Definitions

Computer network: A collection of connected computers.

Network protocol: A set of agreed signals for data exchange.
Network security: Systems and policies to protect unauthorised access, misuse or
destruction of resources.
Data security: Protecting against unauthorized access or destruction of data.
Host: A computer that connects to the internet and runs applications.
Process: A program in execution.
WWW: The part of the internet that is openly available to the public.
Internet: A network of networks.

Computer networks
Benefits of networking
● Work may be backed up.
● All of the users may be monitored.
● Resources may be shared such as files across the server.
● Can be accessed remotely where there is internet access.
● There can be multiple concurrent users at any one time.

Risks of networking
● As the geographical area of the LAN network increases the chance of interception
also increases.
● One user may be able to access the entire network.
● Viruses may travel across computers and infect the whole network.
● Failure of a domain server may prevent users from logging in, make files and data
inaccessible.

Types of computer networks

Personal area network (PAN):
● Network organised around a person.
● They can only transmit a connection to devices nearby.
● They can still access the internet.
● Most common is bluetooth.
Local area network (LAN):
● Linked computers in a small location e.g. a school.
● Fast connection speeds because the computers are all in close proximity.
● Allows for peripherals such as printers or they can easily share data.
● LANs are normally controlled by a person for a home network or an organization for a
school or other network.
Wide area networks (WAN):
 ● Connections between geographically remote locations. Different to a LAN because a
third party connects the two locations (e.g. BT).
● When two LANs are interconnected it is called an internet. This is opposed to the
Internet which is the largest WAN. (note the capital I)
● WANs ownership is often shared because it is expensive to install, operate and
maintain. For instance, the Internet is distributed among many commercial
companies and state owned companies.
Wired and wireless networks:
● Wired networks include fibre optic cables and Copper wires. Fibre optic cables are
faster than copper and there is less signal loss over long distances.
● Wireless networks are normally cheaper and easier to install than wired networks.
But wired networks are normally faster and safer as data cannot be intercepted as
easily.

Topologies
● Star network topology: A network where the cabling is arranged as a star such that
each link from the node (computer or other device) to the central computer (switch)
is an independent link. This means that if one link goes down the other links are
unaffected and the speed is normally high because the links are not shared. The
issue comes if the central switch breaks.
● Bus network topology: A network where the cabling is all connected and different
nodes connect via taps in the cable called T-piece connectors. It is fast for a few
machines but gets slow quickly due to traffic.
● When to use them: The wired bus method is now obsolete in most cases. It used to
require less cabling but now the star network topology is now much more efficient
because they are able to use the full bandwidth because packet collision will not
occur. Further, it is easy to connect new devices, failure of one will not affect the
others. Eavesdropping is harder. Significant gain in performance.

Network protocols
Common network protocols
Ethernet:
● A way of connecting computers together.
● Data is sent in packets called frames.
● The format and size of the frame is determined by the Ethernet bus protocol and the
LAN protocol.
● Ethernet can be standard (10 Mbps), fast (100 Mbps) and gigabit (1000 Mbps). This
is why it's referred to as a family of protocols.
Wifi:
● Enables devices to connect to the internet. It uses wireless LAN to connect to a
wireless access point (WAP) and then that connects to the internet via a wired LAN.
It uses LAN because it is short range.
● Wifi access points are accessed by multiple devices so it is called a multiple access
medium.
 ● Wi-fi is a family of protocols.
Transmission control protocol (TCP):
● Breaks down large pieces of data into chunks and then numbers it in the correct
order. These chunks are called TCP segments. The fact they are numbered means
that when it reaches its destination it can then be reconfigured in the correct order.
● TCP also detects errors in the transmission. An example is if the destination detects
errors in the packets it will request for the data to be sent again. Also, if the sender
does not receive acknowledgement within a few seconds that the segments have all
been received it will send the data again until it is acknowledged.
○ For this reason, TCP provides a reliable connection for two way data flow.
● In addition, TCP also matches flow speeds between the sender and the receiver and
provides congestion control by sending packets on less congested routes.
● Used for web and mail because data is not allowed to be lost.
User datagram protocol (UDP):
● Uses packets called datagrams.
● It sends these packets without being numbered and so relies on the packets arriving
in the correct order which it won’t necessarily do. It also doesn’t establish end to end
connections so there is also a chance the datagrams won't even reach the
destination so the UDP won’t request a resend.
● An example of a UDP is for media streaming or a VPN because it doesn’t matter
whether you get everything only about speed.
Internet protocol (IP):
● Routes packets from one IP address to another.
● The IP are the bits connected to the network host and the bits that identify the user to
the network host.
● Hence, the ip address of a host of say hostID 21 is 10.120.61.21 which is the network
ID plus the host ID. This IP address is unique.
● There is a special way to display an ip address. The common form as of now is IPv4.
This means 32 bits or 4 bytes. IPv4 is an example of a uniform addressing scheme
because each address conforms to the correct format. The first part is the network ip
which is displayed as the network ip.. With the user ips replaced by 0 and the number
of bits taken up represented by a number after a “/”. Here’s an example:
○ 195.192.45.0/23 This example has 23 bits of network ID as you can see
and it also shows the individual bytes. In binary this would be 11000011
11000000 00101010 00000000
■ This means there are 9 bits for host IDs.
● Because every IP is unique a router only has to receive the packets and send it to
the correct destination IP.
● The Internet is just a network of routers.
● Packet switching is the phrase associated with splitting data into packets and
sending them along different routes to reach the destination. This resembles a fishnet
because of all the different connections going everywhere.

Sending protocols
Hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP):
● A simple protocol that sends a request to a server through a pathway built by TCP.
The destination then sends a response.
Hypertext transfer protocol secure (HTTPS):
● This is the same as HTTP but it also encrypts the messages that are coming and
going from a server.
File transfer protocol (FTP):
● Protocol to send files between computers.
● TCP creates the pathway between an FTP client and an FTP server.
● The FTP client will send a request to a computer and then the server will send the file
to the client.
Simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP):
● Simple protocol to send texts.
● Has three inputs, a MAIL FROM address, a RCPT TO address and DATA (includes
the To: From: CC: etc. because this is simple text rather than a command).
● Further, content can not be validated.
● It only SENDS emails not receives them.

Receiving protocols
Post-Office Protocol (POP):
● Will download it to your local device permanently and is now outdated.
Internet message access protocol (IMAP):
● Stores emails on servers and then can be redownloaded locally at any point.

Network security
Authentication:
Identification:
● Requires a user ID or email to identify themselves.
Authentication:
● Requires a person to provide evidence of themselves through something they
know (password) or, something they have (bank card) or something that is a
part of them (face, thumbprint) *called biometrics*.
Authorisation:
● Allows someone access to a system as they have been verified and
authenticated.

Encryption:
Terminology:
Plaintext = the original message
Ciphertext = the encrypted message
Key = A sequence of numbers used to encrypt/decrypt often using a mathematical formula.
Encryption algorithm = the formula for encrypting the plaintext.
● If someone is able to intercept the data then encryption means that it has no purpose
or meaning to it.
● Encryption works by making decrypting something too mathematically complex that it
is too hard to decrypt it.
● For a simple shift cypher using frequency analysis you can work out which letters
are which and from there you can work out all of the data. The simple shift cipher is
known as the caesar shift cipher where it shifts the letters by a given number.
 ● Most common wireless encryption protocols are WEP (Wireless Equivalent
Privacy) and WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access). WEP is old and no longer in use.
Firewall:
● A combination of hardware and software to authenticate packets and blocking others
from the internet. For this reason it is located at the internet gateway. Separates a
trusted network from an untrusted network (normally the internet).
MAC address filtering:
● Each network interface card (NIC) is assigned a 48 bit address called a MAC
address which is written in 6 sets of two hex numbers. If that address is on a list then
it is allowed on the network but otherwise it will be rejected. There is a NIC in every
machine so there is a MAC address in every device.
● An issue with this method is that if a hacker learns the address then they will be able
to gain access to the network.
● MAC address is who you are. IP address is where you are.

Four layer TCP/IP model

KEY ORDER:
● Network protocols have layers.
● The TCP/IP protocol has 4 layers:
○ Application layer (FTP, SMTP, IMAP, HTTP, HTTPS)
○ Transport layer (TCP, UDP)
○ Internet or IP layer (Internet)
○ Link layer (Ethernet, wifi)
When RECEIVING DATA its the reverse of that list so:
● Link removes MAC address
● Internet removes IP addresses
● Transport reassembles packets
● Application displays the data

Application layer:
● Application programs interact with software through an Application programming
interface (API). The standard is the socket api.
● Transports packets with a process from one system to another.
Transport layer:
● Splits data into packets
● Creates a connection between two computers
Internet or IP:
● Uses a source and destination to send packets across the Internet with routers.
Link layer:
● Handles the physical details of interfacing with cables or wireless connections.
● Filters with MAC addresses.
You have to know:
● THE ORDER
● THE PURPOSE