Module 2:

Networking devices, IEEE protocols

Different networking devices

Network Devices: Network devices, also known as networking hardware, are
physical devices that allow hardware on a computer network to communicate and
interact with one another. For example Repeater, Hub, Bridge, Switch, Routers,
Gateway, Brouter, and NIC, etc.

1. Repeater – A repeater operates at the physical layer. Its job is to regenerate the
signal over the same network before the signal becomes too weak or corrupted to
extend the length to which the signal can be transmitted over the same network. An
important point to be noted about repeaters is that they do not amplify the signal.
When the signal becomes weak, they copy it bit by bit and regenerate it at its star
topology connectors connecting if original strength. It is a 2-port device.

2. Hub – A hub is a basically multi-port repeater. A hub connects multiple wires

coming from different branches, for example, the connector in star topology which
connects different stations. Hubs cannot filter data, so data packets are sent to all
connected devices. In other words, the collision domain of all hosts connected
through Hub remains one. Also, they do not have the intelligence to find out the
best path for data packets which leads to inefficiencies and wastage.

Types of Hub

Active Hub:- These are the hubs that have their power supply and can clean, boost,
and relay the signal along with the network. It serves both as a repeater as well as a
wiring center. These are used to extend the maximum distance between nodes.

Passive Hub:- These are the hubs that collect wiring from nodes and power supply
from the active hub. These hubs relay signals onto the network without cleaning and
boosting them and can’t be used to extend the distance between nodes.

Intelligent Hub:- It works like an active hub and includes remote management
capabilities. They also provide flexible data rates to network devices. It also enables
an administrator to monitor the traffic passing through the hub and to configure each
port in the hub.

Bridge
A bridge operates at the data link layer. A bridge is a repeater, with add on the
functionality of filtering content by reading the MAC addresses of the source and
destination. It is also used for interconnecting two LANs working on the same
protocol. It has a single input and single output port, thus making it a 2 port device.

Types of Bridges

 Transparent Bridges:- These are the bridge in which the stations are
completely unaware of the bridge’s existence i.e. whether or not a bridge
is added or deleted from the network, reconfiguration of the stations is
unnecessary. These bridges make use of two processes i.e. bridge
forwarding and bridge learning.

 Source Routing Bridges:- In these bridges, routing operation is

performed by the source station and the frame specifies which route to
follow. The host can discover the frame by sending a special frame called
the discovery frame, which spreads through the entire network using all
possible paths to the destination.

Switch

A switch is a multiport bridge with a buffer and a design that can boost its
efficiency(a large number of ports imply less traffic) and performance. A switch is a
data link layer device. The switch can perform error checking before forwarding
data, which makes it very efficient as it does not forward packets that have errors
and forward good packets selectively to the correct port only. In other words, the
switch divides the collision domain of hosts, but the broadcast domain remains the
same.

Types of Switch

1. Unmanaged switches: These switches have a simple plug-and-play

design and do not offer advanced configuration options. They are
suitable for small networks or for use as an expansion to a larger
network.
2. Managed switches: These switches offer advanced configuration options
such as VLANs, QoS, and link aggregation. They are suitable for larger,
more complex networks and allow for centralized management.
3. Smart switches: These switches have features similar to managed
switches but are typically easier to set up and manage. They are suitable
for small- to medium-sized networks.
4. Layer 2 switches: These switches operate at the Data Link layer of the
OSI model and are responsible for forwarding data between devices on
the same network segment.
5. Layer 3 switches: These switches operate at the Network layer of the
OSI model and can route data between different network segments. They
 are more advanced than Layer 2 switches and are often used in larger,
more complex networks.
6. PoE switches: These switches have Power over Ethernet capabilities,
which allows them to supply power to network devices over the same
cable that carries data.
7. Gigabit switches: These switches support Gigabit Ethernet speeds, which
are faster than traditional Ethernet speeds.
8. Rack-mounted switches: These switches are designed to be mounted in
a server rack and are suitable for use in data centers or other large
networks.
9. Desktop switches: These switches are designed for use on a desktop or
in a small office environment and are typically smaller in size than rack-
mounted switches.
10.Modular switches: These switches have modular design, which allows for
easy expansion or customization. They are suitable for large networks
and data centers.

Routers

A router is a device like a switch that routes data packets based on their IP
addresses. The router is mainly a Network Layer device. Routers normally connect
LANs and WANs and have a dynamically updating routing table based on which
they make decisions on routing the data packets. The router divides the broadcast
domains of hosts connected through it.

Gateway – A gateway, as the name suggests, is a passage to connect two

networks that may work upon different networking models. They work as
messenger agents that take data from one system, interpret it, and transfer it to
another system. Gateways are also called protocol converters and can operate at
any network layer. Gateways are generally more complex than switches or routers.
A gateway is also called a protocol converter.

Brouter – It is also known as the bridging router is a device that combines features
of both bridge and router. It can work either at the data link layer or a network layer.
Working as a router, it is capable of routing packets across networks and working
as the bridge, it is capable of filtering local area network traffic.

NIC – NIC or network interface card is a network adapter that is used to connect
the computer to the network. It is installed in the computer to establish a LAN. It
has a unique id that is written on the chip, and it has a connector to connect the
cable to it. The cable acts as an interface between the computer and the router or
modem. NIC card is a layer 2 device which means that it works on both the
physical and data link layers of the network model.

Difference between IEEE 802.3, 802.4 and 802.5

IEEE 802 specifies to a group of IEEE standards. IEEE standards 802 are used for
controlling the Local Area Network and Metropolitan Area Network. The user layer
in IEEE 802 is serviced by the two layers- the data link layer and the physical layer.
The generally uses specifications of IEEE 802 are:
 IEEE 802.3 The IEEE 802.3 standard determines the CSMA/CD access
control protocol. The best known scheme for controlling a local area
network on a bus structure is carrier sense multiple action with collision
detection(CSMA/CD).
 IEEE 802.4 IEEE 802.4 describes a token bus LAN standards.In token
passing methods, stations connected on a bus are arranged in a logical
ring. In this method only the station having token(token holder)is being
permitted to transmit frames.
 IEEE 802.5 IEEE 802.5 describes the token ring standards. In a token
ring a special bit pattern, called the token, circulates around the ring
whenever all stations are idle.The sequence of token is determined by
the physical locations of the stations on the ring.

Let’s see the difference between IEEE 802.3, 802.4 and 802.5 :-

S.No
. IEEE 802.3 IEEE 802.4 IEEE 802.5

Topology used in
Topology used in IEEE IEEE 802.4 is Bus Topology used in IEEE
1. 802.3 is Bus Topology. or Tree Topology. 802.5 is Ring Topology.

2. Size of the frame format Size of the frame Frame format in IEEE
in IEEE 802.3 standard is format in IEEE 802.5 standard is of the
1572 bytes. 802.4 standard is variable size.
S.No
. IEEE 802.3
There is no priority given
3. in this standard.
Size of the data field is 0
4. to 1500 bytes.
Minimum frame required
5. is 64 bytes.
Efficiency decreases
when speed increases and
throughput is affected by
6. the collision.
Modems are not
7. required.
8. Protocol is very simple.
It is not applicable on
Real time applications,
interactive Applications
and Client-Server
9. applications.
802.11 Wireless Network Standards
802.11 is the collection of standards setup for wireless networking. You are probably
IEEE 802.4 IEEE 802.5
8202 bytes.
It supports
priorities to In IEEE 802.5 priorities are
stations. possible
Size of the data
field is 0 to 8182 No limit is on the size of
bytes. the data field.
It can handle short It supports both short and
minimum frames. large frames.
Throughput &
efficiency at very Throughput & efficiency at
high loads are very high loads are
outstanding. outstanding.
Modems are
required in this Like IEEE 802.4, modems
standard. are also required in it.
Protocol is
extremely Protocol is moderately
complex. complex.
It can be applied for Real
time applications and
interactive applications
because there is no
It is applicable to limitation on the size of
Real time traffic. data.
familiar with the three popular standards: 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g and latest one is
802.11n. Each standard uses a frequency to connect to the network and has a defined
upper limit for data transfer speeds.

802.11a was one of the first wireless standards. 802.11a operates in the 5Ghz radio
band and can achieve a maximum of 54Mbps. Wasn't as popular as the 802.11b
standard due to higher prices and lower range.

802.11b operates in the 2.4Ghz band and supports up to 11 Mbps. Range of up to

several hundred feet in theory. The first real consumer option for wireless and very
popular.

802.11g is a standard in the 2.4Ghz band operating at 54Mbps. Since it operates in the
same band as 802.11b, 802.11g is compatible with 802.11b equipment. 802.11a is not
directly compatible with 802.11b or 802.11g since it operates in a different band.

Wireless LANs primarily use CSMA/CA - Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision

Avoidance. It has a "listen before talk" method of minimizing collisions on the wireless
network. This results in less need for retransmitting data.

Wireless standards operate within a wireless topology.

FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface)

FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface) is a network standard that uses fiber
optic connections in a local area network (LAN) that can extend in range up to 200
kilometers (124 miles). The FDDI protocol is based on the token ring protocol. A FDDI
LAN can support thousands of users. While FDDI is frequently used on the backbone for
a wide area network (WAN) or campus area network (CAN), it has been largely
superseded by other networking technologies.

Fiber Distributed Data Interface topology and design

A FDDI network contains two token rings: a primary ring and a secondary ring that is

used as a redundant backup. The primary ring offers up to 100 megabits per second

(Mbps) capacity, while the secondary ring can also be used to carry data, increasing

capacity to 200 Mbps. One ring will operate in a clockwise direction and the other in a

counterclockwise direction. The single ring can extend the maximum distance of 200 km

(124 miles); a dual ring can extend 100 km (62 miles). Users can connect thousands of

devices to a single FDDI network.

Although the FDDI topology is a token ring network, users may also implement it in

a star topology structure. FDDI is derived from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics

Engineers 802.4 token bus timed token protocol.

In a token network, only the device with the token may transmit. The use of a timed

token ensures the maximum wait time for each device to be able to transmit. Depending

on the network latency requirements, users can configure FDDI as synchronous with

guaranteed timings for latency-sensitive networks or as asynchronous, which does not

rely on strict token timings.

FDDI is a product of the American National Standards Committee X3T9 standard and

operates on Open Systems Interconnection model Layer 1 (physical) and Layer 2 (media

access control data link). It has a large maximum transmission unit frame size of

4,352 bytes.

Developed in the late 1980s, FDDI was a good option for large CANs and metropolitan

area networks. Its relatively high speed of 100 Mbps was much better than 10 Mbps for

standard Ethernet. Users could also deploy FDDI in a single server room to interconnect

servers to a single backbone network.

FDDI-II is a version of FDDI that adds the capability to add circuit-switched service to a

network so that voice and video signals can also be handled. Work is underway to

connect FDDI networks to the developing Synchronous Optical Network offered as leased

fiber optic lines.

Other networking standards have largely superseded FDDI. For example, Fast Ethernet

offers the same speed at lower cost for the installation, while organizations generally

use Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet server or workstation interconnects.

Meanwhile, fiber to the workstation or passive optical networks are replacing high-speed

connections for end devices, and newer fiber optic standards offer higher speeds for

backbone interconnects.
IEEE 802.6 (DQDB)

IEEE 802.6 standard i.e. DQDB(Distributed Queue Dual Bus) is a MAN(Metropolitan Area
Network) protocol. It can be defined as a high speed shared medium access control
protocol that is used over a bus network. It has two unidirectional buses, for controlling
purposes, where the bus can carry data, video, and voice over a network with bandwidth
being allocated as per time slots. The advantage of using the paired bus is that it is used
to tackles failure configuration. It can be extended up to 30 miles at 34-55 Mbps.

Directional Traffic:
Each bus support traffic in only one direction and are opposite to one another. The
start of the bus being represented as a square and the end of the bus being
represented as a triangle (Fig.1). Bus A traffic moves from right to left (i.e. from
station 1 to 5) whereas the bus B traffic moves from left to right (i.e. from station 5
to 1).

Upstream and Downstream:

The relationship of stations of the DQDB network depends on the directional flow of
traffic of the buses.
Considering bus A in Fig.1, which has station 1 & 2 marked as upstream w.r.t
station 3 and station 4 & 5 are downstream w.r.t station 3. Here in bus A, station 1
is head of the bus as there is no upstream station and station 5 has no downstream
station and it is regarded as to end of bus A.

Working:
The head of the bus A i.e. station 1 generates empty slot for use of bus A.
Similarly, the head of bus B i.e. station 5 generate empty slot for use of bus B. The
empty slot travels down its bus until the transmission station drops data into it and
intended destination reads the data.
For example:
If station 2 wants to send data to station 4 (Fig.2) it chooses a slot on bus A as
station 4 is downstream in bus A. The head of the bus A i.e. station 1 creates an
empty slot. Station 2 drops its data & address of destination slot into the passing
slot. Station 3 reads the address and passes the slot as unread. Station 4
recognizes its address, reads the data and changes the status of the slot and
passes it along with station 5 where it is absorbed.

Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)

Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a cell-switching, connection-oriented

technology. In ATM networks, end stations attach to the network using dedicated full
duplex connections. The ATM networks are constructed using switches, and
switches are interconnected using dedicated physical connections.