Computer Network: Definitions, goals, components

Definition: - A computer network is a system that connects numerous independent computers in order to
share information (data) and resources

Goals of Networks:- Computer Network means an interconnection of autonomous (standalone)

computers for information exchange. The connecting media could be a copper wire, optical fiber,
microwave, or satellite.
 Resource sharing: Networks enable the sharing of resources such as printers, scanners, storage
devices, and software applications, which can reduce costs and increase efficiency.
 Communication and collaboration: Networks provide a platform for communication and
collaboration among users, allowing for easy sharing of information and ideas.
 Centralized management: Networks allow for centralized management of devices, users, and
resources, making it easier to control and monitor the network.
 Scalability: Networks can be scaled up or down to accommodate changes in the number of users,
devices, or data volume.
 Accessibility: Networks can provide remote access to resources, enabling users to work from
anywhere and improving accessibility to information and resources.

Components of Computer Network:- A computer network is a system that connects multiple

independent computers in such a way that they can share information and resources. Some of the Physical
Components of the Computer Network are mentioned below:
 NIC (Network Interface Card): 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. There are two
types of NIC:
1. Wired NIC: Cables and Connectors use Wired NIC to transfer data.

2. Wireless NIC: These connect to a wireless network such as Wifi, Bluetooth, etc.
 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.

 Router: 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.

 Modem: A Modem is a short form of Modulator/Demodulator. The Modem is a hardware

component/device which can connect computers and other devices such as routers and switches to
the internet. Modems convert or modulate the analog signals coming from telephone wire into a
digital form that is in form of 0s and 1s.
 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.

 Nodes: Node is a term used to refer to any computing devices such as computers that send and
receive network packets across the network. Two Types of nodes are :

 End Nodes: These type of nodes is going to be the starting point or the end point of
communication. E.g., computers, security cameras, network printers, etc.
 Intermediary Nodes: These nodes are going to be in between starting point or end point of
the end nodes. E.g., Switches, Bridges, Routers, cell towers, etc.

Architecture, Classifications & Types

Computer Network Architecture
Computer Network Architecture is defined as the physical and logical design of the software, hardware,
protocols, and media of the transmission of data. Simply we can say that how computers are organized and
how tasks are allocated to the computer.
The two types of network architectures are used:
1. Peer-To-Peer network
2. Client/Server network

Peer-To-Peer network:-
 Peer-To-Peer network is a network in which all the computers are linked together with equal
privilege and responsibilities for processing the data.
 Peer-To-Peer network is useful for small environments, usually up to 10 computers.
 Peer-To-Peer network has no dedicated server.
  Special permissions are assigned to each computer for sharing the resources, but this can lead to a
problem if the computer with the resource is down.

Advantages Of Peer-To-Peer Network:

 It is less costly as it does not contain any dedicated server.
 If one computer stops working but, other computers will not stop working.
 It is easy to set up and maintain as each computer manages itself.
Disadvantages Of Peer-To-Peer Network:
 In the case of Peer-To-Peer network, it does not contain the centralized system . Therefore, it cannot
back up the data as the data is different in different locations.
 It has a security issue as the device is managed itself.

Client/Server Network
 Client/Server network is a network model designed for the end users called clients, to access the
resources such as songs, video, etc. from a central computer known as Server.
 The central controller is known as a server while all other computers in the network are called clients.
 A server performs all the major operations such as security and network management.
 A server is responsible for managing all the resources such as files, directories, printer, etc.
 All the clients communicate with each other through a server. For example, if client1 wants to send
some data to client 2, then it first sends the request to the server for the permission. The server sends
the response to the client 1 to initiate its communication with the client 2.
Advantages Of Client/Server network:
 A Client/Server network contains the centralized system. Therefore we can back up the data easily.
 A Client/Server network has a dedicated server that improves the overall performance of the whole
system.
 Security is better in Client/Server network as a single server administers the shared resources.
 It also increases the speed of the sharing resources.
Disadvantages Of Client/Server network:
 Client/Server network is expensive as it requires the server with large memory.
 A server has a Network Operating System(NOS) to provide the resources to the clients, but the cost
of NOS is very high.
 It requires a dedicated network administrator to manage all the resources.

Classifications & Types of Computer Network

Types of Computer Networks
There are mainly five types of Computer Networks
1. Personal Area Network (PAN)
2. Local Area Network (LAN)
3. Campus Area Network (CAN)
4. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
5. Wide Area Network (WAN)
1. Personal Area Network (PAN):- PAN is the most basic type of computer network. This network
is restrained to a single person, that is, communication between the computer devices is centered only on an
individual’s workspace. PAN offers a network range of 1 to 100 meters from person to device providing
communication. Its transmission speed is very high with very easy maintenance and very low cost. This
uses Bluetooth, IrDA, and Zigbee as technology.
Examples of PAN are USB, computer, phone, tablet, printer, PDA, etc.

Personal Area Network (PAN)

2. Local Area Network (LAN)

LAN is the most frequently used network. A LAN is a computer network that connects computers through
a common communication path, contained within a limited area, that is, locally. A LAN encompasses two
or more computers connected over a server. The two important technologies involved in this network
are Ethernet and Wi-fi. It ranges up to 2km & transmission speed is very high with easy maintenance and
low cost.
Examples of LAN are networking in a home, school, library, laboratory, college, office, etc.
Local Area Network (LAN)

3. Campus Area Network (CAN)

CAN is bigger than a LAN but smaller than a MAN. This is a type of computer network that is usually used
in places like a school or colleges. This network covers a limited geographical area that is, it spreads across
several buildings within the campus. CAN mainly use Ethernet technology with a range from 1km to 5km.
Its transmission speed is very high with a moderate maintenance cost and moderate cost.
Examples of CAN are networks that cover schools, colleges, buildings, etc.

Campus Area Network (CAN)

4. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

A MAN is larger than a LAN but smaller than a WAN. This is the type of computer network that connects
computers over a geographical distance through a shared communication path over a city, town, or
metropolitan area. This network mainly uses FDDI, CDDI, and ATM as the technology with a range from
5km to 50km. Its transmission speed is average. It is difficult to maintain and it comes with a high cost.
Examples of MAN are networking in towns, cities, a single large city, a large area within multiple buildings,
etc.
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

5. Wide Area Network (WAN)

WAN is a type of computer network that connects computers over a large geographical distance through a
shared communication path. It is not restrained to a single location but extends over many
locations. WAN can also be defined as a group of local area networks that communicate with each other
with a range above 50km. Here we use Leased-Line & Dial-up technology. Its transmission speed is very
low and it comes with very high maintenance and very high cost.
The most common example of WAN is the Internet.

Wide Area Network (WAN)

Comparison between Different Computer Networks

Parameters PAN LAN CAN MAN WAN

Personal Local Campus Metropolitan Wide

Full Name Area Area Area Area Area
Network Network Network Network Network
Leased
Bluetooth, Ethernet FDDI,
Technology Ethernet Line,
IrDA,Zigbee & Wifi CDDi. ATM
Dial-Up
Upto Above
Range 1-100 m 1 – 5 km 5-50 km
2km 50 km
Transmission Very
Very High High Average Low
Speed High
Private
Private or
Ownership Private Private Private or
Public
Public
Very
Maintenance Very Easy Easy Moderate Difficult
Difficult
Very
Cost Very Low Low Moderate High
High

Layered Architecture: Protocol hierarchy

A communication subsystem is a complex piece of Hardware and software. Early attempts for implementing
the software for such subsystems were based on a single, complex, unstructured program with many
interacting components. The resultant software was very difficult to test and modify. To overcome such
problem, the ISO has developed a layered approach. In a layered approach, networking concept is divided
into several layers, and each layer is assigned a particular task. Therefore, we can say that networking tasks
depend upon the layers.

Layered Architecture

 The main aim of the layered architecture is to divide the design into small pieces.
 Each lower layer adds its services to the higher layer to provide a full set of services to manage
communications and run the applications.
 It provides modularity and clear interfaces, i.e., provides interaction between subsystems.
 It ensures the independence between layers by providing the services from lower to higher layer
without defining how the services are implemented. Therefore, any modification in a layer will not
affect the other layers.
 The number of layers, functions, contents of each layer will vary from network to network. However,
the purpose of each layer is to provide the service from lower to a higher layer and hiding the details
from the layers of how the services are implemented.
 The basic elements of layered architecture are services, protocols, and interfaces.
o Service: It is a set of actions that a layer provides to the higher layer.
o Protocol: It defines a set of rules that a layer uses to exchange the information with peer
entity. These rules mainly concern about both the contents and order of the messages used.
 o Interface: It is a way through which the message is transferred from one layer to another
layer.
 In a layer n architecture, layer n on one machine will have a communication with the layer n on
another machine and the rules used in a conversation are known as a layer-n protocol.

Let's take an example of the five-layered architecture.

 In case of layered architecture, no data is transferred from layer n of one machine to layer n of
another machine. Instead, each layer passes the data to the layer immediately just below it, until the
lowest layer is reached.
 Below layer 1 is the physical medium through which the actual communication takes place.
 In a layered architecture, unmanageable tasks are divided into several small and manageable tasks.
 The data is passed from the upper layer to lower layer through an interface. A Layered architecture
provides a clean-cut interface so that minimum information is shared among different layers. It also
ensures that the implementation of one layer can be easily replaced by another implementation.
 A set of layers and protocols is known as network architecture.

Why do we require Layered architecture?

 Divide-and-conquer approach: Divide-and-conquer approach makes a design process in such a

way that the unmanageable tasks are divided into small and manageable tasks. In short, we can say
that this approach reduces the complexity of the design.
 Modularity: Layered architecture is more modular. Modularity provides the independence of
layers, which is easier to understand and implement.
 Easy to modify: It ensures the independence of layers so that implementation in one layer can be
changed without affecting other layers.
 Easy to test: Each layer of the layered architecture can be analyzed and tested individually.

Design Issues, Interfaces and Services

The following are the design issues for the layers:

1. Reliability: It is a design issue of making a network that operates correctly even when it is made up
of unreliable components.
2. Addressing: There are multiple processes running on one machine. Every layer needs a mechanism
to identify senders and receivers.
 3. Error Control: It is an important issue because physical communication circuits are not perfect.
Many error detecting and error correcting codes are available. Both sending and receiving ends must
agree to use any one code.
4. Flow Control: If there is a fast sender at one end sending data to a slow receiver, then there must
be flow control mechanism to control the loss of data by slow receivers. There are several
mechanisms used for flow control such as increasing buffer size at receivers, slow down the fast
sender, and so on. Some process will not be in position to accept arbitrarily long messages. This
property leads to mechanisms for disassembling, transmitting and the reassembling messages.
5. Multiplexing and De-multiplexing: If the data has to be transmitted on transmission media
separately, it is inconvenient or expensive to setup separate connection for each pair of
communicating processes. So, multiplexing is needed in the physical layer at sender end and de-
multiplexing is need at the receiver end.
6. Scalability: When network gets large, new problem arises. Thus scalability is important so that
network can continue to work well when it gets large.
7. Routing: When there are multiple paths between source and destination, only one route must be
chosen. This decision is made on the basis of several routing algorithms, which chooses optimized
route to the destination.
8. Confidentiality and Integrity: Network security is the most important factor. Mechanisms that
provide confidentiality defend against threats like eavesdropping. Mechanisms for integrity prevent
faulty changes to messages.

Interfaces and Services

Interfaces and Services is a process that generally provides and gives a common technique for each layer
to communicate with each other. Standard terminology basically required for layered networks to request
and aim for the services are provided.

Service is defined as a set of primitive operations. Services are provided by layer to each of layers above it.

Below is diagram showing relation between layers at an interface. In diagram, layers N+1, N, and N-1 are
involved and engaged in process of communication among each other.

Components Involved and their Functions:

Service Data Unit (SDU) –

SDU is a piece of information or data that is generally passed by layer just above current layer for
transmission. Unit of data or information is passed down to a lower layer from an OSI (Open System
Interconnection) layer or sublayer. Data is passed with request to transmit data. SDU basically identifies or
determines information that is been transferred among entities of peer layers that are not interpreted by
supporting entities of lower-layer.

Protocol Data Unit (PDU) –

PDU is a single unit of information or data that is transmitted or transferred among entities of peer layers of a computer
network. When application data is passed down to protocol stack on its way to being transmitted all over network
media, some of protocols add information an data to it at each and every level. PDU is used to represent and describe
data is it gets transferred from one layer of OSI model to another layer.

Interface Data Unit (IDU) – IDU is used to have an agreed way of communication among two layers in a
network layered architecture. It is passed from (N+1 to N).
Service Access Point (SAP) – SAP is generally used as an identifier label for endpoints of network in OSI
networking or model. It is a data structure and identifier also for a buffer area in memory of system. It is a
point in a layer of a layered architecture where a network is usually provided and where layer just above
layer that provides service can probably have access to it.
Interface Control Information (ICI) – ICI is a temporary parameter that is passed between N and N-1
layers to include service functions among two layers.

Benefits:
 Increase in Compatibility: Layered approach to networking and communication protocols
generally provides and shows greater compatibility among all devices, systems, and networks that
they deliver.
 Less expensive: Easy way of development and implementation converts to increase in an efficiency
and even effectiveness that in turn converts into larger economic rationalization and very cheaper
products while not compromising with quality.
 Increase in Mobility: Whenever we use layered and segmented strategies into architecture design,
there will always be an increase in mobility.
 Better Scalability: Whenever we use a layered or hierarchical approach to networking protocol,
design, and implementation scale much better than horizontal approach.

Connection Oriented & Connection-less Services

Both Connection-oriented service and Connection-less service are used for the connection establishment
between two or more than two devices. These type of services are offered by network layer.

Connection-oriented service is related to the telephone system. It includes the connection establishment
and connection termination. In connection-oriented service, Handshake method is used to establish the
connection between sender and receiver.

Connection-less service is related to the postal system. It does not include any connection establishment
and connection termination. Connection-less Service does not give the guarantee of reliability. In this,
Packets do not follow same path to reach destination.
Difference between Connection-oriented and Connection-less Services:

S.NO Connection-oriented Service Connection-less Service

Connection-oriented service is related Connection-less service is related to the

1
to the telephone system. postal system.
Connection-oriented service is
Connection-less Service is preferred by
2 preferred by long and steady
bursty communication.
communication.
Connection-oriented Service is Connection-less Service is not
3
necessary. compulsory.
Connection-oriented Service is
4 Connection-less Service is not feasible.
feasible.
In connection-oriented Service, In connection-less Service, Congestion
5
Congestion is not possible. is possible.
Connection-oriented Service gives the Connection-less Service does not give
6
guarantee of reliability. the guarantee of reliability.
In connection-oriented Service, Packets In connection-less Service, Packets do
7
follow the same route. not follow the same route.
Connection-oriented Services requires Connection-less Service requires a
8
a bandwidth of high range. bandwidth of low range.

Service primitives, Design issues & its functionality

Service Primitives
Service generally includes set of various primitives. A primitive simply means Operations.
A Service is specified by set of primitives that are available and given to user or other various entities to
access the service. All these primitives simply tell the service to perform some action or to report on action
that is taken by peer entity. Each of the protocol that communicates in layered architecture also
communicates in peer-to-peer manner with some of its remote protocol entity.

Primitives are called calling functions between the layers that are used to manage communication among
the adjacent protocol layers i.e., among the same communication node. The set of primitives that are
available generally depends upon the nature of the service that is being provided.

Classification of Service Primitives :

Primitive Meaning

It represent entity that wants or request service to perform some action or do some
Request
work (requesting for connection to remote computer).

It represent entity that is to be informed about event (receiver just have received
Indication
request of connection).
It represents entity that is responding to event (receiver is simply sending the
Response
permission or allowing to connect).

It represent entity that acknowledges the response to earlier request that has come
Confirm
back (sender just acknowledge the permission to get connected to the remote host).

In the above diagram, these four primitives work as following:

 Request: This primitive is transferred or sent to Layer N by Layer (N+1) to just request for service.
 Indication: This primitive is returned by Layer N to Layer (N+1) to just advise of activation of
service that is being requested or of action that is initiated by the service of Layer N.
  Response: This primitive is simply provided by Layer (N+1) in reply to indication primitive. It
might acknowledge or complete action that is previously invoked by indication primitive.
 Confirm: This primitive is returned by the Nth layer to the requesting (N+1)st layer to simply
acknowledge or complete action that is previously invoked by request primitive.

Parameters of Service Primitives: Some of the Service Primitives need parameters. These are given below:

 Connect. Request: The initiating entity does this Connect. Request. It just specifies and determines
machine that we want to get connected to, type of service that is being desired, and maximum size
of packet or message that is used on connection.
 Connect. Indication: The receiver gets this Connect. Indication. It just specifies caller’s identity
service that we want to use like FTP and Telnet, etc., and maximum size of packets that are
exchanged.
 Connect. Response: It just specifies whether or not it wants to accept or simply reject connection
that is being requested.
 Connect. Confirm: It just finds out or determines what happened using the entity that is issuing the
initial Connect. Request.

Primitives of Connection-Oriented Service:

Primitive Meaning
When server is ready to accept request of incoming connection, it simply put this
Listen primitive into action. Listen primitive simply waiting for incoming connection
request.
This primitive is used to connect the server simply by creating or establishing
Connect
connection with waiting peer.
Accept This primitive simply accepts incoming connection form peer.
These primitive afterwards block the server. Receive primitive simply waits for
Receive
incoming message.
This primitive is put into action by the client to transmit its request that is followed
Send by putting receive primitive into action to get the reply. Send primitive simply sends
or transfer the message to the peer.
This primitive is simply used to terminate or end the connection after which no one
Disconnect
will be able to send any of the message.

Primitives of Connectionless Service:

Primitive Meaning

Unit data Unit data primitive is simply required to send packet of data or information.

Facility, This primitive is required for getting details about the performance and working of
Report the network such as delivery statistics or report.

ISO-OSI Reference Model

OSI Model

 OSI stands for Open System Interconnection is a reference model that describes how information
from a software application in one computer moves through a physical medium to the software
application in another computer.
 OSI consists of seven layers, and each layer performs a particular network function.
 OSI model was developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in 1984, and
it is now considered as an architectural model for the inter-computer communications.
 OSI model divides the whole task into seven smaller and manageable tasks. Each layer is assigned
a particular task.
 Each layer is self-contained, so that task assigned to each layer can be performed independently.

Characteristics of OSI Model:

 The OSI model is divided into two layers: upper layers and lower layers.
 The upper layer of the OSI model mainly deals with the application related issues, and they are
implemented only in the software. The application layer is closest to the end user. Both the end user
and the application layer interact with the software applications. An upper layer refers to the layer
just above another layer.
 The lower layer of the OSI model deals with the data transport issues. The data link layer and the
physical layer are implemented in hardware and software. The physical layer is the lowest layer of
the OSI model and is closest to the physical medium. The physical layer is mainly responsible for
placing the information on the physical medium.

Principles of OSI Reference Model:

 A layer should be created where a different abstraction is needed.

 Each layer should perform a well-defined function.
 The function of each layer should be chosen with an eye toward defining internationally standardized
protocols.
 The layer boundaries should be chosen to minimize the information flow across the interfaces.
 The number of layers should be large enough that distinct functions need not be thrown together in
the same layer out of necessity and small enough that architecture does not become unwieldy.
Functions of the OSI Layers
There are the seven OSI layers. Each layer has different functions. A list of seven layers are given below:

1. Physical Layer
2. Data-Link Layer
3. Network Layer
4. Transport Layer
5. Session Layer
6. Presentation Layer
7. Application Layer

Physical layer
  The main functionality of the physical layer is to transmit the individual bits from one node to
another node.
 It is the lowest layer of the OSI model.
 It establishes, maintains and deactivates the physical connection.
 It specifies the mechanical, electrical and procedural network interface specifications.


Functions of a Physical layer:

 Line Configuration: It defines the way how two or more devices can be connected physically.
 Data Transmission: It defines the transmission mode whether it is simplex, half-duplex or full-
duplex mode between the two devices on the network.
 Topology: It defines the way how network devices are arranged.
 Signals: It determines the type of the signal used for transmitting the information.

Data Link Layer

 This layer is responsible for the error-free transfer of data frames.

 It defines the format of the data on the network.
 It provides a reliable and efficient communication between two or more devices.
 It is mainly responsible for the unique identification of each device that resides on a local network.
 It contains two sub-layers:
o Logical Link Control Layer
 It is responsible for transferring the packets to the Network layer of the receiver that
is receiving.
  It identifies the address of the network layer protocol from the header.
 It also provides flow control.
o Media Access Control Layer
 A Media access control layer is a link between the Logical Link Control layer and
the network's physical layer.
 It is used for transferring the packets over the network.

Functions of the Data-link layer

 Framing: The data link layer translates the physical's raw bit stream into packets known as Frames.
The Data link layer adds the header and trailer to the frame. The header which is added to the frame
contains the hardware destination and source address.

 Physical Addressing: The Data link layer adds a header to the frame that contains a destination
address. The frame is transmitted to the destination address mentioned in the header.
 Flow Control: Flow control is the main functionality of the Data-link layer. It is the technique
through which the constant data rate is maintained on both the sides so that no data get corrupted. It
ensures that the transmitting station such as a server with higher processing speed does not exceed
the receiving station, with lower processing speed.
 Error Control: Error control is achieved by adding a calculated value CRC (Cyclic Redundancy
Check) that is placed to the Data link layer's trailer which is added to the message frame before it is
sent to the physical layer. If any error seems to occurr, then the receiver sends the acknowledgment
for the retransmission of the corrupted frames.
 Access Control: When two or more devices are connected to the same communication channel, then
the data link layer protocols are used to determine which device has control over the link at a given
time.

Network Layer

 It is a layer 3 that manages device addressing, tracks the location of devices on the network.
 It determines the best path to move data from source to the destination based on the network
conditions, the priority of service, and other factors.
 The Data link layer is responsible for routing and forwarding the packets.
  Routers are the layer 3 devices, they are specified in this layer and used to provide the routing
services within an internetwork.
 The protocols used to route the network traffic are known as Network layer protocols. Examples of
protocols are IP and Ipv6.

Functions of Network Layer:

 Internetworking: An internetworking is the main responsibility of the network layer. It provides a

logical connection between different devices.
 Addressing: A Network layer adds the source and destination address to the header of the frame.
Addressing is used to identify the device on the internet.
 Routing: Routing is the major component of the network layer, and it determines the best optimal
path out of the multiple paths from source to the destination.
 Packetizing: A Network Layer receives the packets from the upper layer and converts them into
packets. This process is known as Packetizing. It is achieved by internet protocol (IP).

Transport Layer

 The Transport layer is a Layer 4 ensures that messages are transmitted in the order in which they are
sent and there is no duplication of data.
 The main responsibility of the transport layer is to transfer the data completely.
 It receives the data from the upper layer and converts them into smaller units known as segments.
 This layer can be termed as an end-to-end layer as it provides a point-to-point connection between
source and destination to deliver the data reliably.

The two protocols used in this layer are:

 Transmission Control Protocol

o It is a standard protocol that allows the systems to communicate over the internet.
o It establishes and maintains a connection between hosts.
o When data is sent over the TCP connection, then the TCP protocol divides the data into smaller units
known as segments. Each segment travels over the internet using multiple routes, and they arrive in
different orders at the destination. The transmission control protocol reorders the packets in the
correct order at the receiving end.
 User Datagram Protocol
o User Datagram Protocol is a transport layer protocol.
 o It is an unreliable transport protocol as in this case receiver does not send any acknowledgment when
the packet is received, the sender does not wait for any acknowledgment. Therefore, this makes a
protocol unreliable.

Functions of Transport Layer:

 Service-point addressing: Computers run several programs simultaneously due to this reason, the
transmission of data from source to the destination not only from one computer to another computer but also
from one process to another process. The transport layer adds the header that contains the address known as
a service-point address or port address. The responsibility of the network layer is to transmit the data from
one computer to another computer and the responsibility of the transport layer is to transmit the message to
the correct process.
 Segmentation and reassembly: When the transport layer receives the message from the upper layer, it
divides the message into multiple segments, and each segment is assigned with a sequence number that
uniquely identifies each segment. When the message has arrived at the destination, then the transport layer
reassembles the message based on their sequence numbers.
 Connection control: Transport layer provides two services Connection-oriented service and connectionless
service. A connectionless service treats each segment as an individual packet, and they all travel in different
routes to reach the destination. A connection-oriented service makes a connection with the transport layer at
the destination machine before delivering the packets. In connection-oriented service, all the packets travel
in the single route.
 Flow control: The transport layer also responsible for flow control but it is performed end-to-end rather than
across a single link.
 Error control: The transport layer is also responsible for Error control. Error control is performed end-to-
end rather than across the single link. The sender transport layer ensures that message reach at the destination
without any error.

Session Layer

 It is a layer 3 in the OSI model.

 The Session layer is used to establish, maintain and synchronizes the interaction between
communicating devices.

Functions of Session layer:

  Dialog control: Session layer acts as a dialog controller that creates a dialog between two processes
or we can say that it allows the communication between two processes which can be either half-
duplex or full-duplex.
 Synchronization: Session layer adds some checkpoints when transmitting the data in a sequence. If
some error occurs in the middle of the transmission of data, then the transmission will take place
again from the checkpoint. This process is known as Synchronization and recovery.

Presentation Layer

 A Presentation layer is mainly concerned with the syntax and semantics of the information
exchanged between the two systems.
 It acts as a data translator for a network.
 This layer is a part of the operating system that converts the data from one presentation format to
another format.
 The Presentation layer is also known as the syntax layer.

Functions of Presentation layer:

 Translation: The processes in two systems exchange the information in the form of character
strings, numbers and so on. Different computers use different encoding methods, the presentation
layer handles the interoperability between the different encoding methods. It converts the data from
sender-dependent format into a common format and changes the common format into receiver-
dependent format at the receiving end.
 Encryption: Encryption is needed to maintain privacy. Encryption is a process of converting the
sender-transmitted information into another form and sends the resulting message over the network.
 Compression: Data compression is a process of compressing the data, i.e., it reduces the number of
bits to be transmitted. Data compression is very important in multimedia such as text, audio, video.

Application Layer
  An application layer serves as a window for users and application processes to access network
service.
 It handles issues such as network transparency, resource allocation, etc.
 An application layer is not an application, but it performs the application layer functions.
 This layer provides the network services to the end-users.

Functions of Application layer:

 File transfer, access, and management (FTAM): An application layer allows a user to access the
files in a remote computer, to retrieve the files from a computer and to manage the files in a remote
computer.
 Mail services: An application layer provides the facility for email forwarding and storage.
 Directory services: An application provides the distributed database sources and is used to provide
that global information about various objects.

Comparison of TCP/IP and OSI Model

The TCP model stands for Transmission Control Protocol, whereas IP stands for Internet Protocol. A
number of protocols that make the internet possibly comes under the TCP/IP model. Nowadays, we do not
hear the name of the TCP/IP model much, we generally hear the name of the IPv4 or IPv6, but it is still
valid. This model consists of 4 layers. Now, we will look at the diagrammatic representation of the TCP/IP
model.
As shown in the above diagram, the TCP/IP model has 4 layers, while the OSI model consists of 7 layers.
Diagrammatically, it looks that the 4 layers of the TCP/IP model exactly fit the 7 layers of the OSI model,
but this is not reality. The application layer of the TCP/IP model maps to the first three layers, i.e.,
application, session, and presentation layer of the OSI model. The transport layer of the TCP maps directly
to the transport layer of the OSI model. The internet layer of the TCP/IP model maps directly to the network
layer of the OSI model. The last two layers of the OSI model map to the network layer of the TCP/IP model.
TCP/IP is the most widely used model as compared to the OSI model for providing communication between
computers over the internet.

Similarities between the OSI and TCP/IP model

The following are the similarities between the OSI and TCP/IP model:

 Share common architecture: Both the models are the logical models and having similar
architectures as both the models are constructed with the layers.

 Define standards: Both the layers have defined standards, and they also provide the framework
used for implementing the standards and devices.

 Simplified troubleshooting process: Both models have simplified the troubleshooting process by
breaking the complex function into simpler components.

 Pre-defined standards: The standards and protocols which are already pre-defined; these models
do not redefine them; they just reference or use them. For example, the Ethernet standards were
already defined by the IEEE before the development of these models; instead of recreating them,
models have used these pre-defined standards.

 Both have similar functionality of 'transport' and 'network' layers: The function which is
performed between the 'presentation' and the 'network' layer is similar to the function performed
at the transport layer.
Differences between the OSI and TCP/IP model

Let's see the differences between the OSI and TCP/IP model in a tabular form:

OSI Model TCP/IP Model

It stands for Open System Interconnection. It stands for Transmission Control Protocol.

OSI model has been developed by ISO It was developed by ARPANET (Advanced
(International Standard Organization). Research Project Agency Network).

It consists of standard protocols that lead to the

It is an independent standard and generic
development of an internet. It is a
protocol used as a communication gateway
communication protocol that provides the
between the network and the end user.
connection among the hosts.
The transport layer does not provide the surety
In the OSI model, the transport layer provides
for the delivery of packets. But still, we can say
a guarantee for the delivery of the packets.
that it is a reliable model.

This model is based on a vertical approach. This model is based on a horizontal approach.

In this model, the session and presentation In this model, the session and presentation
layers are separated, i.e., both the layers are layer are not different layers. Both layers are
different. included in the application layer.
It is also known as a reference model through
which various networks are built. For example,
It is an implemented model of an OSI model.
the TCP/IP model is built from the OSI model.
It is also referred to as a guidance tool.
In this model, the network layer provides both
The network layer provides only
connection-oriented and connectionless
connectionless service.
service.
Protocols in the OSI model are hidden and can
In this model, the protocol cannot be easily
be easily replaced when the technology
replaced.
changes.
It consists of 7 layers. It consists of 4 layers.
OSI model defines the services, protocols, and
In the TCP/IP model, services, protocols, and
interfaces as well as provides a proper
interfaces are not properly separated. It is
distinction between them. It is protocol
protocol dependent.
independent.
The usage of this model is very low. This model is highly used.
It provides standardization to the devices like It does not provide the standardization to the
router, motherboard, switches, and other devices. It provides a connection between
hardware devices. various computers.

Principals of physical layer

Physical Layer (Layer 1) :

The lowest layer of the OSI reference model is the physical layer. It is responsible for the actual physical
connection between the devices. The physical layer contains information in the form of bits. It is responsible
for transmitting individual bits from one node to the next. When receiving data, this layer will get the signal
received and convert it into 0s and 1s and send them to the Data Link layer, which will put the frame back
together.

The functions of the physical layer are :

1. Bit synchronization: The physical layer provides the synchronization of the bits by providing a
clock. This clock controls both sender and receiver thus providing synchronization at bit level.
2. Bit rate control: The Physical layer also defines the transmission rate i.e. the number of bits sent
per second.
3. Physical topologies: Physical layer specifies the way in which the different, devices/nodes are
arranged in a network i.e. bus, star or mesh topolgy.
4. Transmission mode: Physical layer also defines the way in which the data flows between the two
connected devices. The various transmission modes possible are: Simplex, half-duplex and full-
duplex.

* Hub, Repeater, Modem, Cables are Physical Layer devices.

* Network Layer, Data Link Layer and Physical Layer are also known as Lower Layers or Hardware
Layers.

Transmission media

 Transmission media is a communication channel that carries the information from the sender to the
receiver. Data is transmitted through the electromagnetic signals.
 The main functionality of the transmission media is to carry the information in the form of bits
through LAN (Local Area Network).
 It is a physical path between transmitter and receiver in data communication.
 In a copper-based network, the bits in the form of electrical signals.
 In a fibre based network, the bits in the form of light pulses.
 In OSI (Open System Interconnection) phase, transmission media supports the Layer 1. Therefore,
it is considered to be as a Layer 1 component.
 The electrical signals can be sent through the copper wire, fibre optics, atmosphere, water, and
vacuum.
 The characteristics and quality of data transmission are determined by the characteristics of medium
and signal.
 Transmission media is of two types are wired media and wireless media. In wired media, medium
characteristics are more important whereas, in wireless media, signal characteristics are more
important.
 Different transmission media have different properties such as bandwidth, delay, cost and ease of
installation and maintenance.
 The transmission media is available in the lowest layer of the OSI reference model, i.e., Physical
layer.

Some factors need to be considered for designing the transmission media:

  Bandwidth: All the factors are remaining constant, the greater the bandwidth of a medium, the
higher the data transmission rate of a signal.
 Transmission impairment: When the received signal is not identical to the transmitted one due to
the transmission impairment. The quality of the signals will get destroyed due to transmission
impairment.
 Interference: An interference is defined as the process of disrupting a signal when it travels over a
communication medium on the addition of some unwanted signal.

Causes Of Transmission Impairment:

 Attenuation: Attenuation means the loss of energy, i.e., the strength of the signal decreases with
increasing the distance which causes the loss of energy.
 Distortion: Distortion occurs when there is a change in the shape of the signal. This type of
distortion is examined from different signals having different frequencies. Each frequency
component has its own propagation speed, so they reach at a different time which leads to the delay
distortion.
 Noise: When data is travelled over a transmission medium, some unwanted signal is added to it
which creates the noise.

Classification Of Transmission Media:

Guided Media

It is defined as the physical medium through which the signals are transmitted. It is also known as Bounded
media.
Types Of Guided media:

Twisted pair: Twisted pair is a physical media made up of a pair of cables twisted with each other. A
twisted pair cable is cheap as compared to other transmission media. Installation of the twisted pair cable is
easy, and it is a lightweight cable. The frequency range for twisted pair cable is from 0 to 3.5KHz.

A twisted pair consists of two insulated copper wires arranged in a regular spiral pattern.

The degree of reduction in noise interference is determined by the number of turns per foot. Increasing the
number of turns per foot decreases noise interference.

Types of Twisted pair:

Unshielded Twisted Pair:

An unshielded twisted pair is widely used in telecommunication. Following are the categories of the
unshielded twisted pair cable:

 Category 1: Category 1 is used for telephone lines that have low-speed data.
 Category 2: It can support upto 4Mbps.
 Category 3: It can support upto 16Mbps.
 Category 4: It can support upto 20Mbps. Therefore, it can be used for long-distance communication.
 Category 5: It can support upto 200Mbps.
 Category 6: It can support upto 1000 Mbps.

Advantages Of Unshielded Twisted Pair:

 It is cheap.
 Installation of the unshielded twisted pair is easy.
 It can be used for high-speed LAN.

Disadvantage:

 This cable can only be used for shorter distances because of attenuation.
Shielded Twisted Pair

A shielded twisted pair is a cable that contains the mesh surrounding the wire that allows the higher
transmission rate.

Characteristics Of Shielded Twisted Pair:

 The cost of the shielded twisted pair cable is not very high and not very low.
 An installation of STP is easy.
 It has higher capacity as compared to unshielded twisted pair cable.
 It has a higher attenuation.
 It is shielded that provides the higher data transmission rate.

Disadvantages

 It is more expensive as compared to UTP and coaxial cable.

 It has a higher attenuation rate.

Coaxial Cable

 Coaxial cable is very commonly used transmission media, for example, TV wire is usually a coaxial
cable.
 The name of the cable is coaxial as it contains two conductors parallel to each other.
 It has a higher frequency as compared to Twisted pair cable.
 The inner conductor of the coaxial cable is made up of copper, and the outer conductor is made up
of copper mesh. The middle core is made up of non-conductive cover that separates the inner
conductor from the outer conductor.
 The middle core is responsible for the data transferring whereas the copper mesh prevents from
the EMI (Electromagnetic interference).

Coaxial cable is of two types:

1. Base-band transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting a single signal at high speed.
2. Broadband transmission: It is defined as the process of transmitting multiple signals
simultaneously.

Advantages Of Coaxial cable:

 The data can be transmitted at high speed.

 It has better shielding as compared to twisted pair cable.
 It provides higher bandwidth.

Disadvantages Of Coaxial cable:

  It is more expensive as compared to twisted pair cable.
 If any fault occurs in the cable causes the failure in the entire network.

Fibre Optic

 Fibre optic cable is a cable that uses electrical signals for communication.
 Fibre optic is a cable that holds the optical fibres coated in plastic that are used to send the data by
pulses of light.
 The plastic coating protects the optical fibres from heat, cold, electromagnetic interference from
other types of wiring.
 Fibre optics provide faster data transmission than copper wires.

Diagrammatic representation of fibre optic cable:

Basic elements of Fibre optic cable:

 Core: The optical fibre consists of a narrow strand of glass or plastic known as a core. A core is a
light transmission area of the fibre. The more the area of the core, the more light will be transmitted
into the fibre.
 Cladding: The concentric layer of glass is known as cladding. The main functionality of the
cladding is to provide the lower refractive index at the core interface as to cause the reflection within
the core so that the light waves are transmitted through the fibre.
 Jacket: The protective coating consisting of plastic is known as a jacket. The main purpose of a
jacket is to preserve the fibre strength, absorb shock and extra fibre protection.

Following are the advantages of fibre optic cable over copper:

 Greater Bandwidth: The fibre optic cable provides more bandwidth as compared copper.
Therefore, the fibre optic carries more data as compared to copper cable.
 Faster speed: Fibre optic cable carries the data in the form of light. This allows the fibre optic cable
to carry the signals at a higher speed.
 Longer distances: The fibre optic cable carries the data at a longer distance as compared to copper
cable.
 Better reliability: The fibre optic cable is more reliable than the copper cable as it is immune to any
temperature changes while it can cause obstruct in the connectivity of copper cable.
 Thinner and Sturdier: Fibre optic cable is thinner and lighter in weight so it can withstand more
pull pressure than copper cable.

Unguided Transmission
  An unguided transmission transmits the electromagnetic waves without using any physical medium.
Therefore it is also known as wireless transmission.
 In unguided media, air is the media through which the electromagnetic energy can flow easily.

Unguided transmission is broadly classified into three categories:

Radio waves

 Radio waves are the electromagnetic waves that are transmitted in all the directions of free space.
 Radio waves are omnidirectional, i.e., the signals are propagated in all the directions.
 The range in frequencies of radio waves is from 3Khz to 1 khz.
 In the case of radio waves, the sending and receiving antenna are not aligned, i.e., the wave sent by
the sending antenna can be received by any receiving antenna.
 An example of the radio wave is FM radio.

Applications Of Radio waves:

 A Radio wave is useful for multicasting when there is one sender and many receivers.
 An FM radio, television, cordless phones are examples of a radio wave.

Advantages Of Radio transmission:

 Radio transmission is mainly used for wide area networks and mobile cellular phones.
 Radio waves cover a large area, and they can penetrate the walls.
 Radio transmission provides a higher transmission rate.

Microwaves
Microwaves are of two types:

 Terrestrial microwave
 Satellite microwave communication.

Terrestrial Microwave Transmission

 Terrestrial Microwave transmission is a technology that transmits the focused beam of a radio signal
from one ground-based microwave transmission antenna to another.
 Microwaves are the electromagnetic waves having the frequency in the range from 1GHz to 1000
GHz.
 Microwaves are unidirectional as the sending and receiving antenna is to be aligned, i.e., the waves
sent by the sending antenna are narrowly focussed.
 In this case, antennas are mounted on the towers to send a beam to another antenna which is km
away.
 It works on the line of sight transmission, i.e., the antennas mounted on the towers are the direct
sight of each other.

Characteristics of Microwave:

 Frequency range: The frequency range of terrestrial microwave is from 4-6 GHz to 21-23 GHz.
 Bandwidth: It supports the bandwidth from 1 to 10 Mbps.
 Short distance: It is inexpensive for short distance.
 Long distance: It is expensive as it requires a higher tower for a longer distance.
 Attenuation: Attenuation means loss of signal. It is affected by environmental conditions and
antenna size.

Advantages Of Microwave:

 Microwave transmission is cheaper than using cables.

 It is free from land acquisition as it does not require any land for the installation of cables.
 Microwave transmission provides an easy communication in terrains as the installation of cable in
terrain is quite a difficult task.
 Communication over oceans can be achieved by using microwave transmission.

Disadvantages of Microwave transmission:

 Eavesdropping: An eavesdropping creates insecure communication. Any malicious user can catch
the signal in the air by using its own antenna.
  Out of phase signal: A signal can be moved out of phase by using microwave transmission.
 Susceptible to weather condition: A microwave transmission is susceptible to weather condition.
This means that any environmental change such as rain, wind can distort the signal.
 Bandwidth limited: Allocation of bandwidth is limited in the case of microwave transmission.

Satellite Microwave Communication

 A satellite is a physical object that revolves around the earth at a known height.
 Satellite communication is more reliable nowadays as it offers more flexibility than cable and fibre
optic systems.
 We can communicate with any point on the globe by using satellite communication.

How Does Satellite work?

The satellite accepts the signal that is transmitted from the earth station, and it amplifies the signal. The
amplified signal is retransmitted to another earth station.

Advantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:

 The coverage area of a satellite microwave is more than the terrestrial microwave.
 The transmission cost of the satellite is independent of the distance from the centre of the coverage
area.
 Satellite communication is used in mobile and wireless communication applications.
 It is easy to install.
 It is used in a wide variety of applications such as weather forecasting, radio/TV signal broadcasting,
mobile communication, etc.

Disadvantages Of Satellite Microwave Communication:

 Satellite designing and development requires more time and higher cost.
 The Satellite needs to be monitored and controlled on regular periods so that it remains in orbit.
 The life of the satellite is about 12-15 years. Due to this reason, another launch of the satellite has to
be planned before it becomes non-functional.

Infrared

 An infrared transmission is a wireless technology used for communication over short ranges.
 The frequency of the infrared in the range from 300 GHz to 400 THz.
 It is used for short-range communication such as data transfer between two cell phones, TV remote
operation, data transfer between a computer and cell phone resides in the same closed area.

Characteristics Of Infrared:

 It supports high bandwidth, and hence the data rate will be very high.
 Infrared waves cannot penetrate the walls. Therefore, the infrared communication in one room
cannot be interrupted by the nearby rooms.
 An infrared communication provides better security with minimum interference.
 Infrared communication is unreliable outside the building because the sun rays will interfere with
the infrared waves.
Bandwidth:- Bandwidth is defined as the potential of the data that is to be transferred in a specific period
of time. It is the data carrying capacity of the network or transmission medium. In simple words, it is the
maximum amount of data that can be transferred per second on a link. It is generally measured in bits per
second(bps), Mega bits per second(Mbps) or Giga bits per second(Gbps).

For example, if bandwidth is 100 Mbps, it means maximum 100 Mb data can be transferred per second on
that channel.

Data Rate

Data Rate is defined as the amount of data transmitted during a specified time period over a network. It is
the speed at which data is transferred from one device to another or between a peripheral device and the
computer. It is generally measured in Mega bits per second(Mbps) or Mega bytes per second(MBps).

For example, if bandwidth is 100 Mbps but data rate is 50 Mbps, it means maximum 100 Mb data can be
transferred but channel is transmitting only 50 Mb data per second.

Modulation
Modulation is a process of mixing signals with a sinusoid to produce a new form of signals. The newly
produced signal has certain benefits over an un-modulated signal. Mixing of low-frequency signal with a
high-frequency carrier signal is called Modulation.

In other words, you can say that "Modulation is the process of converting one form of signals into another
form of signals." For example, Analog signals to Digital signals or Digital signals to Analog signals.

Modulation is also called signal modulation.

Advantages of Modulation
Following is the list of some advantages of implementing Modulation in the communication systems:

 By implementing Modulation, the antenna size gets reduced. Before modulation technology, the antenna used
for transmission had to be very large. The range of communication gets limited as the wave cannot travel to
a distance without getting modulated.
 The range of communication has increased.
 The reception quality is immensely improved.
 Receivers are allowed to adjust to the bandwidth.
 Multiplexing of signals occurs.
 No signal mixing occurs.

Types of Modulation

Primarily Modulation can be classified into two types:

 Digital Modulation
 Analog Modulation

Digital Modulation
Digital Modulation is a technique in which digital signals/data can be converted into analog signals. For
example, Base band signals.

Digital Modulation can further be classified into four types:

 Amplitude Shift Key(ASK) Modulation

 Minimum Shift Key (MSK) Modulation
 Frequency Shift Key (FSK) Modulation
 Phase Shift Key (PSK) Modulation

Analog Modulation

Analog modulation is a process of transferring analog low-frequency baseband signal such as an audio or
TV signal over a higher frequency carrier signal such as a radio frequency band. Baseband signals are
always analog to this modulation.

In other words, you can say that "Analog Modulation is a technique which is used in analog data signals
transmission into digital signals."

An example of Analog Modulation is Broadband Signals.

There are three properties of a carrier signal in analog modulation i.e., amplitude, frequency and phase. So,
the analog modulation can further be classified as:

 Amplitude Modulation (AM)

 Frequency Modulation (FM)
 Phase Modulation (PM)