Q1.

Encode the sequence 111001011 using the following line codes (as defined in the lecture slides):
i. NRZ-I line encoding. Assume prior to the first bit, the previous 1 was encoded as a 1.
ii. MLT-3 line encoding. Assume prior to the first bit, the previous 1 was encoded at +1 volt.

Q2.
i. What is the maximum backoff value for Ethernet CSMA/CD on the 7’th retransmission attempt?
ii. What is the probability that the number of slots selected to backoff in part (i) will be 10 slots.

Q3
i. In which spanning tree protocol ports state(s) is the spanning tree determined by a bridge?
ii. What is the difference between frame encapsulation and frame tagging in Ethernet VLANs?
iii. What is the maximum throughput in a non-slotted (i.e. pure) ALOHA system where the bit rate is 5
Mbps?
iv. What mechanism is used in the VTP (Virtual Trunking Protocol) to ensure that the latest updates are
applied at a switch?
v. What the purpose of a JAM packet in Ethernet CSMA/CD?
vi. Suppose the cable wires were not tightly twisted when connected to an RJ-45 connector. Which UTP
cable parameters would be most affected?

1
Q4.
The figure below (Network A) shows a network of bridges running the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP). Port
costs for each bridge in the network are as shown in the figure. Assume Bridge 1 is the root bridge.
i. (2 marks) Draw in your answer sheet the network showing all root ports, designated ports and blocked
ports of each bridge that are determined by the operation of the Spanning Tree Protocol after it has
converged. Write down the cost of each bridge to the root bridge for each bridge.

Bridge Cost 19 Cost 19 Bridge

1 2

Cost 100 Cost 100

Cost 100

Cost 100
Cost 100
Cost 100
Bridge Bridge
4 3
Cost 4 Cost 4

Network A
ii. Repeat part (i) for Network B below using the technique of adding one bridge at a time to the spanning
tree.

Bridge Cost 19 Cost 19 Bridge

1 2 Cost 100

Cost 4
Cost 100 Cost 100 Cost 100
Bridge
5

Cost 100 Cost 19

Cost 100
Cost 4
Bridge Bridge
4 3 Cost 19
Cost 4 Cost 4

Network B

2
Q5 Consider 100 Mbps Ethernet CSMA/CD operating over a cable that is 800 metres long. Suppose the
signal propagation velocity along the cable is 2c/3, where c is the speed of light, c = 3 ×108 m/s. Find the
following:
i. What is the time needed for a signal to propagate from one end of the cable to the other?
ii. How many bits does a round-trip time correspond to?
iii. Suppose that Ethernet packets of size 1000 bytes (including preamble, header, data and FCS fields)
are transmitted. What is the maximum utilisation (based on the total packet size) of the cable
assuming CSMA/CD is used with many users sharing the one medium?

Q6. Why is echo cancellation of such importance in 1 Gbps Ethernet?

Q7 Longer cables allow connection of devices that are further apart. However, making a cable
longer increases signal dispersion. In Ethernet, what is the main technique are used to deal with this
impairment? Explain briefly how this technique operates in the frequency domain.

Q8.
Consider a network of 5 nodes sharing the same medium. Suppose time is divided into slots and the probability
of a node transmitting is p. Under the assumption of nodes transmitting independently, what is the probability
of:
a) no-nodes transmitting in a slot
b) one node transmitting in a slot
c) more than one node transmitting in a slot
d) determine a second equivalent formula for part (c)

3
Q9
Utilisations for different versions of CSMA are shown below.

i. Why does 0.5-persisent CSMA have better utilisation than 1-persistent CSMA?
ii. Why does 1-persisent CSMA have better utilisation than non-persistent CSMA at low loads?
Give solid arguments to justify your answers.