INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER

NETWORKS
What is a Computer Network?
A system containing any combination of computers, computer terminals,
printers, audio or visual display devices, or telephones interconnected by
telecommunication equipment or cables: used to transmit or receive information.
The Network Diagram
Difference between Distributed System and
Computer Network:
• The main difference is that in a distributed system a collection of independent
computers appears to its users as a single coherent system.
• It has single model that it presents to the users.
• A layer of software on top of the operating system, called middleware, is responsible
for implementing this model.
• Example: World Wide Web (runs on top of the internet & present a model in which
everything looks like a document)
• In computer network , this coherence, model and software are absent.
• Users are exposed to the actual machines, without any attempt by the system to make
the machines look and act in a coherence way.
• Example: Internet  
Services Provided:
• The computer networks offer the following services to an individual
person:
1. Access to remote information (Home shopping, paying telephone, electricity
bill , e-banking and so on)
2. Person to person communication (e-mail , Video conferencing for remote
school , Real time e-mail etc)
3. E-commerce
4. Interactive entertainment (multi-person real time simulation games , Video on
demand , Participation in live TV programmes like quiz , contest etc)
Types of Network
There are many types of computer networking which are used world
wide these days. There are some types of network that are using
Worldwide:
 LAN - Local Area Network
 WAN - Wide Area Network
 WLAN - Wireless Local Area Network
 PAN - Personal Area Network
 SAN - Storage Area Network
 GAN - Global Area Network
 MAN - Metropolitan Area Network
 CAN - Controller Area Network
 DAN - Desk Area Network
 VPN - Virtual Private Network
Distinguish Between LAN,WAN,MAN
Network Classification By Their Component Role
Peer To Peer Network
 In peer to peer network each computer is responsible for making its own
resources available to other computers on the network.
 Each computer is responsible for setting up and maintaining its own security
for these resources.
 Also each computer is responsible for accessing the required network
resources from peer to peer relationships.
 Peer to peer network is useful for a small network containing less than 10
computers on a single LAN .
 In peer to peer network each computer can function as both client and
server.
 Peer to peer networks do not have a central control system. There are no
servers in peer networks.
 Peer networks are amplified into home group.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Peer To Peer Network

Advantages: Disadvantages:
 Use less expensive  Not very secure
computer hardware  No central point of storage or
 Easy to administer file archiving
 No Network Operating  Additional load on computer
System required because of resource sharing
 More built in  Hard to maintain version control
redundancy
 Easy setup & low cost
Client/Server Network
 In client-server network relationships, certain computers act as
server and other act as clients. A server is simply a computer, that
available the network resources and provides service to other
computers when they request it. A client is the computer running a
program that requests the service from a server.
 Local area network(LAN) is based on client server network
relationship.
 A client-server network is one on which all available network
resources such as files, directories, applications and shared devices,
are centrally managed and hosted and then are accessed by client.
 Client serve network are defined by the presence of servers on a
network that provide security and administration of the network.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Client/Server Network

Advantages: Disadvantages:
• Very secure • Requires professional administration
• Better performance • More hardware intensive
• Centralized backup • More software intensive
• very reliable • Expensive dedicated software
Applications of Computer Network :
 Sharing of resources such as printers
 Sharing of expensive software's and database
 Communication from one computer to another computer
 Exchange of data and information among users via network
 Sharing of information over geographically wide areas.
Components of Computer Network
 Two or more computers
 Cables as links between the computers
 A network interfacing card(NIC) on each computer
 Switches
 Software called operating system(OS)
Network Benefits
The network provided to the users can be divided into two categories:
 Sharing
 Connectivity
Sharing Resources
Types of resources are:
 Hardware: A network allows users to share many hardware devices
such as printers , modems, fax machines, CD ROM, players, etc.
 Software: sharing software resources reduces the cost of software
installation, saves space on hard disk.
Other Benefits of Computer Network
 Increased speed
 Reduced cost
 Improved security
 Centralized software managements
 Electronic mail
 Flexible access
Disadvantages of Computer Networks
High cost of installation
Requires time for administration
Failure of server
Cable faults
Protocols
• A protocol is a set of rules that governs how two or more
communicating entities in a layer are to interact
• Messages that can be sent and received
• Actions that are to be taken when a certain event occurs, e.g. sending
or receiving messages, expiry of timers
• The purpose of a protocol is to provide a service to the layer above
Layers, Services & Protocols
• The overall communications process between two or more machines
connected across one or more networks is very complex
• Layering partitions related communications functions into groups that
are manageable
• Each layer provides a service to the layer above
• Each layer operates according to a protocol
2-1 LAYERED TASKS
Layering Principles
N+1
PDU

(N+1) Entity Layer N+1 protocol (N+1) Entity

Service User Service User
Layer N Service
SDU
Access Point (SAP)
(N) Entity Layer N protocol (N) Entity
Service Provider Service Provider

N N
PDU PDU
PDU - Protocol Data Unit
SDU - Service Data Unit

• Layer N provides service to layer N+1

• When a Layer n entity provides service to a Layer n+1 entity, the Layer n entity is known as the service provider
and the Layer n+1 entity is the service user.
• A Layer may offer several classes of service, e.g. fast (expensive) versus slow (cheap) communications, or reliable
(expensive) versus unreliable (cheap) communications.
• Services are available at service access points (SAPs). Layer n SAPs are the points at which Layer n+1 can access
the service offered by Layer n. Each SAP has a unique address.
• In order for two adjacent layers to exchange information, there needs to be a well-defined set of rules governing
the interface.

• Typically, the Layer n+1 entity passes a Service Data Unit (SDU) to the Layer n entity (together with certain control
information).
• The SDU is precisely the information passed between peer Layer n+1 entities in the Layer n+1 protocol. The
control information is directed at the Layer n entity, and is not passed across the network. This control
information is needed to help the Layer n entity do its job, e.g. it contains the length of the accompanying SDU.
• In order to transfer the SDU, the Layer n entity may have to split it up into a number of smaller pieces; each of
these pieces will be given its own header and sent as a separate Protocol Data Unit (PDU), e.g. a packet.
• The PDU headers are used as part of the Layer n protocol, and hence they form part of the SDU passed to Layer n-
1. PDU headers are used for such things as: distinguishing between data and control PDUs, and sequence
numbers.
• Note that Transport, Session and Application PDUs are often referred to as TPDUs, SPDUs and APDUs.