An Introduction to Networking Terminology, Interfaces, and Protocols
 Application:
Connection
 connection refers to pieces of related information that are
transferred through a network. This generally infers that a
connection is built before the data transfer (by following the
procedures laid out in a protocol) and then is deconstructed at the
at the end of the data transfer.
Packet
 A packet is, generally speaking, the most basic unit that is
transferred over a network. When communicating over a network,
packets are the envelopes that carry your data (in pieces) from one
end point to the other.
 Packets have a header portion that contains information about the
packet including the source and destination, timestamps, network
hops, etc. The main portion of a packet contains the actual data
being transferred. It is sometimes called the body or the payload.
Network Interface
 A network interface can refer to any kind of software interface to
networking hardware. For instance, if you have two network cards
in your computer, you can control and configure each network
interface associated with them individually.
LAN:
 LAN stands for "local area network". It refers to a network or a
portion of a network that is not publicly accessible to the greater
internet. A home or office network is an example of a LAN.
WAN:
 WAN stands for "wide area network". It means a network that is
much more extensive than a LAN. While WAN is the relevant term
to use to describe large, dispersed networks in general, it is usually
meant to mean the internet, as a whole.
Protocol
 A protocol is a set of rules and standards that basically define a
language that devices can use to communicate. There are a great
number of protocols in use extensively in networking, and they are
often implemented in different layers.
Port
 A port is an address on a single machine that can be tied to a
specific piece of software. It is not a physical interface or location,
but it allows your server to be able to communicate using more
than one application.
Firewall
 A firewall is a program that decides whether traffic coming into a
server or going out should be allowed. A firewall usually works by
creating rules for which type of traffic is acceptable on which ports.
Generally, firewalls block ports that are not used by a specific
application on a server.
NAT
 NAT stands for network address translation. It is a way to translate
requests that are incoming into a routing server to the relevant
devices or servers that it knows about in the LAN. This is usually
implemented in physical LANs as a way to route requests through
one IP address to the necessary backend servers.
VPN
 VPN stands for virtual private network. It is a means of connecting
separate LANs through the internet, while maintaining privacy. This
is used as a means of connecting remote systems as if they were on
a local network, often for security reasons.
OSI Model
 Historically, one method of talking about the different layers of
network communication is the OSI model. OSI stands for Open
Systems Interconnect.
 This model defines seven separate layers. The layers in this model
are:
- Application Link:
- Presentation
- Session
- Transport
- Network
- Data Link
- Physical
o The application layer is the layer that the users and user-
applications most often interact with. Network
communication is discussed in terms of availability of
resources, partners to communicate with, and data
synchronization.
 Presentation:
o The presentation layer is responsible for mapping resources
and creating context. It is used to translate lower level
networking data into data that applications expect to see.
 Session:
o The session layer is a connection handler. It creates,
maintains, and destroys connections between nodes in a
persistent way.
 Transport:
o The transport layer is responsible for handing the layers above
it a reliable connection. In this context, reliable refers to the
ability to verify that a piece of data was received intact at the
other end of the connection.
 Network:
o The network layer is used to route data between different
nodes on the network. It uses addresses to be able to tell
which computer to send information to. This layer can also
break apart larger messages into smaller chunks to be
reassembled on the opposite end.
 Data Link:
o This layer is implemented as a method of establishing and
maintaining reliable links between different nodes or devices
on a network using existing physical connections.
 Physical:
o The physical layer is responsible for handling the actual
physical devices that are used to make a connection. This layer
involves the bare software that manages physical connections
as well as the hardware itself (like Ethernet).
 TCP/IP Model
o The TCP/IP model, more commonly known as the Internet
protocol suite, is another layering model that is simpler and
has been widely adopted. It defines the four separate layers,
some of which overlap with the OSI model:
- Application
- Transport
- Internet
- Link
 Application:
o In this model, the application layer is responsible for creating
and transmitting user data between applications. The
applications can be on remote systems, and should appear to
operate as if locally to the end user.
 Transport:
o The transport layer is responsible for communication between
processes. This level of networking utilizes ports to address
different services. It can build up unreliable or reliable
connections depending on the type of protocol used.
Internet:
o The internet layer is used to transport data from node to node in a
network. This layer is aware of the endpoints of the connections,
but does not worry about the actual connection needed to get
from one place to another. IP addresses are defined in this layer as
a way of reaching remote systems in an addressable manner.
o The link layer implements the actual topology of the local network
that allows the internet layer to present an addressable interface.
It establishes connections between neighboring nodes to send
data.
Interfaces
o Interfaces are networking communication points for your
computer. Each interface is associated with a physical or virtual
networking device.
o Typically, your server will have one configurable network interface
for each Ethernet or wireless internet card you have.
o In addition, it will define a virtual network interface called the
"loopback" or local host interface. This is used as an interface to
connect applications and processes on a single computer to other
applications and processes. You can see this referenced as the "lo"
interface in many tools.
Media Access Control
o Media access control is a communications protocol that is used to
distinguish specific devices. Each device is supposed to get a unique
MAC address during the manufacturing process that differentiates
it from every other device on the internet.
o Addressing hardware by the MAC address allows you to reference a
device by a unique value even when the software on top may
change the name for that specific device during operation.
o Media access control is one of the only protocols from the link
layer that you are likely to interact with on a regular basis.
IP
o The IP protocol is one of the fundamental protocols that allow the
internet to work. IP addresses are unique on each network and
they allow machines to address each other across a network. It is
implemented on the internet layer in the IP/TCP model.
o Networks can be linked together, but traffic must be routed when
crossing network boundaries. This protocol assumes an unreliable
network and multiple paths to the same destination that it can
dynamically change between.
ICMP
o ICMP stands for internet control message protocol. It is used to
send messages between devices to indicate the availability or error
conditions. These packets are used in a variety of network SESSION LAYER
diagnostic tools, such as ping and trace route. The session layer is a connection handler. It creates, maintains, and destroys
HTTP connections between nodes in a persistent way. It provides:
o HTTP stands for hypertext transfer protocol. It is a protocol defined
in the application layer that forms the basis for communication on
the web.
HTTP defines a number of functions that tell the remote system what you are
requesting. For instance, GET, POST, and DELETE all interact with the
requested data in a different way.
FTP
o FTP stands for file transfer protocol. It is also in the application
layer and provides a way of transferring complete files from one
host to another.
It is inherently insecure, so it is not recommended for any externally facing
network unless it is implemented as a public, download-only resource.
DNS
o DNS stands for domain name system. It is an application layer
protocol used to provide a human-friendly naming mechanism for
internet resources. It is what ties a domain name to an IP address
and allows you to access sites by name in your browser.
SSH
o SSH stands for secure shell. It is an encrypted protocol
implemented in the application layer that can be used to
communicate with a remote server in a secure way. Many
additional technologies are built around this protocol because of its
end-to-end encryption and ubiquity.
===============================================================
OSI
The Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) model has seven layers. This article
describes and explains them, beginning with the 'lowest' in the hierarchy (the
physical) and proceeding to the 'highest' (the application). The layers are
stacked this way:
• Application
• Presentation
• Session
• Transport
• Network
• Data Link
• Physical
APPLICATION LAYER
The application layer is the layer that the users and user-applications most
often interact with. Network communication is discussed in terms of
availability of resources, partners to communicate with, and data
synchronization. This layer contains a variety of commonly needed functions:
• Resource sharing and device redirection
• Remote printer access
• Network management
• Electronic messaging (such as mail)
• Remote file access
• Inter-process communication
• Directory services
• Network virtual terminals
PRESENTATION LAYER
The presentation layer formats the data to be presented to the application
layer. This layer may translate data from a format used by the application
layer into a common format at the sending station, then translate the
common format to a format known to the application layer at the receiving
station.
The presentation layer provides:
• Character code translation: for example, ASCII to EBCDIC.
• Data conversion: bit order, CR-CR/LF, integer-floating point, and so
on.
• Data compression: reduces the number of bits that need to be
transmitted on the network.
• Data encryption: encrypt data for security purposes. For example,
password encryption.
• Session establishment, maintenance and termination: allows two
application processes on different machines to establish, use and
terminate a connection, called a session.
• Session support: performs the functions that allow these processes
to communicate over the network, performing security, name
recognition, logging, and so on.
TRANSPORT LAYER
The transport layer ensures that messages are delivered error-free, in
sequence, and with no losses or duplications. It relieves the higher layer
protocols from any concern with the transfer of data between them and
their peers.
The size and complexity of a transport protocol depends on the type of
service it can get from the network layer. For a reliable network layer with
virtual circuit capability, a minimal transport layer is required. If the network
layer is unreliable and/or only supports datagrams, the transport protocol
should include extensive error detection and recovery.
 Message segmentation: accepts a message from the (session) layer
above it, splits the message into smaller units (if not already small
enough), and passes the smaller units down to the network layer.
The transport layer at the destination station reassembles the
message.
 Message acknowledgment: provides reliable end-to-end message
delivery with acknowledgments.
 Message traffic control: tells the transmitting station to "back-off"
when no message buffers are available.
 Session multiplexing: multiplexes several message streams, or
sessions onto one logical link and keeps track of which messages
belong to which sessions (see session layer).
 Typically, the transport layer can accept relatively large messages, but there
are strict message size limits imposed by the network (or lower) layer.
Consequently, the transport layer must break up the messages into smaller
units, or frames, prepending a header to each frame.
NETWORK LAYER
The network layer controls the operation of the subnet, deciding which
physical path the data should take based on network conditions, priority of
service, and other factors. It provides:
Routing: routes frames among networks.
 Subnet traffic control: routers (network layer intermediate systems) can
instruct a sending station to "throttle back" its frame transmission when
the router's buffer fills up.
 Frame fragmentation: if it determines that a downstream router's
maximum transmission unit (MTU) size is less than the frame size, a
router can fragment a frame for transmission and re-assembly at the
destination station.
 Logical-physical address mapping: translates logical addresses, or
names, into physical addresses.
 Subnet usage accounting: has accounting functions to keep track of frames
forwarded by subnet intermediate systems, to produce billing information.
DATA LINK LAYER
The data link layer provides error-free transfer of data frames from one node
to another over the physical layer, allowing layers above it to assume
virtually error-free transmission over the link. To do this, the data link layer
provides:
 Link establishment and termination: establishes and terminates the
logical link between two nodes.
 Frame traffic control: tells the transmitting node to "back-off" when no
frame buffers are available.
 Frame sequencing: transmits/receives frames sequentially.
 Frame acknowledgment: provides/expects frame acknowledgments.
Detects and recovers from errors that occur in the physical layer by
retransmitting non-acknowledged frames and handling duplicate frame
receipt.
 Frame delimiting: creates and recognizes frame boundaries.
 Frame error checking: checks received frames for integrity.
 Media access management: determines when the node "has the right"
to use the physical medium.
PHYSICAL LAYER
The physical layer, the lowest layer of the OSI model, is concerned with the
transmission and reception of the unstructured raw bit stream over a
physical medium. It describes the electrical/optical, mechanical, and
functional interfaces to the physical medium, and carries the signals for all of
the higher layers. It provides:
 Data encoding: modifies the simple digital signal pattern (1s and
0s) used by the PC to better accommodate the characteristics of
the physical medium, and to aid in bit and frame synchronization. It
determines:
 What signal state represents a binary 1
 How the receiving station knows when a "bit-time" starts
How the receiving station delimits a frame
MESSAGING
 the sending and processing of email and similar electronic
communications.
TYPES OF MESSAGING
 EMAIL (electronic mail) -
a system for sending messages from one individual to another via
telecommunications links between computers or terminals using
dedicated software
 PAGING
o One of the earliest forms of messaging to mobile devices.
o Involves a caller dialing a telephone number associated
with the intended recipient of the page.
o The majority of pagers are used as one-way
communication devices. When the user receives a
message, that person responds either by calling the
number sent in the page or by some other appropriate
means.
o This is an effective way to alert people that you want to
get in touch with them or have them carry out a task.
o The most common two-way paging devices are the
Motorola TimePort and RIM's BlackBerry.
 Short Message Service (SMS)
o was first introduced in Europe in 1991 as part of the GSM
Phase 1 standard.
o makes it possible to send and receive short text messages to
and from mobile telephones.
o The message can contain alphanumeric characters to a
maximum length of 160 characters for Latin alphabets,
including English, and 70 characters for non-Latin alphabets,
such as Chinese.
o provides an easy way for individuals to communicate with one
another and with external systems and can even be received
during a voice call.
o Benefits of sms
o Guaranteed message delivery using a store-and-
forward approach.
o Ease of use, without additional software or
hardware.
o Low-cost method for information delivery.
o Revenue source for service providers.
 Enhanced Message Service (EMS
o allows users to send richer content, including pictures,
animations, sounds, and formatted text. EMS can be
added to existing SMS infrastructures, saving operators
from having to make large investments to add these new
features.
o Feature of Ems:
 Sounds and melodies.
 Pictures and animations.
 Formatted text.
 Concatenated messages.
 Multimedia Message Service (MMS)
o takes the capabilities of EMS one step further, adding
true richness to the message content. In addition to the
capability for pictures, formatted text, and sound
introduced in EMS, MMS also provides support for voice,
audio and video clips, and presentation information.
o provides automatic immediate delivery for custom
content, as well as store-and-forward capabilities when
the recipient is unable to receive the message. MMS also
adds support for email addressing, so messages can be
sent to an email address from the MMS client.
 Instant Messaging (IM)
o a type of online chat that offers real-time text
transmission over the Internet
o More advanced instant messaging can add file transfer,
clickable hyperlinks, Voice over IP, or video chat.
 Application-to-Application Messaging
o different from all of the messaging technologies we have
discussed so far
o this provides nearly unlimited flexibility as to the types of
messages that can be sent and how messages are
handled.
o can be used to create stand-alone messaging applications
or applications in conjunction with other smart client
 technology such as a mobile database and
synchronization
o permits communication between custom programs
running on mobile or wireless devices and a centrally-
located server application.
Topologies and Ethernet Standards
Ethernet
 A local-area network (LAN) architecture developed by Xerox
Corporation in cooperation with DEC and Intel in 1976.
 Ethernet uses a bus or star topology and supports data transfer
rates of 10 Mbps.
Bus Topology
 A bus network is a network topology in which nodes are directly
connected to a common linear (or branched) half-duplex link called
a bus.
 Main Advantage: It's easy to connect a computer or device and
typically it requires less cable than a star topology.
 Main Disadvantage: The entire network shuts down if there is a
break in the main wire and it can be difficult to identify the
problem if the network shuts down.
Mesh Topology
 In a mesh network, devices are connected with many redundant
interconnections between network nodes. In a true mesh topology
every node has a connection to every other node in the network.
Star Topology
 In a star network devices are connected to a central computer,
called a hub. Nodes communicate across the network by passing
data through the hub.
 Main Advantage: In a star network, one malfunctioning node
doesn't affect the rest of the network.
 Main Disadvantage: If the central computer fails, the entire
network becomes unusable.
Ring Topology
 A local-area network (LAN) whose topology is a ring. That is, all of
the nodes are connected in a closed loop. Messages travel around
the ring, with each node reading those messages addressed to it.
 Advantage: One main advantage to a ring network is that it can
span larger distances than other types of networks.
 Disadvantage: Moving, adding and changing the devices can
affect the network.
Tree Topology
 This is a "hybrid" topology that combines characteristics of linear
bus and star topologies. In a tree network, groups of star-
configured networks are connected to a linear bus backbone
cable.
 Main Advantage: A Tree topology is a good choice for large
computer networks as the tree topology "divides" the whole
network into parts that are more easily manageable.
 Main Disadvantage: The entire network depends on a central hub
and a failure of the central hub can cripple the whole network.
NETWORK HARDWARE
• also known as network equipment or computer networking
devices, are physical devices which are required for
communication and interaction between devices on a computer
network.
Routers
 A device that connects any number of LANs.
 Uses standardized protocols to move packets efficiently to their
destination.
 A router is a network device which is responsible for routing traffic
from one to another network.
Hubs
 An unintelligent network device that sends one signal to all of the
stations connected to it.
 Hubs are used for star topology networks, but they are often used
with other configurations to make it easy to add and remove
computers without bringing down the network.
Switch
 is a device that connects a number of computers together to make
a LAN.
 Split large networks into small segments, decreasing the number of
users sharing the same network resources and bandwidth.
 The typical use of a switch is at the centre of a star network (or as
part of a hybrid network) - the switch has cables plugged into it
from each computer.
Bridge
• Ha single input and single output port
• Is a network device that typically links together two different parts
of a LAN.
Repeater
• Connectivity devices that regenerate and amplify an analog or
digital signal
• Can not connect different network architecture.
• Is an electronic device that amplifies the signal it receives.
Modem
• A modem stands for (Modulator and Demodulator).
• it modulates and demodulates the signal between the digital data
of a computer and the analogue signal of a telephone line.
Firewall
• Is a device, or a piece of software that is placed between your
computer and the rest of the network.
• a piece of hardware or software put on the network to prevent
some communications forbidden by the network policy.
Proxy Server
• computer network service which allows clients to make indirect
network connections to other network services.
• Is a computer setup to share a resource, usually an Internet
connection.
Network Cable
• Cables are still used in most networks, rather than using only
wireless, because they can carry much more data per second, and
are more secure (less open to hacking).
Network Interface Card
• Connectivity devices enabling a workstation, server, printer, or
other node to receive and transmit data over the network media
Network Operating System
 is an operating system that includes special functions for
connecting computers and devices into a local-area network (LAN)
or Inter-network.
 Peer-to-peer
o network operating systems allow users to share
resources and files located on their computers and to
access shared resources found on other computers. In a
peer-to-peer network, all computers are considered
equal; they all have the same privileges to use the
resources available on the network.
o Peer-to-peer networks are designed primarily for small to
medium local area networks. Windows for Workgroups is
an example of the program that can function as peer-to-
peer network operating
systems.
 Client/server
o network operating systems allow the network to
centralize functions and applications in one or more
dedicated file servers. The file servers become the heart
of the system, providing access to resources and
providing security.
o The workstations (clients) have access to the resources
available on the file servers. The network operating
system allows multiple users to simultaneously share the
same resources irrespective of physical location. Novell
Netware and Windows 2000 Server are examples of
client/ server network operating systems.

Duplex
 A duplex communication system is a point-to-point system
composed of two connected parties or devices that can
communicate with one another in both directions.
 "Du" comes from "duo" that means "double", and "plex" that
means "structure" or "parts of“.
 An operating system that provides the connectivity among a
Simplex
number of autonomous computers is called a network operating
 The simplex transmission is the one that travels in only one
system. A typical configuration for a network operating system is a
direction
collection of personal computers along with a common printer,
 There are Two types of Duplex Communication System:
server and file server for archival storage, all tied together by a
o Half Duplex
local network.
 The half-duplex transmission is capable of
 Short for network operating system, NOS is the software that
sending signal in both directions, but in only
allows multiple computers to communicate, share files and
one direction at a time. Some networks use
hardware devices with one another. Some examples of network
half-duplex transmission, but it is required to
operating systems include Novell NetWare, Microsoft Windows NT,
specify this requirement for all the nodes in the
Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows XP, Sun Solaris,
network.
Linux, etc.
 Example:
Features of Network Operating System
 device is a walkie-talkie two-way
o Provide basic operating system features such as support for
radio that has a "push-to-talk"
processors, protocols, automatic hardware detection and support
button;
multi-processing of applications.
o Full-Duplex
o Provide security features such as authentication, logon
 Full-duplex data transmission means that data
restrictions and access control.
can be transmitted in both directions on a
o Provide name and directory services.
signal carrier at the same time.
o Provide file, print, web services and back-up services.
 It allows signal transmission in both directions
o Support Internetworking such as routing and WAN ports.
simultaneously.
o User management and support for logon and logoff, remote
 Example:
access; system management, administration and auditing tools
 a telephone is a full-duplex device
with graphical interfaces.
because both parties can talk at once.
o
The Difference between Half Duplex & Full Duplex
Peer-to-peer and Client / server.
 Half-duplex is used to describe communication where only... one
Mainly there are two types of network operating systems named as
side can talk at a time.
peer-to-peer and client / server.
 Full-duplex is used to describe communication where both sides
are able to send and receive data at the same time.
In depth tcp/ip networking
• Subnetting
• Subnetting separates a network into multiple logically
defined segments, or subnets. Networks are commonly
subnetted according to geographic locations,
departmental boundaries, or technology types.
• A network administrator might separate traffic to
accomplish the following…
• Enhance security
• Improve performance
• Simplify troubleshooting
• The challenges of Classful Addressing in IPv4 (No subnetting)
• The simplest type of IPv4 is known as classful addressing
(which was the Class A, Class B & Class C network
addresses).
• Classful addressing has the following limitations.
• Restriction in the number of usable IPv4 addresses (class
C would be limited to 254 addresses)
• Difficult to separate traffic from various parts of a
network
• IPv4 Subnet Masks
• Subnetting depends on the use of subnet masks to
identify how a network is subdivided. A subnet mask
indicates where network information is located in an IPv4
address.
• The 1 in a subnet mask indicates that corresponding bits
in the IPv4 address contain network information (likewise
0 indicates the opposite)
• Each network class is associated with a default subnet
mask…
• Class A = 255.0.0.0
• Class B = 255.255.0.0
• Class C = 255.255.255.0
• An example of calculating the network ID for a particular
device with a subnet mask is shown below..
• IP Address = 199.34.89.127
• Subnet Mask = 255.255.255.0
• Resultant Network ID = 199.34.89.0
• IPv4 Subnetting Techniques
• Subnetting breaks the rules of classful IPv4 addressing.
• CIDR (classless Interdomain Routing)
• CIDR is also known as classless routing or supernetting.
• In CIDR conventional network class distinctions do not
exist, a subnet boundary can move to the left, therefore
generating more usable IP addresses on your network. A
subnet created by moving the subnet boundary to the
left is known as a supernet.
• With CIDR also came new shorthand for denoting the
position of subnet boundaries known as CIDR notation or
slash notation. CIDR notation takes the form of the
network ID followed by a forward slash (/) followed by
the number of bits that are used for the extended
network prefix.
• To take advantage of classless routing, your networks
routers must be able to interpret IP addresses that don;t
adhere to conventional network class parameters.
Routers that rely on older routing protocols (i.e. RIP) are
not capable of interpreting classless IP addresses.
• Internet Gateways
• Gateways are a combination of software and hardware
that enable two different network segments to exchange
data. A gateway facilitates communication between
different networks or subnets. Because on device cannot
send data directly to a device on another subnet, a
gateway must intercede and hand off the information.
Every device on a TCP/IP based network has a default
gateway (a gateway that first interprets its outbound
requests to other subnets, and then interprets its
inbound requests from other subnets).
• The internet contains a vast number of routers and
gateways. If each gateway had to track addressing
information for every other gateway on the Internet, it
would be overtaxed. Instead, each handles only a
relatively small amount of addressing information, which
it uses to forward data to another gateway that knows
more about the data’s destination. The gateways that
make up the internet backbone are called core gateways.
• Address Translation
• An organizations default gateway can also be used to
“hide” the organizations internal IP addresses and keep
them from being recognized on a public network.
• A public network is one that any user may access with
little or no restrictions.
• On private networks, hiding IP addresses allows network
managers more flexibility in assigning addresses. Clients
behind a gateway may use any IP addressing scheme,
regardless of whether it is recognized as legitimate by the
Internet authorities but as soon as those devices need to
go on the internet, they must have legitimate IP
addresses to exchange data.
• When a clients transmission reaches the default gateway,
the gateway opens the IP datagram and replaces the
client’s private IP address with an Internet recognized IP
address. This process is known as NAT (Network Address
Translation).
• TCP/IP Mail Services
• All Internet mail services rely on the same principles of
mail delivery, storage, and pickup, though they may use
different types of software to accomplish these functions.
• Email servers and clients communicate through special
TCP/IP application layer protocols. These protocols, all of
which operate on a variety of operating systems are
discussed below…
• MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions)
• The standard message format specified by SMTP allows
for lines that contain no more than 1000 ascii characters
meaning if you relied solely on SMTP you would have
very short messages and nothing like pictures included in
an email.
• MIME us a standard for encoding and interpreting binary
files, images, video, and non-ascii character sets within
an email message.
• MIME identifies each element of a mail message
according to content type.
• MIME does not replace SMTP but works in conjunction
with it.
• Most modern email clients and servers support MIME
• POP (Post Office Protocol)
• POP is an application layer protocol used to retrieve
messages from a mail server
• POP3 relies on TCP and operates over port 110
• With POP3 mail is delivered and stored on a mail server
until it is downloaded by a user
• Disadvantage of POP3 is that it typically does not allow
users to save their messages on the server because of
this IMAP is sometimes used
• IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol)
• IMAP is a retrieval protocol that was developed as a more
sophisticated alternative to POP3
• The single biggest advantage IMAP4 has over POP3 is that
users can store messages on the mail server, rather than
having to continually download them
• Users can retrieve all or only a portion of any mail
message
• Users can review their messages and delete them while
the messages remain on the server
• Users can create sophisticated methods of organizing
messages on the server
• Users can share a mailbox in a central location
• Disadvantages of IMAP are typically related to the fact
that it requires more storage space on the server.
•
• Additional TCP/IP Utilities
• Nearly all TCP/IP utilities can be accessed from the
command prompt on any type of server or client running
TCP/IP. The syntaxt may differ depending on the OS of
the client.
• Below is a list of additional TCP/IP utilities – research
their use on your own!
• Ipconfig (Windows) & Ifconfig (Linux)
• Netstat
• Nbtstat
• Hostname, Host & Nslookup
• Dig (Linux)
• Whois (Linux)
• Traceroute (Tracert)
• Mtr (my traceroute)
• Route
 Ifconfig
• Some common operations include…
• -a – Applies the command to all interfaces on a Static vs Dynamic IP Addresses
device, can be used with other switches
• down – Marks the interface as unavailable to
the network
• up – Reinitializes the interface after it has been
taken “down” so that it is once again available
to the network
 Dig
 Stands for domain information groper.
 Dig allows you to query a DNS database and find the
host name associated with a specific IP address or
vice versa.
 Dig is useful for helping network administrators
diagnose DNS problems
 Dig can provide more information than nslookup
 Dig is included with UNIX and Linux operating
systems
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)
• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a client/server
protocol that automatically provides an Internet Protocol (IP) host
with its IP address and other related configuration information
such as the subnet mask and default gateway.
• There are more than one billion computers in the world, and each
individual computer needs its own IP address whenever it's online.
The TCP/IP protocols (our computers' built-in, internal networking
software) include a DHCP protocol. It automatically assigns and
keeps tabs of IP addresses and any "subnetworks" that require
them. Nearly all IP addresses are dynamic, as opposed to "static" IP
addresses that never change.
• DHCP is a part of the "application layer," which is just one of the
several TCP/IP protocols. All of the processing and figuring out of
what to send to whom happens virtually instantly.
• The key word in DHCP is "dynamic." Because instead of having just
one fixed and specific IP address, most computers will be assigned
one that is available from a subnet or "pool" that is assigned to the
network. The Internet isn't one big computer in one big location.
It's an interconnected network of networks, all created to make
one-on-one connections between any two clients that want to
exchange information.
• One of the features of DHCP is that it provides IP addresses that
"expire." When DHCP assigns an IP address, it actually leases that
connection identifier to the user's computer for a specific amount
of time. The default lease is five days.
Static Ip Address
 A static Internet Protocol (IP) address (static IP address) is a
permanent number assigned to a computer by an Internet service
provider (ISP). It is an IP address that was manually configured for a
device, versus one that was assigned via a DHCP server. Static IP
addresses are useful for gaming, website hosting or Voice over
Internet Protocol (VoIP) services. Speed and reliability are key
advantages. Because a static address is constant, systems with
static IP addresses are vulnerable to data mining and increased
security risks. It's called static because it doesn't change. It's the
exact opposite of a dynamic IP address, which does change.
 Routers, phones, tablets, desktops, laptops, and any other device
that can use an IP address can be configured to have a static IP
address. This might be done through the device giving out IP
addresses (like the router) or by manually typing the IP address
into the device from the device itself. Static IP addresses are also
sometimes referred to as fixed IP addresses or dedicated IP
addresses.
Static IP address advantages include:
• Lower costs
• Email server hosting capabilities
• Easy maintenance
• Ideal for online gaming
Static IP address disadvantages include:
• Devices that has static IP have to configure manually
• Poor security
 The opposite of a never-changing static IP address is an ever-
changing dynamic IP address. A dynamic IP address is just a regular
address like a static IP is, but it's not permanently tied to any
particular device. Instead, they're used for a specific amount of
time and then returned to an address pool so that other devices
can use them.
 This is one reason that dynamic IP addresses are so useful. If
an ISP were to use static IP addresses for all of their customers,
that would mean that there'd constantly be a limited supply of
addresses for new customers. Dynamic addresses provide a way for
IP addresses to be reused when they're not in use elsewhere,
providing internet access for many more devices than what would
otherwise be possible.
 Static IP addresses limit downtime. When dynamic addresses
obtain a new IP address, any user that's connected to the existing
one will be kicked off from the connection and have to wait to find
the new address. This wouldn't be a wise setup to have if the
server is hosting a website, a file sharing service, or an online video
game, all of which normally require constantly active connections.
 The public IP address assigned to the routers of most home and
business users is a dynamic IP address. Larger companies usually do
not connect to the internet via dynamic IP addresses; instead, they
have static IP addresses assigned to them which do not change.
Static and DHCP Addressing
 Most IP networks use dynamic addressing via DHCP (Dynamic Host
Configuration Protocol) rather than static IP assignment, because
dynamic IP addresses are the most efficient for the service
provider. Dynamic addressing is convenient because it's easy for
administrators to set up. DHCP works automatically with minimal
intervention needed, allowing mobile devices to easily move
between different networks.
However, static IP addressing offers some advantages to some users:
• A static IP address best supports name resolution across wide area
networks (WANs), enabling devices to be reliably reached by their
assigned host names. Web and FTP servers often use fixed
addressing for this reason.
• Using static IP addresses on home networks provides slightly better
protection against network security problems than does DHCP
address assignment.
• Download and upload speeds are often faster with static IPs than
with dynamic IP