Computer science computer networks

Paper: CS6T2 : COMPUTER NETWORKS

PROGRAMME:BSC
SUBJECT: COMPUTER SCIENCE
SEMESTER: 6th SEM
SESSION:31

Text book reference:

Douglas E Comer and M.S.Narayana, “Computer Networks and Internets”, 5th
edition, Pearson Education, 2013
Computer science computer networks

Long-distance and Local Loop Digital Technologies

Cable modem technology, upstream communication, Broadcast Satellite systems

Cable Modem Technologies

Although technologies like ADSL provide data rates that are much higher than
originally thought possible, telephone local loop wiring has inherent limitations. The chief
problem lies in the electrical characteristics of twisted pair wiring. The lack of shielding
makes the wiring susceptible to interference that substantially degrades performance for some
subscribers. As demand for higher bit rates increases, alternative wiring schemes have
become important. Consequently, a variety of wireless and wired technologies are being
developed for use in the local loop.
An alternative access technology that stands out as particularly attractive uses the
wiring already in place for cable television. The medium used in cable systems is coaxial
cable, which has high bandwidth and is less susceptible to electromagnetic interference than
twisted pair. Furthermore, cable television systems use frequency division multiplexing
(FDM) to deliver many channels of entertainment simultaneously.
One might assume that with many channels available, a cable provider could use a
separate channel to deliver digital information to each subscriber. That is, configure a pair of
cable modems, one in the CATV center and the other at a subscriber’s site, to use a given
channel (i.e., carrier frequency) for communication, and multiplex the channel onto the cable
along with television signals.
Despite the large bandwidth available in CATV systems, the bandwidth is insufficient
to handle a frequency division multiplexing scheme that extends a channel to each user. To
understand why, observe that in a dense metropolitan area, a single cable supplier can have
millions of subscribers. As a result, using a separate channel per subscriber does not scale.
To solve the problem, cable systems combine FDM and statistical multiplexing by
allocating a channel for digital communication for a set of subscribers (typically, everyone in
a neighborhood). Each subscriber is assigned a unique address, and each message sent over
the channel contains the address to which it has been sent. A subscriber’s modem listens to
the assigned frequency, but before accepting a message, the modem verifies that the address
in the message matches the address assigned to the subscriber.

Upstream Communication
Cable companies that deliver TV are well-equipped to provide downstream digital data service,
but upstream service is a different matter. To provide upstream service, cable companies have to
revamp a lot of equipment, such as unidirectional broadband amplifiers.
There are some hybrid schemes that use telephone for upstream and cable for downstream. The
cable companies that have added upstream capability can also provide interactive television and
video on demand (thought to be the "killer application" for home networks).

Broadcast Satellite Systems

A geostationary satellite system offers high bandwidth and no need for terrestrial communication
links.
Disadvantages: Delay: about 1/4 second from ground to ground.
Uplinks are large and expensive

Low-cost satellite-based local loop systems employ: A broadcast mechanism - like Ethernet
An alternative uplink path - e.g. conventional dial-up
Computer science computer networks

More recently technologies like VSAT have made satellite uplinks possible in homes and small
businesses.

The use of low earth orbit satellite arrays is another option.