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Introduction
Networks a Windows 95 has come up with another bonanza,
that is, Network Communication with other users. The users
can connect with other users to share data files and peripheral
devices, like Printers. The communication tools of Windows 95
include E-Mail and connection to Internet and Intranet
including LANs, WANs and MANs.
Objective
After this lecture, students would able to understand different
network access method.
Network Basics
In many organizations today, computers are connected together
by cable or by phone line in a network. In a network, a com-
puter can be attached to computers in adjoining offices,
adjoining buildings, and to computers around the globe.
If you are connected to a network, you can open and save files
on other computers or use resources attached to those
computers, like printers and CD-ROM drive. Of course, you
must have been given the right to do this.
To access other computers on your network, open the Network
Neighbourhood object on the desktop. If your network is
large, you can view the computers in your immediate
workgroup. A workgroup is a collection of computers and
computer users that share similar resources and belong to the
same group. Whereas, domain that is similar to a workgroup is
much larger in scale. Each domain has its own computers and
workgroups and is managed independently of other domain.
Network Setup & Conf iguration
Assuming that the network administrator has already installed
the network and established your computer as a workstation,
you should be able to identify your computer network settings,
like - the network name, the workgroup it belongs to, and how
folders, drives, and other resources are shared on your com-
puter.
To find out the network settings, double-click the Network
object from the Control Panel window. In the Network
window that is opened up, you will find three tabs - Configura-
tion, Identification, and Access Control.
Configuration will display the network components that are
installed, or removed, or properties be viewed. These are :
Client Software - It enables you to use files and printers shared
on other network computers.
An Adapter - It is a hardware device that physically connects
your computer to the network.
A Protocol - It is the language a computer uses to communi-
cate over a network. All computers connected to the same
network must use the same protocol to communicate with each
other.
LESSON 3
REVIEW OF NETWORK ACCESS
In the same window, the Primary Logon is the client that is
used to validate your user name and password, process any
login script, and perform other startup tasks.
Identification tab will open up the dialog box that displays the
information to identify your computer on the network. In this,
the Computer nameis the name of your computer that other
people see when they browse the network. The Workgroupis the
name of the local network that your network belongs to. The
Computer Description text box provides the place to enter the
description for your computer. This information will be viewed
by other users when they browse the network.
Access Control tab provides you the option to determine how
the files on your computer and the resources attached to it are
shared over the network. The two options are :
Share-level access control is used to specify the passwords
that other network users must type to access the resources you
share on your computer.
User-level access control enables you to validate or authenti-
cate users before they can access your computer. This works
only if your network has a special security server.
Logging onto the Network
The Network Administrator assigns the login name and the
password to every person who will use the network.
If you are already working on Windows 95, to log on to the
network, follow the given instructions :
1. Click the Start button, and then click Shut Down.
2. Click Close All Programs And Log On As A Different
User.
3. Click Yes.
4. In the Enter Network Passwordbox, type your user name
and password.
Mapping Network Drives
In order to access folders on network drives from some
applications, a drive letter must be assigned to these folders.
These drives are not physical drives but the mapping is done for
logical drives.
To map a drive letter to a network computer or folder, follow
the given steps :
1. In My Computer or Network Neighborhood, locate the
folder you want to map.
2. Right-click the folder to open its context menu.
3. In the Drive box, the next recommended drive is displayed.
You can click on the down-arrow button to choose a
different drive letter. In any case, it should not be the drive
letter that is already in use.
4. Type a path to the computer and folder in the Path field.
5. Click OK.
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To disconnect a mapped drive to make it free for other map-
pings, follow the given steps :
1. Open the My Computer window.
2. Right-click the mapped object you want to disconnect.
3. From its context menu, select Disconnect to remove the
mapping.
Network Access
Network is defined as interconnection of two or more comput-
ers such that they can resources and information. These
computers can be linked together using a wide variety of cables
or telephone lines or through satellites.
There are many types of computer networks, including:
Local Area Networks (LANs) : The computers are
geographically close together (that is, in the same building).
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) : The Computer
network designed for a town or city.
Wide Area Networks (WANs) : The computers are farther
apart and are connected by telephone lines or radio waves.
In addition to these types, the following characteristics are also
used to categorize different types of networks:
Topology : The geometric arrangement of a computer
system. Common topologies include a bus, star, and ring.
Protocol : The protocol defines a common set of rules and
signals that computers on the network use to communicate.
One of the most popular protocols for LANs is called
Ethernet. Another popular LAN protocol for PCs is the
IBM token-ring network.
Architecture : Networks can be broadly classified as using
either a peer-to-peer or client/ server architecture.
Computers on a network are sometimes called nodes. Comput-
ers and devices that allocate resources for a network are called
servers.
E-MAIL
In its simplest form, e-mail is an electronic message sent from
one computer to another. You can send or receive personal and
business-related messages with attachments, such as pictures or
formatted documents. You can even send computer programs.
How E-Mail Works
It can take days to send a letter across the country and weeks to
go around the world. To save time and money, more and more
people are using electronic mail. Its fast, easy and much cheaper
than the post office.
Lets say you have a small business with sales reps working
around the country. How do you keep in touch without
running up a huge phone bill? Or what about keeping in touch
with far-flung family members? E-mail is the way to go. Its no
wonder e-mail has become the most popular service on the
Internet.
Just as a letter makes stops at different postal stations along its
way, e-mail passes from one computer, known as a mail server
to another as it travels over the Internet. Once it arrives at the
destination mail server, it is stored in an electronic mailbox until
the recipient retrieves it. This whole process can take seconds,
allowing you to quickly communicate with people around the
world at any time of the day or night.
To receive e-mail, you must have an account on a mail server.
This is similar to having an address where you receive letters.
One advantage over regular mail is that you can retrieve your e-
mail from a remote location. Once you contact your mail server,
you can download your messages.
To send e-mail, you need a connection to the Internet and access
to a mail server, which can forward your mail. The standard
protocol used for sending e-mail on the Internet is called SMTP,
for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. It works in conjunction with
POP servers. POP stands for Post Office Protocol.
When you send an e-mail message, your computer sends it to
an SMTP server. The server looks at the e-mail address (like the
address on an envelope), and then forwards it to the recipients
mail server. When the message is received at the destination
mail server, it is stored until the addressee retrieves it. You can
send e-mail to anyone who has an e-mail address, anywhere in
the world. Remember, almost all Internet service providers
(ISPs) and all major online services offer an e-mail address with
every account.
Sending An E-Mail Message
STEP - 1
Open your e-mail program and launch a new message window
by clicking on the appropriate icon.
STEP - 2
In the TO box, type in the name of the recipient. It should take
this form:
recipient@domain.com
Make sure you enter the address correctly or the message will
return to you.
You can send a message to more than one person by entering
multiple addresses. Just put a semi-colon (;) between each
address.
Your return address is automatically sent to the recipient.
STEP - 3
Type in the subject of the e-mail.
STEP - 4
Write your message in the message window. You can also copy
text from a word processing program and paste it into the
window.
STEP - 5
Click on the Send icon or select Send from the File menu.
Understanding E-Mail Addresses
Internet e-mail addresses typically have two main parts:
professor@raiuniversity.edu
First there is the user name (professor), which refers to the
recipients mailbox. Then theres an axon sign (@). Next comes
the host name (rai university), also called the domain name.
This refers to the mail server, the computer where the recipient
has an electronic mailbox. Its usually the name of a company or
organization. Finally, theres a dot (.) followed by three letters
(com) that indicate the type of domain.
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An address ending with .com typically means that the host is a
business, commercial enterprise, or an online service like
America Online. Most companies use this extension.
A host name ending with .edu usually means that the host is a
university or educational facility. .org indicates the host is a non-
commercial organization.
Other extensions you might encounter are .mil for military and
.net for network. The latter tends to be reserved for organiza-
tions such as Internet service providers. By the way, there are
plans to add seven additional top-level domains, such as .web
and .nom, but when this will happen is anyones guess.
For e-mail addresses outside of the United States, there is often
a [DOT] followed by two letters representing the country. For
instance, .in indicates India, .de indicates Germany and .nz
indicates New Zealand.
LAN
LAN is a computer network that spans a relatively small area.
Most LANs are confined to a single building or group of
buildings. However, one LAN can be connected to other LANs
over any distance via telephone lines and radio waves. A system
of LANs connected in this way is called a wide-area network
(WAN).
Most LANs connect workstations and personal computers.
Each node (individual computer ) in a LAN has its own CPU
with which it executes programs, but it is also able to access data
and devices anywhere on the LAN. This means that many users
can share expensive devices, such as laser printers, as well as data.
Users can also use the LAN to communicate with each other, by
sending e-mail or engaging in chat sessions.
There are many different types of LANs Ethernets being the
most common for PCs..
The following characteristics differentiate one LAN from
another:
Topology : The geometric arrangement of devices on the
network. For example, devices can be arranged in a ring or in a
straight line.
Protocols : The rules and encoding specifications for
sending data. The protocols also determine whether the
network uses a peer-to-peer or client/ server architecture.
Media: Devices can be connected by twisted-pair wire,
coaxial cables, or fiber optic cables. Some networks do without
connecting media altogether, communicating instead via radio
waves.
LANs are capable of transmitting data at very fast rates, much
faster than data can be transmitted over a telephone line; but the
distances are limited, and there is also a limit on the number of
computers that can be attached to a single LAN.
MAN
MAN stands for Metropolitan Area Network, it is a data
network designed for a town or city. In terms of geographic
breadth, MANs are larger than local-area networks (LANs), but
smaller than wide-area networks (WANs). MANs are usually
characterized by very high-speed connections using fiber optical
cable or other digital media.
WAN
WAN is a computer network that spans a relatively large
geographical area. Typically, a WAN consists of two or more
local-area networks (LANs).
Computers connected to a wide-area network are often con-
nected through public networks, such as the telephone system.
They can also be connected through leased lines or satellites.
The largest WAN in existence is the Internet.
Client/Server Architecture
Client/ Server Architecture is one in which the client (personal
computer or workstation) is the requesting machine and the
server is the supplying machine, both of which are connected
via a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN).
Since the early 1990s, client/ server has been the buzzword for
building applications on LANs in contrast to centralized minis
and mainframes with dedicated terminals.
The network operating system (NOS) together with the
database management system (DBMS) and transaction monitor
(TP monitor) are responsible for integrity and security. Some of
these products have gone through many client/ server versions
by now and have finally reached industrial strength.
The client contains the user interface and may perform some or
all of the application processing. Servers can be high-speed
microcomputers, minicomputers or even mainframes. A
database server maintains the databases and processes requests
from the client to extract data from or update the database. An
application server provides additional business processing for
the clients.
The term client/ server is sometimes used to contrast a peer-to-
peer network, in which any client can also act as a server. In that
case, client/ server means nothing more than having a dedicated
server.
However, client/ server architecture means more than dedicated
servers. Simply downloading files from or sharing programs
and databases on a server is not true client/ server either. True
client/ server implies that the application was originally designed
to run on a network and that the network infrastructure
provides the same quality of service as traditional mini and
mainframe information systems.
NON-CLIENT/SERVER
In non-client/ server architecture, the server is nothing more
than a remote disk drive. The users machine does all the
processing. If many users routinely perform lengthy searches,
this can bog down the network, because each client has to pass
the entire database over the net. At 1,000 bytes per record, a
10,000 record database requires 10MB of data be transmitted.
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TWO-TIER CLIENT/SERVER
Two-tier client/ server is really the foundation of client/ server.
The database processing is done in the server. An SQL request
is generated in the client and transmitted to the server. The
DBMS searches locally and returns only matching records. If 50
records met the criteria, only 50K would be transmitted. This
reduces traffic in the LAN.
THREE-TIER CLIENT/SERVER
Many applications lend themselves to centralized processing. If
they contain proprietary algorithms, security is improved.
Upgrading is also simpler. Sometimes, programs are just too
demanding to be placed into every client PC. In three-tier client/
server, application processing is performed in one or more
servers.