3.

1NETWORK HARDWARE COMPONENTS

A basic network is made up of following primary components.

1. A hub, switch, router, bridge, gateway, firewall (which acts as the traffic cop on
your small information highway). These devices forward information from one
communicating device to another through the use of cables.
2. An interface card (hardware in each computer that provides connection to the
networking components)
3. A server (the central storage computer for information).
4. Cabling (coaxial, twisted pair, optical fiber).
5. Computers (clients), printers, scanners, etc.
We will discuss these devices in the following sections.

Connectors

Connector is best known for providing the physical link between two components. A
connection is established when the conducting wires or two components are attached together
thru cable by way of connectors in order to make and maintain continuous contact, allowing
the signal to simply move along the cable across the contact. Cable connectors provide the
transition point between the cable and the electrical equipment. Several types of connectors
are available, serving various purposes. For example, connectors are used to:
(a) Connect network interface cards, such as an Ethernet card, to a cable;

(b) Connect cable segments.

(c) Connector linking a transceiver and a cable

(d) Terminate a segment.

The type of connector used is usually a function of cable type. For example, eight-pin
modular connectors are used with UTP cable.

Coaxial Cable Connectors

There are a number of different types of coaxial connectors. There are coaxial connectors
which you use at home with televisions and video equipment. You also have coaxial
connectors that operate with 10Base2 and 10Base5 Ethernet LAN networks.
F-Series Coaxial Connectors: The connectors which you use at home with video equipment
are referred to as F-series connectors.

N-Series Coaxial Connectors: The N-connector is very similar to the F-connector, with the
addition of a pin that fits over the center conductor. The N-type connector is used with
thicknet cables for data and video applications.

Fig.1. N-Series connector

The BNC Connector: BNC stands for Bayonet Niell-Concelman. It is also sometimes
referred as British Naval Connector.

Applications include some traditional Ethernet LANs like 10Base-2 (thinnet). The following
connectors are in the BNC family:
 BNC cable connector: soldered or crimped to the end of the cable.
 BNC T-connector: connects the computer's network card to the network cable.
 BNC Extender or BNC barrel connector: joins two coaxial cable segments to form
a longer one.
 BNC terminator: placed at each end of a cable in a Bus network to absorb
interference signals. It is connected to earth. A bus network cannot function without
them.
 

Fig.2. Different views of BNC connectors and their connections

Ethernet 10Base2 : requires termination at both ends of segment using 50 ohm terminator.
Each computer connects to the cable with a T-Connector .10Base2 uses a bus topology as
depicted in the following diagram. The maximum number of nodes that can be attached per
segment is 30. Stations are attached using BNC T-connectors as shown in the following
figures.
 Fig.3. BNC-T connectors attached to NIC

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Ethernet 10Base5 : 10Base5 also employs a bus topology, but uses a different method to
attach network nodes to the central cable in the bus. 10Base5 cable is connected by a
vampire connector with clamps holding the cable in place. A vampire tap is a connection to
a coaxial cable in which a hole is drilled through the outer shield of the cable so that a clamp
can be connected to the inner conductor of the cable. This cable connection is made with a
unit that clamps onto and "bites" into the cable, hence the vampire name.

A cable with AUI connectors is used to connect the transceiver to the network interface on a
computer, hub or repeater. The maximum length of the cable between a MAU and the AUI
connector on PC is 50 meter. The maximum number of nodes that can be attached per
segment is 100.
Fig.4. 10Base5 (thicknet) Connections

UTP Connectors

The most common UTP connector is the RJ-45 connector. This connector is similar to the
RJ-11 used in telephony, but differs on a few points: RJ-45 is slightly larger and cannot be
inserted into an RJ-11 jack. In addition, the RJ-45 has eight pins while the RJ-11 has no more
than six, usually only four. This is a plastic connector that looks like a large telephone-style
connector. A slot allows the RJ-45 to be inserted only one way. RJ stands for Registered
Jack, implying that the connector follows a standard borrowed from the telephone industry.
This standard designates which wire goes with each pin inside the connector.

RJ-45(8P8C) connectors are used on the ends of the CAT-3 through CAT-7 Cable (RJ-11
connectors were used for the original CAT-1 Phone-Line Cable). Each pin in the connector
connects to a different wire. There are 8 pins numbered 1 through 8. Pins 1 & 2 send data; 3
& 6 receive data. Following figure shows different views of the RJ-45 connector to give an
understanding of how it looks like.
 Fig. 5. Different views of RJ-45 connector and its pins

Fiber optic Connectors

The original fiber-optic networks used multimode fiber (cheaper & more common) with ST
(Straight-Tip) & SC (Square Connector) connectors. ST was more common. The subscriber
channel (SC) connector is used in cable TV. It uses a push/pull locking system. The straight-
tip (ST) connector is used for connecting cable to networking devices. MT-RJ is a new
connector with the same size as RJ45. Following figure shows different views of these
connectors.
 Fig.6. Fiber-Optic Connectors

1000BaseX (802.3z): The IEEE 802.3z Gigabit Ethernet standard includes two Physical
Layer specifications for fiber optic media, 1000BaseSX and 1000BaseLX, and one for
shielded copper media, 1000BaseCX. IEEE standard specifies SC connectors. Both
1000BaseLX and 1000BaseSX use SC connectors or the newer LC (Local Connector)
connectors. The LC connectors are half the size as their predecessors and reduce the loss of
light entering or leaving the cable. LC connectors are available in single-mode and
multimode versions.

Fig.7. LC Connector
Transceivers & Media Converters

Another small device that is commonly seen on a network is the external transceiver (also
known as a media converter). These are relatively simple devices that allow an NIC or other
networking device to connect to a different type of media than it was designed for.

For example, if you have a 100Base-TX switch and would like to connect it to another switch
using fiber-optic cabling, you would connect a fiber transceiver to each switch’s transceiver
port
and then connect the two transceivers together with the appropriate fiber-optic cabling.

Replacing the network interface when a different media type is being implemented can be
expensive or even impossible if it is integrated into the network device. For example, when
10BaseT twisted-pair Ethernet started to replace 10Base2 and 10Base5 coaxial Ethernet, most
of the network equipment in use, such as routers, didn’t have a RJ-45 socket but a 10Base5
AUI port. Transceivers, also referred to as media converters, were developed to overcome this
problem and allow for a more affordable transition to newer network technologies.

Repeaters and Hubs

Repeaters: Signals that carry information within a network can travel a fixed distance before
attenuation effects data. A repeater receives a signal and, before it becomes too weak or
corrupted, regenerates the original bit pattern. The repeater then sends the refreshed signal. A
repeater can extend the physical length of a LAN. A repeater does not actually connect two
LANs; it connects two segments of the same LAN. The segments connected are still part of
one single LAN. Attenuation: Loss of signal strength as transmission travels away from
source. Analog signals pass through an amplifier, which increases not only voltage of a
signal but also noise accumulated.

Fig.8. An analog signal distorted by noise, and then amplified and a digital signal
regenerated using repeater

In 10Base5 Ethernet, the length of the cable is restricted to 500 m. To extend this length, we
divide the cable into segments and install repeaters between segments. The whole network is
still considered one LAN, but the portions of the network separated by repeaters are called
segments.

Fig.9. (a) Extended LAN using Repeater (b) Repeater with two ports

• An important rule when using repeaters to expand a network is the 5-4-3 rule, which
defines that the maximum distance between two hosts on the same network can be 5
segments, 4 repeaters, and only 3 of the segments can be populated (a populated
 segment is one which has one or more nodes attached to it) as illustrated in the
following logical network diagram:

Fig.10. Maximum expansion of a LAN using repeaters

Hubs: 10BaseT networks started using ‘Hubs’. A repeater was the first network device used
in 10Base5/10Base2 coaxial networks which regenerated digital signals. Hubs are devices
similar to repeaters and they also receive frames, copy them and transmit them out on all the
other output ports just like repeater but hubs have more ports (connections) than
repeaters(which have only two).
 Fig.11. 10BaseT Ethernet in star topology using Hub

On 10BaseT and 100BaseTX Ethernet networks, each computer or printer (or other
networked device) is connected to a hub. The hub is a small box that gathers the signals from
each individual device, optionally amplifies each signal, and then sends the signal out to all
other connected devices. Amplification helps to ensure that devices on the network receive
reliable information. Hubs are also called concentrators or repeaters. A simple 10BaseT or
100BaseTX Ethernet network may consist of a few dozen individual computers, printers, or
servers connected to a single hub. In a more complex network, many hubs can be
interconnected. Hubs join devices in a star configuration.

A star topology is designed with each node (file server, workstations, and peripherals)
connected directly to a central network hub or concentrator. A concentrator is a device that
provides a central connection point for cables from workstations, servers, and peripherals.
Most concentrators contain the ability to amplify the electrical signal they receive.
Disadantages: Requires more cable length than a linear topology. If the hub or concentrator
fails, nodes attached are disabled. More expensive than linear bus topologies because of the
cost of the concentrators.

Nowadays hubs have become obsolete devices as they have been replaced by switches. We
talk about switches, bridges, and routers in the succeeding parts of this lesson. The primary
difference between a hub and a switch is that the hub shares the bandwidth across all of its
ports while a switch provides dedicated bandwidth to each port.   

Thus, to summarize, a hub is a common connection point for devices in a network. Hubs are
commonly used to connect segments of a LAN. A hub contains multiple ports. When a
packet arrives at one port, it is copied to the other ports so that all segments of the LAN can
see all packets. Hubs can be passive or active. Hubs may connect to other hubs using coaxial
cable or twisted-Pair cable. When connecting similar devices (such as a hub to another hub)
you must use crossover cables (cables that have wiring reversed on each side). Straight-
through cable (same wiring on each side) connect different types of devices (computer to
hub).

Network Interface Cards & PC Cards

A network interface is a device that connects a client computer, server, printer or other
components to your network. Most often, a network interface consists of a small electronic
circuit board that is inserted into a slot inside a computer or printer. Alternatively, some
computers, printers, or other devices include network interfaces as part of their main circuit
boards (motherboards). In either case, the network interface provides two important services
—it connects your computer physically to your network, and it converts information on your
computer to and from electrical signals for your network.

The network interface connects to your network via a small receptacle called a port. For
wired networks, you insert the network cable into this port. Alternatively, for wireless
networks, the port includes a transmitter/receiver that sends/receives radio signals. Besides
providing physical connections, network interfaces convert information on your computer
into electrical signals of appropriate shape and transmission speed for your network. All
network interfaces on your network must conform to a common protocol in order for their
electrical signals to be compatible (and therefore to exchange information successfully). For
example, if you are running a 10BaseT Ethernet network, then all of your computers, printers,
and servers must contain 10BaseT Ethernet network interfaces.

Each network interface is associated with a unique address called its media access control
(MAC) address. The MAC address helps route information within your local area network
and is used by interconnecting devices such as switches and bridges. The exact role of
network interfaces with regard to MAC addresses varies a bit among different networks. On
Ethernet networks, each network interface receives a unique MAC address when it is
manufactured. When the network interface is installed into a slot or onto the motherboard of a
computer or printer, the interface MAC address becomes the address for the computer or
printer. Another network address is the device's Internet (IP) address. This address helps
route information between networks, and is used by interconnecting devices called routers.
Network interfaces are also called NICs (Network Interface Cards) or adapters, or
sometimes just cards.

Most NICs are internal, with the card fitting into an expansion slot inside the computer. Some
computers use external boxes which are attached to a serial port or a SCSI port. Laptop
computers generally use external LAN adapters connected to the parallel port or network
cards that slip into a PCMCIA slot.

The three most common network interface connections are Ethernet cards, LocalTalk
connectors, and Token Ring cards. According to an International Data Corporation study,
Ethernet is the most popular, followed by Token Ring and LocalTalk

Ethernet cards are usually purchased separately from a computer, although many computers
include an option for a pre-installed Ethernet card. Ethernet cards contain connections for
either coaxial or twisted pair cables (or both). If it is designed for coaxial cable, the
connection will be BNC. If it is designed for twisted pair, it will have a RJ-45 connection and
wireless networks have adapters with an antenna. Some Ethernet cards also contain an AUI
connector. This can be used to attach coaxial, twisted pair, or fiber optics cable to an Ethernet
card. When this method is used there is always an external transceiver attached to the
workstation. NICs come in three basic varieties: 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit. The larger the
number of bits that can be transferred to the NIC, the faster the NIC can transfer data to the
network cable.
 Fig. 12. NIC and its MAC address

Bridges

A bridge is a device that connects two or more local area networks, or two or more segments
of the same network. For example, suppose that your network includes both 10BaseT
Ethernet and 10Base5 Ethernet connections. You can use a bridge to connect these two
networks so that they can share information with each other. In addition to connecting
networks, bridges perform an additional, important function. They filter information so that
network traffic intended for one portion of the network does not congest the rest of the
network.

When bridges were introduced in the 1980’s, they typically joined two homogeneous
networks (for example, two kinds of Ethernet networks). More recently it has become
possible for bridges to connect networks with different protocols. For example, you can use a
bridge to connect an Ethernet network to a Token Ring network.

A bridge is like a smart repeater. Bridges, like repeaters, can connect two network segments,
but bridges are a little smarter about the data they transport. Most bridges have the capacity to
listen to the network and figure out the address of each computer on both sides of the bridge.
The bridge can then inspect each message that comes from one side and broadcast it to the
other side of the bridge, if the message is intended for a computer that is on the other side. If
the packet's destination is on the same side of the bridge, it is discarded. This creates a more
efficient scheme for data transport.
Like switches, bridges learn the MAC addresses of all connected clients, servers, and
peripherals, and associate each address with a bridge port (network connection). When a
bridge (or switch) receives an incoming frame, it opens and reads its destination MAC
address. If the port that will receive the frame is different from the port connected to the
sender, then the bridge forwards the frame to the destination port. If the port that will receive
the frame is the same as the port connected to the sender, the bridge drops the frame. If the
bridge cannot determine which port is associated with a destination address, it passes the
frame along to all ports.

• A bridge monitors and records network traffic – making it more intelligent than a
repeater
– When a bridge receives a frame, it records the MAC address of the source
device
– Eventually the bridge learns the location of each device on the network (and
creates a table of everyone’s addresses)
– Bridges keep track of the MAC addresses of devices in a table called the
bridge table that tracks the device name, MAC address, and segment it belongs
to
– Using that knowledge, a Bridge can forward data to a specific computer
system (instead of just copying frames & sending them to everyone);
– If a bridge does not know the location of a device, it forwards the frame to all
segments

Fig.13. Bridges connecting two LAN segments

Switches
Like a hub, an Ethernet switch is a device that gathers the signals from devices that are
connected
to it, and then regenerates a new copy of each signal. Switches, however, are more powerful
than hubs and can substantially increase your network performance.

Similar to a hub, a switch provides a central connection between two or more computers on a
network, but with some intelligence. Whereas for a hub any message received at the hub is
broadcast to all the attached computers, with a switch it is sent only to the destination
computer and is not visible to other attached devices.

Most common switches operate by learning the MAC addresses of all connected clients,
servers, and peripherals, and associating each address with one of its ports. When a switch
receives an incoming signal, it creates a temporary circuit between the sender and receiver.
The temporary circuit provides two important benefits.

 First, the circuit allows the sender and receiver momentarily to exchange information
without intrusion from other devices on the network. That is, each pair of
communicating devices utilizes the full bandwidth (data carrying capacity) of the
network instead of sharing that bandwidth, as they do in unswitched Ethernet
networks.
 Second, the circuit ensures that information travels directly between the
communicating computers. In unswitched networks, data from a transmitting
computer is sent by the nearest hub to all connected devices (not just to the recipient)
and therefore congests parts of the network needlessly.

Fig.14. Interconnecting PCs thru a Switch in a LAN.

Switches have two benefits: (1) they provide each pair of communicating devices with a fast
connection; and (2) they segregate the communication so that it does not enter other portions
of the network. (Hubs, in contrast, broadcast all data on the network to every other device on
the network.)

Switches are very similar to bridges as they also maintain a table with MAC addresses per
port to make forwarding decisions, Some of the main differences between switches and
bridges are:

 Switches have more ports than bridges.

 Switches are meant to replace hubs and improve network performance by creating a
separate collision domain per port.
 Bridges switch in software whereas switches switch in hardware (integrated circuits).
 Switches offer more variance in speed; an individual port can be assigned 10 Mb/s,
100 Mb/s, 1 Gb/s or even more.

Routers

Like bridges, routers are devices whose primary purpose is to connect two or more networks
and to filter network signals so that only desired information travels between them. However,
routers can inspect a good deal more information than bridges, and they therefore can
regulate network traffic more precisely. They also have another important capability: they are
aware of many possible paths across the network and can choose the best one for each data
packet to travel.

Routers operate by examining incoming data for its network routing and transport
information. This information includes the source and destination network routing addresses.
(Remember that every client, server, and peripheral on the network maintains multiple
addresses, including both a physical address (MAC) and network routing addresses (IP). The
two addresses are used for different purposes.)

A router is like super-intelligent bridge. They can link multiple LANs and look deeper into
the data packet to determine its destination. Routers not only know the addresses of the
computers on the network but are aware of all the other bridges and routers on the network
and can decide the most efficient path in which to send data. The router uses a routing table
of network addresses to determine where to forward the packet. When a router receives data,
it discards the outer packet or frame or MAC address, repackages the data with network
address, and retransmits the signal. By stripping off the outer layers of data before sending a
packet, the total number of bits moving across the network is reduced. The router at the
receiving end then repackages the data into a packet of frame that is appropriate for its
network.

Fig.15 . Connecting LANs to Internet using Router

Routers can be programmed to prevent information from being sent to or received from
certain networks or computers based on all or part of their network routing addresses. If you
have sensitive student records on a server, for example, you can use a router to filter packets
headed for the server so that only authorized personnel—for example, personnel whose
network addresses match a specified list—can connect to it.

The network components described above are often used in conjuction. The following
network diagram shows a simple network using three of them:

Fig.16. A network having router, switch and hub connections

Gateways

A gateway is like a super-intelligent router. Gateways are designed to connect radically

different networks. Although slower than a bridge or router, a gateway has its own
processor and memory to perform complex functions such as interpreting between computers
that speak different languages through both protocol and bandwidth conversion. A gateway
can convert a TCP/IP(protocol architecture used on Internet) packet to a NetWare IPX packet
and vice versa.

A gateway is any hardware and software combination that connects dissimilar network
environments. Gateways are the most complex of network devices. For example, a gateway is
the device that connects a LAN environment to a mainframe environment. The two
environments are completely different. LAN environments use distributed processing,
baseband communications, and the ASCII character set. Mainframe environments use
centralized processing, broadband and baseband communications, and the EBCDIC character
set. Each of the LAN protocols is translated to its mainframe counterpart by the gateway
software. Another popular example is the e-mail gateway. Most LAN-based e-mail software,
such as Novell’s GroupWise and Microsoft’s Exchange, can’t communicate directly with
Internet mail servers without the use of a gateway. This gateway translates LAN-based mail
messages into the SMTP format that Internet mail uses.

3.2 INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNET

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard
Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide. It is a network of
networks that consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government
networks of local to global scope that are linked by a broad array of electronic and optical
networking technologies. The Internet carries a vast array of information resources and
services, most notably the inter-linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW)
and the infrastructure to support electronic mail.

The public Internet is a worldwide computer network, that is, a network that interconnects
millions of computing devices throughout the world. Earlier, these computing devices were
primarily traditional desktop PCs, UNIX-based workstations, and servers that stored and
transmit information such as Web pages and e-mail messages. However, now nontraditional
Internet end systems such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), TVs, mobile computers, cell
phones, automobiles, environmental sensing devices, picture frames, home electrical and
security systems, Web cams, and even toasters are being connected to the Internet. In Internet
jargon, all of these devices are called hosts or end systems. More than 233 million end
systems are using the Internet and this number continues to grow rapidly.

End systems are connected together by communication links which are made up of different
types of media like copper wires, optical fibers and wireless links. Different links can
transmit data at different rates, with the transmission rate of a link measured in bits/second.

End systems are not usually attached to each other via a single communication link. Instead,
they are indirectly connected to each other thru intermediate switching devices known as
packet switches. Two most prominent types of packet switches in today’s internet are
Routers and Link Layer Switches. From the sending end system to the receiving end
system, the sequence of communication links and packet switches traversed by a packet is
known as a route or path through the network.

End systems access the Internet through Internet Service Providers (ISP’s), including
residential ISP’s such as your local telephone or cable company; corporate ISP’s, university
ISP’s; that provide wireless access in airports, hotels, coffee shops, and other public places.
Each ISP is a network of Packet switches and communication links. ISP’s provide a variety
of type of network access to the end system including 56 KBPS dial-up modem access,
residential broadband access such as cable modem or DSL, high speed LAN access, and
wireless access. ISP’s also provide Internet access to content providers, connecting web sites
directly to the Internet. To allow communication among Internet users and to allow users to
access world wide internet content, these lower-tier ISP’s are interconnected through national
and international upper-tier ISP’s such as AT&T and Sprint. An upper-tier ISP consists of
high speed routers interconnected with high speed fiber optic link. Each ISP network,
whether upper-tier or lower-tier is managed independently, runs the IP protocol, and
conforms to certain naming and address conventions. There are a variety of ways for
individuals, companies, or institutions to connect to the Internet. Large organizations usually
connect by means of direct, dedicated, high-speed links to give their users high bandwidth
networking capabilities. Home users connect by means of a telephone line and a modem.
Users search the Internet for all types of information, including images, graphics, and sound
and movie clips, in an ever growing number of remote host computers. When users retrieve
and distribute this information to others, network activity becomes highly intensive in terms
of file transfer times and traffic volume. This is now fueling the upgrade of the Internet to
wide band and broadband access and backbone facilities.

End systems, packet switches, and other pieces of the Internet, run protocols that control the
sending and receiving of the information with in the Internet. Transmission control protocol
(TCP) and the Internet protocol (IP) are two of the most important protocols in the Internet.
The IP protocol specifies the format of the packets that are sent and received among routers
and end systems. The internet’s principal protocols are collectively known as TCP/IP.

Fig. 17 gives a representation of a small piece of the Internet which supports the above
discussion and will make you understand how the pieces of Internet are connected together.
Two routers in the Company’s ISP are shown to be connected thru satellite link. Different
connections can be thru different communication channels as explained above.

router workstation
server
mobile
local ISP

regional ISP

company
network
 Fig.17 . Some pieces of the Internet

The Internet has no centralized governance in either technological implementation or policies

for access and usage; each constituent network sets its own standards. Only the overreaching
definitions of the two principal name spaces in the Internet, the Internet Protocol address
space and the Domain Name System, are directed by a maintainer organization, the Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The technical underpinning and
standardization of the core protocols (IPv4 and IPv6) is an activity of the Internet
Engineering Task Force (IETF), a non-profit organization of loosely affiliated international
participants that anyone may associate with by contributing technical expertise.

Who uses the Internet

 Institutions of all kinds - academic, government and commercial to allow their staff to
collaborate with peers to rapidly coordinate complex, dispersed worldwide activities
to gather and share information by interconnecting their enterprise networks via
Internet backbone providers.
 Professional communities of all kinds - especially research and development
organizations.
 General public via local access providers and gateways to commercial public e-mail
carriers and other kinds of networks.