Data Communication Notes

Chapter 5th – Reference Models

OSI stands for Open Systems Interconnection. It has been developed by ISO –
‘International Organization of Standardization‘, in the year 1984. It is a 7
layer architecture with each layer having specific functionality to perform. All
these 7 layers work collaboratively to transmit the data from one person to
another across the globe.

1. 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.

2. Data Link Layer (DLL) (Layer 2) :

The data link layer is responsible for the node to node delivery of the message.
The main function of this layer is to make sure data transfer is error-free from
one node to another, over the physical layer. When a packet arrives in a
network, it is the responsibility of DLL to transmit it to the Host using its MAC
address.
Data Link Layer is divided into two sub layers :

1. Logical Link Control (LLC)

2. Media Access Control (MAC)
The packet received from Network layer is further divided into frames
depending on the frame size of NIC(Network Interface Card). DLL also
encapsulates Sender and Receiver’s MAC address in the header.

The Receiver’s MAC address is obtained by placing an ARP(Address

Resolution Protocol) request onto the wire asking “Who has that IP address?”
and the destination host will reply with its MAC address.

The functions of the data Link layer are :

1. Framing: Framing is a function of the data link layer. It provides a way

for a sender to transmit a set of bits that are meaningful to the receiver.
This can be accomplished by attaching special bit patterns to the
beginning and end of the frame.
2. Physical addressing: After creating frames, Data link layer adds physical
addresses (MAC address) of sender and/or receiver in the header of each
frame.
3. Error control: Data link layer provides the mechanism of error control
in which it detects and retransmits damaged or lost frames.
4. Flow Control: The data rate must be constant on both sides else the data
may get corrupted thus , flow control coordinates that amount of data that
can be sent before receiving acknowledgement.
5. Access control: When a single communication channel is shared by
multiple devices, MAC sub-layer of data link layer helps to determine
which device has control over the channel at a given time.
3. Network Layer (Layer 3) :

Network layer works for the transmission of data from one host to the other
located in different networks. It also takes care of packet routing i.e. selection of
the shortest path to transmit the packet, from the number of routes available.
The sender & receiver’s IP address are placed in the header by the network
layer.
The functions of the Network layer are :

1. Routing: The network layer protocols determine which route is suitable

from source to destination. This function of network layer is known as
routing.
2. Logical Addressing: In order to identify each device on internetwork
uniquely, network layer defines an addressing scheme. The sender &
receiver’s IP address are placed in the header by network layer. Such an
address distinguishes each device uniquely and universally.

4. Transport Layer (Layer 4) :

Transport layer provides services to application layer and takes services from
network layer. The data in the transport layer is referred to as Segments. It is
responsible for the End to End Delivery of the complete message. The transport
layer also provides the acknowledgement of the successful data transmission
and re-transmits the data if an error is found.

• At sender’s side:

Transport layer receives the formatted data from the upper layers, performs
Segmentation and also implements Flow & Error control to ensure proper
data transmission. It also adds Source and Destination port number in its header
and forwards the segmented data to the Network Layer.
Note: The sender need to know the port number associated with the receiver’s
application.
Generally, this destination port number is configured, either by default or
manually. For example, when a web application makes a request to a web
server, it typically uses port number 80, because this is the default port assigned
to web applications. Many applications have default port assigned.

• At receiver’s side:

Transport Layer reads the port number from its header and forwards the Data
which it has received to the respective application. It also performs sequencing
and reassembling of the segmented data.

The functions of the transport layer are :

1. Segmentation and Reassembly: This layer accepts the message from the
(session) layer , breaks the message into smaller units . Each of the
segment produced has a header associated with it. The transport layer at
the destination station reassembles the message.
2. Service Point Addressing: In order to deliver the message to correct
process, transport layer header includes a type of address called service
point address or port address. Thus by specifying this address, transport
layer makes sure that the message is delivered to the correct process.

The services provided by the transport layer :

 1. Connection Oriented Service: It is a three-phase process which include

In this type of transmission, the receiving device sends an

acknowledgement, back to the source after a packet or group of packet is
received. This type of transmission is reliable and secure.

2. Connection less service: It is a one-phase process and includes Data

Transfer. In this type of transmission, the receiver does not acknowledge
receipt of a packet. This approach allows for much faster communication
between devices. Connection-oriented service is more reliable than
connectionless Service.

5. Session Layer (Layer 5) :

This layer is responsible for establishment of connection, maintenance of

sessions, authentication and also ensures security.
The functions of the session layer are :

1. Session establishment, maintenance and termination: The layer allows

the two processes to establish, use and terminate a connection.
2. Synchronization : This layer allows a process to add checkpoints which
are considered as synchronization points into the data. These
synchronization point help to identify the error so that the data is re-
synchronized properly, and ends of the messages are not cut prematurely
and data loss is avoided.
3. Dialog Controller : The session layer allows two systems to start
communication with each other in half-duplex or full-duplex.
6. Presentation Layer (Layer 6) :

Presentation layer is also called the Translation layer.The data from the
application layer is extracted here and manipulated as per the required format to
transmit over the network.
The functions of the presentation layer are :

1. Translation : For example, ASCII to EBCDIC.

2. Encryption/ Decryption : Data encryption translates the data into
another form or code. The encrypted data is known as the cipher text and
the decrypted data is known as plain text. A key value is used for
encrypting as well as decrypting data.
3. Compression: Reduces the number of bits that need to be transmitted on
the network.

7. Application Layer (Layer 7) :

At the very top of the OSI Reference Model stack of layers, we find Application
layer which is implemented by the network applications. These applications
produce the data, which has to be transferred over the network. This layer also
serves as a window for the application services to access the network and for
displaying the received information to the user.

The functions of the Application layer are :

1. Network Virtual Terminal

2. FTAM-File transfer access and management
3. Mail Services
4. Directory Services
The OSI Model we just looked at is just a reference/logical model. It was
designed to describe the functions of the communication system by dividing the
communication procedure into smaller and simpler components. But when we
talk about the TCP/IP model, it was designed and developed by Department of
Defense (DoD) in 1960s and is based on standard protocols. It stands for
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. The TCP/IP model is a
concise version of the OSI model. It contains four layers, unlike seven layers in
the OSI model. The layers are:

1. Process/Application Layer
2. Host-to-Host/Transport Layer
3. Internet Layer
4. Network Access/Link Layer

1. Network Access Layer –

This layer corresponds to the combination of Data Link Layer and Physical
Layer of the OSI model. It looks out for hardware addressing and the protocols
present in this layer allows for the physical transmission of data.
We just talked about ARP being a protocol of Internet layer, but there is a
conflict about declaring it as a protocol of Internet Layer or Network access
layer. It is described as residing in layer 3, being encapsulated by layer 2
protocols.

2. Internet Layer –
This layer parallels the functions of OSI’s Network layer. It defines the
protocols which are responsible for logical transmission of data over the entire
network. The main protocols residing at this layer are :

1. IP – stands for Internet Protocol and it is responsible for delivering

packets from the source host to the destination host by looking at the IP
addresses in the packet headers. IP has 2 versions:
IPv4 and IPv6. IPv4 is the one that most of the websites are using
currently. But IPv6 is growing as the number of IPv4 addresses are
limited in number when compared to the number of users.
2. ICMP – stands for Internet Control Message Protocol. It is encapsulated
within IP datagrams and is responsible for providing hosts with
information about network problems.
3. ARP – stands for Address Resolution Protocol. Its job is to find the
hardware address of a host from a known IP address. ARP has several
types: Reverse ARP, Proxy ARP, Gratuitous ARP and Inverse ARP.

3. Host-to-Host Layer –

This layer is analogous to the transport layer of the OSI model. It is responsible
for end-to-end communication and error-free delivery of data. It shields the
upper-layer applications from the complexities of data. The two main protocols
present in this layer are :

1. Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) – It is known to provide reliable

and error-free communication between end systems. It performs
sequencing and segmentation of data. It also has acknowledgment feature
and controls the flow of the data through flow control mechanism. It is a
very effective protocol but has a lot of overhead due to such features.
Increased overhead leads to increased cost.
2. User Datagram Protocol (UDP) – On the other hand does not provide
any such features. It is the go-to protocol if your application does not
require reliable transport as it is very cost-effective. Unlike TCP, which is
connection-oriented protocol, UDP is connectionless.

4. Application Layer –

This layer performs the functions of top three layers of the OSI model:
Application, Presentation and Session Layer. It is responsible for node-to-
node communication and controls user-interface specifications. Some of
the protocols present in this layer are: HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, TFTP,
Telnet, SSH, SMTP, SNMP, NTP, DNS, DHCP, NFS, X Window, LPD.
Have a look at protocols in application layer for some information about
these protocols. Protocols other than those present in the linked article are
:

1. HTTP and HTTPS – HTTP stands for Hypertext transfer protocol.

It is used by the World Wide Web to manage communications
between web browsers and servers. HTTPS stands for HTTP-
Secure. It is a combination of HTTP with SSL(Secure Socket
Layer). It is efficient in cases where the browser need to fill out
forms, sign in, authenticate and carry out bank transactions.
2. SSH – SSH stands for Secure Shell. It is a terminal emulations
software similar to Telnet. The reason SSH is more preferred is
because of its ability to maintain the encrypted connection. It sets
up a secure session over a TCP/IP connection.
3. NTP – NTP stands for Network Time Protocol. It is used to
synchronize the clocks on our computer to one standard time
source. It is very useful in situations like bank transactions. Assume
 the following situation without the presence of NTP. Suppose you
carry out a transaction, where your computer reads the time at 2:30
PM while the server records it at 2:28 PM. The server can crash
very badly if it’s out of sync.

The diagrammatic comparison of the TCP/IP and OSI model is as follows :

Difference between TCP/IP and OSI Model:

TCP/IP OSI

TCP refers to Transmission Control OSI refers to Open Systems

Protocol Interconnection.
TCP/IP has 4 layers. OSI has 7 layers.
TCP/IP is more reliable OSI is less reliable
TCP/IP does not have very strict OSI has strict boundaries
boundaries.
TCP/IP follow a horizontal approach. OSI follows a vertical approach.
TCP/IP uses both session and OSI uses different session and
presentation layer in the application presentation layers.
layer itself.
TCP/IP developed protocols then OSI developed model then protocol.
model.
Transport layer in TCP/IP does not In OSI model, transport layer provides
provide assurance delivery of packets. assurance delivery of packets.
TCP/IP model network layer only Connection less and connection
provides connection less services. oriented both services are provided by
network layer in OSI model.
Protocols cannot be replaced easily in While in OSI model, Protocols are
TCP/IP model. better covered and is easy to replace
with the change in technology.

IP Addressing:
IP addressing provides mechanism to differentiate between hosts and network.
Because IP addresses are assigned in hierarchical manner, a host always resides
under a specific network.The host which needs to communicate outside its
subnet, needs to know destination network address, where the packet/data is to
be sent.

Hosts in different subnet need a mechanism to locate each other. This task can
be done by DNS. DNS is a server which provides Layer-3 address of remote
host mapped with its domain name or FQDN. When a host acquires the Layer-3
Address (IP Address) of the remote host, it forwards all its packet to its
gateway. A gateway is a router equipped with all the information which leads to
route packets to the destination host.

Routers take help of routing tables, which has the following information:

 Method to reach the network

Routers upon receiving a forwarding request, forwards packet to its next hop
(adjacent router) towards the destination.

The next router on the path follows the same thing and eventually the data
packet reaches its destination.

Network address can be of one of the following:

 Unicast (destined to one host)

 Multicast (destined to group)
 Broadcast (destined to all)
 Anycast (destined to nearest one)

A router never forwards broadcast traffic by default. Multicast traffic uses

special treatment as it is most a video stream or audio with highest priority.
Anycast is just similar to unicast, except that the packets are delivered to the
nearest destination when multiple destinations are available.

What is IPv4?

IPv4 is an IP version widely used to identify devices on a network using an

addressing system. It was the first version of IP deployed for production in the
ARPANET in 1983. It uses a 32-bit address scheme to store 2^32 addresses
which is more than 4 billion addresses. It is considered the primary Internet
Protocol and carries 94% of Internet traffic.

What is IPv6?

IPv6 is the most recent version of the Internet Protocol. This new IP address
version is being deployed to fulfill the need for more Internet addresses. It was
aimed to resolve issues that are associated with IPv4. With 128-bit address
space, it allows 340 undecillion unique address space. IPv6 is also called IPng
(Internet Protocol next generation).

Internet Engineer Taskforce initiated it in early 1994. The design and

development of that suite are now called IPv6.
Features of IPv4

Following are the features of IPv4:

 Connectionless Protocol
 Allow creating a simple virtual communication layer over diversified
devices
 It requires less memory, and ease of remembering addresses
 Already supported protocol by millions of devices
 Offers video libraries and conferences

Features of IPv6

Here are the features of IPv6:

 Hierarchical addressing and routing infrastructure
 Stateful and Stateless configuration
 Support for quality of service (QoS)
 An ideal protocol for neighboring node interaction