only one real global (public) IP address.
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) : ICMP is used for reporting errors and management queries. It
is a supporting protocol and is used by network devices like routers for sending error messages and
operations information. For example, the requested service is not available or a host or router could not
be reached. Since the IP protocol lacks an error-reporting or error-correcting mechanism, information is
communicated via a message. For instance, when a message is sent to its intended recipient, it may be
intercepted along the route from the sender. The sender may believe that the communication has reached
its destination if no one reports the problem. If a middleman reports the mistake. Uses of ICMP : ICMP is
used for error reporting if two devices connect over the internet and some error occurs, So, the router
sends an ICMP error message to the source informing about the error. For Example, whenever a device
sends any message which is large enough for the receiver, in that case, the receiver will drop the
message and reply to the ICMP message to the source.ICMP Work : ICMP is the primary and important
protocol of the IP suite, but ICMP isn’t associated with any transport layer protocol (TCP or UDP) as it
doesn’t need to establish a connection with the destination device before sending any message as it is a
connectionless protocol. The working of ICMP is just contrasting with TCP, as TCP is a
connection-oriented protocol whereas ICMP is a connectionless protocol. Whenever a connection is
established before the message sending, both devices must be ready through a TCP Handshake. ICMP
packets are transmitted in the form of datagrams that contain an IP header with ICMP data. ICMP
datagram is similar to a packet, which is an independent data entity.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) : DHCP stands for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. It
is the critical feature on which the users of an enterprise network communicate. DHCP helps enterprises
to smoothly manage the allocation of IP addresses to the end-user clients’ devices such as desktops,
laptops, cellphones, etc. is an application layer protocol that is used to provide: DHCP is based on a
client-server model and based on discovery, offer, request, and ACK. Use DHCP : DHCP helps in
managing the entire process automatically and centrally. DHCP helps in maintaining a unique IP Address
for a host using the server. DHCP servers maintain information on TCP/IP configuration and provide
configuration of address to DHCP-enabled clients in the form of a lease offer. Components of DHCP : 1.
DHCP Server: DHCP Server is basically a server that holds IP Addresses and other information related to
configuration. 2. DHCP Client: It is basically a device that receives configuration information from the
server. It can be a mobile, laptop, computer, or any other electronic device that requires a connection.
3.DHCP Relay: DHCP relays basically work as a communication channel between DHCP Client and
Server. 4. IP Address Pool: It is the pool or container of IP Addresses possessed by the DHCP Server. It
has a range of addresses that can be allocated to devices. 5. Subnets: Subnets are smaller portions of
the IP network partitioned to keep networks under control. Working of DHCP : DHCP works on the
Application layer of the TCP/IP Protocol. The main task of DHCP is to dynamically assigns IP Addresses
to the Clients and allocate information on TCP/IP configuration to Clients. The DHCP port number for the
server is 67 and for the client is 68. It is a client-server protocol that uses UDP services. An IP address is
assigned from a pool of addresses. In DHCP, the client and the server exchange mainly 4 DHCP
messages in order to make a connection, also called the DORA process, but there are 8 DHCP
messages in the process.

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) : The acronym ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol which is
one of the most important protocols of the Data link layer in the OSI model. It is responsible to find the
hardware address of a host from a known IP address. There are three basic ARP terms. ARP Works :
Imagine a device that wants to communicate with others over the internet. What does ARP do? It
broadcast a packet to all the devices of the source network. The devices of the network peel the header of
the data link layer from the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) called frame and transfer the packet to the network
layer (layer 3 of OSI) where the network ID of the packet is validated with the destination IP’s network ID
of the packet and if it’s equal then it responds to the source with the MAC address of the destination, else
the packet reaches the gateway of the network and broadcasts packet to the devices it is connected with
and validates their network ID. The above process continues till the second last network device in the
path reaches the destination where it gets validated and ARP, in turn, responds with the destination MAC
address. Types of ARP : 1. Proxy ARP : A Layer 3 device can reply to an ARP request for a target that is
on a different network than the sender by using a technique called proxy ARP. In response to the ARP,
the router that has been set for Proxy ARP maps its MAC address to the target IP address, deceiving the
sender into believing that the message has arrived at destination. 2. Gratuitous ARP : The host’s ARP
request known as “gratuitous ARP” aids in locating duplicate IP addresses. This is a broadcast request for
the router’s IP address. All other nodes are unable to use the IP address assigned to a switch or router in
the event that it sends out an ARP request to obtain its IP address and receives no ARP answers in
return. However, another node uses the IP address assigned to the switch or router if it sends an ARP
request for its IP address and gets an ARP response. 3. Reverse ARP : In a local area network (LAN), the
client system uses this networking protocol to ask the ARP gateway router table for its IPv4 address. The
network administrator creates a table in the gateway-router that is used to correlate the IP address with
the MAC address.

Relationship between ARP , DNS and DHCP :-- As was previously noted, IP addresses are dynamic by
design since doing so protects users’ privacy and security. IP address changes, though, shouldn’t happen
at random. An IP address should be assigned according to rules from a predetermined range of numbers
that are available in a particular network. By doing this, problems like two machines getting the same IP
address are avoided. The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, or DHCP, is the name given to the
regulations. Because IP addresses are required to do an internet search, they are significant as computer
identities. Users utilise alphabetical names while searching for a domain name or Uniform Resource
Locator (URL). Computers, on the other hand, link a domain name to a server using the numeric IP
address. In order to link the two, an IP address is converted from a bewildering string of digits into a more
legible, intelligible domain name by use of a Domain Name System (DNS) server, and vice versa.

Transport Layer :-- The transport layer takes services from the Application layer and provides services to
the Network layer. At the sender’s side: The transport layer receives data (message) from the Application
layer and then performs Segmentation, divides the actual message into segments, adds the source and
destination’s port numbers into the header of the segment, and transfers the message to the Network
layer. At the receiver’s side: The transport layer receives data from the Network layer, reassembles the
segmented data, reads its header, identifies the port number, and forwards the message to the
appropriate port in the Application layer. Responsibilities of a Transport Layer : 1. The Process to
Process Delivery :-- While Data Link Layer requires the MAC address (48 bits address contained inside
the Network Interface Card of every host machine) of source-destination hosts to correctly deliver a frame
and the Network layer requires the IP address for appropriate routing of packets, in a similar way
Transport Layer requires a Port number to correctly deliver the segments of data to the correct process
amongst the multiple processes running on a particular host. A port number is a 16-bit address used to
identify any client-server program uniquely. 2. End-to-end Connection between Hosts :-- The transport
layer is also responsible for creating the end-to-end Connection between hosts for which it mainly uses
TCP and UDP. TCP is a secure, connection-orientated protocol that uses a handshake protocol to
establish a robust connection between two end hosts. TCP ensures the reliable delivery of messages and
is used in various applications. UDP, on the other hand, is a stateless and unreliable protocol that ensures
best-effort delivery. It is suitable for applications that have little concern with flow or error control and
requires sending the bulk of data like video conferencing. It is often used in multicasting protocol. 3.
Multiplexing and Demultiplexing :-- Multiplexing(many to one) is when data is acquired from several
processes from the sender and merged into one packet along with headers and sent as a single packet.
Multiplexing allows the simultaneous use of different processes over a network that is running on a host.
The processes are differentiated by their port numbers. Similarly, Demultiplexing(one to many) is required
at the receiver side when the message is distributed into different processes. Transport receives the
segments of data from the network layer distributes and delivers it to the appropriate process running on
the receiver’s machine.4. Congestion Control :-- Congestion is a situation in which too many sources over
a network attempt to send data and the router buffers start overflowing due to which loss of packets
occurs. As a result, the retransmission of packets from the sources increases the congestion further. In
this situation, the Transport layer provides Congestion Control in different ways. It uses open-loop
congestion control to prevent congestion and closed-loop congestion control to remove the congestion in
a network once it occurred. TCP provides AIMD – additive increases multiplicative decrease and leaky
bucket technique for congestion control. 5. Data integrity and Error Correction :-- The transport layer
checks for errors in the messages coming from the application layer by using error detection codes, and
computing checksums, it checks whether the received data is not corrupted and uses the ACK and NACK
services to inform the sender if the data has arrived or not and checks for the integrity of data. 6. Flow
Control :-- The transport layer provides a flow control mechanism between the adjacent layers of the
TCP/IP model. TCP also prevents data loss due to a fast sender and slow receiver by imposing some flow
control techniques. It uses the method of sliding window protocol which is accomplished by the receiver
by sending a window back to the sender informing the size of data it can receive.

Elements of Transport Layer Protocols :-- The transport layer is represented majorly by TCP and UDP
protocols. Today almost all operating systems support multiprocessing multi-user environments. This
transport layer protocol provides connections to the individual ports. These ports are known as protocol
ports. Transport layer protocols work above the IP protocols and deliver the data packets from IP serves
to destination port and from the originating port to destination IP services. Below are the protocols used at
the transport layer. The transport layer is the fourth layer in the OSI model and the second layer in the
TCP/IP model. The transport layer provides with end to end connection between the source and the
destination and reliable delivery of the services. Therefore transport layer is known as the end-to-end
layer. The transport layer takes the service from it upward layer which is the application layer and provide
it to the network layer. Segment is the unit of data encapsulation at the transport layer. Functions of
Transport Layer :-- The process to process delivery, End-to-end connection between devices, Multiplexing
and Demultiplexing, Data integrity and error Correction, Congestion Control, Flow Control. Characteristic
of Transport Layer Protocol :-- The two protocols that make up the transport layer are TCP and UDP. A
datagram is sent by the IP protocol at the network layer from a source host to a destination host. These
days, an operating system can support environments with multiple users and processes; a programme
under execution is referred to as a process.

Flow Control : Flow control is design issue at Data Link Layer. It is a technique that generally observes
the proper flow of data from sender to receiver. It is very essential because it is possible for sender to
transmit data or information at very fast rate and hence receiver can receive this information and process
it. This can happen only if receiver has very high load of traffic as compared to sender, or if receiver has
power of processing less as compared to sender. Flow control is basically a technique that gives
permission to two of stations that are working and processing at different speeds to just communicate with
one another. Flow control in Data Link Layer simply restricts and coordinates number of frames or amount
of data sender can send just before it waits for an acknowledgement from receiver. Flow control is
actually set of procedures that explains sender about how much data or frames it can transfer or transmit
before data overwhelms receiver. The receiving device also contains only limited amount of speed and
memory to store data. This is why receiving device should be able to tell or inform the sender about
stopping the transmission or transferring of data on temporary basis before it reaches limit. It also needs
buffer, large block of memory for just storing data or frames until they are processed. Example – Stop &
Wait Protocol & Sliding Window Flow Control.

Connection Managment :-- A TCP connection begins with a client doing an active open to a server.
Assuming that the server had earlier done a passive open, the two sides engage in an exchange of
messages to establish the connection. Only after this connection establishment phase is over do the two
sides begin sending data. Likewise, as soon as a participant is done sending data, it closes one direction
of the connection, which causes TCP to initiate a round of connection termination messages. Connection
setup is an asymmetric activity (one side does a passive open and the other side does an active open)
connection teardown is symmetric (each side has to close the connection independently). Therefore it is
possible for one side to have done a close, meaning that it can no longer send data but for the other side
to keep the other half of the bidirectional connection opens and to continue sending data. Three Way
Handshakes : The algorithm used by TCP to establish and terminate a connection is called a three way
handshake. The client (the active participant) sends a segment to the server(the passive
participation) stating the initial sequence number it plans to use(flag =SYN,SequenceNum =x). The server
then responds with a single segment that both acknowledges the clients sequence number (Flags
=ACK, Ack=x+1) and states its own beginning sequence number (Flags=SYN, SequenceNum=y).
The three-way handshake reduces the possibility of false connections. It is the implementation of a
trade-off between memory and messages to provide information for this checking. The simplest three-way
handshake is shown in figure below. The figures should be interpreted in the following way. Each line is
numbered for reference purposes. Right arrows (-->) indicate departure of a TCP segment from TCP A to
TCP B, or arrival of a segment at B from A. Left arrows (<--), indicate the reverse. Ellipsis (...) indicates a
segment which is still in the network (delayed). TCP states represent the state AFTER the departure or
arrival of the segment (whose contents are shown in the center of each line). Segment contents are
shown in abbreviated form, with sequence number, control flags, and ACK field. Other fields such as
window, addresses, lengths, and text have been left out in the interest of clarity.

Error Control : Data-link layer uses the techniques of error control simply to ensure and confirm that all
the data frames or packets, i.e. bit streams of data, are transmitted or transferred from sender to receiver
with certain accuracy. Using or providing error control at this data link layer is an optimization, it was
never a requirement. Error control is basically process in data link layer of detecting or identifying and
re-transmitting data frames that might be lost or corrupted during transmission. In both of these cases,
receiver or destination does not receive correct data frame and sender or source does not even know
anything about any such loss regarding data frames. Therefore, in such type of cases, both sender and
receiver are provided with some essential protocols that are required to detect or identify such types of
errors as loss of data frames. The Data-link layer follows a technique known as re-transmission of frames
to detect or identify transit errors and also to take necessary actions that are required to reduce or remove
such errors. Each and every time an error is detected during transmission, particular data frames are
retransmitted and this process is known as ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request). Example – Stop & Wait
ARQ and Sliding Window ARQ & Sliding Window ARQ

Congestion Control : A state occurring in network layer when the message traffic is so heavy that it slows
down network response time. Effects of Congestion : As delay increases, performance decreases. If
delay increases, retransmission occurs, making situation worse. Congestion control algorithms :
Congestion Control is a mechanism that controls the entry of data packet into the network enabling a
better use of a shared network infrastructure and avoiding congestive collapse. Congestive Avoidance
Algorithm are implemented the TCP layer the mechanism to avoid congestive collapse in network. Two
congestion control algorithm : 1. Leaky Bucket Algorithm : The leaky bucket algorithm discover its use in
the context of network traffic shaping or rate-limiting. A leaky bucket execution and a token bucket
execution are predominantly used for traffic shaping algorithms. This algorithm is used to control the rate
at which traffic is sent to the network and shape the burst traffic to a steady traffic stream. The
disadvantage compared with the leaky-bucket algorithm are the inefficient use of available network
resources. The large area of network resources such as bandwidth is not being used effectively. 2. Token
bucket Algorithm : The leaky bucket algorithm has a rigid output design at an average rate independent of
the bursty traffic. In some applications, when large bursts arrive, the output is allowed to speed up. This
calls for a more flexible algorithm, preferably one that never loses information. Therefore, a token bucket
algorithm find its use in network traffic shaping or rate-limiting. It is a control algorithm that indicate when
traffic should be sent. This order come based on the display of tokens in the bucket. The bucket contains
tokens. Each of the tokens defines a packet of predetermined size. Tokens in the bucket are deleted for
the ability to share a packet. When tokens are shown, a flow to transmit traffic appears in the display of
tokens.

Transmission Control Protocol :- Transmission Control Protocol is a connection-oriented protocol for

communications that helps in the exchange of messages between different devices over a network. The
Internet Protocol (IP), which establishes the technique for sending data packets between computers,
works with TCP. The position of TCP is at the transport layer of the OSI model. TCP also helps in
ensuring that information is transmitted accurately by establishing a virtual connection between the
sender and receiver. Working of Transmission Control Protocol : To make sure that each message
reaches its target location intact, the TCP/IP model breaks down the data into small bundles and
afterward reassembles the bundles into the original message on the opposite end. Sending the
information in little bundles of information makes it simpler to maintain efficiency as opposed to sending
everything in one go. After a particular message is broken down into bundles, these bundles may travel
along multiple route if one route is jammed but the destination remain the same. Feature of TCP/IP : 1.
Connection Oriented: It means sender and receiver are connected to each other till the completion of the
process. The order of the data is maintained i.e. order remains same before and after transmission. 2.
Full Duplex: In TCP data can be transmitted from receiver to the sender or vice–versa at the same time. It
increase efficiency of data flow between sender and receiver. 3. Flow Control: Flow control limits the rate
at which a sender transfers data. This is done to ensure reliable delivery. The receiver continually hints to
the sender on how much data can be received (using a sliding window). 4. Congestion Control: TCP
takes into account the level of congestion in the network. Congestion level is determined by the amount of
data sent by a sender.

User Datagram Protocol : Though Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is the dominant transport layer
protocol used with most of the Internet services; provides assured delivery, reliability, and much more but
all these services cost us additional overhead and latency. Here, UDP comes into the picture. For
real-time services like computer gaming, voice or video communication, and live conferences; we need
UDP. Since high performance is needed, UDP permits packets to be dropped instead of processing
delayed packets. There is no error checking in UDP, so it also saves bandwidth. UDP Header : UDP
header is an 8-byte fixed and simple header, while for TCP it may vary from 20 bytes to 60 bytes. The first
8 Bytes contain all necessary header information and the remaining part consists of data. UDP port
number fields are each 16 bits long, therefore the range for port numbers is defined from 0 to 65535; port
number 0 is reserved. Port numbers help to distinguish different user requests or processes. Applications
of UDP : Used for simple request-response communication when the size of data is less and hence there
is lesser concern about flow and error control. It is a suitable protocol for multicasting as UDP supports
packet switching. UDP is used for some routing update protocols like RIP(Routing Information Protocol).
Normally used for real-time applications which can not tolerate uneven delays between sections of a
received message. Require the UDP protocol : As we know that the UDP is an unreliable protocol, but we
still require a UDP protocol in some cases. The UDP is deployed where the packets require a large
amount of bandwidth along with the actual data. For example, in video streaming, acknowledging
thousands of packets is troublesome and wastes a lot of bandwidth. In the case of video streaming, the
loss of some packets couldn’t create a problem, and it can also be ignored.

Socket in Computer Network : A socket is one endpoint of a two way communication link between two
programs running on the network. The socket mechanism provides a means of inter-process
communication (IPC) by establishing named contact points between which the communication take place.
Like ‘Pipe’ is used to create pipes and sockets is created using ‘socket’ system call. The socket provides
bidirectional FIFO Communication facility over the network. A socket connecting to the network is created
at each end of the communication. Each socket has a specific address. This address is composed of an
IP address and a port number. Socket are generally employed in client server applications. The server
creates a socket, attaches it to a network port addresses then waits for the client to contact it. The client
creates a socket and then attempts to connect to the server socket. When the connection is established,
transfer of data takes place. Types of Sockets : 1. Datagram Socket : This is a type of network which has
connection less point for sending and receiving packets. It is similar to mailbox. The letters (data) posted
into the box are collected and delivered (transmitted) to a letterbox (receiving socket). 2. Stream Socket In
Computer operating system, a stream socket is type of interprocess communications socket or network
socket which provides a connection-oriented, sequenced, and unique flow of data without record
boundaries with well defined mechanisms for creating and destroying connections and for detecting
errors. It is similar to phone. A connection is established between the phones (two ends) and a
conversation (transfer of data) takes place.

Application Layer : The application layer in the OSI model is the closest layer to the end user which
means that the application layer and end user can interact directly with the software application. The
application layer programs are based on client and servers. The Application layer includes the following
functions: 1. Identifying communication partners: The application layer identifies the availability of
communication partners for an application with data to transmit. 2. Determining resource availability: The
application layer determines whether sufficient network resources are available for the requested
communication. 3. Synchronizing communication: All the communications occur between the applications
requires cooperation which is managed by an application layer. Services of Application Layers : 1.
Addressing: To obtain communication between client and server, there is a need for addressing. When a
client made a request to the server, the request contains the server address and its own address. The
server response to the client request, the request contains the destination address, i.e., client address. To
achieve this kind of addressing, DNS is used. 2. Mail Services: An application layer provides Email
forwarding and storage. 3. Directory Services: An application contains a distributed database that
provides access for global information about various objects and services.

Domain Name System (DNS) in Application Layer :- Domain Name System (DNS) is a hostname for IP
address translation service. DNS is a distributed database implemented in a hierarchy of name servers. It
is an application layer protocol for message exchange between clients and servers. It is required for the
functioning of the Internet. Need of DNS : Every host is identified by the IP address but remembering
numbers is very difficult for people also the IP addresses are not static therefore a mapping is required to
change the domain name to the IP address. It is used to convert the domain name of the website to their
numerical IP address. Type of Domain : 1. Generic Domain : .com(commercial), .org(nonprofit
organization), .net(similar to commercial) all these are generic domains. 2. Country domain: .in (India) .us
.uk 3. Inverse domain: if we want to know what is the domain name of the website. Ip to domain name
mapping. So DNS can provide both the mapping. Domain Name Server : The client machine sends a
request to the local name server, which, if the root does not find the address in its database, sends a
request to the root name server, which in turn, will route the query to a top-level domain (TLD) or
authoritative name server. The root name server can also contain some hostName to IP address
mappings. The Top-level domain (TLD) server always knows who the authoritative name server is. So
finally the IP address is returned to the local name server which in turn returns the IP address to the host.
DNS Work : The working of DNS starts with converting a hostname into an IP Address. A domain name
serves as a distinctive identification for a website. It is used in place of an IP address to make it simpler
for consumers to visit websites. Domain Name System works by executing the database whose work is to
store the name of hosts which are available on the Internet. The top-level domain server stores address
information for top-level domains such as .com and .net, .org, and so on. If the Client sends the request,
then the DNS resolver sends a request to DNS Server to fetch the IP Address. In case, when it does not
contain that particular IP Address with a hostname, it forwards the request to another DNS Server. When
IP Address has arrived at the resolver, it completes the request over Internet Protocol.

Electronic Mail :-- Electronic Mail (e-mail) is one of most widely used services of Internet. This service
allows an Internet user to send a message in formatted manner (mail) to the other Internet user in any
part of world. Message in mail not only contain text, but it also contains images, audio and videos data.
The person who is sending mail is called sender and person who receives mail is called recipient. It is just
like postal mail service. Components of E-Mail System : The basic components of an email system are :
User Agent (UA), Message Transfer Agent (MTA), Mail Box, and Spool file. These are explained as
following below : 1. Message Transfer Agent (MTA) : MTA is actually responsible for transfer of mail from
one system to another. To send a mail, a system must have client MTA and system MTA. It transfer mail
to mailboxes of recipients if they are connected in the same machine. It delivers mail to peer MTA if
destination mailbox is in another machine. The delivery from one MTA to another MTA is done by Simple
Mail Transfer Protocol. 2. Mailbox : It is a file on local hard drive to collect mails. Delivered mails are
present in this file. The user can read it delete it according to his/her requirement. To use e-mail system
each user must have a mailbox . Access to mailbox is only to owner of mailbox. To send an email :
Compose a new message in your email client. Enter the recipient’s email address in the “To” field. Add a
subject line to summarize the content of the message. Write the body of the message. Attach any
relevant files if needed. Click “Send” to deliver the message to the recipient’s email server. Emails can
also include features such as cc (carbon copy) and bcc (blind carbon copy) to send copies of the
message to multiple recipients, and reply, reply all, and forward options to manage the conversation.
Services provided by E-mail system : Composition – The composition refer to process that creates
messages and answers. For composition any kind of text editor can be used. Transfer – Transfer means
sending procedure of mail i.e. from the sender to recipient. Reporting – Reporting refers to confirmation
for delivery of mail. It help user to check whether their mail is delivered, lost or rejected. Displaying – It
refers to present mail in form that is understand by the user.

World Wide Web (WWW) : WWW stands for World Wide Web and is commonly known as the Web. The
WWW was started by CERN in 1989. WWW is defined as the collection of different websites around the
world, containing different information shared via local servers(or computers). Web pages are linked
together using hyperlinks which are HTML-formatted and, also referred to as hypertext, these are the
fundamental units of the Internet and are accessed through Hyper Text Transfer Protocol(HTTP). Such
digital connections, or links, allow users to easily access desired information by connecting relevant
pieces of information. The benefit of hypertext is it allows you to pick a word or phrase from the text and
click on other sites that have more information about it. Working of WWW : A Web browser is used to
access web pages. Web browsers can be defined as programs which display text, data, pictures,
animation and video on the Internet. Hyperlinked resources on the World Wide Web can be accessed
using software interfaces provided by Web browsers. Initially, Web browsers were used only for surfing
the Web but now they have become more universal. The below diagram indicates how the Web operates
just like client-server architecture of the internet. When users request web pages or other information,
then the web browser of your system request to the server for the information and then the web server
provide requested services to web browser back and finally the requested service is utilized by the user
who made the request. Web browsers can be used for several tasks including conducting searches,
mailing, transferring files, and much more. Some of the commonly used browsers are Internet Explorer,
Opera Mini, and Google Chrome. Features of WWW : WWW is open source. It is a distributed system
spread across various websites. It is a Hypertext Information System. It is Cross-Platform. Uses Web
Browsers to provide a single interface for many services. Dynamic, Interactive and Evolving.

HTTP : It stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. Tim Berner invents it. HyperText is the type of text that
is specially coded with the help of some standard coding language called HyperText Markup Language
(HTML). HTTP/2 is the new version of HTTP. HTTP/3 is the latest version of HTTP, which is published in
2022. The protocol used to transfer hypertext between two computers is known as HyperText Transfer
Protocol. HTTP provides a standard between a web browser and a web server to establish
communication. It is a set of rules for transferring data from one computer to another. Data such as text,
images, and other multimedia files are shared on the World Wide Web. Whenever a web user opens their
web browser, the user indirectly uses HTTP. It is an application protocol that is used for distributed,
collaborative, hypermedia information systems. Working of HTTP : First of all, whenever we want to open
any website then first open a web browser after that we will type the URL of that website (e.g.,
www.facebook.com ). This URL is now sent to the Domain Name Server (DNS). Then DNS first check
records for this URL in their database, then DNS will return the IP address to the web browser
corresponding to this URL. Now the browser is able to send requests to the actual server. After the server
sends data to the client, the connection will be closed. If we want something else from the server we
should have to re-establish the connection between the client and the server. Cookies in HTTP : An HTTP
cookie (web cookie, browser cookie) is a little piece of data that a server transmits to a user’s web
browser. When making subsequent queries, the browser may keep the cookie and transmit it back to the
same server. An HTTP cookie is typically used, for example, to maintain a user’s login state, to determine
whether two requests originate from the same browser. For the stateless HTTP protocol, it retains stateful
information.

File Transfer Protocol : FTP is a standard communication protocol. There are various other protocols like
HTTP which are used to transfer files between computers, but they lack clarity and focus as compared to
FTP. Moreover, the systems involved in connection are heterogeneous, i.e. they differ in operating
systems, directories, structures, character sets, etc the FTP shields the user from these differences and
transfers data efficiently and reliably. FTP can transfer ASCII, EBCDIC, or image files. The ASCII is the
default file share format, in this, each character is encoded by NVT ASCII. In ASCII or EBCDIC the
destination must be ready to accept files in this mode. The image file format is the default format for
transforming binary files. Types of FTP : 1. Password Protected FTP: This type of FTP is similar to the
previous one, but the change in it is the use of username and password. 2.FTP Secure (FTPS): It is also
called as FTP Secure Sockets Layer (FTP SSL). It is a more secure version of FTP data transfer.
Whenever FTP connection is established, Transport Layer Security (TLS) is enabled. 3. FTP over Explicit
SSL/TLS (FTPES): FTPES helps by upgrading FTP Connection from port 21 to an encrypted connection.
4. Secure FTP (SFTP): SFTP is not a FTP Protocol, but it is a subset of Secure Shell Protocol, as it works
on port 22. FTP Work : A user has to log in to FTP Server first, there may be some servers where you can
access to content without login, known as anonymous FTP. Client can start a conversation with server,
upon requesting to download a file. The user can start different functions like upload, delete, rename,
copy files, etc. on server. FTP’s Security Issues : Information could not go across a secure tunnel since
FTP was not intended to do so. Thus, encryption is not present. A hacker would not need to struggle with
encryption to access or alter data that is usable if they could intercept an FTP transaction. Even with FTP
cloud storage, data can still be intercepted and misused if the service provider’s system is attacked. As a
result, data sent via FTP is a target for spoofing, sniffing, brute force, and other types of attacks that move
somewhat slowly. A hacker might examine an FTP transmission and try to take advantage of any flaws by
simply port scanning.

Streaming Stored Video : Users send request to those servers. Users may watch the video from the start
till the end, and may pause it anytime, do a forward or reverse skip, or stop the video whenever they want
to do so. There are 3 video streaming categories : 1. 1. UDP STREAMING: UDP servers send video
chunks (Chunk: unit of information that contains either control information or user data) to clients, based
on client’s consumption rate. It transmits chunks at a rate, that matches client’s video consumption rate by
clocking out video chunks over UDP over steady state. 2. HTTP STREAMING: Video is stored in an
HTTP server as a simple ordinary file with a unique URL. Client establishes TCP connection with server
and issues a HTTP GET request for that URL. Server sends the video file along with an HTTP
RESPONSE. Now the client buffer grabs the video and then displayed on user screen. 3. ADAPTIVE
HTTP STREAMING: The major drawbacks of HTTP streaming, lead to development of new type of HTTP
based streaming referred to as DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP). Videos are encoded
into different bit rate versions, having different quality. The host makes a dynamic video request of few
seconds in length from different bit versions. When bandwidth is high, high bit rate chunks are received
hence high quality similarly, low quality video during low bandwidth.

Software Defined Network :-- Software Defined Network which is a networking architecture approach. It
enables the control and management of the network using software applications. Through Software
Defined Network (SDN) networking behavior of the entire network and its devices are programmed in a
centrally controlled manner through software applications using open APIs. SDN is Important : Better
Network Connectivity: SDN provides very better network connectivity for sales, services, and internal
communications. SDN also helps in faster data sharing. Better Deployment of Applications: Deployment
of new applications, services, and many business models can be speed up using Software Defined
Networking. Better Control with High Speed: Software-defined networking provides better speed than
other networking types by applying an open standard software-based controller. SDN Used : Enterprises
use SDN, the most widely used method for application deployment, to deploy applications faster while
lowering overall deployment and operating costs. SDN allows IT administrators to manage and provision
network services from a single location. Cloud networking software-defined uses white-box systems.
Cloud providers often use generic hardware so that the Cloud data center can be changed and the cost of
CAPEX and OPEX saved. SDN Architecture :-- In a traditional network, each switch has its own data
plane as well as the control plane. The control plane of various switches exchange topology information
and hence construct a forwarding table that decides where an incoming data packet has to be forwarded
via the data plane. Software-defined networking (SDN) is an approach via which we take the control plane
away from the switch and assign it to a centralized unit called the SDN controller. The data plane still
resides in the switch and when a packet enters a switch, its forwarding activity is decided based on the
entries of flow tables, which are pre-assigned by the controller. A flow table consists of match fields (like
input port number and packet header) and instructions. The packet is first matched against the match
fields of the flow table entries. Then the instructions of the corresponding flow entry are executed. The
instructions can be forwarding the packet via one or multiple ports, dropping the packet, or adding
headers to the packet. If a packet doesn’t find a corresponding match in the flow table, the switch queries
the controller which sends a new flow entry to the switch. The switch forwards or drops the packet based
on this flow entry. SDN architecture 3 layers. Application layer: It contains the typical network applications
like intrusion detection, firewall, and load balancing. Control layer: It consists of the SDN controller which
acts as the brain of the network. It also allows hardware abstraction to the applications written on top of it.
Infrastructure layer: This consists of physical switches which form the data plane and carries out the
actual movement of data packets.
Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) :- Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is an infrastructure-less wireless
network that is deployed in a large number of wireless sensors in an ad-hoc manner that is used to
monitor the system, physical or environmental conditions. Sensor nodes are used in WSN with the
onboard processor that manages and monitors the environment in a particular area. They are connected
to the Base Station which acts as a processing unit in the WSN System. Base Station in a WSN System
is connected through the Internet to share data. Components of WSN: 1. Sensors: Sensors in WSN are
used to capture the environmental variables and which is used for data acquisition. Sensor signals are
converted into electrical signals. 2. Radio Nodes: It is used to receive the data produced by the Sensors
and sends it to the WLAN access point. It consists of a microcontroller, transceiver, external memory, and
power source. 3.WLAN Access Point: It receives the data which is sent by the Radio nodes wirelessly,
generally through the internet. 4. Evaluation Software: The data received by the WLAN Access Point is
processed by a software called as Evaluation Software for presenting the report to the users for further
processing of the data which can be used for processing, analysis, storage, and mining of the data.

Introduction to Internet of Things (IoT) :– IoT stands for Internet of Things. It refers to the
interconnectedness of physical devices, such as appliances and vehicles, that are embedded with
software, sensors, and connectivity which enables these objects to connect and exchange data. This
technology allows for the collection and sharing of data from a vast network of devices, creating
opportunities for more efficient and automated systems. Internet of Things (IoT) is the networking of
physical objects that contain electronics embedded within their architecture in order to communicate and
sense interactions amongst each other or with respect to the external environment. In the upcoming
years, IoT-based technology will offer advanced levels of services and practically change the way people
lead their daily lives. Advancements in medicine, power, gene therapies, agriculture, smart cities, and
smart homes are just a few of the categorical ex. where IoT is strongly established. IOT is a system of
interrelated things, computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals, or people that
are provided with unique identifiers. And the ability to transfer the data over a network requiring
human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction. Ways of Building IOT : Form a separate internet work
including only physical objects. Make the Internet ever more expansive, but this requires hard-core
technologies such as rigorous cloud computing and rapid big data storage. Working with IoT Devices :
Collect and Transmit Data : For this purpose sensors are widely used they are used as per requirements
in different application areas. Receive Information: From network devices, users or devices can take
certain information also for their analysis and processing purposes. Characteristics of IoT :- Massively
scalable and efficient. IP-based addressing will no longer be suitable in the upcoming future. An
abundance of physical objects is present that do not use IP, so IoT is made possible. Devices typically
consume less power. When not in use, they should be automatically programmed to sleep. A device that
is connected to another device right now may not be connected in another instant of time.

Cyber-Physical System :-- A Cyber-Physical System (CPS) is a system that integrates physical and
computational components to monitor and control the physical processes seamlessly. In other words, A
cyber-physical system is a collection of computing devices communicating with one another and
interacting with the physical world via sensors and actuators in a feedback loop. These systems combine
the sensing, actuation, computation, and communication capabilities, and leverage these to improve the
physical systems’ overall performance, safety, and reliability. Examples: CPS includes self-driving cars,
The STARMAC is a small quadrotor aircraft. Features of Cyber-Physical System : 1. Robustness &
Reliability: In order to ensure safe and effective operation in dynamic environments, CPS must need
efficient reliability. 2. Concurrency: In cyber-physical systems refers to the simultaneous execution of
multiple tasks or processes in a coordinated manner. 3. Real-Time Computation: CPS systems have
real-time computation capabilities that allow for dynamic decision-making based on physical real-world
data. 4. Safety-Critical Application: In terms of the CPS applications where the safety of our systems
higher priority over the performance and development of the system. Characteristics : It is a combination
of Physics with cyber Components networked which is interconnected. CPS systems are to monitor and
control physical processes in a seamless manner. In CPS systems sensors and Actuators work in the
feedback loop. In CPS systems devices are designed to interact with physical processes and control
them. The CPS systems are more complex compared then IoT devices.