Chapter Two

Computer Network and the Internet

TEKLAY G. (MSc in BHI)

 Course outline
 Network
 Network type and topology
 Network Transmission Media
 Network connectivity devises
 Internet
 Overview
o A network links two or more computers together to communicate and share
resources.

o Connections between computing devices can be physical using wires or cables

or wireless using radio waves or infrared signals

o A computer network allows computers to link to each other’s resources.

o For example, in a networked environment a printer can be shared by different

departments.
 Network Types and Topologies
 Network Categories: based on size, the distance it covers, and its physical
architecture
 Personal Area Network (PAN): meant for one person; e.g. a
wireless network connecting a computer with its mouse,
keyboard and printer

 Local Area Network (LAN): usually privately owned and links devices in a
single office, building or campus.
 Network Types and Topologies …

 Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): designed to extend

over an entire city; it may be a single network or
interconnected LANs
 Wide Area Network (WAN):
–Covering large geographic area,
–Has no geographical limit .
–Perhaps the ultimate WAN is the Internet.
 Contd’

• A topology is a way of laying out the network.

• Topologies can be either physical or logical.
• Physical topologies describe how the cables are run.
• Logical topologies describe how the network messages
travel.
 Network Types and Topologies …
o There are four primary topologies

o Bus

o Star

o Ring

o Mesh
 Bus Topology
O Multipoint (one long cable acts as a backbone to link all the devices
in the network)

o Each computer shares the same data and address path.

o Advantages
oease of installation; less cabling than star or mesh
 Bus Topology …
odisadvantages
odifficult reconnection (adding new devices) and fault
isolation

oa fault in the bus cable stops all transmission

oPerformance degrades as additional computers are
added
 Star Topology
o Each device has a dedicated point-to-point link only to a central
controller, usually called a hub
o Very easy to add a new workstation
o More cable is required than for a bus topology.
o advantages
oa failure of a link has no effect on others
ofault identification and isolation are easy
oless expensive than mesh (but more expensive than others)
 Star Topology …
o disadvantage
ofailure of the hub(embrt) halts(agede.akome) the system
oWith Increased devices and traffic can make the network slow
 Ring Topology

o each device has a dedicated point-to-point connection only with the

two devices on either side of it

o Under the ring concept, a signal is transferred sequentially via a

"token" from one station to the next.
 Ring Topology …
o advantages
o relatively easy to install and configure - adding or deleting a
device requires changing only two connections
o fault isolation is simplified (if one device does not receive a
signal within a specified period, it can issue an alarm)
o disadvantages
o a break in the ring (such as a disabled station) can disable
the entire network
 Mesh Topology
o The mesh topology is the simplest logical topology in terms of data
flow, but it is the most complex in terms of physical design.
o Every device must have n-1 I/O ports, where n is the number of
devices connected
o advantages
• no traffic problem (no congestion)
• a failure of a link has no effect on others
• privacy or security
• fault identification and isolation are easy
 Mesh Topology …
odisadvantages
o amount of cabling and I/O ports needed (expensive)
o Expansion to the network can cause network disruption
 Group assignment
Group-1 network transmission media 3,12,11,14
Group-2 Network Connectivity Devices 7,4,9,13
Group-3 the internet 1,2,5,10

20%
 Network Transmission Media
o Data to be sent from one location to another, a signal must travel along a physical path.

o The physical path that is used to carry a signal between a signal transmitter and a signal
receiver is called the transmission medium.

o There are two types of transmission media:

o Guided Transmission Media

o Unguided Transmission Media

 Guided Transmission Media

o Uses a "cabling" system that guides the data signals along a specific path.

o The data signals are bound by the "cabling" system. Guided Media is also known as Bound
Media.

o Copper cabling and fiber optic are the two common examples.
 Copper cabling
o Under the heading of copper cabling are two categories to consider:

o twisted-pair cabling and

o coaxial cabling.
 Twisted-Pair Cabling
o Twisted-pair is a type of cabling that is used for telephone communications and most
modern Ethernet networks.

o The pairs are twisted to provide protection against crosstalk, the noise generated by
adjacent pairs.

o Are two basic types, shielded twisted-pair (STP) and unshielded twisted-pair (UTP).
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)
 Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)

o Consists of 4 pairs (8 wires) of insulated copper wires typically about 1 mm thick.

o The wires are twisted together in a helical form.

o Twisting reduces the interference between pairs of wires.

o High bandwidth and High attenuation channel.

o Flexible and cheap cable.

 Coaxial Cable
o Coaxial cable (often called simply "coax") is familiar to most people as the conductor that
carries cable TV into their homes.
o Coaxial cable is constructed with an insulated solid or stranded wire core surrounded by a
dielectric insulating layer and a solid or braided metallic shield.
o Both the wire and shield are wrapped in an outer protective insulating jacket
 Fiber Optic
o Fiber-optic cable is plastic or glass cable designed to carry voice or digital data in the form
of light pulses.

o The signals are introduced into the cable by a laser diode and bounce along its interior
until they reach the end of the cable

o Fiber-optic cable also provides a much more secure data transmission medium than copper.
Fiber Optic
 Unguided Media (Wireless Networks)
o Very useful in difficult terrain where cable laying is not possible.

o Provides mobility to communication nodes.

o Right of way and cable laying costs can be reduced.

o Susceptible to rain, atmospheric variations and Objects in transmission path.

o Wireless transmissions are made through the air by infrared light, microwave.
 Network Connectivity Devices
o Most cabling allows networks to be hundreds of feet long. But what if your network needs
to be bigger than that?
o Connectivity devices allow computers talk to other computers in the next building, the next
city, or the next country.
o Some of the different types of connectivity devises are:
o Repeaters
o Hubs/switches
o Bridges
o Routers
 Repeaters

o A repeater is an electronic device that regenerates data. It extends the physical length of a
network.
o As a signal is transmitted, it may lose strength, and a weak signal may be interpreted
erroneously by a receiver.
 Hub
o Hubs are devices used to link several computers together.
o They are simple devices. They are just multiport repeaters
o They repeat any signal that comes in on one port and copy it to the other ports (a process
that is also called broadcasting).
 Switches
o Switches are similarly to hubs in that they connect several computers .

o However, switches don’t repeat everything they receive on one port to every other port as
hubs do.

o Switches examine the header of the incoming packet and forward it properly to the right
port and only that port.

o This greatly reduces overhead

Switches
 Bridges
o It segments a given network according to the requirements.

o Bridges filter traffic based on the destination address of the frame.

o If a frame's destination is a node on the same segment where it originated, it is not

forwarded.

o If it is destined for a node on another LAN, it is connected to corresponding bridge port

and forwarded to that port.
 Bridges …
o The main disadvantage of bridges is that they can not connect dissimilar network types or
perform intelligent path selection

o For that function, you need a router.

Bridges …
 Router

o Routers are highly intelligent devices that connect multiple network types and determine
the best path for sending data.

o They can route packets across multiple networks and use routing tables to store network
addresses to determine the best destination.

o The advantage of using a router over a bridge is that routers can determine the best path
for data to take to get to its destination.
Router
 Internet

o The Internet is a network of networks.

 Cont…
o The internet in simple terms is a network of the
interlinked computer networking worldwide, which is
accessible to the general public.

o These interconnected computers work by transmitting

data through a special type of packet switching which
is known as the internet protocol
 World Wide Web (WWW)
o Helps to deliver content that can be accessed through
the internet
o The Web is a system of Internet server that support
HTML document.
o In conjunction with the WWW, your web browser
interprets these text documents so they become web
pages.
o Web pages contain formatted text, graphics, sound,
animation, and video, allowing point and click
navigation.
 Cont…

o Web browser:
A Web browser is a program that runs on users'
computers and allows them to view and interact with
the Web pages on the World Wide Web. The most
common Web Browsers are called Internet Explorer
and Netscape.
 Cont…
o A site or area on the World Wide Web that is accessed by its
own Internet address is called a Web site.

o A Web Page is like a page in a book. Websites often have

several pages that you can access by clicking on links. A Web
site can be a collection of related Web pages.

o Each Web site contains a home page (this is the original

starting page) and may also contain additional pages.
 Layout of a Web Page

1. Title bar – tells you the name of the web page

2. Menu bar – has commands for moving around the webpage, printing, etc
3. Tool bar – short cuts to commands. Each picture represents a command
4. Address bar – webpage address. If you want to go directly to a web page, you will need to know the address.
 The Web Site
o A Web site is a collection of related Web
documents that are made available to the
public.

o The home page, is the first page of a Web site.

o Web pages are individual Web documents.

 Parts of a Web Address
o A web address is typically composed of four parts:
o For example, the address http://www.google.com is made up of
the following areas:
o http:// : This Web server uses Hypertext Transfer Protocol
(HTTP).
o www :This site is on the World Wide Web.
o google: The Web server and site maintainer
o com: ending
 Cont…
o Endings of web pages tells us a bit about the page. Some common endings
to web addresses are:
o com (commercial)
o edu (educational institution)
o gov (government)
o net (network)
o org (organization)
o You might also see addresses that add a country code as the last part of the
address such as:
o ca (Canada)
o uk (United Kingdom)
o fr (France)
o us (United States of America)
o au (Australia)
Thank you