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3 By Node Relationship Type

The two types of networks that will be discussed here are the Peer-to-Peer Networks and the Client-
Server Networks. It is worth mentioning that Microsoft has coined its own terms for these two types of
networks that are Workgroup and Domain respectively. All modern Operating Systems support
networking and so the term Network Operating System (NOS) is used. There is no need any more to
distinguish a “networkable” so to say Operating System from a “non-networkable” one. .

The logical relationship among the interconnected nodes of a network and the way these nodes have
been configured for exchanging information among themselves determines the specific type of the
network formed with its own capabilities. It is worth mentioning from the beginning that the node
relationship types are applicable to any type of topology , any LAN, WAN, or the Internet itself.

Until the 1980s and the early beginning of 1990s the so called centralized computing based on
minicomputer or mainframe systems was widely in use. These systems were connected by direct
cabling to the so called “dumb” terminals . Those terminals had no processing power at all and were
not doing any kind of processing for the data application. However, they had a keyboard and a video
display to allow users to communicate with the central computer system on which all the applications
were solely running. Those terminals were just accepting user input and were displaying user output.
This type of set up of course does not constitute a computer network.

With the advent of personal computers the computing power increased but also got distributed.
Networks were mobilized to take advantage and utilize the personal computers’ resources. Independent
computers were interconnected to form computer networks that were developed to reach the form we
know today. Today, every Operating System in use has built-in networking capabilities that enables the
computer system on which it is installed to participate in a network. However, every NOS does not
have the same capabilities. All the members of the Microsoft Windows family of Operating Systems
are Network Operating Systems as well as all the modern versions of UNIX and LINUX.

 Peer to Peer Networks

As the term implies there is no hierarchy among the interconnected computers in such a democratic so
to say network since all its computer system nodes (members) are equal. Every node user can give and
take by offering his computer system’s resources like disk storage space, files or printers to its peers or
by using similar resources other nodes offer At the same time, every node is capable of working on its
own independently and function as a stand-alone computer system. Since every node can function
independently , all the parts of an application to be run by the user could be installed on that node.
Since there is no central authority figure or network administrator to handle management, security, user
accounts and other tasks, the user of every node determines when, with whom and how the resources of
his computer system will be shared.

However, we must mention here that an application can be designed to run in a “client/server” mode in
a peer to peer network. “Client/server” mode means that different parts of the application will run on
usually two or more computer systems of the peer to peer network. The application software that runs
on one of the computer systems collaborates with the NOS and sets specific rules for locating the other
computer system where the rest of the application will run since the roles of client and server can be
played by any computer system of a peer to peer network. As we will see below, in a “client server”
network the computer system that plays the role of the server has been predetermined. In the
“unstructured” peer to peer network any node can play the role of a client or Server with regards to
running an application. The establishment of the roles is achieved by sending query messages over the
network since the appropriate counterpart must first be located. In the “structured” peer to peer network
the role of the client or Server of a specific computer systems has been pre-determined. . If a user runs
a Client/Server application he or she does not realize that parts of the application run on different
computer systems. However, this is all transparent to the user

Examples of NOSes of the MS Windows family that are used on the computer system nodes of a peer
to peer network are Windows 9x,Me,XP,Vista and Workstation NT and 2000 Professional. The
database concerning security (like users, passwords or file sharing information) of every computer
system is stored locally on that computer system and it is updated with the responsibility of the logged
in user. In Windows XP for example, after setting up the communications hardware properly and

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physically connecting the computers, a peer to peer network (called Workgroup by Microsoft) can be
created by invoking the Network Setup Wizard (All programs → Accessories → Communications). We
are asked for the name of the Workgroup and the name of the node (host) which can be associated with
the user names for easy identification. Similarly, by using the same procedure on every participating
computer system, we can set up every computer to recognize the Workgroup and be recognized by it by
entering the name of the Workgroup we first created, and the name of the computer to participate. If a
user wants to share one of his resources over the network like a file folder for example, he or she must
right click the folder and choose the Sharing and Security option. In the Sharing Tab, the option Share
must first be selected and the additional information asked must be entered. In Windows NT/2000/XP
Prof. we can specify appropriate access permissions for specified users regarding the sharing of the
specified resource over the network by clicking the Permissions options . Additional permissions, the
so called NTFS ones, that also apply to local users as well can be set by the Security Tab of
Properties. It must be stressed here that every network user specified must also be a local user (have his
account ) on the local computer system whose resources are shared since every security database is
stored locally.

However, with Windows 9x or Me we can not specify detail access permissions for different users, but
we can only specify Read Only or Full Access permission based on different passwords that will enable
a user to have one of these two types of access. So as we can see, we have different capabilities for
different NOSes concerning networking functions. The shareable resource like a folder for example of
a remote computer on the network can be accessed from My Network Places or with the Windows
Explorer of the local computer system as a local one. On the remote node, a shared network folder or
other object can also be assigned a local drive letter so that it can be easily accessed by the remote user.
In most NOSes a user can remotely log on another computer given that the other computer’s user
database has an entry of the name and password he uses.

Peer to Peer Networks constitute an easy and convenient solution for networking when the number of
computers is very small (up to 10). Since central administration and management are not available, if
more computer systems are connected this issue can’t be controlled. So Peer to Peer networks are easy
to implement and inexpensive to maintain. They are a good choice for networking if:

- There are no more than ten interconnected computers on the network


- Security is not a major issue
- The network will experience limited growth in the near future

It must be noted that a computer system of the Server family can participate in a peer to peer network
given of course that it functions in a similar way the rest peer nodes function in the network.
Obviously, a Server system provides more resources.

 Client/Server

Most of the networks implemented today are Client/Server networks. A Client/Server network has
dedicated Servers which are usually powerful midrange computers whose resources are shared by the
clients (usually the PCs or Workstations) of the network. These Servers provide various services (e.g.
networking, printer, mail, web or application) depending on the capabilities of the NOS. These type of
services can run on one or more Servers. A simple example of a Client/Server application is Internet
Surfing. After the appropriate connection is established, the remote Web Server that hosts the web
pages accepts the request from the user's home PC where the Web Browser is running and transfers the
requested information to the home PC user. The application runs on both computer systems.

To accomplish their dedicated services, the Servers must have more processing power, memory and
disk space than clients. They must also provide more throughput in moving data for the clients being
served (high performance Internal Bus and Disk Subsystems) as well as some form of safeguarding
against failure or disaster by having redundant computer parts.

To accomplish its heavy load of tasks a Server computer system is equipped with a fast CPU, plenty of
memory and a high performance internal Bus and Disk subsystem. The major hardware characteristics
of a typical mid-range Server are:

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- Processors (like Intel Xeon) that can perform optimally in a multiprocessor Server System with a
sizeable cache memory. A Server system must have the option of using more than one CPUs. The
64-bit Intel Itanium-2 processor was one of the first processors designed to be used in Server
computer systems. Newer 64-bit processors have recently been developed by both Intel and AMD
with the prospect to be used on Server computer systems as well.

- For obvious reasons, more bits and the higher clock frequency used in the Server buses result in
higher internal data transfer rates and therefore better performance .

- The Redundant Array of Intelligent (or Inexpensive) Disks (RAID) technology disks used with the
SCSI interface that can ensure high data security

- High performance Network Interface Card (NIC) of 1 Gb/sec or 10Gb/sec for connecting the
Server to a LAN.

A Server can be set up to provide various types of services. However, distributing the tasks of
providing these services among several Servers increases efficiency. In Client/Server networking, one
of the major functions that a Server provides is controlling the user access to the network. The
Microsoft term for a Client/Server network is domain. On a domain, the so called Domain Controller is
the Server that authenticates every user that logs on the network from any client computer. A user may
not even be able to use his or her workstation locally unless this is allowed by the Server depending on
the set up of the network administrator. To run an application or to do useful work, the user must first
log on the network (on the domain) and have access to specific Servers since Client/Server applications
run on both the Server and the client computers. Contrary to the case of a peer to peer network we have
already examined, in a client/server network the server and the client systems have been pre-defined.
Furthermore, central administration and management of network resources like folders or network
printers stored on or connected to the Servers is controlled and managed by the Network Administrator
who is the person responsible for such tasks.

The Windows family of Operating Systems that can be used on a Client/Server network that can
provide all the capabilities are the NT/2000/2003/2008 Server NOSes. A detail presentation of the
practical aspects of a Client/Server network and the set up of a Server NOS is beyond the scope of
these notes. Regarding some installation highlights, the Windows 2003 Server installation procedure
for example walks the network administrator through specific steps at which he has to provide
appropriate specific answers. Some of the steps have to do with typical information (e.g. disk partition
size, device set up, domain name, Network and IP address properties) while others have to do with
choosing the installation of critical core NOS components (Services). These services have to do with
the functions a Server provides in a Client/Server network like central user and resource management,
networking capabilities , Internet Access, etc. Another critical question has to do with specifying the
Server’s role within the Client/Server network like: Is the Server going to be a Domain Controller? A
copy of this data base can be held by more than one Server if so specified, and the network
administrator can access the database from any of these Servers. A set of tools called Active Directory
(the general term used is Directory Services) is separately created in the Windows 2000/2003/2008
installation procedure for accessing the domain’s database. The management of a network can be easy
if the number of clients is small but it can become extremely difficult as the number of clients grow.
Active Directory proves to be a powerful tool of the system manager's or the network’s administrator’s
toolkit.

By selecting the Active Directory Users and Computers Utility from the Administrative Tools of
Windows 20003, we can enter the domain user accounts to allow users to log on the Domain
Controller. In addition, we must also enter the computer client’s names (IDs) that will join the domain.
On the other hand, regarding the client computers each one must be configured separately to participate
in the domain. In Windows XP Prof., the Network Setup Wizard procedure that we discussed in Peer to
Peer networks must first be followed. Then, we must right-click My Computer icon, select Properties
and then the Computer Name Tab. By clicking the Network ID button of this tab, the Network
Identification Wizard starts that will walk us through the appropriate steps.

Least but not last Windows 2000/2003/2008 Server NOSes offer the Windows Terminal Services
(WTS) which enable the setting up of a Windows 2000/2003/2008 Server to function like a legacy
main-frame or minicomputer system where all the application programs run on the Server like in

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centralized computing we examined. That is, the client computers use a dial-up or LAN/WAN TCP/IP
connection to access the Server and emulate an old dummy terminal where no processing is carried out.
The clients are only used for displaying data sent by the Server and for accepting keyboard input.

The major advantages and disadvantages of a Client/Server network (pros and cons ) compared to a
peer to peer one are the following:

Pros:

- Centralized management and control of network resources and security


- Easy and low cost scalability (the capability to increase in size)
- Capability of easy back ups since from the Server all the computers of the network can be accesed.

Cons:

- They are costly to maintain since they need professional administration


- They are costly to implement and maintain since they need more expensive hardware and software
equipment compared to peer to peer networks

Generic Client/Server Architecture regarding Applications

Client Server

Presentation Services
R equest
Application Logic (Client) Application Logic (Server)
Response

Networking Software Networking Software


Protocol
Operating System Inter Interaction Operating System

Hardware Platform Hardware Platform

Examples of Processing in a Client/Server Application (Thin-Fat Client)

Client Server

Presentation
Logic

Application
Logic

Database
Logic

Presentation
Logic

Application Application
Logic Logic

Database
Logic

The upper type is the old type of centralized computing while the lower of the usual
Client/Server type

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