4.9 communication and networking Flashcards
protocol
**a set of rules **defining how devices will communicate
what does the protocol need to define
- standards for physical connections and cabling
- bit rate or baud rate
- data format
- transmission a/synchronous
- error checking procedures
serial data transmission
data is sent one bit at a time over one communication line
serial data cables include?
the usb (universal serial bus)
parallel cables are?
a ribbon of several smaller cables used primarily for connecting internal components
parallel data transmission
several bits are sent simultaneously along separate lines, only reliable over short distances
serial vs parallel connectors
- serial connectors (USB) much smaller + cheaper than parallel connectors
- a PC has several USB ports for connecting peripherals
advantages of serial transmission over parallel transmission
requires less wires: lower cost, less difficult to manage when setting up the system
no risk of crosstalk/skew over long distances, as only one bit is transmitted at a time — less chance of errors, no limiting factor on transmission speed, no limiting factor on cable length (for skew)
skew
- bits transmitted across parallel links travel at diff speeds
- in synchronous data transmission, results in data falling out of sync with clock signal, data not read correctly
when is skew worst
- over long distances
- higher transmission speeds
- in extreme cases can lead to bits from different pulses overlapping, causing data corruption
crosstalk
- when comm lines tightly packed, signals from one line can ‘leak’ into another, causing data corruption
- worse with higher transmission speeds
synchronous transmission
- clock signal times when signals are sent
- signals, sent at regular intervals, received in same order that they were sent
- suitable for transmitting info in real-time systems
asynchronous transmission
- no clock signal
- start and stop bits used to indicate duration of byte transmission
- each byte sent separately the moment it is available, doesn’t wait for clock signal
- also has a parity bit
purpose of start bit in asynchronous data transfer
start the receiver clock;
synchronise the clock in the transmitter to the receiver clock;
purpose of stop bit in asynchronous data transfer
allows next bit to be recognised;
provides time for receiver to process the received data;
benefits/issues with asynchronous transmission
- relatively slow owing to the increased num of bits being sent
- cheap and effective form of serial transmission well suited to low-speed connections
bit rate equation
baud rate x no. of bits per signal
difference between physical and logical topology
physical: the architecture of the connections (between devices on the network);
logical: how the packets flow around a network;
physical bus topology
- connects clients to a single cable called a backbone
- terminator placed at either end of the backbone
- no need for a central hub, server connected to back bone like a client
operation of logical bus network topology
a node broadcasts data (to the entire network);
all nodes on the network receive the data;
a node examines the received data to check if it is the intended recipient;
only one node can transmit data at a time;
advantages of physical bus topology
- no central hub, reducing chance of network failure + decreasing cost of installation
- inexpensive to install as min length of cable is required
disadvantages of physical bus topology
- packets sent through shared backbone, every client on network can see packets not intended for them
- backbone used for communication by multiple clients, risk of collisions
- backbone failure = entire network failure
advantages of physical star network topology
- packets sent directly to recipient, over a cable connected only to the recipient. other clients can’t see
- easy to add/remove clients
- each cable has just one device comming over it, eliminating collisions
- failure of one cable does not affect entire network performance
disadvantages of physical star network topology
- central hub failure = all comms over the network are stopped
- expensive to install due to amount of cables
how can a physical star topology behave logically as a bus network?
use a bus transmission protocol;
use appopriate physical switching (hub transmits data to all devices);
client-server network
one or more central servers provide services to the clients on the network
features of a client-server network
resources are stored on the server;
centralised security management, including levels of access;
complex and expensive setup and maintenance;
servers accessible at all times;
centralised backups + security + software distribution + data storage;
expandability, able to deal with network growth;
features of a peer-to-peer network
resources stored on each individual device;
any device can access/share resources from any other (files can be distributed across the network;
each device can act as both client and server;
security management may be more difficult;
devices communicated directly with each other, no central server;