Chapter

6
Telecommunications
and Networks
 Learning Objectives
• Understand the concept of a network
• Identify major developments and trends in
the industries, technologies, and business
applications of telecommunications and
Internet technologies
• Provide examples of the business value of
Internet, intranet, and extranet applications
 Learning Objectives
• Identify the basic components, functions,
and types of telecommunications networks
used in business
• Explain the functions of major components
of telecommunications network hardware,
software, media, and services
• Explain the concept of client/server
networking
 Learning Objectives
• Understand the two forms of peer-to-peer
networking
• Explain the difference between digital and
analog signals
 Network Concepts
• A network is an interconnected or
interrelated chain, group, or system
• The number of possible connections on a
network is N(N–1) or N2 –N
– N = number of nodes (points of connection)
– Example: 10 computers on a network =
10(10–1)
= 10x9 = 90 possible connections
 Open Systems
• Open systems use common standards for
hardware, software, applications, and networks
– Internet networking technologies are a common
standard for open systems
• Connectivity
– Open systems provide greater connectivity
and network interoperability
– Middleware may be needed to help diverse
systems work together
 Middleware
• Middleware
– A general term for any programming that mediates
between two separate programs
– Allows a particular database to access other databases
without custom programming
• Commonly known as the “plumbing” of an
information system
– It routes data and information between back-end data
sources and end user applications
– An essential component of any IT infrastructure
 Digital Network Technologies
• Telecommunications are being revolutionized by
switch from analog to digital
– Analog: voice-oriented transmission
– Digital: discrete pulse transmission
• Benefits
– Higher transmission speeds
– Moves larger amounts of information
– Greater economy and much lower error rates
– Transmits multiple types of communications (data, voice,
video) on the same circuits
 Wire & Wireless Technologies
• Fiber-optic
– Uses pulses of laser-generated light
– Reduced size and installation effort
– Vastly greater communication capacity
– Faster transmission speeds
– Freedom from electrical interference

• Satellite Transmission
– Can move massive quantities of data, audio,
and video over global networks
– Especially useful in isolated areas
 Business Application Trends
• Telecommunications networks now play a
vital and pervasive role in Web-enabled…
– E-business processes
– Electronic commerce
– Enterprise collaboration
– Other applications that support operations,
management, and strategic objectives
 Internet Service Providers
• ISP
– A company that specializes in providing easy
access to the Internet
– For a monthly fee, provides software, user name,
password, and Internet access
• ISPs themselves are connected to one
another through network access points
– One ISP can easily connect to another to obtain
addresses of websites or user nodes
 Internet Applications
• Most popular Internet applications and uses
– E-mail
– Instant messaging
– Browsing the Web
– Newsgroups
– Chat rooms
– Publish opinions, subject matter, creative work
– Buy and sell
– Downloading (data, software, reports, pictures, music,
videos) & etc.
 Intranets
• Intranets are protected by…
– Passwords
– Encryption
– Firewalls
• Customers, suppliers, and other business
partners can access an intranet via
extranet links
 Extranets
• Network links that use Internet technologies to
connect the intranet of a business to the intranets
of another
• Virtual Private Networks
– Direct private network links, or private secure Internet
links between companies
• Unsecured Extranet
– Link between a company and others via the Internet,
relying on encryption of sensitive data and firewall
security systems
 Telecommunications Network
Model
• A telecommunications network is any
arrangement where
– A sender transmits a message
– To a receiver
– Over a channel
– Consisting of some sort of medium
Telecommunications Network
Model
 Telecommunications Network
Components

• Terminals
– Any input/output device that uses networks
to transmit or receive data
• Telecommunications processors
– Devices that support data transmission, reception
• Telecommunications channels
– Media over which data are transmitted, received
• Computers
– All sizes and types
 Telecommunications Network
Components

• Telecommunications control software

– Controls telecommunications activities
– Manages the functions of telecommunications
networks
• Includes network management programs of
all kinds
– Telecommunications monitors (mainframes)
– Network operating systems (network servers)
– Web browsers (microcomputers)
Network Component
Alternatives
 Types of Communications
Networks
• Primary types of communications
networks
– Wide Area
– Local Area
– Virtual Private
– Client/Server
– Peer-to-peer
 Wide Area Network (WAN)
• Telecommunication network that covers a large
geographic area
 Local Area Network (LAN)
• Connects computers within a limited physical
area, such as an office, classroom, or building
 Virtual Private Networks (VPN)
• Used to establish secure intranets and
extranets
– The Internet is the main backbone network
– Relies on network firewalls, encryption, and
other security features to build a “pipe”
through the Internet
– Creates a private network without the high
cost of a separate proprietary connection
 Client/Server Networks
• Clients
– End user personal computers or networked computers
• Servers
– Used to manage the networks
• Processing
– Shared between the clients and servers
– Sometimes called a two-tier architecture
• Larger computer systems are being replaced
with multiple client/server networks
Client/Server Network
 Peer-to-Peer Networks
• Central Server Architecture
– P2P file-sharing software connects all PCs
to a central server
– When a PC requests a file, the server searches
all active peers on the network
– The server sends the requesting PC a list of
links to all active peers who have the file
– Clicking a link connects the two PCs and
automatically transfers the file to the
requesting PC
 Peer-to-Peer Networks
• Pure Peer-to-Peer Architecture
– No central directory or server
– File-sharing software connects one PC to
another online user
– When you request a file, the software searches
every online user and sends you a list of active
file names
– Clicking a link automatically transfers the file
from that user’s hard drive to yours
 Central Server Peer-to-Peer
Networks
• Advantages
– Can better protect the integrity and security
of the content and users of the network
• Disadvantages
– Directory server can be slowed or
overwhelmed by too many users or technical
problems
Peer-to-Peer Network Diagrams
 Digital and Analog Signals
• Analog or digital refers to the method used to
convert information into an electrical signal
– Analog: an electrical current is generated that
is proportional to the quantity being observed
– Digital: the quantity being observed is expressed as a
number
• Analog: if the temperature is 83 degrees, a measuring device
would generate 8.3 volts
• Digital: a measurement of 83 degrees would be displayed as
the number 83
 Telecommunications Media
• Twisted-Pair Wire
– Ordinary telephone wire
– Copper wire is twisted
into pairs
 Telecommunications Media
• Coaxial Cable
– Sturdy copper or
aluminum wire wrapped
with spacers to insulate
and protect it
 Telecommunications Media
• Fiber-Optic Cable
– One or more hair-thin
filaments of glass
fiber wrapped in a
protective jacket
The Problem of “The Last Mile”
• Network providers use fiber optic cable as
a communications backbone
– Houses connected to the backbone are wired
with twisted pair
– Users don’t benefit from the faster, better
technology
 Wireless Technologies
• Terrestrial Microwave
– Earthbound microwave systems transmit
high-speed radio signals
– Follows a line-of-sight path between relay systems
spaced about 30 miles apart
• Communications Satellites
– Serve as relay stations
– Use microwave radio signals
– Earth stations beam signals to the satellites
– Not suitable for interactive, real-time processing
 Wireless Technologies
• Wireless LANS
– Uses wireless radio-wave technology to
connect PCs within an office or a building
– Can be high-frequency, similar to digital
cellular, or low frequency (spread spectrum)
• Bluetooth
– Short-range wireless technology
– Connects PCs to devices, such as a printer
– Fairly low cost to implement
 Wireless Technologies
• Other Wireless Systems
– Cellular phones
– Mobile radio
– PDAs
• Telecommunications networks now play vital and
pervasive roles in
– Web-enabled e-business processes
– Electronic commerce
– Enterprise collaboration
– Other applications that support business operations,
management, and strategic objectives
 The Wireless Web
• Wireless Internet access is growing as Web-
enabled information appliances proliferate
– Smart telephones, pagers, PDAs
– All are very thin clients in wireless networks
 Telecommunications
Processors
• Modems
– The most common type of communications
processor
– Converts a digital signal to an analog
frequency that can be transmitted over phone
lines, then back into a digital signal
• Modulation and demodulation
 Inter-Network Processors
• Switch… makes connections between
telecommunications circuits in a network
• Router… intelligent communications processor
that interconnects networks based on different
protocols
• Hub… a port-switching communications
processor
• Gateway… connects networks with different
communications architectures
 Telecommunications Software
• May reside in PCs, servers, mainframes, and
communications processors
– Vital part of all telecommunications networks
– Used to manage network performance
– WANs often use telecommunications monitors or
teleprocessing monitors
– Other networks use operating system software
– Middleware helps diverse networks communicate
with each other
 Network Management
Functions
• Traffic Management
– Manage network resources and traffic to
avoid congestion and optimize service levels
• Security
– Provide authentication, encryption, firewall,
auditing, and enforcement
• Network Monitoring
– Troubleshoot and watch over the network,
alerting administrators of potential problems
 Network Management
Functions
• Capacity Planning
– Survey network resources, traffic patterns,
and users’ needs
– Determine the best way to accommodate the
needs of the network as it grows and changes
 Network Topologies
Topology
– The structure of a network

•Star Network
– Ties end user computers to a central computer
•Ring Network
– Ties local computer processors together in a ring on a
relatively equal basis
•Bus Network
– Local processors share the same communications
channel
 Network Topologies
• Mesh Network
– Uses direct communications lines to connect some or
all of the computers in the ring to
each other
• Switch
– A message-switching computer that handles
data communication between autonomous
local computers
Network Topologies
 Network Architectures and
Protocols
• Protocol
– A standard set of rules and procedures for the
control of communications in a network
• Handshaking
– The process of exchanging predetermined
signals and characters
– Establishes a telecommunications session
between terminals and computers
 Network Architectures and
Protocols
• Network Architecture
– Master plan of standard protocols, hardware,
software, and interfaces between end users
and computer systems
– Goal is to promote an open, simple, flexible,
and efficient telecommunications environment
 OSI and TCP/IP Models
• Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Model
– A seven-layer model that serves as a standard model
for network architectures
– Model for how messages should be transmitted
between two points in a network
– Each layer adds functions
• Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP)
– A five-layer telecommunications protocol used by the
Internet
 Voice Over IP
• Internet Telephony
– Using an Internet connection to pass voice
data using IP instead of a telephone network
– Often referred to as voice over IP or VoIP
– Works like a regular phone, but skips long-distance
charges
– Runs over standard network infrastructure
– Requires a well-configured network to work smoothly
 Bandwidth
• Bandwidth
– The frequency range of a telecommunications channel
that determines the maximum transmission rate
– Speed and capacity typically measured in bits
per second (bps)
– Sometimes call baud rate
• Transmission Rates
– Narrow-band = low speed
– Broadband = high speed
Transmission Speeds