Data Communications

Syllabus
Textbook and References
Chapter-1: Data Communications
and Data Networking
Contents
 A Communication model

 Data communications

 Networks

 The internet
Learning Outcomes
Data
 Data consist on raw facts and figures

 While information is process foam of data.

 Data is not certain while information is certain.

 Communication
 Sharing or Exchange of information between individuals or
systems

 2 types
◦ Local
◦ Remote

 Local : When the communication is face to face between

individuals
Remote : When communication is taking place over a
distance
 Data Communication
 Electronically transmission of data from one place to another
place by using a medium is called data communication.

 It deals with the transmission of signals in a reliable and

efficient manner

 Data communications are the exchange of data between two

devices via some form of transmission medium such as a wire
cable
Human Communication
Components of Data Communication
(i) Message
 Message is the information (or data) to be communicated.

 Message may consist of : number/text , picture or audio/video

2) Sender
 Sender is the device that sends the data-message

 Sender can be computer and mobile phone

3) Receiver
 Receiver is the device that receives the message.

 Receiver can be computer and mobile phone

4) Transmission Medium
 Transmission-medium is physical-path by which a message travels

from sender to receiver.

 Transmission-medium can be wired or wireless.
 Examples of wired medium: twisted-pair wire (used in landline

telephone), coaxial cable (used in cable TV network), fiber-optic

cable
 Examples of wireless medium: radio waves, microwaves,

infrared waves (ex: operating TV using remote control)

5) Protocol
 A protocol is a set of rules that govern data-communications.
 In other words, a protocol represents an agreement between the

communicating-devices.
 Without a protocol, 2 devices may be connected but not

communicating.
Example
Characteristics of Data Communications
(i) Delivery:
 The system must deliver data to the correct destination.

 Data must be received by the intended device or user and only by that
device or user.

(ii) Accuracy:
 The system must deliver the data accurately.

 Data that have been altered in transmission and left uncorrected are

unusable.

(iii) Timeliness:
 The system must deliver data in a timely manner.

 Data delivered late are useless.

 In the case of video and audio, timely delivery means delivering data as

they are produced, in the same order that they are produced, and without
significant delay.
Jitter:
 Jitter refers to the variation in the packet arrival time.

 It is the uneven delay in the delivery of audio or video

packets.

 For example, let us assume that video packets are sent every
30 ms.

 If some of the packets arrive with 30ms delay and others with
40ms delay, an uneven quality in the video is the result.
A Communication Model
Key Elements

1. Source:
 This device generates the data to be transmitted;
 Examples : Telephones and personal computers.

2. Transmitter :
 The data generated by a source system are not transmitted

directly in the form in which they were generated.

 Transforms and encodes the information to produce
electromagnetic signals that can be transmitted across some sort
of transmission system.
3. Transmission system:
 This can be a single transmission line or a complex network
connecting source and destination.

4. Receiver:
 The receiver accepts the signal from the transmission system and

converts it into a form that can be handled by the destination

device.

5. Destination:
 Takes the incoming data from the receiver.
Data Communications Model
Consider a telephone conversation.
 The message as viewed by the user will usually be an exact
copy of the original message (m).

 In this case the input to the telephone is a message (m) in the

form of sound waves.

 The sound waves are converted by the telephone into

electrical signals of the same frequency.

 These signals are transmitted without modification over the

telephone line. Hence the input signal g(t) and the transmitted
signal s(t) are identical.
 The signals (t) will suffer some distortion over the medium, so
that r(t) will not be identical to s(t).

 The signal r(t) is converted back into a sound wave with no

attempt at correction or improvement of signal quality.

 Thus, is not an exact replica of m.

 However, the received sound message is generally

comprehensible to the listener
 Communication tasks
 Transmission system utilization : Efficient use of transmission facilities that are
typically shared among a number of communicating devices(Mux & Congestion
control)

 Interface : To communicate, a device must interface with the transmission

system.

 Signal generation : Electromagnetic signals travel over transmission medium.

Once an interface is established, signal generation is required for
communication.

 Synchronization : Means receiver must be able to determine when a signal

begins to arrive and when it ends.

 Exchange management : If data are to be exchanged in both directions over a

period of time, the two parties must cooperate.

 Error Detection and Correction

 Flow-control: Source does not overwhelm the destination.

 Addressing : When more than two devices share a transmission facility, a

source system must indicate the identity of the intended destination.

 Routing

 Recovery : Needed in situations in which an information exchange, such

as a database transaction or file transfer, is interrupted due to a fault
somewhere in the system.

 Message formatting : It has to do with an agreement between two parties

as to the form of the data to be exchanged or transmitted.

 Security

 Network management : to configure the system, monitor its status, react

to failures and overloads, and plan intelligently for future growth.
Data Transmission Modes
 The way in which data is transmitted from one device to
another device is known as transmission mode.

 The transmission mode is also known as the communication

mode.
Examples of transmission modes
Data Representation
 Text
 Text is represented as a bit-pattern. (Bit-pattern : sequence of
bits: 0s or 1s).

 Different sets of bit-patterns are used to represent symbols (or

characters).

 Each set is called a code.

 The process of representing symbols is called encoding.

 Popular encoding system: ASCII, Unicode.

Numbers :
 Number is also represented as a bit-pattern.

 ASCII is not used to represent number.

 Instead, number is directly converted to binary-form.

Audio :
 Audio is a representation of sound.

 By nature, audio is different from text, numbers, or images.

 Audio is continuous, not discrete

Video :
 Video is a representation of movie.

 Video can either

→ be produced as a continuous entity (e.g., by a TV camera), or

→ be a combination of images arranged to convey the idea of motion.
Images :
 Image is also represented as a bit-pattern.

 An image is divided into a matrix of pixels (picture-elements).

 A pixel is the smallest element of an image. (Pixel ->Small dot)

 The size of an image depends upon number of pixels (also called

resolution).

 For example: An image can be divided into 1000 pixels or 10,000

pixels.
 Two types of images:
(i) Black & White Image
 If an image is black & white, each pixel can be represented by a

value either 0 or 1.
 For example: Chessboard

(ii) Color Image

 There are many methods to represent color images.

 RGB is one of the methods to represent color images.

 RGB is called so called ‘.’ each color is combination of 3 color:

red, green & blue.

 Network
 A set of devices (nodes) connected by communication links

 Node : computer, printer, …

 Distributed Processing :
• Most networks used it
• Task is divided among multiple computers instead of
one single large computer

 To be considered effective and efficient , a network must

meet a number of criteria
(i) Performance
 Performance can be measured using

i) Transit-time or
ii) Response-time.

 Transit Time is defined as time taken to travel a message from

one device to another.

 Response Time is defined as the time elapsed between enquiry

and response.

 The network-performance depends on following factors

◦ Number of users: large number slow response time.
◦ Type of transmission medium: fiber-optic cabling faster than
others cables.
 ◦ Capabilities of the connected hardware: affect both the speed and
capacity of transmission.
◦ Efficiency of the software: process data at the sender and receiver
and intermediate affects network performance.

(ii) Reliability
 Reliability is measured by

◦ frequency of network-failure
◦ time taken to recover from a network-failure
◦ network's robustness in a disaster
 More the failures are, less is the network's reliability.

(iii) Security
 Security refers to the protection of data from the unauthorized access or

damage.
 It also involves implementing policies for recovery from data-losses.
 Type of Connection
 Point-to-Point
◦ Dedicated link between two devices

◦ Entire capacity of the link is reserved for transmission

between those two devices

◦ Use an actual length of wire or cable

◦ Example: Point-to-Point connection b/w remote-control &

TV for changing the channels.
Multi-point (Multi-drop)
 Three or more devices share a single link

 The capacity of the channel is shared, either spatially or

temporally.

 If link is used simultaneously by many devices, then it is

spatially shared connection.

 If user takes turns while using the link, then it is time shared
(temporal) connection.(spatially-space or temporally-time)
 NETWORK TOPOLOGY
 Physical Topology
◦ The way a network is laid out physically

◦ Two or more links form a topology

◦ The topology of a network is the geometric representation of

the relationship of all the links and linking devices (nodes)
to one another.

◦ Four topologies : Mesh, Star, Bus, and Ring

 Mesh

◦ Every link is dedicated point-to-point link.

◦ The term dedicated means that the link carries traffic only
between the two devices it connects.

◦ To link n devices fully connected mesh has: n ( n - 1) / 2

physical channels (Full-Duplex).

◦ Every Device on the network must have n - 1 ports

 Advantages:
1) Congestion reduced
2) Robustness
3) Security
4) Easy fault identification & fault isolation

 Disadvantages:
1) Difficult installation and reconfiguration.
2) Bulk of wiring occupies more space than available space.
3) Very expensive: as there are many redundant connections.
4) Not mostly used in computer networks. It is commonly used in
wireless networks.
5) High redundancy of the network-connections.
Star Topology
 All the devices are connected to a central controller called a hub

 There exists a dedicated point-to-point link between a device & a

hub.

 The devices are not directly linked to one another. Thus, there is
no direct traffic between devices.
 Advantages:
1)Less expensive
2) Easy installation & reconfiguration
3) Robustness
4) Easy to detect and troubleshoot fault.
5) Centralized management

 Disadvantages:
1) Single point of failure
2) Cable length required is the more compared to bus/ring
topologies.
3) Number of nodes in network depends on capacity of hub.
Bus
 All the devices are connected to the single cable called bus.

 Every device communicates with the other device through this

bus.

 A data from the source is broadcasted to all devices connected

to the bus.

 Only the intended-receiver, whose physical-address matches,

accepts the data.
 Devices are connected to the bus by drop-lines and
taps.

◦ A drop-line is a connection running between the device and

the bus.

◦ A tap is a connector that links to the bus

 Advantages:
1) Easy installation.
2) Cable required is the least compared to mesh/star topologies.
3) Redundancy is eliminated.
4) Costs less (Compared to mesh/star topologies).
5) Mostly used in small networks. Good for LAN.

 Disadvantages:
1) Difficult to detect and troubleshoot fault.
2) Signal reflection at the taps can cause degradation in quality.
3) A fault/break in the cable stops all transmission.
4) Security is very low because all the devices receive the data
sent from the source.
 Ring

 Each device has dedicated point-to-point connection with only

the two devices on either side of it

 A signal is passed along the ring in one direction from device to

device until it reaches its destination

 Each devices incorporates a Repeater

 Advantages:
1) Easy installation and reconfiguration.
2)Fault isolation is simplified.
3) Congestion reduced: Because all the traffic flows in only one
direction.

 Disadvantages:
1) Unidirectional traffic.
2) A fault in the ring/device stops all transmission.
3) Slower: Each data must pass through all the devices between
source and destination.
 HYBRID Topology

 It is a mixture of two or more topologies.

 Ex: If in an office in one department ring topology is used and in

another star topology is used, connecting these topologies will
result in Hybrid Topology (ring topology and star topology).

 Advantages of Hybrid Topology:

◦ Reliable as Error detecting and trouble shooting is easy and
flexible.
◦ Scalable as size can be increased easily.

 Disadvantages of Hybrid Topology:

◦ Complex in design.
◦ Costly
Network Types : Local Area Network(LAN)
 LAN is a group of computers, that are connected in a small area
such as building, home, etc.

 Through this type of network, users can easily communicate

with each other by sending and receiving messages.

 LAN is generally used for connecting two or more personal

computers through some medium such as twisted pair, coaxial
cable etc.

 Through the number of computers connected in a LAN is

limited, the data is transferred at an extremely faster rate.
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

 MAN is a network of computers that covers a large area like city.

 The size of the MAN generally lies between LAN and WAN,
typically covering a distance of 5 km to 50 km.

 The geographical area covered by MAN is comparatively larger

than LAN but smaller than WAN.

 MAN is generally owned by private organizations.

 MAN is generally connected with the help of optical fibres,

copper wires etc.
Wide Area Network
 WAN is a group of computers that are connected in a large area such
as continent, country, etc.

 WAN is generally used for connecting two or more LANs through

some medium such as leased telephone lines, microwaves, etc.

 In WAN, data is transferred at slow rate.

 WAN can cover larger geographical area. It can cover cities,

countries and even continents.

 Normally, WAN is
◦ created & run by communication companies (Ex: BSNL, Airtel)
◦ leased by an organization that uses it.
 Internetwork
 A network of networks is called an internet. (Internet --> inter-
network)
 For example (Assume that an organization has two offices,

i) First office is on the east coast &

ii) Second office is on the west coast.
 INTERNET

 Origin
◦ The Internet evolved from the ARPANET

◦ Developed in 1969 by the Advanced Research Projects

Agency (ARPA) of the U.S. Department of Defense.

◦ It was the first operational packet-switching network.

Key Elements
 Internet Service Provider (ISP) - A company that provides other
companies or individuals with access to, or presence on, the Internet.
The larger ISPs have their own high-speed leased lines so that they
are less dependent on the telecommunication providers and can
provide better service to their customers.

 Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) - Telecommunications

equipment that is located on the customer’s premises (physical
location) rather than on the provider’s premises or in between.
Telephone handsets, modems, cable TV set-top boxes, and digital
subscriber line routers are examples.

 Central Office (CO) The place where telephone companies

terminate customer lines and locate switching equipment to
interconnect those lines with other networks.
 Network Service Provider (NSP) A company that
provides backbone services to an Internet service
provider (ISP).

 Point of Presence (POP) A site that has a collection

of telecommunications equipment, usually refers to
ISP or telephone company sites. Connections from
users are accepted and authenticated here.
 Internet Architecture

 The Internet today is made up of thousands of overlapping hierarchical

networks.

 Individual hosts and LANs are connected to an Internet service provider

(ISP) through a point of presence (POP)- connecting users with internet
using ISP.

 The connection is made in a series of steps starting with the customer

premises equipment (CPE).

 The CPE is the communications equipment located onsite with the host.

 For many home users, the CPE is a 56-kbps modem.

 This is perfectly adequate for e-mail and related services but marginal for
graphics-intensive Web surfing.
 The CPE is physically attached to the “local loop” or “last
mile.”

 This is the infrastructure between a provider’s installation and

the site where the host is located.

 For example,
◦ a home user with a 56K modem attaches the modem to the telephone
line.
◦ The telephone line is typically a pair of copper wires that runs from the
house to a central office (CO) owned and operated by the telephone
company
◦ In this instance the local loop is the pair of copper wires
running between the home and the CO.
 If the home user has a cable modem, the local loop is the
coaxial cable that runs from the home to the cable company
facilities.

 The ISP provides access to its larger network through a POP.

 A POP is simply a facility where customers can connect to the

ISP network.

 A POP can be as simple as a bank of modems and an access

server installed in a rack at the CO.

 The ISP acts as a gateway to the Internet, providing many

important services.
 The most important service an ISP provides is
◦ Access to other ISP networks. Access is facilitated by formal peering
agreements between providers.

◦ Physical access can be implemented by connecting POPs from different

ISPs. The network access point (NAP) mechanism is used for this
purpose.

 A NAP is a physical facility that provides the infrastructure to

move data between connected networks.

 The networks connected at a NAP are owned and operated by

network service providers (NSPs).
 Hierarchical organization of the Internet

 Structure of a national ISP