TM 601

HOMEWORK ONE
Due next class


Answer the following questions. You should be able to complete all of the following
problems with your textbook and notes closed.


I pledge on my honor that I have not given or received any unauthorized assistance on this
assignment/examination. I further pledge that I have not copied any material from a book,
article, the Internet or any other source except where I have expressly cited the source.
Name (Print) Sarabjeet Singh Signature ________________ Date: 09/04/2014

Please note that assignments in this class may be submitted to www.turnitin.com, a
web-based anti-plagiarism system, for an evaluation of their originality.

1. Identify the five elements of our simple communications model and discuss the role
of each.

The five elements of simple communication model are as follows:-
1) Source It is the host from where the signal we want to transmit are generated.
These signals are generally digital bit stream generated by personal computer.
2) Transmitter It takes the generated signal from the source & transmit it after
embedding the important information of destination address. In case of personal
computer as a source, a modem could work as transmitter as it modulate at
transmitting end converting digital bit to analog.
3) Transmission System It is the channel through which we can propagate the
generated signal from source to destination. Fiber optic cables, Ethernet wires &
radio channels etc. may be used as transmission channel.
4) Receiver Reception of signal is done here. A modem is used as demodulator at
this end which converts the analog signal again to the digital bit stream & make
error correction if required.
5) Destination Transmitted signal from the source is taken by the destination.

2. In class we discussed that communications is more than connectivity. Identify and
define three tasks in addition to connectivity required for communications.

A communication is said to be established only when the core of the information or
message sent by source may reached the destination. There must be connectivity to
initiate & complete the communication process. The three task in addition to
connectivity are as follows-
1) Interfacing It is the mode of connection by which a source get connected to a
destination. There may be various entities to be connected in between the source
& destination e.g. ISPs, Internet etc. In case of data communication Interfacing
medium can be decided according to the rate of propagation of electromagnetic
signal (Optical Fiber, 4G etc.)
2) Error Detection & Correction Factors like heat dissipation or bad weather at
interfacing channels may lead to undesired alteration in the transmitted data.
These alterations are errors, so in order to rectify the signal we need to perform
error detection & correction. The Automatic Repeat Request scheme is used to
correct the data errors of files & Forward Error Correction scheme is used to
rectify the real time data like voice signals.
3) Flow Control While communicating, the reception can be done by only processing
the data at receiver end so if the incoming data rate is faster than the processing
time at receptor then the system may got hanged up. So, a synchronized flow
control is required in between transmitter & receiver.

3. Identify and discuss three important differences between a WAN and a LAN.
WAN
1) It is used for bigger geographical area & requires public right of ways.
2) Implemented by circuit switching & packet switching by connecting with the
number of switching nodes. It couldnt be wireless due to large covering area.
3) WAN is not owned by primary user or organization it is generally taken on a
lease.
LAN
1) It is used for smaller area mostly for a building & subordinate structures.
2) Implemented by switched LAN (ETHERNET), ATM LANs. It may also
implemented as wireless LAN.
3) It is mostly owned by business users, so while buying care must be taken as
maintenance & network management is sole responsibility of user.

4. Consider the four WAN switching technologies we highlighted in class. Name all
four. Briefly discuss each mentioning any important similarities and differences.
Give an example application for each technology.

Circuit Switching- The connection between source and destination can be made by
nodes of the network. The path is created by the physical links like optical fiber. Now
there are the logical links at the notes such as Router, which directly passes the data to
destination or assigned next note which provides shortest path to destination.
Telecommunication Network
Packet Switching- It can be done by sending the data in chunks by one node to
another. These data chunks are called Packets. The entire packet stored first at node,
then transmitted further. It is used for terminal to computer or computer to computer
communication.
There are Frame Relay & ATM technologies, but we may use MPLS in-stead of
those.

Multi-Protocol Label Switching-While distributing data packets, router takes time to
look up routing tables. In this protocol the header set by PDU at the frame (Data link
Layer) may get the information about the destinations direct path information before
going to PDU segment (Transport Layer). These paths are called Label Switched Path
which gives an opportunity to direct routing. It improves the Quality of Services by
providing services like VPN.

5. Define the important concept of a protocol architecture. Name two existing protocol
architectures.
Protocol are the rules required to perform the communication. The communication
task is subdivide in to sub-tasks known as different layers. Layers are in hierarchical
vertical stack form. Each layer is distinct & perform the task in a way by which it
serves the next upper layer. The Protocol Architecture requires three things to be
done in communication process.
---To make data format translate function.
---To make transmission control for coordination & error handling.
---To make flow of data sync for sequencing.
So our architecture layer should comply with these requirements may give TCP/IP as-
Network Access Layer- It exchange data between a computer and network. According
to the information provided by source Network Routes the data to the appropriate
destination. The source may provide additional information like data priority to the
network.
Transport Layer- To provide reliability for exchanging data transport layer is used. It
ascertains that the data arriving in destination is in the same order in which they are
sent from source.
Application Layer- The logic required for each application we want to perform is
different. As an example to perform a file transfer task a separate module is needed.
So, this layer deals with the applications to establish the communication.

The two existing protocols are-
Open System Interconnection Architecture (OSI) & Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)

6. Define and give an example of entity.
An entity is a unit active element in which various subsystem may perform the task. It
gives a unified way to manage the distributed devices. The examples of entity are;
Workstation; Telephone Exchange & Computer Cluster.

7. Consider TCP/IP.
Using the OSI model as a reference, what layer protocol is IP? TCP?
In OSI model Layer-3(Network) is IP layer & Layer-4 (Transportation) is TCP
Layer.
What is the function of IP? TCP?
The function of IP is to route end to end devices in different networks. The TCP is
used to give reliability of data transfer to end to end device.
8. Define a PDU and give an example. (Refer to the reading assignment for the answer).

Protocol Data Unit- In the protocol layers the data control information is added as a
header to the data, this combination of data & control information called the Protocol
Data Unit. According to the layers PDU has distinctive job to do at the Physical layer
PDU are called Frame , at Network Access Layer it is called Packet, at Transport
Layer it is Segments. Examples of PDU are An ETHERNET frame, An Internet
Protocol Packet, TCP/UDP Segments etc.

9. The author mentions that two levels (or types) of addressing are required in data
networking. Identify and define each. (Refer to the reading assignment for the
answer).

1) The address line in a network is for specify different computers in a whole
network. This address is unique for each participant computer.(MAC Address)
2) There can be different application in a addressed computer of a network. So, for
communication in multiple application for a computer is performed by address
which is unique for that application. These address are known as Service Access
Point (SAP) or Port.

10. Briefly define the OSI model. What is/are its principal weakness(es) compared to
TCP/IP?
The OSI model is also a standardized model which uses seven layers. These layers are
Physical, Data Link, Network access, Transport, Session, Presentation & Application.
These layers performs as horizontal stack. It provide more data integrity to the network.
Weaknesses-
1) Connection mode transfer in OSI model requires three parties so communication
is relatively slow.
2) It is a complex model. The session & presentation layers are hardly use, even the
Fast LANs show decreased error rate, so data integrity requirement with a
complex model is of no use.