12/04/2021

What is data commununications?

• The word data refers to information presented in whatever
form is agreed upon by the parties creating and using the
Introduction to Data data. It could be text, audio, video etc
• Data communications are the exchange of data between two
Communications devices via some form of transmission medium such as a wire
cable or wirelessly.
• For data communications to occur, the communicating
devices must be part of a communication system made up of
a combination of hardware (physical equipment) and software
(programs).

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Data Communications Model Communications Model Elements

The fundamental purpose of a communications system is the
exchange of data between two parties. The key elements of this
model are:
a) Source/Sender - generates data to be transmitted
b) Transmitter - converts data into transmittable signals
c) Transmission system - carries data from source to destination.
d) Receiver - converts received signal into data. For
example, a modem will accept an analog signal coming from
a network or transmission line and convert it into a digital bit
stream.
e) Destination - takes incoming data

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Data Communications Model Data Communications Model

• The process is modeled as follows:
1. User keys in message m comprising bits g buffered in source
PC memory
2. Input data is transferred to I/O device (transmitter) as
sequence of bits g(t) using voltage shifts
3. Transmitter converts these into a signal s(t) suitable for
transmission media being used
4. Whilst transmiting media signal may be impaired so received
signal r(t) may differ from s(t)
5. Receiver decodes signal recovering g’(t) as estimate of
original g(t) which is buffered in destination PC memory as
bits g’ being the received message m’
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Transmission Medium Network

• The transmission medium could be any of the
• Data communications occur over a network.
following:
– Fiber optic
• A network is a set of devices (often referred to
as nodes) connected by communication
– Wireless
links.
– Coaxial cable
– Twisted pair • A node can be a computer, printer, phone or
– Etc
any other device capable of sending and/or
receiving data generated by other nodes on
• Choice depends on distance, capacity or cost the network.
• More on this later
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Types of Networks Personal Area Network

• Personal Area Networks (PAN)
• Local Area Networks (LAN)
• Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
• Wide Area Networks (WAN)
• Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
• Used for communication among devices (including
telephones and PDAs) close to one person
• Reach is typically a few meters
• Can be used for communication among the personal
devices themselves (intrapersonal communication),
or for connecting to a higher level network and the
Internet (via uplink)
• Example: Bluetooth network

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Local Area Network Metropolitan Area Network

• Covers a local area, like a home, office, or group of
buildings
• Much higher data rates than WANs
• Have smaller geographic range than WANs
• Could be wired or wireless
• Example: network in a university campus eg
university or in a workplace.
• Large, usually spanning a city
• Typically use wireless infrastructure or optical fiber
connections to link their sites
• Might be owned and operated by a single
organization;
• Will often provide means for internetworking of local
networks
• Example: Wimax

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Wide Area Networks Wireless Local Area Networks

• Covers a broad geographical area • The linking of two or more computers using wirless
connection.
• Used to connect LANs together, so that users and • Uses radio communication to accomplish the same
computers in one location can communicate with functionality that a wired LAN has.
users and computers in other distant locations • IEEE 802.11 (WiFi)
• E.g linking different sites of a company or university. • 10-100 Mbps, 1.5km
– 802.11 (1997): upto 2 Mbps, 2.4 GHz
• Largest and most well-known example is the Internet
– 802.11a (1999): upto 54 Mbps, 5 GHz, ~75 feet outdoor
• WANs are most often built using leased lines – 802.11b (1999): upto 11 Mbps, 2.4 GHz, ~150 feet indoor, 300
ft outdoor [most popular]
– 802.11g (2003): upto 54 Mbps, 2.4 GHz, ~150 feet [backward
compatible with 802.11b]
– 802.11n – 2.4GHz and 5GHz, up to 600Mbps

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Wireless metropolitan area networks

(WMAN) Wireless wide area networks (WWAN)
• Worldwide
• WiMax - IEEE 802.16 • 2G/GSM (Global System for Mobile
• 1.5-20 Mbps, 5-50km communications): 9.6 – 33 kbps
• 3G (“third generation”): 128-384 kbps to 2Mbps
• 4G – Up to 100 Mbps – LTE (Long term evlotion)
– Up to 1Gbps – LTE Advanced

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Comparison of Networks The Internet

Example Protocol Range Bandwidth
(Mbps) • The Internet is a vast collection of different networks
Wired:
that use certain common protocols and provide
LAN Ethernet 1-2 km 10-1000
certain common services.
MAN IP 250 km 1-150
WAN IP routing worldwide .01-600 • Nobody owns the internet.
Internetwork Internet worldwide 0.5-600 • The internet is the “network of networks”
Wireless: worldwide.
WPAN Bluetooth (802.15.1) 10 - 30m 0.5-2
WLAN WiFi (IEEE 802.11) 0.15-1.5 km 2-54
WMAN WiMAX (802.16) 55 km 1.5-20
WWAN GSM, 3G, 4G worldwide 0.01-1000

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Internet Elements Example Configuration

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Internet Architecture Architecture of the Internet

Overview of the Internet architecture

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ISPs The Internet

• An ISP (Internet service provider) is a company that provides individuals • FTTH – Fiber to the home
and other companies access to the Internet • IXP – Internet exchange point - ISPs connect their
• Tier 1 ISPs are large national or international ISPs. networks to exchange traffic at IXPs (Internet exchange
– They are directly connected to the Internet backbone and can be considered part of the Points).
backbone itself.
– They have the highest speed connections and very reliable networks. • DSL – Digital Subscriber Line – Uses telephone line.
– Their customers are either lower-tiered ISPs or large companies that are looking for a
very reliable and fast access to the Internet. • DSLAM – Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer -
• Tier 2 ISPs purchase their Internet service from a tier 1 ISP. converts between signals and packets.
– Tier 2 ISPs tend to cover a specific region. • POP – Point of presence - the location at which customer
– They focus on business customers and have lower quality networks and slower access
than tier 1 ISPs.
packets enter the ISP network
• Tier 3 ISPs also purchase their Internet service from tier 1 ISPs.
– Tier 3 ISPs tend to focus on the retail market, and they also tend to cover a specific
region.
– Network quality and access speed are relatively low

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Internet Exchange Point Peering points

• ISPs connect their networks to exchange traffic at IXPs
(Internet eXchange Points). • Some backbone ISP networks are also connected to one
• Also known as network access point (NAP) another by private switching stations called peering
• The connected ISPs are said to peer with each other. points.
• There are many IXPs in cities around the world. They are
drawn vertically in the figure because ISP networks
overlap geographically.
• A LAN in the room connects all the routers, so packets
can be forwarded from any ISP backbone to any other
ISP backbone.

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