IoT3x Module 1 Activity – Networking in Packet Tracer

In this activity we will use Cisco Packet Tracer to connect and configure some simulated
networks before testing the connections. This activity was created using Packet Tracer 7.0.
Any versions earlier than Packet Tracer 7.0 may not be compatible, but newer versions
should work without a problem.

Open the Activity Starting Point File

1. Download the Packet Tracer .pkt file that was provided with this activity sheet, called
IoT3x_Module1_Activity.pkt

2. Open it in Packet Tracer. If you can’t open it directly from the file, open Packet
Tracer first then find it where you saved it using File->Open…
You should see a workspace with components labelled Office Router, Web Server, ISP,
Home Gateway and a cloud representing the Internet. We will connect to these later, but
for the moment you can ignore them and begin by using the following steps to create a local
area network.

PART 1 - Connect a Small LAN (Local Area Network)

Place the Devices in the Workspace
1. Click on the Network Devices menu (near the bottom-left corner of the screen).

2. In the options below it you will find the Switches menu. Click on this and you will be
presented with some network switches.

3. Choose the switch named 2960 and place it in the workspace to the lower-left of the
Office Router. This switch has 24 Fast Ethernet ports and 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
(Hover your mouse above the switch to view ports).
At the basic level, network switches connect different devices together to a central point and
forward messages between the devices.
4. Ensure the Web Server is positioned to the lower-left side of the switch.

5. Click on the End Devices menu. The sub-menu below it should show the same
symbol with End Devices automatically selected.

6. You should see a component that looks like a desktop computer and is labelled
Generic. Place one of these Generic PCs in the workspace to the right of the web
server.

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 7. Place two more of the same Generic PCs in the workspace so that all three sit in a
row to the right of the web server.

Once the above steps are done, your LAN should look similar to the screenshot below.

Connect Devices with Network Cables

1. Click on the Connections menu, which has a symbol that looks like this.

2. Hover your mouse above each of the available connections and you will see the
name of each type appear at the bottom of screen. Select Copper
Straight-Through.

3. Move your mouse cursor to the workspace and click on the switch. A list of available
ports on the switch will appear.

4. Click to select the port labelled FastEthernet0/1. A cable will connect to the switch
from your mouse cursor.

5. Click on Web Server and connect to FastEthernet0. You will see lights at each end of
the cable which will initially be orange but will eventually change to green once the
connection is established, indicating a minimum level of connectivity.

6. Repeat steps 2-5 to connect the switch to PC0, PC1 and PC2 as follows:
• Switch FastEthernet0/2 to PC0 FastEthernet0
• Switch FastEthernet0/3 to PC1 FastEthernet0
• Switch FastEthernet0/4 to PC2 FastEthernet0

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Address the Devices
We are going to manually allocate an IPv4 address and subnet mask to the server and each
of the PCs so that communications can occur. There are specific ranges of IPv4 addresses to
be used within private networks. We will use some of those from within the 192.168.0.0 to
192.168.255.255 range.

1. Click on the Web Server. A new window will pop up which gives information about
the device and allows for configuration.

2. Click the Desktop tab of the window that popped up.

The Desktop tab gives you relevant options that you can configure on the simulated
computer as though you had a keyboard and monitor plugged in to the computer and were
changing settings.

1. Click the IP Configuration option. A window pops up that is similar to what you
might find in the “Network Settings” page of a Windows PC.
You will see sections for IP Configuration and IPv6 Configuration. For this entire activity we
will only change any IP Configuration options (IPv4) and ignore IPv6.
2. In the IP Address field, type 192.168.0.100

3. Either press the TAB key on your keyboard or click to select the Subnet Mask field. It
will automatically fill with 255.255.255.0 which is the correct subnet mask in this
case.

Subnet masks tell devices which part of an IP address is the network address and which part
of the address is for the individual host (the host is a server, in this case). For this example,
192.168.0 is the network part of the address and 100 is the host’s address within that
network. If the subnet mask was 255.255.0.0 instead, then the network part of the address
would by 192.168 and the host address would be 0.100. This different subnet mask would
allow for a greater number of hosts per network but a smaller number of different networks
(or LANs) within the same range of addresses.
4. The changes you made are saved automatically. Close the Web Server windows by
clicking the ‘X’ for IP Configuration and also the ‘X’ for the Web Server window.

5. Repeat steps 1 - 4 for the PCs in the network. All should use the same subnet mask
of 255.255.255.0 but their IP addresses are as follows:
• PC0 is 192.168.0.101
• PC1 is 192.168.0.102
• PC2 is 192.168.0.103

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Test Connectivity
A very common method used to test network connectivity and perform troubleshooting is to
send a ‘ping’. This sends a message from one device, addressed to another device requesting
a response. If a reply is received by the original device before it times out then the original
computer reports how much time passed (in milliseconds) between the ping being sent and
the reply being received. It proves IP connectivity between two devices.
1. Click on PC0 so that its window opens.

2. From the Desktop tab, click the Command Prompt option. A command line
simulation which is based on a Windows command line will open showing the C:\>
prompt.

3. Ping the server using its IP address. Type ping 192.168.0.100 and then press “Enter”
on your keyboard. It will attempt to ping the server four times and you will see the
result after each attempt.
Sometimes the first 1 or 2 of these pings will fail and you will see “Request timed out.” There
can be a delay while a process using ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) takes place which
can mean the first attempts occasionally time out. This is not a problem and if try another
ping command immediately they should all succeed.
4. Any successful pings will show as “Reply from 192.168.0.100:” and give other
statistics. If you do not receive any of these successful ping replies then go back and
check that IP addresses and connections for the server and PC are correct.

5. Using the same methods, ping from PC1 to the address for PC2, which is
192.168.0.103

6. Use pings in command prompts to test any other links between the four devices to
ensure they work.

7. If none have failed, then try a ping to 192.168.0.104 so that you can see what
happens when you ping an address that can’t be found in the LAN.

8. Save your progress on the simulation using the floppy disk icon or by File->Save.

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PART 2 - Add another LAN to the Office

Place the Devices in the Workspace

1. Take another 2960 switch from the menu and place it in the workspace to the right
of the first switch, so it is also to the lower-right of Office Router.

2. Place another Generic PC to the lower-left of this new switch.

3. In the End Devices menu, find the Generic Printer and place it to the lower-right of
the new switch.
The workspace should now look similar to the screenshot below.

Connect Devices with Network Cables

1. Using a Copper Straight-Through cable, connect the new PC to the new switch’s port
FastEthernet0/1.

2. Using a Copper Straight-Through cable, connect the printer to the new switch’s port
FastEthernet0/2.
There is now a Local Area Network connection between PC3 and the printer via the new
switch, though IP addresses are yet to be configured. We will do that soon, but first we will
connect the two LANs together so that they can share use of the Web Server and the
Printer.

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One function of a router is to allow for communication between different networks by acting
as a network joining point and forwarding messages in the relevant direction. Routers in this
simulation have already been programmed with the relevant configuration.

4. Use a Copper Straight-Through cable to connect between GigabitEthernet0/1 of the

first switch (Switch0) and GigabitEthernet0/0 of the Office Router.

5. Use a Copper Straight-Through cable to connect between GigabitEthernet0/1 of the

second switch (Switch1) and GigabitEthernet0/1 of the Office Router.

The workspace should now look similar to the screenshot below.

Address the Devices

1. Configure PC3 with the IP address 192.168.1.100 and the subnet mask of
255.255.255.0 using the same methods as before.

2. Configure the Printer with the IP address 192.168.1.101 and the subnet mask of
255.255.255.0 Because this is not a computer, it is configured through a different
method: Once you click on the printer, go to the Config tab and click the interface
option called FastEthernet0. Now you will see a field for the IP address and Subnet
Mask.

You will notice that the host parts of the addresses (100 and 101) are the same as was used
before for the web server and PC0. The network portion of the addresses is different. The
first LAN used 192.168.0 whereas this LAN uses 192.168.1. Remember, the subnet mask
defines which part of the address is for the network and which part is for the host device.

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Test Connectivity
1. Open the command prompt on PC3 and ping the printer at 192.168.1.101
If it isn’t successful then go back and check the IP addresses and connections for
both PC3 and the printer.

2. Try to ping the Web Server at address 192.168.0.100

You should find that it fails because there is one more item of configuration to do
before the devices can communicate outside their own LANs.

Configure the Default Gateway IP Addresses

We know that each device can use the combination of its own IP address and the subnet
mask to determine the range of addresses within its own network. A device’s network
interface can only send directly to other network interfaces that are on the same network.

If the address it needs to send to is not in its own network it must direct the message to an
interface on a router so that it can be forwarded towards the right direction. The IP address
of the relevant router interface must be placed in the Default Gateway fields of the devices.

1. Click the Web Server and open the IP Configuration screen of the Desktop tab.

2. Type the following address in the Default Gateway field: 192.168.0.1

3. Follow Steps 1 and 2 to configure the same default gateway for PC0, PC1 and PC2.

The router interface’s IP address was pre-configured in this Packet Tracer activity. You will
notice that the network portion of the address is the same as all other devices on this
network based on the subnet mask.
4. Configure PC3 with the address of its connected router interface by typing
192.168.1.1 in its Default Gateway field. This is a different address because it is a
different router interface.

5. Configure the Printer with the same default gateway address as used for Step 4. You
should put this in a field called Gateway, which you will find in the Config tab if you
click Settings.

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Test Connectivity
1. Open the command prompt on PC3 and try pinging the Web Server again at
192.168.0.100 It should now be successful.

2. Open the command prompt on PC1 and try pinging the Printer at 192.168.1.101
It should also be successful.

3. You can also try pinging the router interfaces at 192.168.0.1 and 192.168.1.1 from
any PC or the server. This can be a useful step when troubleshooting.

4. Test some more connections to make sure of connectivity between PCs, server and
printer.

5. Save your progress on the simulation using the floppy disk icon or by File->Save.

PART 3 – Set up a Home Network

Place the Devices in the Workspace

You will see that the Office Router is connected via the Internet to an ISP (Internet Service
Provider), which is connected to a Home Gateway. The Home Gateway is similar to what
many people typically have installed in their house which, among other capabilities, acts as a
basic router, switch and wireless access point combined.
1. Place another Generic PC to the lower-left of the Home Gateway.

2. From the same menu, you will find a Wireless Tablet and a Smart Device
(Smartphone). Place one of each alongside the PC.

3. From the End Devices sub-menu, select the Home option. You will see various
devices that might be found in a home.

4. Select the Appliance which is a coffee maker and looks like this.
Place it to the right of the Home Gateway.

5. From the same menu, select the Window which looks like this.
Place it above the coffee maker Appliance.
The home devices should now look similar to the screenshot below.

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Connect Wired Devices
1. Use a Copper Straight-Through cable to connect from Ethernet 1 of the Home
Gateway to FastEthernet0 of PC4.

2. Use a Copper Straight-Through cable to connect from Ethernet 2 of the Home

Gateway to FastEthernet0 of the Window.

3. Use a Copper Straight-Through cable to connect from Ethernet 3 of the Home

Gateway to FastEthernet0 of the coffee maker Appliance.

Configure Devices
IP Addresses do not always need to be manually entered into every device. Instead of this,
the IP address, subnet mask and default gateway can be allocated automatically through
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol). The Home Gateway in this simulation is
configured to allocate these details through DHCP. The private IP addresses being used here
are in the 172.16.0.0 network with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0
1. Click on PC4 then click to open the IP Configuration window from the Desktop tab.

2. It should currently show no IP address or any other details. Click the button to
change from Static to DHCP in the IP Configuration section.

3. After a few moments you should see an IP address, subnet mask and default
gateway appear in the fields. Take note of these details.

4. Click on the Window and go to the Config tab.

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 5. Click to see the FastEthernet0 interface settings.

6. In the IP Configuration options, change from Static to DHCP and note the IP address
and subnet mask that appear.

7. Click to choose the Settings section from the options on the left. On some Packet
Tracer versions, this is where you will find the Gateway address that was set by
DHCP.

8. On this Settings screen you will see IoT Server (some versions call it IoE Server).
Change this from None to the Home Gateway option, then close the configuration
window.

9. Repeat Steps 4 to 8 for the coffee maker Appliance so that it also receives its DHCP
and server settings.

10. Click on the Wireless Tablet, go to the Config tab and select the
Wireless0 interface settings from the options to the left of the
window.

11. The tablet needs to be told which wireless network to connect to by being told the
SSID, which is the name of the wireless network. The SSID will currently be set to
Default. Delete this and change it to HomeGateway (you must write exactly as
written here with no space).

The wireless network in this simulation, HomeGateway, is ‘open’, is not encrypted and does
not require authentication to connect. This would not be a good idea for security in a real
situation but has been left like this for simplicity in this activity.

12. On the same screen, make sure the IP configuration is set to DHCP rather than Static,
and after a little while you will see the address details appear in the relevant fields.
Close the configuration window and you will see a wireless connection represented
between the Wireless Tablet and the Home Gateway.

13. Repeat Steps 9 to 11 for the Smart Device/Smartphone until it is connected.

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Test Connectivity
1. Open the command prompt on the home PC (PC4) and ping the IP addresses that
were allocated to the Tablet, Smartphone, Window and Coffee Maker Appliance. All
of these pings should be successful.
Note: using DHCP, the actual address given to each device may vary depending on the order
of allocation and change with time because the DHCP process only “leases out” an IP address
from a pool of available addresses. Leases expire after a set period of time and the devices
must request a renewal.
2. Close the PC4 window and click to open the Tablet.

3. From the Desktop tab open the Web Browser (not the command prompt this time).

4. In the URL field of the browser, type the IP address of the Home Gateway, (which is
172.16.0.1) then press Enter or click Go on the browser.

5. The previous step makes the browser request an http website page from the Home
Gateway. You will be presented with a login screen. Submit a username of admin
and a password of admin.

Note: these are the default username and password. In a real scenario it would be a very bad
security practice to leave these at their default values but for this activity they have been left
unchanged.
6. Once logged in, you will see the Window and Appliance listed on the screen (see
screenshot below) because they were registered with the IoT Server function of the
Home Gateway. With the main workspace visible, try clicking on each option and
pressing the red buttons to activate both devices remotely from the Tablet and see
what the resulting visual change is.

You should also be able to access the IoT Server controls by logging in from the browser of
both PC4 and the Smartphone.

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You would not be able to access the IoT Server from outside the home network with the
current configuration because the firewall on the Home Gateway will not allow in any pings
or web requests that come from anywhere outside. However, if a website request or ping
originates from within the home network, any replies will be allowed back in to the network
by the firewall.
7. Click on PC4 and open the Command Prompt.

8. Ping the office Web Server at 192.168.0.100 and the office Printer at 192.168.1.101.
Both pings should be successful.

9. Now open the Web Browser of PC4 and request a web page from the office Web
Server by typing its IP Address of 192.168.0.100 into the URL field and pressing Enter
or Go.
You should see a web page in the browser with some writing explaining where it is
hosted and a clickable hyperlink.

10. Save your progress for future reference using the floppy disk icon or by File->Save.
In reality, these private IP addresses could not be used across the Internet in the same way
we’ve done here. The private IP addresses can only exist on the private side of the routers. To
contact the printer or web server from the home network, a public IP address would have to
be used and the routers would handle the conversions at either end through a process called
Network Address Translation (NAT).

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This Packet Tracer activity is now complete.
Having completed this, you should now have a basic understanding of the following:

• Private IPv4 addressing

• Subnet masks
• Network switches
• The purpose of routers and home gateways
• Default gateway addresses
• IP connectivity testing using pings
• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)

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