Compiled by :

S. Agarwal
Lecturer & Systems Incharge
St. Xavier’s Computer Centre
St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata.
Introduction

Communication - means to an
exchange of information
between two or more parties and
it can be exchange in a variety
of way, that might be in the form
of word, letters, messages
drawing, body movement or any
Data communication : entails
electronically exchanging data
or information. It is the
movement of computer
information from one point to
another by means of electrical
or optical transmission system.
This system often is called data
communication networks. 
The key technology of the information age is
computer communications.
communications
•The value of high-speed data
communication network is that it brings the
message sender and receiver closer together
in time.

•It facilitates more efficient use of computers

and improves the day to day control of
business by providing faster information
flow.
A computer network is a system in
which a set of computers and/or
other communication facilities are
connected to each other. It is a
collection of computers which are in
some way connected such that they
can exchange data between
themselves and other computers on
the network. It might involve
physical wire, infrared or radio
frequency communication, and can
be usually used to share files,
Reasons for networking:
To allow users to
communicate with each
other.
•Pass data between users
without the use of floppy disks
— Files can be copied and
accessed across the network,
eliminating the time wasted and
inconvenience caused by using
To share hardware.

•Share expensive
peripherals, such as
printers — All of the
computers can access the
same printer, modems or CD-
ROM tower.
To share software and
information.
•Centralize key computer programs,
such as finance and accounting
programs, word processing, time and
billing — It is often important that all
users have access to the same program
(and not copies of it) so that they can work
on it simultaneously. Networking allows
offices to have such a central program that
all users can access.
•Automate unattended backup of
valuable — It is always essential to keep
backups of any important files. You can
 Basic
Components
of a Network
Server or host computer: A server is a
machine that provides clients with service. 
Servers share a specific resource with other
computers.
Examples of the servers are the database
server, that provides the large database and
the communication server that provides
connection to another network, to commercial
database, or to a powerful processor. In larger
LANs, the server is dedicated to being a
server.  In a peer-to-peer LAN, the server may
be both a server and a client computer.  The
server stores data or software that can be
accessed by the client. There are file,
database, network, access, modem, facsimile,
Client:  A client is a computer such as a PC
or a workstation attached to the network,
which is used to access shared network
resources. Client computer uses the
resources shared by server computer. The
client is the input/output hardware device at
the other end of communication circuit. It
typically provides users with access to the
network and data and software on the
server. There are three major categories of
clients: terminals,
minicomputers/workstation, and special
purpose terminals.
Circuit:  The circuit is the pathway through
which the message passes.  Circuits can be
twisted pair cable, coaxial cable, fiber optic
cable, microwave transmission, and so forth. 
There are many devices in the circuit that
perform special functions, such as hubs,
switches, routers and gateways.
•Cables & Connectors – Cables carry
electronic signals from one computer to
another & Connectors attach cables to
network interface cards.

Cable is the medium through which information

usually moves from one network device to
another. There are several types of cable which
are commonly used with LANs. In some cases,
a network will utilize only one type of cable,
other networks will use a variety of cable types.
The type of cable chosen for a network is
related to the network's topology, protocol, and
size. Understanding the characteristics of
different types of cable and how they relate to
 Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) Cable
Twisted pair cabling comes in two varieties:
shielded and unshielded.

The quality of UTP may vary from telephone-grade

wire to extremely high-speed cable. The cable has
four pairs of wires inside the jacket. Each pair is
twisted with a different number of twists per inch to
help eliminate interference from adjacent pairs and
other electrical devices. The tighter the twisting, the
higher the supported transmission rate and the
Unshielded Twisted Pair Connector
The standard connector for unshielded twisted pair
cabling is an RJ-45 connector. This is a plastic
connector that looks like a large telephone-style
connector. A slot allows the RJ-45 to be inserted only
one way. RJ stands for Registered Jack, implying that
the connector follows a standard borrowed from the
telephone industry. This standard designates which
wire goes with each pin inside the connector.
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) Cable
A disadvantage of UTP is that it may
be susceptible to radio and electrical
frequency interference. Shielded
twisted pair (STP) is suitable for
environments with electrical
interference; however, the extra
shielding can make the cables quite
bulky.
Coaxial Cable
Coaxial cabling has a single copper conductor
at its center. A plastic layer provides
insulation between the center conductor and
a braided metal shield. The metal shield
helps to block any outside interference from
fluorescent lights, motors, and other
computers.

Although coaxial cabling is difficult to install,

it is highly resistant to signal interference. In
addition, it can support greater cable lengths
between network devices than twisted pair
Coaxial Cable Connectors
The most common type of connector used
with coaxial cables is the Bayone-Neill-
Concelman (BNC) connector.

Different types of adapters are available for

BNC connectors, including a T-connector,
barrel connector, and terminator. Connectors
on the cable are the weakest points in any
network. To help avoid problems with your
network, always use the BNC connectors that
crimp, rather than screw, onto the cable.
Fiber Optic Cable
Fiber optic cabling consists of a center glass core
surrounded by several layers of protective materials It
transmits light rather than electronic signals eliminating
the problem of electrical interference. This makes it
ideal for certain environments that contain a large
amount of electrical interference. It has also made it the
standard for connecting networks between buildings,
due to its immunity to the effects of moisture and
lighting.

Fiber optic cable has the ability to transmit signals over

much longer distances than coaxial and twisted pair. It
also has the capability to carry information at vastly
greater speeds. This capacity broadens communication
possibilities to include services such as video
conferencing and interactive services. The cost of fiber
optic cabling is comparable to copper cabling; however,
it is more difficult to install and modify.
 Wireless
LANs
Not all networks are connected with
cabling; some networks are wireless.
These use high frequency radio signals,
infrared light beams, or lasers to
communicate between the workstations
and the file server or hubs. Each
workstation and file server on a wireless
network has some sort of
transceiver/antenna to send and receive
the data. For longer distance, wireless
communications can also take place
Wireless networks are great for allowing
laptop computers or remote computers to
connect to the LAN. Wireless networks are
also beneficial in older buildings where it may
be difficult or impossible to install cables.

Wireless LANs have several disadvantages.

They are very expensive, provide poor
security, and are susceptible to interference
from lights and electronic devices. They are
also slower than LANs using cabling.
Bits per second

In data communications, bits per second

(abbreviated bps and, by some, bit/sec) is a
common measure of data speed for
computer modems and transmission
carriers. As the term implies, the speed in
bps is equal to the number of bits
transmitted or received each second.

Larger units are sometimes used to denote

high data speeds. One kilobit per second
(abbreviated Kbps) is equal to 1,000 bps.
One megabit per second (Mbps) is equal to
Protocol - Protocol can be defined as
an agreed-upon format for transmitting
data between two devices. The protocol
determines the following:
•The type of error checking to be
used
•Data compression method, if any
•How the sending device will indicate
that it has finished sending a message
•How the receiving device will
indicate that it has received a
message
There are many standard protocols, among them:
AppleTalk, Ethernet, NetBEUI, and TCP/IP
Ethernet
The Ethernet protocol is by far the most widely used.
Ethernet uses an access method called CSMA/CD
(Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection).
This is a system where each computer listens to the
cable before sending anything through the network.
If the network is clear, the computer will transmit. If
some other node is already transmitting on the
cable, the computer will wait and try again when the
line is clear. Sometimes, two computers attempt to
transmit at the same instant. When this happens a
collision occurs. Each computer then backs off and
waits a random amount of time before attempting to
retransmit. With this access method, it is normal to
have collisions. However, the delay caused by
collisions and retransmitting is very small and does
not normally effect the speed of transmission on the
LocalTalk / Appletalk
LocalTalk is a network protocol that was developed
by Apple Computer, Inc. for Macintosh computers.
The method used by LocalTalk is called CSMA/CA
(Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision
Avoidance). It is similar to CSMA/CD except that a
computer signals its intent to transmit before it
actually does so. LocalTalk adapters and special
twisted pair cable can be used to connect a series of
computers through the serial port. The Macintosh
operating system allows the establishment of a peer-
to-peer network without the need for additional
software. With the addition of the server version of
AppleShare software, a client/server network can be
established.

The LocalTalk protocol allows for linear bus, star, or

Token Ring
The Token Ring protocol was developed by IBM in the
mid-1980s. The access method used involves token-
passing. In Token Ring, the computers are connected
so that the signal travels around the network from
one computer to another in a logical ring. A single
electronic token moves around the ring from one
computer to the next. If a computer does not have
information to transmit, it simply passes the token on
to the next workstation. If a computer wishes to
transmit and receives an empty token, it attaches
data to the token. The token then proceeds around
the ring until it comes to the computer for which the
data is meant. At this point, the data is captured by
the receiving computer. The Token Ring protocol
requires a star-wired ring using twisted pair or fiber
FDDI
Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) is a
network protocol that is used primarily to
interconnect two or more local area networks,
often over large distances. The access method
used by FDDI involves token-passing. FDDI uses
a dual ring physical topology. Transmission
normally occurs on one of the rings; however, if a
break occurs, the system keeps information
moving by automatically using portions of the
second ring to create a new complete ring. A
major advantage of FDDI is speed. It operates
over fiber optic cable at 100 Mbps.
ATM
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a network
protocol that transmits data at a speed of 155
Mbps and higher. ATM works by transmitting all
data in small packets of a fixed size; whereas,
other protocols transfer variable length packets.
ATM supports a variety of media such as video,
CD-quality audio, and imaging. ATM employs a
star topology, which can work with fiber optic as
well as twisted pair cable.

ATM is most often used to interconnect two or

more local area networks. It is also frequently
used by Internet Service Providers to utilize high-
speed access to the Internet for their clients. As
ATM technology becomes more cost-effective, it
will provide another solution for constructing
Protocol Cable Speed Topology

Twisted Pair, Coaxial, Linear Bus, Star,

Ethernet 10 Mbps
Fiber Tree

Fast
Twisted Pair, Fiber 100 Mbps Star
Ethernet

Linear Bus or
LocalTalk Twisted Pair .23 Mbps
Star

Token 4 Mbps - 16
Twisted Pair Star-Wired Ring
Ring Mbps

FDDI Fiber 100 Mbps Dual ring

155-2488 Linear Bus, Star,

ATM Twisted Pair, Fiber
Mbps Tree
Network Architectures
Network architecture guides a network builder to
make a plan or structure by which the component
parts are related.  Network architecture is a
framework of rules to ease the operation,
maintenance, and growth of a communication
network by isolating the user and the application
programs from the details of the network.
The work done by any application program can be
separated in to four general functions. The first one
is data storage, almost all application programs
requires data to be stored and retrieved. The
section function is data access logic, when data is
There are three fundamental network
stored than it need to be accessed. The third one is
architecture:
application and the fourth function is presentation
1. Host Based Architecture
logic. These four functions are the basic building
2. Clint Based Architecture
block of any application.
3. Clint-Server Architecture
Host-based architecture: Host-based architecture
performs virtually all the network. It was the very first
data communication network architecture and the
host computer performs all four function of
application program. This is the simple architecture
and works well.

In host based network all data are flow from the one
central host. Client computers enable users to send
and receive the message from the host computer.
Client computers send the message to the host
computer for processing and accepted the instruction
from the host on what to display. In host based
network all work must be done by the host computer
because of these host computers become overloaded
and can not process quickly for the all user's demand.
Response time become slower and network managers
Client based architecture: The clients are the
microcomputer on a LAN and host computers are
servers on the same network.

In client based architecture all process must be done

by the client computer or the application software
on the client computer is responsible for the all four
application program functions; the server simply
stores the data. As host based architecture, this
architecture also have overload problem, since all
data are process from the client so if more users are
in active in the same network than logically the
network circuit can not perform well and be
overloaded. The fundamental problem of this
architecture is all the data from the server must
travel to the clients for processing which makes slow
Client server architecture: In client-server
computing, several servers may work together over
the network to support the business application.
Client-server architecture makes a balance between
client computer and host computer. 

In client server architecture, they split the

application program function in to two groups, client
handles the presentation logic, and server handle
the data access logic and data storage while
application logic may be on both or can reside either
on client or on the server.  Because of its nature, the
network is not overloaded with entire files being
transferred back and forth through the network
circuit for processing at each remote terminal.  For
example; if the insurance company wants to request
the list of all the customer and their insurance police,
the client would accept the request than format the
Network Software - computer applications
used to operate the network and its many
components.

What is a Network Operating System?

Unlike operating systems, such as DOS and
Windows, that are designed for single users
to control one computer, network operating
systems (NOS) coordinate the activities of
multiple computers across a network. The
network operating system acts as a director
to keep the network running smoothly.
 The two major types of network operating systems
are:
Peer-to-Peer
Peer-to-peer network operating systems allow users to share
resources and files
Peer-to-Peer located on their computers and to access
& Client/Server
shared resources found on other computers. However, they do
not have a file server or a centralized management source. In a
peer-to-peer network, all computers are considered equal; they
all have the same abilities to use the resources available on the
network. Peer-to-peer networks are designed primarily for small
to medium local area networks. AppleShare and Windows for
Workgroups are examples of programs that can function as
peer-to-peer network operating systems.
Advantages of a peer-to-peer network:
Less initial expense - No need for a dedicated
server.

Setup - An operating system (such as

Windows) already in place may only need to
be reconfigured for peer-to-peer operations.

Disadvantages of a peer-to-peer
network:
Decentralized - No central repository for files
and applications.

Security - Does not provide the security

Client/Server
Client/server network
operating systems
allow the network to
centralize functions
and applications in one
or more dedicated file
servers. The file
servers become the
heart of the system,
providing access to
Individual workstations
resources and (clients) have access to the
resources security.
providing available on the file servers. The network
operating system provides the mechanism to
integrate all the components of the network and
allow multiple users to simultaneously share the
same resources irrespective of physical location.
Novell Netware and Windows NT/2000 Server are
examples of client/server network operating
dvantages of a client/server network:

Centralized - Resources and data security are controlled

through the server.

Scalability - Any or all elements can be replaced individually

as needs increase.

Flexibility - New technology can be easily integrated into

system.
isadvantages of a
Interoperability client/server
- All components network:
(client/network/server) work
together.
Expense - Requires initial investment in dedicated server.
Accessibility - Server can be accessed remotely and across
Maintenance - Large networks will require a staff to ensure
multiple platforms.
efficient operation.

Dependence - When server goes down, operations will cease

LAN TOPOLOGIES :

What is a Topology?

The physical topology of a network refers

to the configuration of cables, computers,
and other peripherals. Physical topology
should not be confused with logical
topology which is the method used to
pass information between workstations.
Main Types of Physical Topologies
Linear Bus
A linear bus topology consists of a main run of cable
with a terminator at each end (See fig. 1). All nodes
(file server, workstations, and peripherals) are
connected to the linear cable. Ethernet and LocalTalk
networks use a linear bus topology.
dvantages of a Linear Bus Topology

Easy to connect a computer or peripheral to a

linear bus.

Requires less cable length than a star topology.

isadvantages of a Linear Bus Topology

Entire network shuts down if there is a break in

the main cable.

Terminators are required at both ends of the

backbone cable.

Difficult to identify the problem if the entire

 Star
A star topology is
designed with each
node (file server,
workstations, and
peripherals) connected
directly to a central
network hub or
concentrator.
Data on a star network passes through the hub or
concentrator before continuing to its destination. The
hub or concentrator manages and controls all
functions of the network. It also acts as a repeater for
the data flow. This configuration is common with
twisted pair cable; however, it can also be used with
coaxial cable or fiber optic cable.
dvantages of a Star Topology

Easy to install and wire.

No disruptions to the network then connecting or

removing devices.
isadvantages of a Star Topology
Easy to detect faults and to remove parts.
Requires more cable length than a linear topology.

If the hub or concentrator fails, nodes attached are

disabled.

More expensive than linear bus topologies

because of the cost of the concentrators.
Ring Topology
Ring topologies are used on token ring networks. Each device
processes and retransmits the signal, so it is capable of supporting
many devices in a somewhat slow but very orderly fashion. A token,
or small data packet, is continuously passed around the network.
When a device needs to transmit, it reserves the token for the next
trip around, then attaches its data packet to it. The receiving device
sends back the packet with an acknowledgment of receipt, then the
sending device puts the token back out on the network. The most
common type of cabling used for token ring networks is twisted pair,
although there are nine different types that can be used. With IBM
Type 1 Shielded cable, you can have up to 33 network segments with
260 devices on each. Transmission rates are at either 4 or 16
megabits per second.
Advantages
•Very orderly network where every device has
access to the token and the opportunity to
transmit
•Performs better than a star topology under
heavy network load
•Can create much larger network using Token
Ring

Disadvantages
•One malfunctioning workstation or bad port in
the MAU can create problems for the entire
network
•Moves, adds and changes of devices can
affect the network
Tree
A tree topology
combines
characteristics of
linear bus and star
topologies. It
consists of groups
of star-configured
workstations
connected to a
linear bus
backbone cable.
Tree topologies
allow for the
expansion of an
dvantages of a Tree Topology

Point-to-point wiring for individual segments.

Supported by several hardware and software

venders.

isadvantages of a Tree Topology

Overall length of each segment is limited by the

type of cabling used.

If the backbone line breaks, the entire segment

goes down.
Mesh Topology

A Mesh topology consists of a network where every device on

the network is physically connected to every other device on
the network. This provides a great deal of performance and
reliability, however the complexity and difficulty of creating one
increases as the number of nodes on the network increases. For
example, a three or four node mesh network is relatively easy
to create, whereas it is impractical to set up a mesh network of
100 nodes.  Mesh networks are not used much in local area
networks (LANs) but are used in Wide Area Networks (WANs)
where reliability is important and the number of sites being
connected together is fairly small.
Considerations When Choosing a
Topology:

Money. A linear bus network may be

the least expensive way to install a
network; you do not have to purchase
concentrators.
Length of cable needed. The linear
bus network uses shorter lengths of
cable.
Future growth. With a star topology,
expanding a network is easily done by
adding another concentrator.
Topology Configuration Advantage Disadvantage

Star All nodes are Relatively Dependent on

connected to efficient; the central
the central Nodes are free computer
computer to join or quit
from the
network
Ring All nodes are High speed Whole network
connected in a will break down
continuous if one node
loop fails

Bus All nodes are Easy to install Comparatively

connected to a and cheap; low speed
single cable No need to
and share it restart the
network if a
node fails or
joins the