Experiment # 3

Topology Orientation and Building a Small Network

Learning Objectives

 Correctly identify cables for use in the network.

 Physically cable a peer-to-peer and switched network.
 Verify basic connectivity on each network.

Equipment Required

 2 workstations
 2 straight through cables
 1 crossover cable
 1 switch (or hub)

Introduction

Many network problems can be fixed at the Physical layer of a network. For this reason,
it is important to have a clear understanding of which cables to use for your network
connections.

At the Physical layer (Layer 1) of the OSI model, end devices must be connected by
media (cables). The type of media required depends on the type of device being
connected.

In addition, two or more devices communicate through an address. The Network layer
(Layer 3) requires a unique address (also know as a logical address or IP Addresses),
which allows the data to reach the appropriate destination device.

IP Address

An Internet Protocol address (IP address) is a numerical label assigned to each device
participating in a computer network.

The designers of the Internet Protocol defined an IP address as a 32-bit number and this
system, known as Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4), is still in use today. However, due to
the enormous growth of the Internet and the predicted depletion of available addresses, a
new addressing system (IPv6), using 128 bits for the address.

IP addresses are binary numbers, but they are usually stored in text files and displayed in
human-readable notations, such as 172.16.254.1 (for IPv4).
IP version 4 address

Decomposition of an IPv4 address from dot-decimal notation to its binary value.

In IPv4 an address consists of 32 bits which limits the address space to 4294967296 (232)
possible unique addresses. IPv4 reserves some addresses for special purposes such as
private networks (~18 million addresses) or multicast addresses (~270 million addresses).

IPv4 addresses are canonically represented in dot-decimal notation, which consists of

four decimal numbers, each ranging from 0 to 255, separated by dots, e.g., 172.16.254.1.
Each part represents a group of 8 bits (octet) of the address. In some cases of technical
writing, IPv4 addresses may be presented in various hexadecimal, octal, or binary
representations.

An IP address in two parts: network number portion and host number portion. The
highest order octet (most significant eight bits) in an address was designated as the
network number and the remaining bits were called the rest field or host identifier and
were used for host numbering within a network.

Classes:

It also defined the total number of hosts subnets per network. There were five classes of
IP addresses: classes A through E.

The first three bits of the most significant octet of an IP address were defined as the class
of the address. Three classes (A, B, and C) were defined for universal unicast addressing.
Depending on the class derived, the network identification was based on octet boundary
segments of the entire address. Each class used successively additional octets in the
network identifier, thus reducing the possible number of hosts in the higher order classes
(B and C).

Class Leading Range of Network Host ID Number of Number of

 address first ID format format networks addresses per
bits octet network
A 0 0 - 127 a b.c.d 27 = 128 224 = 16777216
B 10 128 - 191 a.b c.d 214 = 16384 216 = 65536
C 110 192 - 223 a.b.c d 221 = 28 = 256
2097152

IPv4 private addresses

Early network design, when global end-to-end connectivity was envisioned for
communications with all Internet hosts, intended that IP addresses be uniquely assigned
to a particular computer or device. However, it was found that this was not always
necessary as private networks developed and public address space needed to be
conserved.

Computers not connected to the Internet, such as factory machines that communicate
only with each other via TCP/IP, need not have globally unique IP addresses. Three
ranges of IPv4 addresses for private networks were reserved. These addresses are not
routed on the Internet and thus their use need not be coordinated with an IP address
registry.

Today, when needed, such private networks typically connect to the Internet through
network address translation (NAT).

A unique Internet Protocol (IP) address, known as a public IP address, is assigned to

every computer that connects to the Internet. The IP addressing scheme makes it possible
for computers to “find each other” online and exchange information. Within a private
network, computers use addresses excluded by convention from use on the Internet. The
difference between a private IP address and a public IP address then, is that private IP
addresses are reserved for private networks, and public IP addresses are reserved for the
Internet.

Assuming the network has Internet connectivity, the computer connected to the digital
subscriber line (DSL) modem is assigned a public IP address by the Internet Service
Provider (ISP). This single public IP address is used to identify the network on the
Internet. Now the network’s router acts as a gatekeeper between the private network and
the public Internet. Using a built-in Network Address Translator (NAT), the router passes
requests to the Internet using the assigned public IP address. Returning data is routed
back to the public IP address, with the router determining which private IP address
requested the information. In essence, the private IP address is daisy-chained to the public
IP address through processes in the router.

IANA-reserved private IPv4 network ranges

Start End No. of addresses
24-bit Block (/8 prefix, 1 × A) 10.0.0.0 10.255.255.255 16777216
20-bit Block (/12 prefix, 16 × B) 172.16.0.0 172.31.255.255 1048576
16-bit Block (/16 prefix, 256 × C) 192.168.0.0 192.168.255.255 65536

A Subnet mask is a 32-bit number that masks an IP address, and divides the IP address
into network address and host address. Subnet Mask is made by setting network bits to all
"1"s and setting host bits to all "0"s.

Within a given network, two host addresses are reserved for special purpose. The "0"
address is assigned a network address and "255" is assigned to a broadcast address,
and they cannot be assigned to a host.

The broadcast address is used to send data to all hosts on a subnet at the same time. This
is not common, but is available. The broadcast address is formed by taking the network
address, and setting to 1 all the bits that correspond to zero bits in the netmask. The bits
that you set to one are the same bits that are zero in the netmask.

Scenarios

This lab starts with the simplest forms of networking:

1. Peer-to-Peer Network
2. Networking through a switch.

Cable the Peer-to-Peer Network

Procedure:

Step 1: Identify the Cables used to Connect Two Workstations.

Use a crossover cable to connect two workstations to each other through their NIC’s
Ethernet port. This is an Ethernet cable. When you look at the plug you will notice that
the orange and green wires are in opposite positions on each end of the cable.

Connect one end of the cable to the NIC port on PC1 and the other end of the cable to
PC2.
Step 2: Apply a Layer 3 address to the workstations.

To complete this task, you will need to follow the step-by-step instructions below.

Note: These steps must be completed on each workstation. The instructions are for
Windows XP.

1. On your computer, click Start, right-click My Network Places, and then click
Properties. The Network Connections window should appear, with icons
showing the different network connections.

2. Right-click the Local Area Connection and click Properties.

3. Select the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) item and then click the Properties button.
4. On the General tab of the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties window, select the Use
the following IP address option.

5. In the IP address box, enter the IP address 192.168.1.2 for PC1. (Enter the IP address
192.168.1.3 for PC2.)

6. Press the tab key and the Subnet mask is automatically entered. The subnet address
should be 255.255.255.0. If this address is not automatically entered, enter this address
manually.

7. Click OK.

8. Close the Local Area Connection Properties

window.

Step 3: Verify connectivity.

1. On your computer, click Start, and then

click Run.

2. Type cmd in the Open box and then click

OK.

The DOS command (cmd.exe) window will

appear. You can enter DOS commands using
this window. For the purposes of this lab, basic
network commands will be entered to allow you to test you computer connections.

The ping command is a computer network tool used to test whether a host (workstation,
router, server, etc.) is reachable across an IP network.

3. Use the ping command to verify that PC1 can reach PC2 and PC2 can reach PC1.
From the PC1 DOS command prompt, type ping 192.168.1.3. From the PC2 DOS
command prompt, type ping 192.168.1.2.

What is the output of the ping command?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_________________
If the ping command displays an error message or doesn’t receive a reply from the other
workstation, troubleshoot as necessary. Possible areas to troubleshoot include:

• Verifying the correct IP addresses on both workstations

• Ensuring that the correct type of cable is used between the workstations

Ipconfig is a command which can be used to display the network settings currently
assigned and given by a network. This command can be utilized to verify a network
connection as well as to verify your network settings.

Connect Your Workstations to the Switch

Step 1: Connect workstation to switch.

Use a straight-through cable to connect a workstation to a switch port. This is also an

Ethernet cable. When you look at the plug you will notice that both ends of the cable are
exactly the same in each pin position.
Using the correct cable, connect one end of the cable to the NIC port on the workstation
and the other end to a port on the switch.

Step 2: Repeat This Process for each Workstation on Your Network.

Which cable did you use?

For PC1 to Switch: _____________________________________________

For PC2 to Switch: _____________________________________________

Step 3: Verify Connectivity.

Verify network connectivity by using the ping command to reach the other workstations
attached to the switch.
What is the output of the ping command?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
____________________________

What is the output of the ping command if you ping an address that is not connected to
this network?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
____________________________

Step 4: Share a Document between PCs.

1. On your desktop, create a new folder and name it test.

2. Right-click the folder and click File sharing. Note: A hand will be placed under the
icon.

3. Place a file in the folder.

4. On your computer, click Start, and then click Run.

5. Enter \\IP_ADDRESS of the PC which is sharing file. The test folder should appear.
You will be able to access this folder across the network.