Chapter 1 & 2

Introduction to WANs

Point-to-Point (P2P) Protocols

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Objectives
 Describe the fundamental concepts of point-to-point serial
communication, demarcation point, DTE-DCE functions, HDLC
encapsulation, and serial interface troubleshooting.
 Describe PPP concepts including PPP layered architecture, PPP frame
structure, PPP session establishment, multiprotocol encapsulation
support, link control protocol (LCP), network control protocol (NCP), and
Internet Protocol Control Protocol (IPCP).
 Configure PPP on a serial interface including enabling PPP
encapsulation, verifying the PPP connection and troubleshooting
encapsulation problems.
 Configure PPP authentication including explaining PAP and CHAP
authentication protocols, configuring PPP authentication using PAP and
CHAP, and troubleshooting PPP authentication problems.

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 LAN Interconnection

LAN 1 LAN 3

LAN 2 LAN 4

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 Since it is obviously not feasible to connect computers across
a country or around the world in the same way that computers
are connected in a LAN with cables, different technologies
have evolved to support this need – WAN (Wide Area
Network)

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 WAN operations focus primarily on Layer 1 and Layer 2
 WAN standards typically describe both Physical layer delivery
methods and Data Link layer requirements, including physical
addressing, flow control, and encapsulation.
 Layer 2 describes how data is encapsulated for transmission
toward a remote location and the mechanisms for transferring
the resulting frames.

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 WAN PHYSICAL LAYER TERMINOLOGY

 Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) - The devices

and inside wiring located at the premises of the
subscriber and connected with a telecommunication
channel of a carrier. The subscriber either owns the
CPE or leases the CPE from the service provider.
 Data Communications Equipment (DCE) - Also called
data circuit-terminating equipment. Consists of devices
that put data on the local loop. The DCE primarily
provides an interface to connect subscribers to a
communication link on the WAN cloud.
 Data Terminal Equipment (DTE) - The customer
devices that pass the data from a customer network for
transmission over the WAN. The DTE connects to the
local loop through the DCE.

 Demarcation Point - A point established in a building or complex to separate customer equipment from
service provider equipment. Physically, the demarcation point is the cabling junction box, located on the
customer premises, that connects the CPE wiring to the local loop. It is usually placed for easy access by
a technician. The demarcation point is the place where the responsibility for the connection changes from
the user to the service provider. This is very important because when problems arise, it is necessary to
determine whether the user or the service provider is responsible for troubleshooting or repair.
 Local Loop - The copper or fiber telephone cable that connects the CPE at the subscriber site to the CO of
the service provider. The local loop is also sometimes called the "last-mile."
 Central Office (CO) - A local service provider facility or building where local telephone cables link to long-
haul, all-digital, fiber-optic communications lines through a system of switches and other equipment.
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  The CPE, which is generally a
router, is the DTE. The DTE
could also be a terminal,
computer, printer, or fax machine
if they connect directly to the
service provider network.
 The DCE, commonly a modem
or CSU/DSU, is the device used
to convert the user data from the
DTE into a form acceptable to
the WAN service provider
transmission link. This signal is
received at the remote DCE,
which decodes the signal back
into a sequence of bits. The
remote DCE then signals this
sequence to the remote DTE.

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 The demarcation point marks the point where your network
interfaces with the network owned by another organization.
In telephone terminology, this is the interface between
customer-premises equipment (CPE) and network service
provider equipment. The demarcation point is the point in
the network where the responsibility of the service provider
ends.

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 Modem - Modulates an analog carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates the carrier
signal to decode the transmitted information.
 CSU/DSU - Digital lines, such as T1 or T3 carrier lines, require a channel service unit (CSU) and a data
service unit (DSU). The two are often combined into a single piece of equipment, called the CSU/DSU.
 Access server - Concentrates dial-in and dial-out user communications.
 WAN switch - A multiport internetworking device used in carrier networks.
 Router - Provides internetworking and WAN access interface ports that are used to connect to the service
provider network. These interfaces may be serial connections or other WAN interfaces.
 Core router - A router that resides within the middle or backbone of the WAN rather than at its periphery.

WAN DEVICES

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 WAN PHYSICAL LAYER
STANDARDS

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 DATA LINK PROTOCOLS
 On each WAN connection, data is encapsulated into frames before
crossing the WAN link. To ensure that the correct protocol is used,
you need to configure the appropriate Layer 2 encapsulation type.

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 CIRCUIT SWITCHED NETWORK
 A circuit-switched network establishes a dedicated circuit before users may
communicate.
 The internal path taken by the circuit between exchanges is shared by a
number of conversations. Time-division multiplexing (TDM) gives each
conversation a share of the connection in turn.
 Exe: ISDN

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 PACKET SWITCHED NETWORK
 Packet switching splits traffic data into packets that are routed
over a shared network. Packet-switching networks do not
require a circuit to be established, and they allow many pairs of
nodes to communicate over the same channel.
 Exe: Frame Relay

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 WAN DATA LINK PROTOCOLS

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 WAN DATA LINK PROTOCOLS

 Two of the most common serial line Layer 2 encapsulations

are HDLC and PPP.
 Standard HDLC frame does not contain the “type field” that
identifies the type of protocol carried by the frame. Thus,
multiple protocols handling is not possible.
 Cisco HDLC incorporates the Type field allowing multiple
Network Layer protocols to share the same link.
 Because PPP is standards-based, it enables communication
between equipment of different vendors.

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 Cisco HDLC is the default encapsulation method used by
Cisco devices on synchronous serial lines.
 You use Cisco HDLC as a point-to-point protocol on leased
lines between two Cisco devices. If you are connecting to a
non-Cisco device, use synchronous PPP.

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 PPP has two sub-protocols:
–Link Control Protocol - responsible for establishing,
maintaining and terminating the point-to-point link.
–Network Control Protocol - provides interaction with different
Network layer protocols.

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 PPP’s Link Control Protocol (LCP)
 LCP is used to establish, maintain, test, and terminate the point-
to-point link. Additionally, LCP negotiates and configures control
options on the WAN link. LCP options:
–Authentication
–Compression
–Error detection
–Multilink
–PPP Callback
–Handles varied
packet sizes
–Detects common
misconfiguration errors
–Determines when a link is
functioning properly and when it is failing
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 Link
Establishment
Phase

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 Basic PPP Configuration

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 Explain the output of the show interfaces serial command

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 PPP Authentication
 Authentication on a PPP link is optional.
 If configured, authentication occurs after establishment of the link but before the Network Layer
protocol configuration phase begins.
 Two possible types of
authentication:
– Password Authentication
Protocol (PAP)
– Challenge Handshake
Authentication Protocol
(CHAP)

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 Password Authentication
Protocol (PAP)
 PAP provides a simple method for a remote device to establish its
identity.
 PAP uses a two-way handshake to send its username and
password, as one LCP data package, rather than the server sending
a login prompt and waiting for a response.
 There is no encryption - the username and password are sent in
plain text. If it is accepted, the connection is allowed

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 (PAP) Configuration

 In Cisco IOS version 11.1 or later, PAP is disabled on the interface by default. This
means that the router will not send its own username and password combination
just because PAP authentication is enable. Therefore, additional commands are
required for PAP

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 Challenge Handshake
Authentication Protocol (CHAP)

 CHAP is more secure than PAP. It involves a three-way

exchange of a shared secret.
 Unlike PAP, which only authenticates once, CHAP conducts
periodic challenges to make sure that the remote node still
has a valid password value. The password value is variable
and changes unpredictably while the link exists.
 After the PPP link establishment phase is complete, the local
router sends a challenge message to the remote node.

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 CHAP
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 (CHAP) Configuration

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