Part-A (University Questions) : 1. Write The Categories of Networks. (A/M-2011)

SENGUNTHAR COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, TIRUCHENGIDE
PART-A (UNIVERSITY QUESTIONS)

1. Write the categories of networks. (A/M-2011)
 Local Area Network(LAN)
 Metropolitan Area Network(MAN)
 Wide Area Network(WAN)
2. Define a computer network. (N/D-2011)

Computer networks, communication occurs between entities in different
systems. An entity is anything capable of sending or receiving information.
However, two entities cannot simply send bit streams to each other and expect to be
understood.
A computer network is designed to send information from one point to
another. This information needs to be converted to either a digital signal or an analog
signal for transmission.
3. What is FDDI? (N/D-2012, 2011)

Fiber distributed data interface is a local ar eas. Network protocol
standardized by ANSI and ITU-7. It supports data rates of 100 Mbps and p rovides a
high-speed alternative to Ethernet and token ring access method used here is token
passing.
4. Define Network? (M/J-2012)

Networks exist so that data may be sent from one place to another-the basic
concept of data communications.
Data communications between remote parties can be achieved through a
process called networking, involving the connection of computers, media, and
networking devices.
5. Define Framing? (M/J-2012)

A frame consists of one complete cycle of time slots, including one or
more slot dedicated to each sending device.
One or more synchronization bits are usually added to the beginning of

each frame. These bitts are called framing bits.
DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 1

PART-A (IMPORTANT QUESTIONS)

1. What is mean by data communication?
Data communication is the ex change of data (in the form of 1s and 0s)
between two devices via some form of transmission medium (such as a wire cable).
2. What are the three criteria necessary for an effective and ef ficient network?
The most important criteria are per formance, reliability and security.
Performance of the network depends on number of users, type of transmission
medium, the capabilities of the connected h/w and the efficiency of the s/w.
Reliability is measured by frequency of failure, the time it takes a link to recover
from the failure and the network’s robustness in a catastrophe.
Security issues include protecting data from unauthorized access and viruses.
3. What are the three fundamental charact eristics determine the effectiveness
of the data communication system?
The effectiveness of the data communication system depends on three fundamental
characteristics:
Delivery : Th e system must deliver data to the correct destination.
Accuracy : The system must deliver data accurately.
Timeliness : The system must deliver data in a timely manner.
4. What are the advantages of distributed processing?

Advantages o f distributed processing include security/encapsulation,
distributed databases, faster problem solving, security through redundancy and
collaborative processing.
5. Why are protocols needed?

In networks, communication occurs between the entities in different systems.
Two entities cannot just send bit streams to each oth er and expect to be understood.
For communication, the entities must agree on a protocol. A protocol is a set of rules
that govern data communication.
6. Why are standards needed?

Co-ordination across the nodes of a network is necessar y for an efficient
communication. If there are no standards, difficulties arise. A standard provides a
model or basis for development to which everyone has agreed.

7. For n devices in a network, what is the number of cable links required for a
mesh and ring topology?
Mesh topology – n (n-1)/2 Ring topology – n
8. What is the difference between a passive and an active hub?

An active hub contains a repeater that regenerates the received bit patterns
before sending th em out. A passive hub provides a simple physical connection
between th e attached devices.
9. Distinguish between peer-to-peer relationship and a primary-secondary
relationship.
Peer-to-peer relationship: All the devices share the link equally.
Primary-secondary relationship: One device co ntrols traffic and the others must
transmit through it.
10. Assume 6 devices are arranged in a mesh topology. How many cables are
needed? How many ports are needed for each device?
Number of cables=n (n-1)/2=6(6-1)/2=15
Number of ports per device=n-1=6-1=5
11. Group the OSI layers by function.

The seven layers of the OSI model belonging to three subgroups. Physical,
data link and network layers are the network support layers; they deal with the
physical aspects of moving data from one device to another. Session, presentation
and application layers are the user support layers; they allow interoperability among
unrelated software systems. The transport layer ensures end-to-end reliable data
transmission.
12. What are header and trailers and how do they get added and removed?
Each layer in the sending machine adds its own information to the message it
receives from the layer just above it and passes the whole package to the layer just
below it. This information is added in the form of headers or trailers. Headers are
added to the message at the layers 6,5,4,3, and 2. A trailer is added at layer2. At the
receiving machine, the headers or trailers attached to the data unit at the
corresponding sending layers are removed, and actions appropriate to that layer are
taken.

13. The transport layer creates a co mmunicat ion between the source and
destination. What are the three events involved in a connection?
Creating a connection involves three steps: connection establishment, data transfer
and connection release.
14. What is the DC component?

Direct current is a zero-frequency signal with constant amplitude.
15. How does NRZ-L differ from NRZ-I?

In the NRZ-L sequence, positive and negative voltages have specific
meanings: positive for 0 and negative for 1. in the NRZ -I sequence, the voltages are
meaningless. Instead, the receiver looks for changes from one level to another as its
basis for recognition of 1s.
16. Using HDB3, encode the bit stream 10000000000100. Assume the number of
1s so far is odd and the first 1 is positive.
17. What are the functions of a DTE? What are the functions of a DCE?
Data terminal equipment is a device that is an information source or an
information sink. It is connected to a network through a DCE. Data circuit-
terminating equipment is a device used as an interface between a DTE and a
network.
18. What does the electrical specification of EIA-232 describe?

The electrical specification of EIA-232 defines that sign als other than d ata
must be sent using OFF as less than -3 volts and ON as greater than +3 volts. The
data must be transmitted using NRZ-L encoding.

19. Discuss the mode for propagating light along optical channels.
There are two modes for propagating light alon g optical channels, multimode
and single mode.
Multimode: Multiple beams from a light source move through the core in different
paths.
Single mode: Fiber with extremely small diameter that limits beams to a few angles,
resulting in an almost horizontal beam.
20. What is refraction?

The phenomenon related to the bending of light when it passes from one medium to
another.
21.How are the guided media differing from unguided transmission media?
Guided transmission media Unguided transmission media 1.
Guided indicate, medium is contained
1. Unguided medium does not have any within physical boundary Physical
boundary
2. Transmission takes place through wire.
3. It is a wireless transmission.
22. What are the disadvantages of optical fiber as a transmission medium?

The disadvantages of optical fiber are
• Very expensive.
• Installation and maintenance is difficult.
• Fragility.
23. What are the criteria used to evaluate transmission medium?

The criteria used to evaluate transmission medium are
• Throughput
• Propagation speed
• Propagation time
• Wavelength
24. Give the relationship between propagation speed and propagation time?
Propagation time = distance / propagation speed
The time required for a signal or a bit to travel f rom one point to another is
called Propagation time .

Propagation speed is the distance, a signal or a bit travel through a

medium in one second.
25.Explain cross talk and what is needed to reduce it?

Effect of one wire on another is called as cross talk. One wire will be the sending
antenna and the other wire will be the receivin g antenna. We can use the shielded
twisted pair cable or coaxial cable for transmission, which contains metal foil to
reduce cross talk.

PART-B
1. Discuss the four basic network topologies and give the advantages and
disadvantages of each type. (A/M-2011)
Mesh Topologies:
In a mesh topology, every device has a dedicated point-to-point link to every

other device. The term dedicated means that the link carries traffic only between the
two devices it connects. To find the number of physical links in a fully connected
mesh network with n nodes, we first consider that each node must be connected to
every other node. Node 1 must be connected to n - I nodes, node 2 must be
connected to n – 1 nodes, and finally node n must be connected to n - 1 nodes. We
need n(n - 1) physical links. However, if each physical link allows communication in
both directions (duplex mode), we can divide the number of links by 2. In other
words, we can say that in a mesh topology, we need
n (n -1) /2
To accommodate that many links, every device on the network must have n –
1 input/output (VO) ports (see Figure 1.5) to be connected to the other n - 1 stations.
Figure 1.5 A fully connected mesh topology (five devices)

Advantages of Mesh Topologies:
i. The use of dedicated links guarantees that each connection can carry its own data
load, thus eliminating the traffic problems that can occur when links must be shared
by multiple devices.
ii. A mesh topology is robust. If one link becomes unusable, it does not incapacitate
the entire system.
iii. There is the advantage of privacy or security.
iv. Point-to-point links make fault identification and fault isolation easy. Traffic can
be routed to avoid links with suspected problems.
Disadvantages of Mesh Topologies:
i. Every device must be connected to every other device, installation and

reconnection are difficult.
ii. The sheer bulk of the wiring can be greater than the available space (in walls,
ceilings, or floors) can accommodate.
iii. The hardware required to connect each link (I/O ports and cable) can be
prohibitively expensive.
Star Topology:
In a star topology, each device has a dedicated point-to-point link only to a

central controller, usually called a hub. The devices are not directly linked to one
another. Unlike a mesh topology, a star topology does not allow direct traffic
between devices. The controller acts as an exchange: If one device wants to send
data to another, it sends the data to the controller, which then relays the data to the
other connected device (see Figure 1.6).
Figure 1.6 A star topology connecting four stations

Advantages of Star Topology:
i. A star topology is less expensive than a mesh topology

ii. It makes easy to install and reconfigure.
iii. Star topology is robustness.
Disadvantages of Star Topology:
i. Star topology is the dependency of the whole topology on one single point, the
hub. If the hub goes down, the whole system is dead.
ii. Star topology requires far less cable than a mesh, each node must be linked to a
central hub.
Bus Topology:
A bus topology, on the other hand, is multipoint. One long cable acts as a
backbone to link all the devices in a network (see Figure 1.7).
Figure 1.7 A bus topology connecting three stations
Nodes are connected to the bus cable by drop lines and taps. A drop line is a
connection running between the device and the main cable. A tap is a connector that
either splices into the main cable or punctures the sheathing of a cable to create a
contact with the metallic core. As a signal travels along the backbone, some of its
energy is transformed into heat. Therefore, it becomes weaker and weaker as it
travels farther and farther. For this reason there is a limit on the number of taps a bus
can support and on the distance between those taps.
Advantages of a bus topology:
i. Bus topology is ease of installation.

ii. Redundancy is eliminated.

Disadvantages of a bus topology:
i. Difficult reconnection and fault isolation.

ii. A fault or break in the bus cable stops all transmission.
Ring Topology:
In a ring topology, each device has a dedicated point-to-point connection with

only the two devices on either side of it. A signal is passed along the ring in one
direction, from device to device, until it reaches its destination. Each device in the
ring incorporates a repeater. When a device receives a signal intended for another
device, its repeater regenerates the bits and passes them along (see Figure 1.8).
Figure 1.8 A ring topology connecting six stations
Advantages of Ring Topology:
i. A ring is relatively easy to install and reconfigure.

ii. Fault isolation is simplified.
Disadvantages of Ring Topology:
Disadvantages of Ring Topology is unidirectional traffic.

2. Explain the various factors contributing to the network performance. (A/M-

2011)
The various factors contributing to the network performance is

1. Bandwidth and Latency
2. Delay × Bandwidth Product
3. High-Speed Networks
4. Application Performance Needs
Bandwidth and Latency:

Network performance is measured in two fundamental ways: bandwidth (also
called throughput) and latency (also called delay). The bandwidth of a network is
given by the number of bits that can be transmitted over the network in a certain
period of time. For example, a network might have a bandwidth of 10 million
bits/second (Mbps), meaning that it is able to deliver 10 million bits every second. It
is sometimes useful to think of bandwidth in terms of how long it takes to transmit
each bit of data. On a 10-Mbps network, for example, it takes 0.1 microseconds (μs)
to transmit each bit.
At the physical level, bandwidth is constantly improving, with no end in sight.
Intuitively, if you think of a second of time as a distance you could measure with a
ruler, and bandwidth as how many bits fit in that distance, then you can think of each
bit as a pulse of some width. For example, each bit on a 1-Mbps link is 1 μs wide,
while each bit on a 2-Mbps link is 0.5 μs wide, as illustrated in Figure 1.19. The
more sophisticated the transmitting and receiving technology, the narrower each bit
can become, and thus, the higher the bandwidth. For logical process-to-process
channels, bandwidth is also influenced by other factors, including how many times
the software that implements the channel has to handle, and possibly transform, each
bit of data.
The second performance metric, latency, corresponds to how long it takes a
message to travel from one end of a network to the other. (As with bandwidth, we
could be focused on the latency of a single link or an end-to-end channel.) Latency is
measured strictly in terms of time. For example, a transcontinental network might
have a latency of 24 milliseconds (ms); that is, it takes a message 24 ms to travel
from one end of North America to the other. There are many situations in which it is
more important to know how long it takes to send a message from one end of a
network to the other and back, rather than the one-way latency. We call this the
round-trip time (RTT) of the network.

Delay × Bandwidth Product:

It is also useful to talk about the product of these two metrics, often called the
delay × bandwidth product. Intuitively, if we think of a channel between a pair of
processes as a hollow pipe (see Figure 1.21), where the latency corresponds to the
length of the pipe and the bandwidth gives the diameter of the pipe, then the delay ×
bandwidth product gives the volume of the pipe—the maximum number of bits that
could be in transit through the pipe at any given instant. Said another way, if latency
(measured in time) corresponds to the length of the pipe, then given the width of
each bit (also measured in time), you can calculate how many bits fit in the pipe. For
example, a transcontinental channel with a one-way latency of 50 ms and a
bandwidth of 45 Mbps is able to hold
50×10−3 sec×45×106 bits/sec
= 2.25 ×106 bits
or approximately 280 KB of data. In other words, this example channel (pipe) holds
as many bytes as the memory of a personal computer from the early 1980s could
hold.
The delay × bandwidth product is important to know when constructing high-

performance networks because it corresponds to how many bits the sender must
transmit before the first bit arrives at the receiver. If the sender is expecting the
receiver to somehow signal that bits are starting to arrive, and it takes another
channel latency for this signal to propagate back to the sender (i.e., we are interested

in the channel’s RTT rather than just its one-way latency), then the sender can send
up to two delay × bandwidths worth of data before hearing from the receiver that all
is well. The bits in the pipe are said to be “in flight,” which means that if the receiver
tells the sender to stop transmitting; it might receive up to a delay × bandwidth’s
worth of data before the sender manages to respond. In our example above, that
amount corresponds to 5.5 × 106 bits (671 KB) of data. On the other hand, if the
sender does not fill the pipe—send a whole delay×bandwidth product’s worth of data
before it stops to wait for a signal—the sender will not fully utilize the network.
High-Speed Networks:
The bandwidths available on today’s networks are increasing at a dramatic
rate, and there is eternal optimism that network bandwidth will continue to improve.
This causes network designers to start thinking about what happens in the limit, or
stated another way, what is the impact on network design of having infinite
bandwidth available.
Although high-speed networks bring a dramatic change in the bandwidth
available to applications, in many respects their impact on how we think about
networking comes in what does not change as bandwidth increases: the speed of
light. To quote Scotty from Star Trek, “You cannae change the laws of physics.” In
other words, “high speed” does not mean that latency improves at the same rate as
band width; the transcontinental RTT of a 1-Gbps link is the same 100 ms as it is for
a 1-Mbps link.

Application Performance Needs:

However, some applications are able to state an upper limit on how much
bandwidth they need. Video applications are a prime example. Suppose one wants to
stream a video image; that is one-quarter the size of a standard TV image; that is, it
has a resolution of 352 by 240 pixels. If each pixel is represented by 24 bits of
information, as would be the case for 24-bit color, then the size of each frame would
be
(352×240 ×24)/8 = 247.5 KB
If the application needs to support a frame rate of 30 frames per second, then
it might request a throughput rate of 75 Mbps. The ability of the network to provide
more bandwidth is of no interest to such an application because it has only so much
data to transmit in a given period of time.
Unfortunately, the situation is not as simple as this example suggests. Because
the difference between any two adjacent frames in a video stream is often small, it is
possible to compress the video by transmitting only the differences between adjacent
frames. This compressed video does not flow at a constant rate, but varies with time
according to factors such as the amount of action and detail in the picture and the
compression algorithm being used. Therefore, it is possible to say what the average
bandwidth requirement will be, but the instantaneous rate may be more or less.
Consider the situation in which the source sends a packet once every 33 ms, as
would be the case for a video application transmitting frames 30 times a second. If
the packets arrive at the destination spaced out exactly 33 ms apart, then we can
deduce that the delay experienced by each packet in the network was exactly the
same. If the spacing between when packets arrive at the destination—sometimes
called the interpacket gap— is variable, however, then the delay experienced by the
sequence of packets must have also been variable, and the network is said to have
introduced jitter into the packet stream, as shown in Figure 1.23. Such variation is
generally not introduced in a single physical link, but it can happen when packets
experience different queuing delays in a multihop packet-switched network. This

queuing delay corresponds to the Queue component of latency defined earlier in this
section, which varies with time.
To understand the relevance of jitter, suppose that the packets being
transmitted over the network contain video frames, and in order to display these
frames on the screen the receiver needs to receive a new one every 33 ms. If a frame
arrives early, then it can simply be saved by the receiver until it is time to display it.
Unfortunately, if a frame arrives late, then the receiver will not have the frame it
needs in time to update the screen, and the video quality will suffer; it will not be
smooth.
3. With a suitable diagram explain briefly about

i. Virtual circuit switching
ii. Datagram switching techniques. (A/M-2011, M/J-2012)
Virtual circuit switching:

A widely used technique for packet switching, which differs significantly
from the datagram model, uses the concept of a virtual circuit (VC). This approach,
which is also called a connection-oriented model, requires that a virtual connection
from the source host to the destination host is set up before any data is sent. To
understand how this works, consider Figure 3.5, where host A again wants to send
packets to host B. We can think of this as a two-stage process. The first stage is
connection setup. The second is data transfer. We consider each in turn.

In the connection setup phase, it is necessary to establish “connection state” in

each of the switches between the source and destination hosts. The connection state
for a single connection consists of an entry in a VC table in each switch through
which the connection passes. One entry in the VC table on a single switch contains
■ A virtual circuit identifier (VCI) that uniquely identifies the connection at this
switch, and which will be carried inside the header of the packets that belong to this
connection;
■ An incoming interface on which packets for this VC arrive at the switch;
■ An outgoing interface in which packets for this VC leave the switch;
■ A potentially different VCI that will be used for outgoing packets.
Once the VC tables have been set up, the data transfer phase can proceed, as
illustrated in Figure 3.6. For any packet that it wants to send to host B, A puts the
VCI value of 5 in the header of the packet and sends it to switch 1. Switch 1 receives
any such packet on interface 2, and it uses the combination of the interface and the
VCI in the packet header to find the appropriate VC table entry. As shown in Table
3.2, the table entry in this case tells switch 1 to forward the packet out of interface 1
and to put the VCI value 11 in the header when the packet is sent. Thus, the packet
will arrive at switch 2 on interface 3 bearing VCI 11. Switch 2 looks up interface 3
and VCI 11 in its VC table (as shown in Table 3.3) and sends the packet on to switch
3 after updating the VCI value in the packet header appropriately, as shown in Figure
3.7. This process continues until it arrives at host B with the VCI value of 4 in the
packet. To host B, this identifies the packet as having come from host A.

Datagram switching techniques:
There are several things to note about this approach. First, it assumes that
host A knows enough about the topology of the network to form a header that has
all the right directions in it for every switch in the path. This is somewhat analogous
to the problem of building the forwarding tables in a datagram network or figuring
out where to send a setup packet in a virtual circuit network. Second, observe that
we cannot predict how big the header needs to be, since it must be able to hold one
word of information for every switch on the path. This implies that headers are
probably of variable length with no upper bound, unless we can predict with
absolute certainty the maximum number of switches through which a packet will
ever need to pass. Third, there are some variations on this approach. For example,
rather than rotate the header, each switch could just strip the first element as it uses
it. Rotation has an advantage over stripping, however: Host B gets a copy of the
complete header, which may help it figure out how to get back to host A. Yet another
alternative is to have the header carry a pointer to the current “next port” entry, so
that each switch just updates the pointer rather than rotating the header;
this may be more efficient to implement. We show these three approaches in Figure
3.10. In each case, the entry that this switch needs to read is A, and the entry that the
next switch needs to read is B.
Source routing can be used in both datagram networks and virtual circuit
networks. For example, the Internet Protocol, which is a datagram protocol, includes
a source route option that allows selected packets to be source routed, while the
majority are switched as conventional datagrams. Source routing is also used in
some virtual circuit networks as the means to get the initial setup request along the
path from source to destination.
4. Describe Network Architecture in detail. (N/D-2011, 2012)

Layering and Protocols:

The services provided at the high layers are implemented in terms of the
services provided by the low layers. Drawing on the discussion of requirements
given in the previous section, for example, we might imagine a simple network as
having two layers of abstraction sandwiched between the application program and
the underlying hardware, as illustrated in Figure 1.8. The layer immediately above
the hardware in this case might provide hostto- host connectivity, abstracting away
the fact that there may be an arbitrarily complex network topology between any two
hosts. The next layer up builds on the available hostto- host communication service
and provides support for process-to-process channels, abstracting away the fact that
the network occasionally loses messages, for example.
Layering provides two nice features. First, it decomposes the problem of
building a network into more manageable components. Rather than implementing a
monolithic piece of software that does everything you will ever want, you can
implement several
layers, each of which solves one part of the problem. Second, it provides a more
modular design. If you decide that you want to add some new service, you may only

need to modify the functionality at one layer, reusing the functions provided at all
the other layers.
Thinking of a system as a linear sequence of layers is an oversimplification,
however. Many times there are multiple abstractions provided at any given level of
the system, each providing a different service to the higher layers but building on the
same low-level abstractions. To see this, consider the two types of channels
discussed in Section 1.2.3: One provides a request/reply service and one supports a
message stream service. These two channels might be alternative offerings at some
level of a multilevel networking system, as illustrated in Figure 1.9.
A protocol defines a communication service that it exports locally (the service

interface), along with a set of rules governing the messages that the protocol
exchanges with its peer(s) to implement this service (the peer interface). This
situation is illustrated in Figure 1.10.
OSI Architecture:
The ISO was one of the first organizations to formally define a common way
to connect computers. Their architecture, called the Open Systems Interconnection
(OSI) architecture and illustrated in Figure 1.13
Starting at the bottom and working up, the physical layer handles the transmission of
raw bits over a communications link. The data link layer then collects a stream of
bits into a larger aggregate called a frame. Network adaptors, along with device
drivers running in the node’s OS, typically implement the data link level. This means
that frames, not raw bits, are actually delivered to hosts. The network layer handles
routing among nodes within a packet-switched network. At this layer, the unit of
data exchanged among nodes is typically called a packet rather than a frame,
although they are fundamentally the same thing. The lower three layers are
implemented on all network nodes, including switches within the network and hosts
connected along the exterior of the network. The transport layer then implements
what we have up to this point been calling a process-to process channel. Here, the
unit of data exchanged is commonly called a message rather than a packet or a
frame. The transport layer and higher layers typically run only on the end hosts and
not on the intermediate switches or routers.
Internet Architecture:
The Internet architecture, which is also sometimes called the TCP/IP
architecture after its two main protocols, is depicted in Figure 1.14. An alternative
representation is given in Figure 1.15. The Internet architecture evolved out of
experiences with an earlier packet-switched network called the ARPANET. Both the
Internet and the ARPANET were funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency
(ARPA), one of the R&D funding agencies of the U.S. Department of Defense. The
Internet and ARPANET were around before the OSI architecture, and the experience
gained from building them was a major influence on the OSI reference model.
While the seven-layer OSI model can, with some imagination, be applied to
the Internet, a four-layer model is often used instead. At the lowest level are a wide
variety of network protocols, denoted NET1, NET2, and so on. In practice, these
protocols are implemented by a combination of hardware (e.g., a network adaptor)

and software (e.g. a network device driver). For example, you might find Ethernet or
Fiber Distributed.
5. What is Ethernet? Explain in detail. (N/D-2011)

The IEEE 802.3 standards committee developed a widely used LAN standard
called Ethernet, which covers both the MAC layer and the physical layer. The IEEE
802.3 standard uses CSMA for controlling media access and the 1-persistent
algorithm.
Physical Properties :
An Ethernet segment is implemented on a coaxial cable of up to 500 m. This cable is
similar to the type used for cable TV, except that it typically has an impedance of 50
ohms instead of cable TV’s 75 ohms. Hosts connect to an Ethernet segment by
tapping into it; taps must be at least 2.5 m apart. A transceiver—a small device
directly attached to the tap—detects when the line is idle and drives the signal when
the host is transmitting. It also receives incoming signals. The transceiver is, in turn,
connected to an Ethernet adaptor, which is plugged into the host. All the logic that

makes up the Ethernet protocol, as described in this section, is implemented in the

adaptor (not the transceiver). This configuration is shown in Figure 2.27.
Multiple Ethernet segments can be joined together by repeaters. A repeater is

a device that forwards digital signals, much like an amplifier forwards analog
signals. However, no more than four repeaters may be positioned between any pair
of hosts, meaning that an Ethernet has a total reach of only 2,500 m. For example,
using just two repeaters between any pair of hosts supports a configuration similar to
the one illustrated in Figure 2.28, that is, a segment running down the spine of a
building with a segment on each floor. All told, an Ethernet is limited to supporting a
maximum of 1,024 hosts.
Because the cable is so thin, you do not tap into a 10Base2 or 10BaseT cable
in the same way as you would with 10Base5 cable. With 10Base2, a T-joint is
spliced into the cable. In effect, 10Base2 is used to daisy-chain a set of hosts
together. With 10BaseT, the common configuration is to have several point-to-point
segments coming out of a multiway repeater, sometimes called a hub, as illustrated

in Figure 2.29.Multiple 100-Mbps Ethernet segments can also be connected by a
hub, but the same is not true of 1,000-Mbps segments.
Access Protocol:
The algorithm that controls access to the shared Ethernet link. This algorithm
is commonly called the Ethernet’s media access control (MAC). It is typically
implemented in hardware on the network adaptor.
Frame Format:
Each Ethernet frame is defined by the format given in Figure 2.30. The 64-bit
preamble allows the receiver to synchronize with the signal; it is a sequence of
alternating 0s and 1s. Both the source and destination hosts are identified with a 48-
bit address. The packet type field serves as the demultiplexing key, that is, it
identifies to which of possibly many higher-level protocols this frame should be
delivered. Each frame contains up to 1,500 bytes of data. Minimally, a frame must
contain at least 46 bytes of data, even if this means the host has to pad the frame
before transmitting it. The reason for this minimum frame size is that the frame must
be long enough to detect a collision; we discuss this more below. Finally, each frame
includes a 32-bit CRC. Like the HDLC protocol described in Section 2.3.2, the
Ethernet is a bit-oriented framing protocol. Note that from the host’s perspective, an
Ethernet frame has a 14-byte header: two 6-byte addresses and a 2-byte type field.
The sending adaptor attaches the preamble, CRC, and postamble before transmitting,
and the receiving adaptor removes them.

■ Frames addressed to its own address;

■ Frames addressed to the broadcast address;
■ Frames addressed to a multicast address, if it has been instructed to listen to that
address;
■ All frames, if it has been placed in promiscuous mode.
6. What is error detection? Explain with examples. (N/D-11, M/J-2013)

Most networking equipment at the data-link layer inserts
some type of error-detection code. When a frame arrives at the
next hop in the transmission sequence, the receiving hop extracts
the error-detection code and applies it to the frame. When an error
is detected, the message is normally discarded. In this case, the
sender of the erroneous message is notified, and the message is
sent again.
The most common approaches to error detection are

 Parity check
 Cyclic redundancy check (CRC)
Cyclic redundancy checks (CRC):

The cyclic redundancy check (CRC) method provides smart
error checking and has been adopted in most computer and
communication systems. Figure 4.6 shows error detection and
correction on links, using CRC for a transmitter.

In any system, a standard and common value between

transmitters and receivers is adopted for error processing. This g-
bit-long value, known as a checking generator, is denoted by G. At
the transmitter, a partial or entire packet or frame is treated as a
block of data, and each block is processed individually. The CRC
algorithm at the transmitter part can be summarized as follows.
Begin CRC Algorithm at Transmitter

1. A string of g - 1 zero bits is appended to the incoming data, D.
We call this new block D,0s.
2. D,0s as a dividend is divided by the generator G acting as the
divisor. The division is of type modulo-2.
3. The quotient of this division is discarded, but the remainder is
called CRC.
4. The CRC value is appended to the data, producing D, CRC.
At the other end point of the communication system, the receiver

receives the value of D, CRC and performs the following algorithm
to detect errors, as shown in Figure 4.7.
Figure 4.7 Error detection on links, using CRC at a receiver

Begin CRC Algorithm at Receiver
1. D, CRC, as a dividend, is divided by the same generator G acting

as the divisor used by the transmitter. The division is of type
modulo-2.
2.The quotient of this division is discarded, but if the remainder is

0, the receiver knows that the data has no errors; otherwise, the
data is not accepted, as it contains one or more errors.
The modulo-2 division arithmetic is very simple. A modulo-2

division function is done without carries in additions or borrows in
subtractions. Interestingly, the module-2 division function performs
exactly lke the Exclusive-OR logic. For example, with modulo-2
arithmetic, we get 1 + 1 = 0 and 0 - 1 = 1. Equivalently, with logic
Exclusive-OR: 1 1 = 0, and 0 1 = 1.
Effectiveness of CRC:
The CRC method is pretty goof-proof. However, an analysis is

needed to answer whether the receiver is always able to detect a
damaged frame. Consider the generating polynomial xg-1 + xg-2 +
... + 1 with g terms. Apparently, g - 1 is the highest power of the
generating polynomial. Let n be the length of burst error occurring
in a received message. If the size of the error burst is n<g, error
detection is 100 percent. For all other cases, the terms between
xg-1 and 1 define which bits are erroneous. Since there are g - 2

such terms, there are 2g-2 possible combinations of erroneous bits.

Considering that all combinations can occur with equal probability,
there is a chance of that a combination exactly matches the terms
of the polynomial. This is the probability of a damaged bit
becoming undetected. The probability of catching such error bursts
through CRC.
Implementation of the CRC Process Unit:
Hardware with a combination of software performs the

process of division very quickly. An example of the basic hardware
used to perform the CRC calculation is shown in Figure 4.9. The
hardware includes a simple register that implements the CRC
process-generating polynomial x4 + x + 1. Except for the first term
(x4), an Exclusive-OR is included for each power of existing term,
as shown. Note that the notion of the generator value 10010 is now
appearing in the form of hardware shown by a combination of 1-bit
shift registers and Exclusive-OR gates. Therefore, we can see from
the figure where there is a term in the generating polynomial.
Figure 4.9. CRC process: The most significant bit enters first.
Initially, the registers contain 0s. All data bits of

1010111,0000, beginning from the most-significant bit, arrive from

the left, and a 1-bit shift register shifts the bits to the right every
time a new bit is entered. The rightmost bit in a register feeds back
around at select points. At these points, the value of this feedback
bit is Exclusive-ORed, with the bits shifting left in the register.
Before a bit shifts right, if there is an Exclusive-OR to shift through,
the rightmost bit currently stored in the shift register wraps around
and is Exclusive-ORed with the moving bit.
7. Write a note on bridges? (N/D-11, M/J-2013)

A bridge operates in both the physical and the data link layer. As a physical
layer device, it regenerates the signal it receives. As a data link layer device, the
bridge can check the physical (MAC) addresses (source and destination) contained
in the frame.
A bridge has filtering capability. It can check the destination address of a
frame and decide if the frame should be forwarded or dropped. If the frame is to be
forwarded, the decision must specify the port. A bridge has a table that maps
addresses to ports.
Transparent Bridges:
A transparent bridge is a bridge in which the stations are completely unaware
of the bridge's existence. If a bridge is added or deleted from the system,
reconfiguration of the stations is unnecessary. According to the IEEE 802.1 d
specification, a system equipped with transparent bridges must meet three criteria:
1. Frames must be forwarded from one station to another.

2. The forwarding table is automatically made by learning frame movements in the
network.
3. Loops in the system must be prevented.
To make a table dynamic, we need a bridge that gradually learns from the
frame movements. To do this, the bridge inspects both the destination and the source
addresses. The destination address is used for the forwarding decision (table
lookup); the source address is used for adding entries to the table and for updating
purposes. Let us elaborate on this process by using Figure 15.6.
1. When station A sends a frame to station D, the bridge does not have an entry for
either D or A. The frame goes out from all three ports; the frame floods the network.

However, by looking at the source address, the bridge learns that station A must be
located on the LAN connected to port 1. This means that frames destined for A, in
the future, must be sent out through port 1. The bridge adds this entry to its table.
The table has its first entry now.
2. When station E sends a frame to station A, the bridge has an entry for A, so it
forwards the frame only to port 1. There is no flooding. In addition, it uses the
source address of the frame, E, to add a second entry to the table.
3. When station B sends a frame to C, the bridge has no entry for C, so once again it
floods the network and adds one more entry to the table.
4. The process of learning continues as the bridge forwards frames.
Source Routing Bridges:

Another way to prevent loops in a system with redundant bridges is to use
source routing bridges. A transparent bridge's duties include filtering frames,
forwarding, and blocking. In a system that has source routing bridges, these duties
are performed by the source station and, to some extent, the destination station.
In source routing, a sending station defines the bridges that the frame must
visit. The addresses of these bridges are included in the frame. In other words, the

frame contains not only the source and destination addresses, but also the addresses
of all bridges to be visited.
The source gets these bridge addresses through the exchange of special frames
with the destination prior to sending the data frame. Source routing bridges were
designed by IEEE to be used with Token Ring LANs.
These LANs are not very common today.
Bridges Connecting Different LANs:
Frame format. Each LAN type has its own frame format (compare an Ethernet
frame with a wireless LAN frame).
Maximum data size. If an incoming frame's size is too large for the destination
LAN, the data must be fragmented into several frames. The data then need to be
reassembled at the destination. However, no protocol at the data link layer allows
the fragmentation and reassembly of frames. We will see in Chapter 19 that this is
allowed in the network layer. The bridge must therefore discard any frames too
large for its system.
Data rate. Each LAN type has its own data rate. (Compare the 10-Mbps data rate
of an Ethernet with the I-Mbps data rate of a wireless LAN.) The bridge must buffer
the frame to compensate for this difference.
Bit order. Each LAN type has its own strategy in the sending of bits. Some send
the most significant bit in a byte first; others send the least significant bit first.
Security. Some LANs, such as wireless LANs, implement security measures in the
data link layer. Other LANs, such as Ethernet, do not. Security often involves
encryption (see Chapter 30). When a bridge receives a frame from a wireless LAN,
it needs to decrypt the message before forwarding it to an Ethernet LAN.
Multimedia support. Some LANs support multimedia and the quality of services
needed for this type of communication;
8. Distinguish between point-to-point links and multi-point links with relevant

diagram. (M/J-2012)
Point-to-Point:

A point-to-point connection provides a dedicated link between two devices.

The entire capacity of the link is reserved for transmission between those two
devices. Most point-to-point connections use an actual length of wire or cable to
connect the two ends, but other options, such as microwave or satellite links, are also
possible (see Figure 1.3a). When you change television channels by infrared remote
control, you are establishing a point-to-point connection between the remote control
and the television's control system.
Multipoint:
A multipoint (also called multidrop) connection is one in which more
than two specific devices share a single link (see Figure 1.3b).
In a multipoint environment, the capacity of the channel is shared, either
spatially or temporally. If several devices can use the link simultaneously, it is a
spatially shared connection. If users must take turns, it is a timeshared connection.
9. Explain the IEEE 802.3 standard. (N/D-2012)
IEEE 802.11 Wireless Standard:

Each wireless LAN user in Figure 6.2 (b) has a wireless LAN adapter
for communication over the wireless medium. This adapter is
responsible for authentication, confidentiality, and data delivery. To

send data to a user in the wired LAN, a user in the wireless LAN
first sends the data packet to the access point. The access point
recognizes the wireless user through a unique ID called the service-
set identification (SSID). SSID is like a password-protection system
that enables any wireless client to join the wireless LAN. Once the
wirelessuser is authenticated, the access point forwards data
packets to the desired wired user through the switch or
hub.
Access points build a table of association that contains the

MAC addresses of all users in the wireless network. The access
point uses this information for forwarding data packets in the
wireless network. Figure 6.3 shows a setup whereby the LANs in
two buildings are interconnected by wireless bridges. A wireless
bridge is basically the same as a regular bridge but is equipped
with a wireless transceiver. The most common medium for wireless
networks is radio waves at a frequency of 2.4 GHz band. Wireless
bridges are also used to interconnect LANs in different buildings.
The access range of wireless LANs can be extended by deploying a
greater number of access points.

Figure 6.4 shows multiple access points being used to extend the
connectivity range of the wireless network. The area of coverage of
each access point can be overlapped to adjacent ones to provide
seamless user mobility without interruption. Radio signal levels in a
wireless LAN must be maintained at an optimum value. Normally, a
site survey must be conducted for these requirements. Site surveys
can include both indoor and outdoor sites. The surveys are
normally needed for power requirements, placement of access
points, RF coverage range, and available bandwidth.
802.11 Physical Layer:

IEEE 802.11 operates in the 2.4 GHz band and supports data
rates of 1 Mb/s to 2 Mb/s. IEEE 802.11a operates in the 5 GHz band
and supports data rates of up to 54 Mb/s. IEEE 802.11b operates in

the 2.4 GHz band and supports data rates of 5.5 Mb/s to 11 Mb/s.
IEEE 802.11g operates at 2.4 GHz and supports even higher data
rates.
The IEEE 802.11 physical layer is of four types.
1. Direct-sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) uses seven channels,
each supporting data rates of 1 Mb/s to Mb/s. The operating
frequency range is 2.4 GHz ISM band. DSSS uses three
nonoverlapping channels in the 2.4 GHz ISM band. The 2.4 GHz
frequency band used by 802.11 results in interference by certain
home appliances, such as microwave ovens and cordless
telephones, which operate in the same band.
2. Frequency-hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) uses a pseudonoise

sequence and signal hopping from one channel to another. This
technique makes use of 79 channels. FHSS operates in the 2.4 GHz
ISM band and supports data rates of 1 Mb/s to 2 Mb/s.
3. Infrared with an operating range of about 20 meters operates on

a broadcast communication paradigm. A pulse position modulation
(PPM) scheme is used.
4. Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), explained in

Chapter 4, is a multicarrier modulation scheme whereby the carrier
spacing is carefully selected so that each subcarrier is orthogonal
to the other subcarriers. Two signals are orthogonal if they are
multiplied together and their integral over an interval is 0.
Orthogonality can be achieved by letting the carrier spacing be
equal to the reciprocal of the useful symbol period. As the
subcarriers are orthogonal, the spectrum of each carrier has a null
at the center frequency of each of the other carriers in the system.
This results in no interference between the carriers, allowing them
to be spaced as close as possible.
IEEE 802.11a uses OFDM, which uses 12 orthogonal channels

in the 5 GHz range. This reduces the interference from other home
appliances, unlike the case with 802.11b. The two standards
802.11a and 802.11b can operate next to each other without any

interference: 802.11a equipment is more expensive and consumes

more power, as it uses OFDM. The frequency channels are
nonoverlapping. IEEE 802.11a operates in the 5 GHz band. The
achievable Mb/s data rates are 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, and 54.
Convolution coding is used for forward error correction.
IEEE 802.11b uses DSSS but supports data rates of up to 11 Mb/s.
The modulation scheme employed is called complementary code
keying (CCK). The operating frequency range is 2.4 GHz and hence
can interfere with some home appliances. IEEE 802.11g achieves
very high data rates compared to 802.11b and uses the 2.4 GHz
frequency band. A combination of encoding schemes is being used in 802.11g. An
802.11g client can operate with an 802.11b access point; similarly, an 802.11b client
can operate with an 802.11g access point.
802.11 MAC Layer:

IEEE 802.11 provides several key functionalities: reliable data delivery, media
access control, and security features. Reliable data delivery is a key feature available
in the MAC layer of IEEE 802.11. The imperfections of the wireless medium, such
as noise, interference, and multipath effects, may lead to frame loss. IEEE 802.11
uses acknowledgment (ACK) to ensure reliable data delivery. When a source sends a
data frame, the destination responds with an ACK to acknowledge receipt of the
frame. If the source does not receive an ACK for a certain period of time, it times
out the process and retransmits the frame.
The request-to-send /clear-to-send (RTS/CTS) scheme also is used to further
enhance reliability. When it has data to send, a source sends an RTS signal in the
form of a frame to the destination. The destination sends a CTS signal if it is ready
to receive data. The source sends the data frame after receiving the CTS signal from
the destination. The destination then responds with an ACK to indicate successful
receipt of data. This four-way handshake leads to a greater reliability of data
delivery. When a source sends an RTS frame, users within the reception range of the
source avoid sending any frames during this interval, to reduce the risk of collisions.
For the same reason, when the destination sends a CTS frame, users in the reception
range of the destination refrain from sending any frames during this interval.
Another key functionality is media access control (MAC). Media-access
algorithms are of two types: distributed access and centralized access. In distributed-
access protocols, media access control is distributed among all the nodes. Nodes use
a carrier-sense mechanism to sense the channel and then transmit. Distributed-access

protocols are used in ad hoc networks with highly bursty traffic. In centralized-
access protocols, the media-access issues are resolved by a central authority.
Central-access protocols are used in some wireless LANs that have a base-station
backbone structure and in applications that involve sensitive data. The IEEE 802.11
MAC algorithm provides both distributed- and centralized-access features.
Centralized access is built on top of distributed access and is optional.
The MAC layer consists of two sublayers: the distributed-coordination
function (DCF) algorithm and the point-coordination function algorithm (PCF).
Distributed Coordination Function (DCF) Algorithm

The DCF algorithm uses contention resolution, and its sublayer implements
the CSMA scheme for media access control and contention resolution. As explained
in Chapter 5, a CSMA sender listens for traffic on the medium. If it senses that the
medium is idle, it transmits; otherwise, if the medium is busy, the sender defers
transmission until the medium becomes idle. DCF has no provisions for collision
detection, which is difficult in wireless networks because of the hidden-node
problem. To overcome this problem, the interframe space (IFS) technique is used.
IFS is a delay whose length is based on frame priority. IFS has three timing levels.
The steps in the algorithm follow.

Begin DCF Algorithm for Wireless 802.11 MAC
1. The sender senses the medium for any ongoing traffic.
2. If the medium is idle, the sender waits for a time interval equal to IFS. Then the
sender senses the medium again. If the medium is still idle, the sender transmits the
frame immediately. If the medium is busy, the sender continues to sense the medium
until the medium becomes idle.
3. Once the medium becomes idle, the sender delays its activity by a time interval
equal to IFS and senses the medium again.
4. If the medium is still idle, the sender backs off for an exponential
time interval and senses the medium again after that interval.
The IFS time-interval technique is based on the priority of the data.

The three timing intervals used for IFS are
1.Short IFS (SIFS). This timing interval is used if immediate
response is required. A sender using a SIFS has highest priority.

SIFS is used to send ACK frames. A user receiving a frame directed

to only itself responds with an ACK after a time interval equal to
SIFS. The SIFS time interval compensates for the lack of a collision-
detection system in wireless networks.
2. Point IFS coordination function (PIFS). This timing interval is used

by the central authority or controller in the PCF scheme.
3. Distributed IFS coordination function (DIFS). This timing interval

is used for the normal asynchronous frames. Senders waiting for
the DIFS interval have the least priority.
MAC Frame:
The frame format for the 802.11 MAC is shown in Figure 6.5 and is described as
follows.
 The frame control (FC) field provides information on the type of frame:
control frame, data frame, or management frame.
 Duration/connection ID (D/I) refers to the time allotted for the successful

transmission of the frame.
 The addresses field denotes the 6-byte source and destination address fields.
 The sequence control (SC) field consists of 4 bits reserved for fragmentation
and reassembly and 12 bits for a sequence number of frames between a
particular transmitter and receiver.
 The frame body field contains a MAC service data unit or control information.
 The cyclic redundancy check (CRC) field is used for error detection.
Figure 6.5. IEEE 802.11 MAC frame

The three frame types in IEEE 802.11 are control frames, data-carrying frames, and
management frames. Control frames ensure reliable data delivery. The types of
control frames are
 Power savepoll (PSPoll). A sender sends this request frame to the access
point. The sender requests from the access point a frame that had been
buffered by the access-point because the sender was in power-saving mode.
 Request to send (RTS). The sender sends an RTS frame to the destination
before the data is sent. This is the first frame sent in the four-way handshake
implemented in IEEE 802.11 for reliable data delivery.
·
 Clear to send (CTS). The destination sends a CTS frame to indicate that it is
ready to accept data frames.
 ACK frame. The destination uses this frame to indicate to the sender a
successful frame receipt.
 Contention-free end (CFE). The PCF uses this frame to signal the end of the
contention-free period.
 CFE/End + CFE/ACK. PCF uses this frame to acknowledge the CFE end
frame.
The data-carrying frames are of the following types:·
Data. This is the regular data frame and can be used in both the contention and
contention-free periods.
Data/CFE-ACK. This is used for carrying data in the contention-free period and is
used toacknowledge received data.
Data/CFE-Poll. PFC uses this frame to deliver data to destinations and to request
data frames from users.
Data/CFE ACK/CFE-Poll. This frame combines the functionalities of the previous
three frames into one frame.

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SENGUNTHAR COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, TIRUCHENGIDE

PART-A (UNIVERSITY QUESTIONS)

 Local Area Network(LAN)

 Metropolitan Area Network(MAN)

 Wide Area Network(WAN)

2. Define a computer network. (N/D-2011)

3. What is FDDI? (N/D-2012, 2011)

4. Define Network? (M/J-2012)

5. Define Framing? (M/J-2012)

One or more synchronization bits are usually added to the beginning of

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 1

PART-A (IMPORTANT QUESTIONS)

4. What are the advantages of distributed processing?

5. Why are protocols needed?

6. Why are standards needed?

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 2

8. What is the difference between a passive and an active hub?

11. Group the OSI layers by function.

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 3

14. What is the DC component?

15. How does NRZ-L differ from NRZ-I?

18. What does the electrical specification of EIA-232 describe?

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 4

20. What is refraction?

22. What are the disadvantages of optical fiber as a transmission medium?

23. What are the criteria used to evaluate transmission medium?

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 5

Propagation speed is the distance, a signal or a bit travel through a

25.Explain cross talk and what is needed to reduce it?

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In a mesh topology, every device has a dedicated point-to-point link to every

Figure 1.5 A fully connected mesh topology (five devices)

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 7

Advantages of Mesh Topologies:

Disadvantages of Mesh Topologies:

i. Every device must be connected to every other device, installation and

In a star topology, each device has a dedicated point-to-point link only to a

Figure 1.6 A star topology connecting four stations

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 8

Advantages of Star Topology:

i. A star topology is less expensive than a mesh topology

Disadvantages of Star Topology:

Figure 1.7 A bus topology connecting three stations

Advantages of a bus topology:

i. Bus topology is ease of installation.

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 9

Disadvantages of a bus topology:

i. Difficult reconnection and fault isolation.

In a ring topology, each device has a dedicated point-to-point connection with

Figure 1.8 A ring topology connecting six stations

Advantages of Ring Topology:

i. A ring is relatively easy to install and reconfigure.

Disadvantages of Ring Topology:

Disadvantages of Ring Topology is unidirectional traffic.

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 10

2. Explain the various factors contributing to the network performance. (A/M-

The various factors contributing to the network performance is

Bandwidth and Latency:

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 11

Delay × Bandwidth Product:

The delay × bandwidth product is important to know when constructing high-

DEPT. OF ECE/UNIT-I Page 12

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