Networking concepts

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Network topology

A network consists of multiple digital devices connected using some type of interface, each having one or more interface devices such as a Network Interface Card (NIC) and/or a serial device for PPP networking. Each digital device is supported by network software that provides server and/or client functionality.

We can make distinctions in type according to centralisation vs distribution:

• In a server based network, some devices are set up to be primary providers of services. These devices are called servers and the devices that request and use the service are called clients.
• In a peer-to-peer network, various devices on the network can act both as clients and servers. Like a network of switchers. :D

The network topology describes the method used to do the physical wiring of the network. The main ones are:

• Bus networks (not to be confused with the system bus of a computer) use a common backbone to connect all devices. Both ends of the network must be terminated with a terminator. A barrel connector can be used to extend it. A device wanting to communicate with another device on the network sends a broadcast message onto the wire that all other devices see, but only the intended recipient actually accepts and processes the message. Bus networks are limited in the number of devices it can serve due to the broadcast traffic it generates.
• Ring networks connecting from one to another in a ring. Every device has exactly two neighbors. A data token is used to grant permission for each computer to communicate. All messages travel through a ring in the same direction, either "clockwise" or "counterclockwise". A failure in any cable or device breaks the loop and can take down the entire network, so there are also rings that have doubled up on networking hardware and information travels both "clockwise" and "counterclockwise".
• Star networks using a central connection point called a "hub node", a network hub, switch or router, that controls the network communications. Most home networks are of this type. Star networks are limited in number of hub connection points.
• Tree networks join multiple star topologies together onto a bus. In its simplest form, only hub devices connect directly to the tree bus, and each hub functions as the root of a tree of devices.
• Mesh networks use routes. Unlike the previous topologies, messages sent on a mesh network can take any of several possible paths from source to destination. Most prominent example is the internet.

Hardware connections

• A Network Interface Card (NIC) is a hardware device that allows a computer to connect to a network.
• Each network interface card (NIC) has a built in hardware address programmed by its manufacturer. This is a 48 bit address and should be unique for each card. This address is called a media access control (MAC) address.
• You can connect two digital devices (computers) together with a cross-over cable between their network cards, not a straight network jumper cable (otherwise the transmit port would be sending to the transmit port on the other side).
• A network hub is a hardware device to connect network devices together. The devices will all be on the same network and/or subnet. All network traffic is shared and can be sniffed by any other node connected to the same hub.
• Uplink does not have a crossover connection and is designed to fit into a crossover connection on the next hub. This way you can keep linking hubs to put more computers on a network. Because each hub introduces some delay onto the network signals, there is a limit to the number of hubs you can sequentially link. Also the computers that are connected to the two hubs are on the same network and can talk to each other. All network traffic including all broadcasts is passed through the hubs.
• A network switch is like a hub but creates a private link between any two connected nodes when a network connection is established. This reduces the amount of network collisions and thus improves speed. Broadcast messages are still sent to all nodes.
• If you have a machine (device, computer) with two network cards, eth0, connected to an outbound hub, and eth1, connected to another hub that only connects to local machines, and it is not configured as router or bridge, the two networks are considered separated. If no other machines on the network that the eth0 card is connected to, is an outbound device, all devices in that network are dependent.

TCP/IP ports and addresses

The part of the network that does the job of transporting and managing the data across the "normal" internet is called TCP/IP which stands for Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP). The IP layer requires a 4 (IPv4) or 6 (IPv6) byte address to be assigned to each network interface card on each computer. This can be done automatically using network software such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) or by manually entering static addresses.

Port numbers

The TCP layer requires what is called a port number to be assigned to each message. This way it can determine the type of service being provided. These are not ports that are used for serial and parallel devices or for computer hardware control, but reference numbers used to define a service (RFC 6335).

Addresses

Addresses are used to locate computers, almost like a house address. Each IP address is written in what is called dotted decimal notation. This means there are four numbers, each separated by a dot. Each number represents a one byte value with a possible range of 0-255.

Classful networks and subnetting

Until the introduction of Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) in 1993 to slow the growth of routing tables on routers across the internet, and to help slow the rapid exhaustion of IPv4 addresses, classful networks were used. You can still find it in tutorials, some networks, and in archeological artifacts such as default subnet mask. In classful adresses, the first one or two bytes (depending on the class of network), generally will indicate the number of the network, the third byte indicates the number of the subnet, and the fourth number indicates the host number.

To subnet a network is to create logical divisions of the network, for example arranged on one floor, building or geographical location. Each device on each subnet is to have an address that logically associates it with the others on the same subnet. This also prevents devices on one subnet from getting confused with hosts on another subnet. Subnetting applies to IP addresses because this is done by borrowing bits from the host portion of the IP address. In a sense, the IP address has three components - the network part, the subnet part and the host part. We can create a subnet by logically grabbing the last bit from the network component of the address and using it to determine the number of subnets required. To make learning subnetting easy see http://www.9tut.com/subnetting-tutorial. Also, http://www.subnet-calculator.com/ and http://www.subnetmask.info/ and these mental shortcuts:

Mask	# of subnets	SlashFmt	Class A hosts	Class A mask	Class B hosts	Class B mask	Class C hosts	Class C mask	Class C sub hosts	Class C sub mask
255	1 or 256	/32	16,777,214	255.0.0.0	65,534	255.255.0.0	254	255.255.255.0	Invalid, 1 address	255.255.255.255
254	128	/31	33,554,430	254.0.0.0	131,070	255.254.0.0	510	255.255.254.0	Invalid, 2 addresses	255.255.255.254
252	64	/30	67,108,862	252.0.0.0	262,142	255.252.0.0	1,022	255.255.252.0	2 hosts, 4 addresses	255.255.255.252
248	32	/29	134,217,726	248.0.0.0	524,286	255.248.0.0	2,046	255.255.248.0	6 hosts, 8 addresses	255.255.255.248
240	16	/28	268,435,454	240.0.0.0	1,048,574	255.240.0.0	4,094	255.255.240.0	14 hosts, 16 addresses	255.255.255.240
224	8	/27	536,870,910	224.0.0.0	2,097,150	255.224.0.0	8,190	255.255.224.0	30 hosts, 32 addresses	255.255.255.224
192	4	/26	1,073,741,822	192.0.0.0	4,194,302	255.192.0.0	16,382	255.255.192.0	62 hosts, 64 addresses	255.255.255.192
128	2	/25	2,147,483,646	128.0.0.0	8,388,606	255.128.0.0	32,766	255.255.128.0	126 hosts, 128 addresses	255.255.255.128

Network protocol levels

Protocols are sets of standards that define all operations within a network and how devices outside the network can interact with the network. Protocols define everything: basic networking data structures, higher level application programs, services and utilities.

The International Standards Organization (ISO) has defined the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model for current networking protocols, commonly referred to as the ISO/OSI model (ISO standard 7498-1). It is a hierarchical structure of seven layers that defines the requirements for communications between two computers. It was conceived to allow interoperability across the various platforms offered by vendors. The model allows all network elements to operate together, regardless of who built them. By the late 1980's, ISO was recommending the implementation of the OSI model as a networking standard. By that time, TCP/IP had been in use for years. TCP/IP was fundamental to ARPANET and the other networks that evolved into the internet. For differences between TCP/IP and ARPANET, see RFC 871. Only a subset of the whole OSI model is used today.

RFCs

Protocols are outlined in Request for Comments (RFCs). The RFCs central to the TCP/IP protocol:

• RFC 1122 - Defines host requirements of the TCP/IP suite of protocols covering the link, network (IP), and transport (TCP, UDP) layers.
• RFC 1123 - The companion RFC to 1122 covering requirements for internet hosts at the application layer
• RFC 1812 - Defines requirements for internet gateways which are IPv4 routers

ISO/OSI model

7. The Application layer provides a user interface by interacting with the running application. Examples of application layer protocols are Telnet, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

6. The Presentation layer transforms data it receives from and passes on to the Application layer and Session layer. MIME encoding, data compression, data encryption and similar manipulations of the presentation are done at this layer. Examples: converting an EBCDIC-coded text file to an ASCII-coded file or from a .wav to .mp3 file, or serializing objects and other data structures into and out of XML. This layer makes the type of data transparent to the layers around it.

5. The Session layer establishes, manages and terminates the connections between local and remote applications. The OSI model made this layer responsible for "graceful close" of sessions (a property of TCP), and session checkpointing and recovery (usually not used in the internet protocol suite). It provides for duplex or half-duplex operation, dialog control (who transmits next), token management (who is allowed to attempt a critical action next) and establishes checkpointing of long transactions so they can continue after a crash, adjournment, termination, and restart procedures.

• Full Duplex allows the simultaneous sending and receiving of packets.
• Half Duplex allows the sending and receiving of packets in one direction at a time only.

4. The Transport layer provides end-to-end delivery of data between two nodes and is responsible for the delivery of a message from one process to another. It converts messages into Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP), etc. Some protocols are state and connection oriented, allowing the transport layer to keep track of the packets and retransmit those that fail: It divides data into different segments before transmitting it. On receipt of these segments, the data is reassembled and forwarded to the next layer. If the data is lost in transmission or has errors, then this layer recovers the lost data and transmits the same.

3. The Network layer translates the network address into a physical MAC address. It performs network routing, flow control, segmentation/desegmentation, and error control functions. The best known example of a layer 3 protocol is the Internet Protocol (IP).

2. The Data Link layer is responsible for moving frames from one hop (node) to the next. The main function of this layer is to convert the data packets received from the upper layer(s) into frames, to establish a logical link between the nodes, and to transmit the frames sequentially. The addressing scheme is physical as MAC addresses are hard-coded into network cards at the time of their manufacture. The best known example is data transfer method (802x ethernet). IEEE divided this layer into the two following sublayers:

• Logical Link Control (LLC) maintains the link between two computers by establishing Service Access Points (SAPs) which are a series of interface points. See IEEE 802.2.
• Media Access Control (MAC) is used to coordinate the sending of data between computers. See the IEEE 802.3, 4, 5, and 12 standards.

1. The Physical layer coordinates the functions required to transmit a bit stream over a physical medium. It defines all the electrical and physical specifications for devices. This includes layout of pins, voltages, cable specifications, etc. Hubs, repeaters and network adapters are physical-layer devices. Popular protocols at this layer are Fast Ethernet, ATM, RS232, etc. The major functions and services performed by the physical layer are:

• Establishment and termination of a connection to a device.
• Participation in the process whereby resources are effectively shared among multiple users.
• Modulation, or conversion between the representation of digital data in user equipment and the corresponding signals transmitted over a channel. These are signals operating over the physical cabling or over a radio link.

TCP/IP model

4. The TCP/IP model has no session or presentation layer. Its functionalities are folded into its application layer, directly on top of the transport layer. The Application layer includes all the higher-level protocols such as TELNET, FTP, DNS SMTP, SSH, etc.

3. The Transport layer provides datagram services to the Application layer. This layer allows host and destination devices to communicate with each other for exchanging messages, irrespective of the underlying network type. Error control, congestion control, flow control, etc., are handled by the transport layer. The protocols used are the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP). TCP gives a reliable, end-to-end, connection-oriented data transfer, while UDP provides unreliable, connectionless data transfers.

2. The Internet layer (alias Network layer) routes data to its destination. Ddata received by the link layer is made into data packets (IP datagrams), containing source and the destination IP address or logical address. These packets are sent and delivered independently (unordered). Protocols at this layer are Internet Protocol (IP), Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP), etc.

1. The Network Interface layer combines OSI's Physical and Data Link layers.

Basic addressing

• An IP Address is a logical numeric address that is assigned to every single computer, printer, switch, router or any other device that is part of a TCP/IP-based network.
• Most of the Internet servers and personal computers use Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4). This uses 32 bits to assign a network address as defined by the four octets of an IP address, up to 255.255.255.255. Each octet is converted to a decimal number (base 10) from 0–255 and separated by a period (a dot). This format is called dotted decimal notation. For example, the IPv4 address of 11000000101010000000001100011000 is:
  • Segmented into 8-bit blocks: 11000000 10101000 00000011 00011000.
  • Each block is converted to decimal: 192 168 3 24
  • The adjacent octets are separated by a period: 192.168.3.24.
• Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) was designed to answer the future exhaustion of the IPv4 address pool. IPv4 address space is 32 bits which translates to just above 4 billion addresses. IPv6 address space is 128 bits translating to billions and billions of potential addresses. The protocol has also been upgraded to include new quality of service features and security, but also has its vulnerabilities . IPv6 addresses are represented as eight groups of four hexadecimal digits with the groups being separated by colons, for example 2805:F298:0004:0148:0000:0000:0740:F5E9, but methods to abbreviate this full notation exist http://www.vorteg.info/ipv6-abbreviation-rules/.