Basic

Networking
Concepts
Communication is almost as
important to us as our reliance on
air, water, food, and shelter.
What is a
network?

• In its broadest sense, a network consists of

two or more entities, or objects, sharing
resources and information.
• A computer network consists of two or more
computers that are linked in order to share
resources (such as printers and CDs),
exchange files, or allow electronic
communications. The computers on a
network may be linked through cables,
telephone lines, radio waves, satellites, or
infrared light beams
Classifying
Networks by
Hosts Roles
Peer-to-Peer Networks:
• Client and server software usually run on separate computers, but it is
also possible for one computer to be used for both roles at the same
time
• The advantages of peer-to-peer networking:
• Easy to set up
• Less complex
• Lower cost because network devices and dedicated servers may
not be required
• Can be used for simple tasks such as transferring files and sharing
printers
• The disadvantages of peer-to-peer networking:
• No centralized administration
• Not as secure
• Not scalable
• All devices may act as both clients and servers which can slow
their performance
Server-Based
Networks
• Offers centralized control and is designed
for secured operations, while there are
still both clients and servers on a server-
based network, a dedicated server
controls the network.
• Advantages of Server Based Network
• Centralized Management:
• Security
• Scalability
• Disadvantages of Server Based Network
• Expensive
• Administration
• Critical Failure
 • Intermediary devices connect the individual end
devices to the network. They can connect multiple
individual networks to form an internetwork. These
intermediary devices provide connectivity and
ensure that data flows across the network
Intermediary
Devices •
•
Network Interface cards (NICs)
Switch
• Modem
• Router
 NICs

• The network interface card

(NIC) provides the physical
connection between the
network and the computer
workstation
 Switch

• A switch is a multiport
device that improves
network efficiency. Switches
can read the hardware
addresses of incoming
packets to transmit them to
the appropriate destination
 Modem

• Stands for "modulating-

demodulating" modems are
hardware devices that allow
a computer or another
device, such as a router or
switch, to connect to the
Internet.
 Router

• A router either connects to your

modem via wires, or it may be
built right into the modem. The
router’s function then is to send
information from the Internet to
all devices in your home, like
phones, tablets, gaming
consoles, computers and more.
In other words, when you
connect to the Internet, you’re
really connecting to a router.
Network Media
• Communication transmits across a network on media.
The media provides the channel over which the
message travels from source to destination.
• Modern networks primarily use three types of media to
interconnect devices
• Metal wires within cables - Data is encoded into
electrical impulses.
• Glass or plastic fibers within cables (fiber-optic cable) -
Data is encoded into pulses of light.
• Wireless transmission - Data is encoded via modulation
of specific frequencies of electromagnetic waves.
 Common Types of
Networks
• Networks come in all sizes. They range from
simple networks consisting of two
computers, to networks connecting millions
of devices.
• The internet is the largest network in
existence. In fact, the term internet means a
“network of networks”. It is a collection of
interconnected private and public networks.
Small Home
Networks
• Small home networks connect a
few computers to each other and
to the internet.
Small Office
and Home
Office Networks

• The SOHO network allows computers

in a home office or a remote office to
connect to a corporate network, or
access centralized, shared resources.
Medium to
Large Networks
• Medium to large networks, such
as those used by corporations and
schools, can have many locations
with hundreds or thousands of
interconnected hosts.
World Wide
Networks
The internet is a network of
networks that connects hundreds of
millions of computers world-wide.
 • Network infrastructures vary
greatly in terms of:
• Size of the area covered
• Number of users
connected
• Number and types of
services available
• Area of responsibility

LANs and WANs

 LAN
A LAN is a network infrastructure that spans a
small geographical area. LANs have specific
characteristics:
• LANs interconnect end devices in a
limited area such as a home, school,
office building, or campus.
• A LAN is usually administered by a
single organization or individual.
Administrative control is enforced at
the network level and governs the
security and access control policies.
• LANs provide high-speed bandwidth
to internal end devices and
intermediary devices.
 WAN
A WAN is a network infrastructure that spans a
wide geographical area. WANs are typically
managed by service providers (SPs) or Internet
Service Providers (ISPs). WANs have specific
characteristics:
• WANs interconnect LANs over wide
geographical areas such as between
cities, states, provinces, countries, or
continents.
• WANs are usually administered by
multiple service providers.
• WANs typically provide slower speed
links between LANs.
 The Internet

• The internet is a worldwide collection of

interconnected networks internetworks,
or internet for short
• Is not owned by any individual or group
• Ensuring effective communication
requires technologies and standards as
well as the cooperation of many
network administration agencies
• Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF),
Internet Corporation for Assigned
Names and Numbers (ICANN), and the
Internet Architecture Board (IAB), plus
many others.
 Intranets and
Extranets

• Intranet is a term often used to refer to a

private connection of LANs and WANs that
belongs to an organization. An intranet is
designed to be accessible only by the
organization's members, employees, or
others with authorization.
• An organization may use an extranet to
provide secure and safe access to
individuals who work for a different
organization but require access to the
organization’s data. Here are some
examples of extranets:
• A company that is providing access
to outside suppliers and contractors
• A hospital that is providing a booking
system to doctors so they can make
appointments for their patients
 Security Threats

• Viruses, worms, and Trojan horses - These contain

malicious software or code running on a user device.

• Spyware and adware - These are types of software which

are installed on a user’s device. The software then
secretly collects information about the user.

• Zero-day attacks - Also called zero-hour attacks, these

occur on the first day that a vulnerability becomes
known.

• Threat actor attacks - A malicious person attacks user

devices or network resources.

• Denial of service attacks - These attacks slow or crash

applications and processes on a network device.

• Data interception and theft - This attack captures private

information from an organization’s network.

• Identity theft - This attack steals the login credentials of a

user in order to access private data.
 Security Solutions

• Antivirus and antispyware: These applications help

to protect end devices from becoming infected with
malicious software.
• Firewall filtering: Firewall filtering blocks
unauthorized access into and out of the network.
• Dedicated firewall systems: These provide more
advanced firewall capabilities that can filter large
amounts of traffic with more granularity.
• Access control lists (ACL): These further filter
access and traffic forwarding based on IP addresses
and applications.
• Intrusion prevention systems (IPS): These identify
fast-spreading threats, such as zero-day or zero-
hour attacks.
• Virtual private networks (VPN): These provide
secure access into an organization for remote
workers.
 Network
addressing
 • A MAC address is given to a network adapter when it is
manufactured. It is hardwired or hard-coded onto your
computer's network
• The MAC address is sometimes referred to as a networking

Media hardware address, the burned-in address (BIA), or the

physical address. Here's an example of a MAC address for an
Ethernet NIC: 00:0a:95:9d:68:16.k interface card (NIC) and is
Access unique to it.

Control
(MAC)
Address
 • End devices in a network need an IP address so that they can
communicate with other devices
• IPv4 address information can be entered into end devices manually, or
automatically using Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).
• An IPv4 address is a 32-bit hierarchical address that is made up of a
network portion and a host portion. When determining the network
portion versus the host portion, you must look at the 32-bit stream

IPv4
addressing
 • An IPv4 address to a host requires the following:
• IPv4 address - This is the unique IPv4 address of the host.
• Subnet mask- This is used to identify the network/host portion of
the IPv4 address.
• The IPv4 subnet mask is used to differentiate the network portion from
the host portion of an IPv4 address. When an IPv4 address is assigned to
a device, the subnet mask is used to determine the network address of
the device. The network address represents all the devices on the same

The Subnet
network.

Mask
 Associating an IPv4
Address with its
Subnet Mask

• The subnet mask does not

actually contain the network or
host portion of an IPv4 address,
it just tells the computer where
to look for the part of the IPv4
address that is the network
portion and which part is the
host portion.
• The actual process used to
identify the network portion and
host portion is called ANDing.
Wireless
networks
 Radio Wave
properties

• Higher the frequency,

shorter the wavelength
 • A band is a section of a radio spectrum.
• Wi-Fi frequency bands signals: 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz.
Radio Frequency • 2.4 GHz = more coverage
bands • 5 GHz = faster speeds
• Each band is then divided into channels.
802.11
Standard
Wireless channels

• Within Wireless frequency bands, there are

smaller bands which are referred to as
Wireless channels.
• A Wireless channel is the medium through
which wireless networks can send and receive
data.
• For routers made in the U.S., the 2.4 GHz band
has 11 channels and the 5 GHz band has 45
channels.
2.4 GHz Channels

• Each channel on the 2.4 GHz spectrum

is 20 MHz wide
• The channel centers are separated by 5
MHz
• The entire spectrum is only 100 MHz
wide
• 11 channels have to squeeze into the
100 MHz available, and in the end,
overlap.
• There are three channels that don’t
overlap: 1, 6 and 11
Wireless Routers

• Single-Band
• Only operates in the 2.4GHz wireless
band
• Inexpensive
• Dual-Band
• Operates on the 2.4GHz and 5GHz band
• Capable to manage different devices
using different bands at the same time
• Tri-Band
• Support two 5GHz bands and one 2.4GHz
band
• Three separate Wi-Fi bands means three
times the bandwidth