Department of Computer Science &

Engineering

PRACTICAL FILE

Subject: Computer Network

(BTCS507-18)
B.Tech – 5th Semester
[Batch 2019-2023]
(Branch: CSE)

Chandigarh Group of Colleges

College of Engineering, Landran, Mohali-140307

Submitted to: Reecha ma’m Submitted by: Anchal Kumari

Roll no: 1914219 Section: 5A

1
Sr. No. Title Pg. No.

1. To study the different types of Network cables and network 3-

topologies.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

INDEX

EXPERIMENT NO. 1
2
Aim: To study the different types of Network cables and network topologies.
Theory:
Types of Networking Cables
Cable is the medium through which information usually moves from one
network device to another. In some cases, a network will utilize only one
type of cable, other network use a variety of cable types.
The type of cable chosen for a network is related to the network’s topology,
protocol, and size.

There are three types of network cables:

1. Coaxial Cable
2. Twisted Pair Cable
3. Fiber Optic Cable

A. Coaxial Cable:
This cable contains a conductor, insulator, braiding, and sheath. The sheath covers
the braiding, the braiding covers the insulation, and the insulation covers the
conductor.

Sheath
This is the outer layer of the coaxial cable. It protects the cable from physical
damage.

3
Braided shield
This shield protects signals from external interference and noise. This shield is built
from the same metal that is used to build the core.

Insulation
Insulation protects the core. It also keeps the core separate from the braided shield.
Since both the core and the braided shield use the same metal, without this layer,
they will touch each other and create a short-circuit in the wire.

Conductor
The conductor carries electromagnetic signals. Based on conductor a coaxial cable
can be categorized into two types; single-core coaxial cable and multi-core coaxial
cable.

Single Core Coaxial Cable: A single-core coaxial cable uses a single central

metal (usually copper) conductor.
Multi Core Coaxial Cable: A multi-core coaxial cable uses multiple thin
strands of metal wires.

Specification of Coaxial Cables:

 Coaxial cable uses RG rating to measure the materials used in shielding and
conducting cores.

4
  RG stands for the Radio Guide. Coaxial cable mainly uses radio frequencies
in transmission.
 Impedance is the resistance that controls the signals. It is expressed in the
ohms.
 AWG stands for American Wire Gauge. It is used to measure the size of the
core. The larger the AWG size, the smaller the diameter of the core wire.

Applications:
 In analog telephone networks: A single coaxial network can carry about
10,000 voice signals.
 In digital telephone networks: A coax has a data rate of 600 Mbps.
 In cable TV networks
 In traditional Ethernet LANs
 In MANs
Advantages of Co-axial Cable:

 It can be used for both analog and digital data transmission.

 It is relatively cheap as compared to fibre optic cables.
 It is simple to manage.
 It has brilliant noise immunity.
 It has a large bandwidth and low losses.
 It has less attenuation as distinguished from the twisted pair cables.
Disadvantages of Co-axial Cable:

 Coaxial cables are more expensive.

 It is not consistent with twisted-pair cables.
 It is heavy as compared to twisted pair cables

B. Twisted Pair Cables:

The twisted-pair cable was primarily developed for computer networks. This cable
is also known as Ethernet cable. Almost all modern LAN computer networks use
this cable.

5
This cable consists of color-coded pairs of insulated copper wires. Every two wires
are twisted around each other to form pair. Usually, there are four pairs. Each pair
has one solid colour and one stripped colour wire. Solid colours are blue, brown,
green, and orange. In stripped colour, the solid colour is mixed with the white
colour.

** It reduces the electromagnetic radiation from the pair and crosstalk between
neighbouring pairs and improves the rejection of external electromagnetic
interference. It was invented by Alexander Graham Bell.

There are two types of Twisted pair cable.

1. Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)

2. Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)

a. Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable:

In this, all pairs are wrapped in a single plastic sheath.
Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cables are the most common cable used in computer
networking as an ethernet cable for the data transmission from one device to
another device. It is used for short and medium-length connections because of its
relatively lower cost compared to the optical fiber and coaxial cable.

b. Shielded Twisted Pair Cable:

In this, each pair is wrapped with an additional metal shield, then all pairs are
wrapped in a single outer plastic sheath.
It is shielded in an attempt to prevent electromagnetic interference. Shielding
provides an electrically conductive barrier to attenuate electromagnetic waves
external to the shield and provides a conduction path by which induced currents
can be circulated and returned to the source via ground reference connection.
6
The TIA/EIA specifies standards for the twisted-pair cable. The first standards
were released in 1991, known as TIA/EIA 568.

The TIA/EIA 568 divides the twisted-pair cable into several categories:

 Category 1 − UTP used in telephone lines with data rate < 0.1 Mbps.
 Category 2 − UTP used in transmission lines with a data rate of 2 Mbps.
 Category 3 − UTP used in LANs with a data rate of 10 Mbps.
 Category 4 − UTP used in Token Ring networks with a data rate of 20 Mbps.
 Category 5 − UTP used in LANs with a data rate of 100 Mbps.
 Category 6 − UTP used in LANs with a data rate of 200 Mbps.
 Category 7 − STP used in LANs with a data rate of 10 Mbps.

7
Applications:
Twisted pair cable is used in various areas, like as –
 Ethernet network
 Telephone lines
 DSL lines
 Security camera system
 LANs

C. Fiber Optic Cable:

This cable consists of a core, cladding, buffer, and jacket. The core is made from
thin strands of glass or plastic that can carry data over a long distance. The core is
wrapped in the cladding; the cladding is wrapped in the buffer, and the buffer is
wrapped in the jacket.

 Core- Core carries the data signals in the form of light.

 Cladding- Cladding reflects light back to the core.
 Buffer- Buffer protects the light from leaking.
 Jacket- The jacket protects the cable from physical damage.

Fiber optic cable is completely immune to EMI and RFI. This cable can transmit
data over a long distance at the highest speed. It can transmit data up to 40
kilometers at the speed of 100Gbps.

Types of Fiber Optic Cable:

Based on how many beams of light are transmitted at a given time, there are two
types of fiber optical cable:

1. Single Mode Fiber Optic Cable:

This cable carries only a single beam of light. This is more reliable and supports
much higher bandwidth and longer distances than the MMF cable.
This cable uses a laser as the light source and transmits 1300 or 1550 nano-meter
wavelengths of light.

2. Multi-Mode Fiber Optic Cable:

This cable carries multiple beams of light. Because of multiple beams, this cable
8
carries much more data than the SMF cable.
This cable is used for shorter distances. This cable uses an LED as the light source
and transmits 850 or 1300 nano-meter wavelengths of light.

On the basis of material:

 Plastic Optical Fibers: The poly(methyl methacrylate) is used as a core

material for the transmission of light.
 Glass Fibers: It consists of extremely fine glass fibers.

Applications:
1. Internet
2. Computer Networking
3. Remote Sensing
4. Automotive Industry
5. Surgery and Dentistry
6. Decorations and Lighting
7. Telephone
8. Cable Television
9. Mechanical Inspections
10.Military and Space Applications
9
 Network Topology
Topology defines the structure of the network of how all the components are
interconnected to each other.

Types of Network Toplogy

a) Mesh Topology :
In a mesh topology, every device is connected to another device via the particular
channel. 
 

Figure 1: Every device is connected with another via dedicated channels. These
channels are known as links. 

 If 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.
 If suppose, N number of devices are connected with each other in a
mesh topology, then a total number of dedicated links required to
connect them is NC2 i.e. N(N-1)/2.

Advantages: 

 It is robust.
10
  The fault is diagnosed easily. Data is reliable because data is transferred
among the devices through dedicated channels or links.
 Provides security and privacy.

Disadvantages: 
 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 intelligent hub such as broadcasting
devices, at the same time the hub can be intelligent known as active hubs. Active
hubs have repeaters in them. 
 

Advantages:

 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
total number of ports required is N.

Disadvantages:
11
  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.
 

Advantages:
 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.

 Disadvantages: 
 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.
12
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.
 

The following operations take place in ring topology are : 

 
1. One station is known as 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:
 The possibility of collision is minimum in this type of topology.
13
  Cheap to install and expand.

Disadvantages:

 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. 
 

* 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:
 
 It allows more devices to be attached to a single central hub thus it
increases the distance that is travel by the signal to come to the devices.
14
  It allows the network to get isolate and also prioritize from different
computers.

Disadvantages:
 
 If the central hub gets fails the entire system fails.
 The cost is high because of cabling.
Hybrid Topology
o The combination of various different topologies is known as Hybrid
topology.
o A Hybrid topology is a connection between different links and nodes to
transfer the data.
o When two or more different topologies are combined together is termed as
Hybrid topology and if similar topologies are connected with each other will
not result in Hybrid topology. For example, if there exist a ring topology in
one branch of ICICI bank and bus topology in another branch of ICICI bank,
connecting these two topologies will result in Hybrid topology.

Advantages:
o Reliable: If a fault occurs in any part of the network will not affect the
functioning of the rest of the network.
o Scalable: Size of the network can be easily expanded by adding new devices
without affecting the functionality of the existing network.
o Flexible: This topology is very flexible as it can be designed according to
the requirements of the organization.
o Effective: Hybrid topology is very effective as it can be designed in such a
way that the strength of the network is maximized and weakness of the
network is minimized.

Disadvantages:
o Complex design: The major drawback of the Hybrid topology is the design
of the Hybrid network. It is very difficult to design the architecture of the
Hybrid network.

15
o Costly Hub: The Hubs used in the Hybrid topology are very expensive as
these hubs are different from usual Hubs used in other topologies.
o Costly infrastructure: The infrastructure cost is very high as a hybrid
network requires a lot of cabling, network devices, etc.

16
 TASK-2
AIM: Practically implement and test the cross-wired cable and straight through
cable using clamping tool and network lab cable tester.
APPARATUS: RJ-45 connector, IO Connector, Crimping Tool, Twisted pair
Cable, Cable Tester.
PRINCIPLE:
Standard Cabling:
1. 10BaseT and 100BaseT are most common mode of LAN. You can use UTP
category-5 cable for both modes.
2. A straight cable is used to connect a computer to a hub.

Cross Cabling: A cross cable is used to connect 2 computers directly (with

ONLY the UTP cable). It is also used then you connect 2 hubs with a normal port
on both hubs.

PROCEDURE:
17
Cable Crimping steps:
1. Remove the outmost vinyl shield for 12mm at one end of the cable (we call this
side A-side).
2. Arrange the metal wires in parallel.
3. Insert the metal wires into RJ45 connector on keeping the metal wire
arrangement.

1. Set the RJ45 connector (with the cable) on the pliers, and squeeze it tightly.
5. Make the other side of the cable (we call this side B-side) in the same way.
6. After you made it, you don't need to take care of the direction of the cable.
IO connector crimping:
 Run the full length of Ethernet cable in place, from endpoint to endpoint,
making sure to leave excess.
 At one end, cut the wire to length leaving enough length to work, but not
too much excess.
 Strip off about 2 inches of the Ethernet cable sheath.
 Align each of the colored wires according to the layout of the jack.
 Use the punch down tool to insert each wire into the jack.

 Repeat the above steps for the second RJ45 jack.

18
Testing the crimped cable using a cable tester:
Step 1 : Skin off the cable jacket 3.0 cm long cable stripper up to cable.
Step 2: Untwist each pair and straighten each wire 190 0 1.5 cm long.
Step 3 : Cut all the wires.
Step 4 : Insert the wires into the RJ45 connector right white orange left brown the
pins facing up.
Step 5 : Place the connector into a crimping tool, and squeeze hard so that the
handle reaches its full swing.
Step 6: Use a cable tester to test for proper continuity

19
RESULT: Cable Crimping, Standard Cabling and Cross Cabling, IO connector
crimping and testing the crimped cable using a cable tester are done successfully.

20
 TASK-3
AIM: Study and familiarization with various network devices.
APPARATUS: No software or hardware needed.

PROCEDURE: Following should be done to understand this practical.

1.Repeater: Functioning at Physical Layer. A repeater is an electronic

device that receives a signal and retransmits it at a higher level and/or
higher power, or onto the other side of an obstruction, so that the signal
can cover longer distances. Repeater have two ports ,so cannot be use to
connect for more than two devices.

2. Hub: An Ethernet hub, active hub, network hub, repeater hub, hub or concentrator is
a device for connecting multiple twisted pair or fiber optic Ethernet devices
together and making them act as a single network segment. Hubs work at the
physical layer (layer 1) of the OSI model. The device is a form of multiport
21
 repeater. Repeater hubs also participate in collision detection, forwarding a jam
signal to all ports if it detects a collision.

Types of Hub

Active Hub:- These are the hubs that have their own 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 active hubs 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.

3. Switch: A network switch or switching hub is a computer

networking device that connects network segments. The term
commonly refers to a network bridge that processes and routes data at
the data link layer (layer 2) of the OSI model. Switches that
22
additionally process data at the network layer (layer 3 and above) are
often referred to as Layer 3 switches or multilayer switches.

4. Bridge: A network bridge connects multiple network segments at

the data link layer (Layer 2) of the OSI model. In Ethernet networks,
the term bridge formally means a device that behaves according to the
IEEE 802.1D standard. A bridge and switch are very much alike; a
switch being a bridge with numerous ports. Switch or Layer 2 switch is
often used interchangeably with bridge. Bridges can analyse incoming
data packets to determine if the bridge is able to send the given packet
to another segment of the network.

23
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.

5. Router: A router is an electronic device that interconnects two or

more computer networks, and selectively interchanges packets of data
between them. Each data packet contains address information that a
router can use to determine if the source and destination are on the
same network, or if the data packet must be transferred from one
network to another. Where multiple routers are used in a large
collection of interconnected networks, the routers exchange information
about target system addresses, so that each router can build up a table
24
showing the preferred paths between any two systems on the
interconnected networks.

6. Gate Way: In a communications network, a network node equipped for

inter-facing with another network that uses different protocols.
 A gateway may contain devices such as protocol translators,
impedance matching devices, rate converters, fault isolators, or
signal translators as necessary to provide system interoperability.
It also requires the establishment of mutually acceptable
administrative procedures between both networks.
 A protocol translation/mapping gateway interconnects networks
with different network protocol technologies by performing the
required protocol conversions.

25
7.Modem: Modem is a device that enables a computer to send or receive data over
telephone or cable lines. The data stored on the computer is digital whereas a
telephone line or cable wire can transmit only analog data.

The main function of the modem is to convert digital signal into analog and vice
versa. Modem is a combination of two devices − modulator and demodulator.
The modulator converts digital data into analog data when the data is being sent
by the computer. The demodulator converts analog data signals into digital data
when it is being received by the computer.

26
8. 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.

27
9.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 router or
modem. NIC card is a layer 2 device which means that it works on both physical
and data link layer of the network model.

28
29
30