(Module 3): Protocols and Models

➢ 3.1 The Rules

❖ Communications Fundamentals
There are three elements to any communication:

▪ There will be a source (sender).

▪ There will be a destination (receiver).
▪ There will be a channel (media) that provides for the path of communications to occur.
❖ Communications Protocols
▪ All communications are governed by protocols.
▪ Protocols are the rules that communications will follow.
▪ These rules will vary depending on the protocol.

❖ Rule Establishment
▪ Individuals must use established rules or agreements to govern the conversation.
▪ The first message is difficult to read because it is not formatted properly. The second shows
the message properly formatted

Protocols must account for the following requirements:

▪ An identified sender and receiver
▪ Common language and grammar
▪ Speed and timing of delivery
▪ Confirmation or acknowledgment requirements

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❖ Network Protocol Requirements
Common computer protocols must be in agreement and include the following requirements:
▪ Message encoding
▪ Message formatting and encapsulation
▪ Message size
▪ Message timing
▪ Message delivery options
Message Encoding
• Encoding is the process of converting information into another acceptable form for
transmission.
• Decoding reverses this process to interpret the information.

Message Formatting and Encapsulation

• When a message is sent, it must use a specific format or structure.
• Message formats depend on the type of message and the channel that is used to deliver the
message.

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 Message Size
• Encoding between hosts must be in an appropriate format for the medium.
• Messages sent across the network are converted to bits
• The bits are encoded into a pattern of light, sound, or electrical impulses.
• The destination host must decode the signals to interpret the message.

Message Timing
Message timing includes the following:
• Flow Control – Manages the rate of data transmission and defines how much information
can be sent and the speed at which it can be delivered.
• Response Timeout – Manages how long a device waits when it does not hear a reply from
the destination.
• Access method - Determines when someone can send a message.
• There may be various rules governing issues like “collisions”. This is when more
than one device sends traffic at the same time and the messages become corrupt.
• Some protocols are proactive and attempt to prevent collisions; other protocols are
reactive and establish a recovery method after the collision occurs.
Message Delivery Options
Message delivery may one of the following methods:
• Unicast – one to one communication
• Multicast – one to many, typically not all
• Broadcast – one to all
Note: Broadcasts are used in IPv4 networks, but are NOT an option for IPv6. Later we will
also see “Anycast” as an additional delivery option for IPv6.

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➢ 3.2 Protocols
Network Protocol Overview
Network protocols define a common set of rules.
Can be implemented on
devices in:
• Software
• Hardware
• Both

Protocols have their own:

• Function
• Format
• Rules

Network Protocol Functions

• Devices use agreed-upon protocols to communicate.
• Protocols may have one or functions.

Function Description
Addressing Identifies sender and receiver
Reliability Provides guaranteed delivery
Flow Control Ensures data flows at an efficient rate
Sequencing Uniquely labels each transmitted segment of data
Error Detection Determines if data became corrupted during transmission
Application Interface Process-to-process communications between network applications
Addressing Identifies sender and receiver

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 Protocol Interaction
• Networks require the use of several protocols.
• Each protocol has its own function and format.
Protocol Function
Hypertext Transfer • Governs the way a web server and a web client interact
Protocol (HTTP) • Defines content and format
Transmission Control • Manages the individual conversations
Protocol (TCP) • Provides guaranteed delivery
• Manages flow control
Internet Protocol (IP) • Delivers messages globally from the sender to the receiver
Ethernet • Delivers messages from one NIC to another NIC on the same
Ethernet Local Area Network (LAN)

➢ 3.3 Protocol Suites

❖ Protocols must be able to work with other protocols.
Protocol suite:
• A group of inter-related protocols necessary to perform a communication function
• Sets of rules that work together to help solve a problem

❖ The protocols are viewed in terms of layers:

• Higher Layers
• Lower Layers- concerned with moving data and provide services to upper layers

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There are several protocol suites.
• Internet Protocol Suite or TCP/IP- The most common protocol suite and maintained by
the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
• Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) protocols- Developed by the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Telecommunications Union
(ITU)
• AppleTalk- Proprietary suite release by Apple Inc.
• Novell NetWare- Proprietary suite developed by Novell Inc.

TCP/IP Protocol Example

• TCP/IP protocols operate at the application, transport, and internet layers.
• The most common network access layer LAN protocols are Ethernet and WLAN (wireless
LAN).

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 TCP/IP Protocol Suite
• TCP/IP is the protocol suite used by the internet and includes many protocols.
TCP/IP is:
• An open standard protocol suite that is freely available to the public and can be used by any
vendor
• A standards-based protocol suite that is endorsed by the networking industry and approved
by a standards organization to ensure interoperability

TCP/IP Communication Process

• A web server encapsulating and sending a web page to a client.
• A client de-encapsulating the web page for the web browser

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➢ 3.4 Standards Organizations
Open Standards
Open standards encourage:
• Interoperability ‫التوافقيه‬
• Competition ‫التنافس‬
• Innovation‫االبتكار‬

Standards organizations are:

• vendor-neutral
• non-profit organizations
• established to develop and promote the concept of open standards.
Internet Standards
• Internet Society (ISOC) - Promotes the open development and evolution of internet
• Internet Architecture Board (IAB) - Responsible for management and development of
internet standards
• Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) - Develops, updates, and maintains internet and
TCP/IP technologies
• Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) - Focused on long-term research related to internet
and TCP/IP protocols
Standards organizations involved with the development and support of TCP/IP
• Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) - Coordinates IP
address allocation, the management of domain names, and assignment of other information
• Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) - Oversees and manages IP address
allocation, domain name management, and protocol identifiers for ICANN
Electronic and Communications Standards
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE, pronounced “I-triple-E”) -
dedicated to creating standards in power and energy, healthcare, telecommunications, and
networking
• Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) - develops standards relating to electrical wiring,
connectors, and the 19-inch racks used to mount networking equipment
• Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) - develops communication standards in
radio equipment, cellular towers, Voice over IP (VoIP) devices, satellite communications,
and more
• International Telecommunications Union-Telecommunication Standardization Sector
(ITU-T) - defines standards for video compression, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV),
and broadband communications, such as a digital subscriber line (DSL)

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➢ 3.5 Reference Models
The Benefits of Using a Layered Model
Complex concepts such as how a network operates can be difficult to explain and understand.
For this reason, a layered model is used.
Two layered models describe
network operations:
• Open System Interconnection
(OSI) Reference Model

• TCP/IP Reference Model

These are the benefits of using a layered model:

• Assist in protocol design because protocols that operate at a specific layer have defined
information that they act upon and a defined interface to the layers above and below
• Foster competition because products from different vendors can work together
• Prevent technology or capability changes in one layer from affecting other layers above and
below
• Provide a common language to describe networking functions and capabilities

The TCP/IP Reference Model

TCP/IP Model Layer Description

Application Represents data to the user, plus encoding and dialog control.
Supports communication between various devices across
Transport
diverse networks.
Internet Determines the best path through the network.
Controls the hardware devices and media that make up the
Network Access
network

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 The OSI Reference Model
OSI Model Layer Description
7 - Application Contains protocols used for process-to-process communications.
Provides for common representation of the data transferred between
6 - Presentation
application layer services.
Provides services to the presentation layer and to manage data
5 - Session
exchange.
Defines services to segment, transfer, and reassemble the data for
4 - Transport
individual communications.
Provides services to exchange the individual pieces of data over the
3 - Network
network.
2 - Data Link Describes methods for exchanging data frames over a common media.
Describes the means to activate, maintain, and de-activate physical
1 - Physical
connections.
OSI and TCP/IP Model Comparison
• The OSI model divides the network access layer and the application layer of the TCP/IP
model into multiple layers.
• The TCP/IP protocol suite does not specify which protocols to use when transmitting over a
physical medium.
• OSI Layers 1 and 2 discuss the necessary procedures to access the media and the physical
means to send data over a network.

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➢ 3.6 Data Encapsulation
Segmenting Messages
Segmenting is the process of breaking up messages into smaller units. Multiplexing is the
processes of taking multiple streams of segmented data and interleaving them together.
Segmenting messages has two primary benefits:
• Increases speed - Large amounts of data can be sent over the network without tying up a
communications link.
• Increases efficiency - Only segments which fail to reach the destination need to be
retransmitted, not the entire data stream.

Sequencing
Sequencing messages is the process of numbering the segments so that the message may be
reassembled at the destination.
TCP is responsible for sequencing the individual segments.

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 Protocol Data Units
Encapsulation is the process where protocols add their information to the data.
• At each stage of the process, a PDU has a different name to reflect its new functions.
• There is no universal naming convention for PDUs, in this course, the PDUs are named
according to the protocols of the TCP/IP suite.

• PDUs passing down the

stack are as follows:

1. Data (Data Stream)

2. Segment
3. Packet
4. Frame
5. Bits (Bit Stream)

Encapsulation Example
• Encapsulation is a top down process.
• The level above does its process and then passes it down to the next level of the model. This
process is repeated by each layer until it is sent out as a bit stream.

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De-encapsulation Example
• Data is de-encapsulated as it moves up the stack.
• When a layer completes its process, that layer strips off its header and passes it up to the
next level to be processed. This is repeated at each layer until it is a data stream that the
application can process.

1. Received as Bits (Bit Stream)

2. Frame
3. Packet
4. Segment
5. Data (Data Stream)

➢ 3.7 Data Access

Addresses
Both the data link and network layers use addressing to deliver data from source to destination.
• Network layer source and destination addresses - Responsible for delivering the IP
packet from original source to the final destination.
• Data link layer source and destination addresses – Responsible for delivering the data
link frame from one network interface card (NIC) to another NIC on the same network.

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 Layer 3 Logical Address
The IP packet contains two IP addresses:
• Source IP address - The IP address of the sending device, original source of the packet.
• Destination IP address - The IP address of the receiving device, final destination of the
packet.
These addresses may be on the same link or remote.

An IP address contains two parts:

❖ Network portion (IPv4) or Prefix (IPv6)
• The left-most part of the address indicates the network group which the IP address is a
member.
• Each LAN or WAN will have the same network portion.
❖ Host portion (IPv4) or Interface ID (IPv6)
• The remaining part of the address identifies a specific device within the group.
• This portion is unique for each device on the network.
Devices on the Same Network
When devices are on the same network the source and destination will have the same number
in network portion of the address.
• PC1 – 192.168.1.110
• FTP Server –
192.168.1.9

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 Role of the Data Link Layer Addresses: Same IP Network
• When devices are on the same Ethernet network the data link frame will use the actual
MAC address of the destination NIC.
• MAC addresses are physically embedded into the Ethernet NIC and are local addressing.
• The Source MAC address will be that of the originator on the link.
• The Destination MAC address will always be on the same link as the source, even if the
ultimate destination is remote.

Devices on a Remote Network

• What happens when the actual (ultimate) destination is not on the same LAN and is remote?
• What happens when PC1 tries to reach the Web Server?
• Does this impact the network and data link layers?

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 Role of the Network Layer Addresses
When the source and destination have a different network portion, this means they are on
different networks.
• PC1 – 192.168.1
• Web Server – 172.16.1

Role of the Data Link Layer Addresses: Different IP Networks

When the final destination is remote, Layer 3 will provide Layer 2 with the local default
gateway IP address, also known as the router address.
• The default gateway (DGW) is the router interface IP address that is part of this LAN and
will be the “door” or “gateway” to all other remote locations.
• All devices on the LAN must be told about this address or their traffic will be confined to
the LAN only.
• Once Layer 2 on PC1 forwards to the default gateway (Router), the router then can start the
routing process of getting the information to actual destination.

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The data link addressing is local addressing so it will have a source and destination for each
link.
• The MAC addressing for the first segment is :
• Source – AA-AA-AA-AA-AA-AA (PC1) Sends the frame.
• Destination – 11-11-11-11-11-11 (R1- Default Gateway MAC) Receives the frame.
Note: While the L2 local addressing will change from link to link or hop to hop, the L3
addressing remains the same.
Data Link Addresses
• Since data link addressing is local addressing, it will have a source and destination for each
segment or hop of the journey to the destination.
• The MAC addressing for the first segment is:
• Source – (PC1 NIC) sends frame
• Destination – (First Router- DGW interface) receives frame

The MAC addressing for the second hop is:

• Source – (First Router- exit interface) sends frame
• Destination – (Second Router) receives frame

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The MAC addressing for the last segment is:
• Source – (Second Router- exit interface) sends frame
• Destination – (Web Server NIC) receives frame

• Notice that the packet is not modified, but the frame is changed, therefore the L3 IP
addressing does not change from segment to segment like the L2 MAC addressing.
• The L3 addressing remains the same since it is global and the ultimate destination is still the
Web Server.

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 Summery
The Rules
• Protocols must have a sender and a receiver.
• Common computer protocols include these requirements: message encoding, formatting and
encapsulation, size, timing, and delivery options.
Protocols
• To send a message across the network requires the use of several protocols.
• Each network protocol has its own function, format, and rules for communications.
Protocol Suites
• A protocol suite is a group of inter-related protocols.
• TCP/IP protocol suite are the protocols used today.
Standards Organizations
• Open standards encourage interoperability, competition, and innovation.
Reference Models
• The two models used in networking are the TCP/IP and the OSI model.
• The TCP/IP model has 4 layers and the OSI model has 7 layers.
Data Encapsulation
• The form that a piece of data takes at any layer is called a protocol data unit (PDU).
• There are five different PDUs used in the data encapsulation process: data, segment, packet,
frame, and bits
Data Access
• The Network and Data Link layers are going to provide addressing to move data through
the network.
• Layer 3 will provide IP addressing and layer 2 will provide MAC addressing.
• The way these layers handle addressing will depend on whether the source and the
destination are on the same network or if the destination is on a different network from the
source.

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