Chapter 3-3 :

Communicating Across
a Network
Objectives
At the end of this lesson you will be able to:
●Explain the role of the client redirector
software
●Describes the steps that occur when a
computer requests a resource from another
computer over network
●Explain the difference between requesting
local and remote data
Making a Local Request For Data
Assume you are working with a database application on your desktop
computer, and you command that application to display a particular
set of records. If those records are physically stored on the hard disk
in your computer (the “local” hard disk), your command begins a
chain of actions necessary to get that job done.

The application asks the operating system (OS) to retrieve the data
from your hard drive. The OS then communicates with the hard drive
device driver to read the data from the drive and move it into
memory for the application to use. Everything except your
application command is invisible to you.

What if the database record are stored on a hard drive in a computer

on the other side of the building, over the network? How can your
application get its data in this case?
Configuring the Client Computer
Before you can request a resource across the network, you must first be able
to communicate on the network. To do this, the following items must be
installed on your computer (in addition to your desktop OS):
● A NIC transmits and receives signals on the physical network medium
(cable or radio channel).
● A NIC device driver allows the OS to communicate with the installed NIC.
● The network communication software, or a protocol stack, provides the
layered communication protocols that handle the details of network
communications.
● Network redirection software - which shipped with your desktop OS;
however, it must be installed and configured like any other application.
OS vendors use different names to describe their redirectors, such as
“requestor”, “shell” (UNIX), “Client for Microsoft Network” (Microsoft
WIndows), or “Client for Netware” (Novell Netware). A client redirector
must be compatible with the networking software used by its servers and
peers. Thus, if the network’s servers are using Windows NT Server
Software, the client workstation must use Client for Microsoft Network.
Once the redirector software is installed, it waits for an application to make
a request for a file or service. If the requests is for a local resource, the
redirector passes the request to the local OS. If the request is for a resource
on a network server (or a peer computer), the redirector uses the client’s
network communication software and NIC to send the request out over the
network to the appropriate computer.
Requesting Data From a Drive Across
a Network
Assume your computer is connected to the network and your client
software is set up and configured. Here is what happens when you
tell your database application to display records stored on another
computer:

1. When you command the application to open the records, you select a
target drive on a different network computer. This computer could be a
file server or peer computer. However, you may only access files on a
peer computer if the user of that computer has configured that drive or
data to be shared by the rest of the network.
2. The application asks the OS to retrieve the data. However, this time
your computer’s redirection software intercepts the request that would
normally go straight to the OS.
3. The redirector recognizes that the request is directed at a remote disk
drive. The redirector passes the request to the network communication
software.
4. Each layer of the protocol stack handles a different part of
the job preparing the request to be transmitted. For example,
one layer address request to the specific destination computer,
while another layer checks to see whether the network cable is
ready to accept a new transmission. Each layer adds its own
protocol header to the request.
5. The lowest layer protocol passes the completed request to
be the NIC. This requires the help of the OS, but here the OS is
providing a different service from the original “read data”
request.
6. The completed request is sent from the central processing
unit (CPU) of the computer, across the local bus, to the NIC.
7. The NIC creates a physical signal (electrical, optical, or
radio) that represents the binary data in the request. It then
transmits that signal onto the transmission medium of the
network (cable or radio channel).
8. The destination computer’s NIC recognizes that the signal is
addressed to itself. It copies the bits off the network, while
other computers ignore the signal. It then passes the request to
the local computer’s network communication protocol stack.
9. The request is passed up the destination protocol stack and
is decapsulated as it moves from one layer to the next. When
the messages reaches the top of the stack, the highest layer
passes the request to the database server application.
10. The database server application then works with its local
OS to read the data from its hard drive.

When the database server application transmits the data

back to the client that requested it, this process is
reversed.