Components of Data Communication System

Data Communication is defined as exchange of data between two devices via some
form of transmission media such as a cable, wire or it can be air or vacuum also. For
occurrence of data communication, communicating devices must be a part of
communication system made up of a combination of hardware or software devices
and programs.

Data Communication System Components :

There are mainly five components of a data communication system:

1. Message2. Sender3. Receiver4. Transmission Medium5. Set of rules (Protocol)

All above mentioned elements are described below:

Figure – Components of Data Communication System

1. Message :
This is most useful asset of a data communication system. The message simply
refers to data or piece of information which is to be communicated. A message
could be in any form, it may be in form of a text file, an audio file, a video file,
etc.

2. Sender :
To transfer message from source to destination, someone must be there who will
play role of a source. Sender plays part of a source in data communication system.
 It is simple a device that sends data message. The device could be in form of a
computer, mobile, telephone, laptop, video camera, or a workstation, etc.

3. Receiver :
It is destination where finally message sent by source has arrived. It is a device
that receives message. Same as sender, receiver can also be in form of a computer,
telephone mobile, workstation, etc.

4. Transmission Medium :
In entire process of data communication, there must be something which could act
as a bridge between sender and receiver, Transmission medium plays that part. It
is physical path by which data or message travels from sender to receiver.
Transmission medium could be guided (with wires) or unguided (without wires),
for example, twisted pair cable, fiber optic cable, radio waves, microwaves, etc.

5. Set of rules (Protocol) :

To govern data communications, various sets of rules had been already designed
by the designers of the communication systems, which represent a kind of
agreement between communicating devices. These are defined as protocol. In
simple terms, the protocol is a set of rules that govern data communication. If two
different devices are connected but there is no protocol among them, there would
not be any kind of communication between those two devices. Thus the protocol
is necessary for data communication to take place.

A typical example of a data communication system is sending an e-mail. The user

which send email act as sender, message is data which user wants to send, receiver is
one whom user wants to send message, there are many protocols involved in this
entire process, one of them is Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), both sender and
receiver must have an internet connection which uses a wireless medium to send and
receive email.

Protocol and Standard 

Protocol :
In Order to make communication successful between devices , some rules and
procedures should be agreed upon at the sending and receiving ends of the system.
Such rules and procedures are called as Protocols . Different types of protocols are
used for different types of communication.
In above diagrams Protocols are shown as set of rules . Such that Communication
between Sender and Receiver is not possible without Protocol.
Standards : 
Standards are the set of rules  for data communication that are needed for  exchange
of information among devices. It is important to follow Standards which are created
by various  Standard Organization like IEEE , ISO , ANSI etc.
Types of Standards :
Standards are of two types :
 De Facto Standard.
 De Jure  Standard.
De Facto Standard :  The meaning of the work ” De Facto ”  is ” By Fact ”  or
“By Convention”.
These are the standard s that have not been approved by any Organization , but have
been adopted as  Standards  because of it’s widespread use. Also , sometimes these
standards are often established by Manufacturers.
For example :   Apple  and Google are two companies which established their own
rules on their products which are different . Also they use some same standard rules
for manufacturing for their products.
De Jure Standard :  The meaning of the word “De Jure”  is  “By Law” or “By
Regulations” . 
Thus , these are the  standards that have been approved by officially recognized
body like ANSI , ISO , IEEE etc. These are the standard which are important to
follow if it is required or needed.
For example :  All the data communication standard  protocols like SMTP , TCP ,
IP , UDP etc. are important to follow the same when we needed them.

Standard Organizations for Data Communication :

1) International Standard Organization (ISO) – 
ISO is the International Organization for Standardization. It creates set of rules and
standards for graphics , document exchange , data communication etc.
2) Consultative Committee for International Telephony and Telegraphy
(CCITT) –
CCITT is now standard organization for the United States. CCITT developer’s
recommended set of rules and standards for telephone and telegraph
communication.
It has developed 3 set of specifications :
 V Series for Modern Interfacing.
 X series for Data Communication.
 Q series for Integrated Services Digital Network(ISDN).
3) American National Standard Institute (ANSI) – 
ANSI is primary organization for fostering the development of technology standards
in the United States and providing various set of rules and standard for  Data
Communication.
4) Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (IEEE) –
It is US based professional organization of electronic , computer and
communication engineering. It provides various set of rules and standard in
communication and networking field.
5) Electronic Industries Association(EIA) –  
This organization establish and recommends industrial standards. EIA has
developed the RS(Recommended Standards) series of Standards for data and
telecommunication.
6) Standard Council of Canada (SCC) –
It is an official Standard Agency for Canada . It has Similar responsibilities as ANSI
has. 

Data Rate

Data Rate is defined as the amount of data transmitted during a specified

time period over a network. It is the speed at which data is transferred from
one device to another or between a peripheral device and the computer. It is
generally measured in Mega bits per second(Mbps) or Mega bytes per
second(MBps).

The channel capacity,

C, is defined to be the maximum rate at which information can be

transmitted through a channel. ... For simple channels, the capacity can be
evaluated by finding the maximum analytically.
By capacity of a channel, it means the capacity of the transmission medium (wire or
link). Capacity is the number of bits the transmission medium can hold.

Line Configuration in Computer

Networks
A network is two or more devices connected through a link. A link is a
communication pathway that transfers data from one device to another. Devices can
be a computer, printer, or any other device that is capable to send and receive data.
For visualization purposes, imagine any link as a line drawn between two points. 

For communication to occur, two devices must be connected in some way to the same
link at the same time. There are two possible types of connections: 
1. Point-to-Point Connection
2. Multipoint Connection

Point-to-Point Connection :  

1. A point-to-point connection provides a dedicated link between two devices.
2. The entire capacity of the link is reserved for transmission between those two
devices.
3. Most point-to-point connections use an actual length of wire or cable to connect
the two ends, but other options such as microwave or satellite links are also
possible.
4. Point to point network topology is considered to be one of the easiest and most
conventional networks 
topologies.
5. It is also the simplest to establish and understand.

Example: Point-to-Point connection between the remote control and Television for
changing the channels. 
Multipoint Connection :  
1. It is also called Multidrop configuration. In this connection, two or more devices
share a single link.
2. More than two devices share the link that is the capacity of the channel is shared
now. With shared capacity, there can be two possibilities in a Multipoint Line
configuration:

Spatial Sharing: If several devices can share the link simultaneously, it’s called
Spatially shared line configuration. 
Temporal (Time) Sharing: If users must take turns using the link, then it’s called
Temporally shared or Time Shared Line configuration. 
Types of Network Topology
The arrangement of a network that comprises nodes and connecting lines via sender
and receiver is referred to as network topology. The various network topologies are:

a) Mesh Topology :

In a mesh topology, every device is connected to another device via a particular

channel. 

 
Figure 1: Every device is connected with another via dedicated channels. These
channels are known as links. 
 
 Suppose, N number of devices are connected with each other in a mesh topology,
the total number of ports that are required by each device is N-1. In Figure 1, there
are 5 devices connected to each other, hence the total number of ports required by
each device is 4. Total number of ports required=N*(N-1).
 Suppose, N number of devices are connected with each other in a mesh topology,
then the total number of dedicated links required to connect them is NC2 i.e. N(N-
1)/2. In Figure 1, there are 5 devices connected to each other, hence the total
number of links required is 5*4/2 = 10.

Advantages of this topology : 

 It is robust.
 The fault is diagnosed easily. Data is reliable because data is transferred among
the devices through dedicated channels or links.
 Provides security and privacy.

Problems with this topology : 

 Installation and configuration are difficult.
 The cost of cables is high as bulk wiring is required, hence suitable for less
number of devices.
 The cost of maintenance is high.

b) Star Topology :

In star topology, all the devices are connected to a single hub through a cable. This
hub is the central node and all other nodes are connected to the central node. The hub
can be passive in nature i.e., not an intelligent hub such as broadcasting devices, at the
same time the hub can be intelligent known as an active hub. Active hubs have
repeaters in them. 

Figure 2: A star topology having four systems connected to a single point of

connection i.e. hub. 

a Advantages of this topology : 

 If N devices are connected to each other in a star topology, then the number of
cables required to connect them is N. So, it is easy to set up.
 Each device requires only 1 port i.e. to connect to the hub, therefore the total
number of ports required is N.

Problems with this topology : 

 If the concentrator (hub) on which the whole topology relies fails, the whole
system will crash down.
 The cost of installation is high.
 Performance is based on the single concentrator i.e. hub.

c) Bus Topology :

Bus topology is a network type in which every computer and network device is
connected to a single cable. It transmits the data from one end to another in a single
direction. No bi-directional feature is in bus topology. It is a multi-point connection
and a non-robust topology because if the backbone fails the topology crashes.
 

Figure 3: A bus topology with shared backbone cable. The nodes are connected to the
channel via drop lines. 

Advantages of this topology : 

 If N devices are connected to each other in a bus topology, then the number of
cables required to connect them is 1, which is known as backbone cable, and N
drop lines are required.
 The cost of the cable is less as compared to other topologies, but it is used to build
small networks.

 Problems with this topology : 

 If the common cable fails, then the whole system will crash down.
 If the network traffic is heavy, it increases collisions in the network. To avoid this,
various protocols are used in the MAC layer known as Pure Aloha, Slotted Aloha,
CSMA/CD, etc.
 Security is very low.
 

d) Ring Topology :

In this topology, it forms a ring connecting devices with its exactly two neighboring
devices.

A number of repeaters are used for Ring topology with a large number of nodes,
because if someone wants to send some data to the last node in the ring topology with
100 nodes, then the data will have to pass through 99 nodes to reach the 100th node.
Hence to prevent data loss repeaters are used in the network.
The transmission is unidirectional, but it can be made bidirectional by having 2
connections between each Network Node, it is called Dual Ring Topology.

Figure 4: A ring topology comprises 4 stations connected with each forming a ring. 

The following operations take place in ring topology are : 

 
1. One station is known as a monitor station which takes all the responsibility to
perform the operations.
2. To transmit the data, the station has to hold the token. After the transmission is
done, the token is to be released for other stations to use.
3. When no station is transmitting the data, then the token will circulate in the ring.
4. There are two types of token release techniques: Early token release releases the
token just after transmitting the data and Delay token release releases the token
after the acknowledgment is received from the receiver.

Advantages of this topology : 

 The possibility of collision is minimum in this type of topology.
 Cheap to install and expand.

Problems with this topology : 

 Troubleshooting is difficult in this topology.
 The addition of stations in between or removal of stations can disturb the whole
topology.
 Less secure.

e) Tree Topology :

This topology is the variation of Star topology. This topology has a hierarchical flow
of data. 

Figure 5: In this, the various secondary hubs are connected to the central hub which
contains the repeater. In this data flow from top to bottom i.e. from the central hub to
secondary and then to the devices or from bottom to top i.e. devices to the secondary
hub and then to the central hub. It is a multi-point connection and a non-robust
topology because if the backbone fails the topology crashes.
 Advantages of this topology : 
 It allows more devices to be attached to a single central hub thus it decreases the
distance that is traveled by the signal to come to the devices.
 It allows the network to get isolate and also prioritize from different computers.

Problems with this topology :  

 If the central hub gets fails the entire system fails.
 The cost is high because of cabling.
Transmission Modes in Computer
Networks (Simplex, Half-Duplex and
Full-Duplex)
Transmission mode means transferring data between two devices. It is also known
as a communication mode. Buses and networks are designed to allow
communication to occur between individual devices that are interconnected. There
are three types of transmission mode:- 
 
 

These are explained as following below.

1. Simplex Mode –
In Simplex mode, the communication is unidirectional, as on a one-way street.
Only one of the two devices on a link can transmit, the other can only receive. The
simplex mode can use the entire capacity of the channel to send data in one
direction. 
Example: Keyboard and traditional monitors. The keyboard can only introduce
input, the monitor can only give the output. 

 
2. Half-Duplex Mode –
In half-duplex mode, each station can both transmit and receive, but not at the
same time. When one device is sending, the other can only receive, and vice versa.
The half-duplex mode is used in cases where there is no need for communication
in both directions at the same time. The entire capacity of the channel can be
utilized for each direction. 
Example: Walkie-talkie in which message is sent one at a time and messages are
sent in both directions. 

Channel capacity=Bandwidth * Propagation Delay

3. Full-Duplex Mode –
In full-duplex mode, both stations can transmit and receive simultaneously. In
full_duplex mode, signals going in one direction share the capacity of the link with
signals going in another direction, this sharing can occur in two ways: 
 Either the link must contain two physically separate transmission paths, one for
sending and the other for receiving.
 Or the capacity is divided between signals travelling in both directions. 
 
Full-duplex mode is used when communication in both directions is required all
the time. The capacity of the channel, however, must be divided between the two
directions. 
Example: Telephone Network in which there is communication between two
persons by a telephone line, through which both can talk and listen at the same
time. 

Channel Capacity=2* Bandwidth*propagation Delay