Cisco Networking Academy
Discovery 4 : Designing and Supporting Computer Networks (V 4.0)
Discovery 4 : Module 1 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 2 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 3 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 4 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 5 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 6 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 7 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 8 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 9 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : FINAL Exam Answers
A Complete Learning Program
The Cisco Networking Academy Program provides skills students need to work in IT fields. The program offers Web-based content, online assessment, hand-on labs, instructor training, and preparation for industry certifications
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Discovery 1-4 (V 4.0)
Discovery 1 : Networking for Home and Small Businesses
Discovery 2 : Working at a Small-to-Medium Business or ISP
Discovery 3 : Introducing Routing and Switching in the Enterprise
Discovery 4 : Designing and Supporting Computer Networks (V 4.0)
A Complete Learning Program
The Cisco Networking Academy Program provides skills students need to work in IT fields. The program offers Web-based content, online assessment, hand-on labs, instructor training, and preparation for industry certifications
Exploration 1-4 (V 4.0)
A Complete Learning Program
The Cisco Networking Academy Program provides skills students need to work in IT fields. The program offers Web-based content, online assessment, hand-on labs, instructor training, and preparation for industry certifications
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Bandwidth and Throuhgput
Bandwidth and Throuhgput
A major disadvantage of Ethernet 802.3 networks is collisions. Collisions occur when two hosts transmit frames simultaneously. When a collision occurs, the transmitted frames are corrupted or destroyed. The sending hosts stop sending further transmissions for a random period, based on the Ethernet 802.3 rules of CSMA/CD.
Because Ethernet has no way of controlling which node will be transmitting at any time, we know that collisions will occur when more than one node attempts to gain access to the network. Ethernet's resolution for collisions does not occur instantaneously. Also, a node involved in a collision cannot start transmitting until the matter is resolved. As more devices are added to the shared media the likelihood of collisions increases. Because of this, it is important to understand that when stating the bandwidth of the Ethernet network is 10 Mb/s, full bandwidth for transmission is available only after any collisions have been resolved. The net throughput of the port (the average data that is effectively transmitted) will be considerably reduced as a function of how many other nodes want to use the network. A hub offers no mechanisms to either eliminate or reduce these collisions and the available bandwidth that any one node has to transmit is correspondingly reduced. As a result, the number of nodes sharing the Ethernet network will have effect on the throughput or productivity of the network.
Collision Domains
When expanding an Ethernet LAN to accommodate more users with more bandwidth requirements, the potential for collisions increases. To reduce the number of nodes on a given network segment, you can create separate physical network segments, called collision domains.
The network area where frames originate and collide is called the collision domain. All shared media environments, such as those created by using hubs, are collision domains. When a host is connected to a switch port, the switch creates a dedicated connection. This connection is considered an individual collision domain, because traffic is kept separate from all other traffic, thereby eliminating the potential for a collision. The figure shows unique collision domains in a switched environment. For example, if a 12-port switch has a device connected to each port, 12 collision domains are created.
As you now know, a switch builds a MAC address table by learning the MAC addresses of the hosts that are connected to each switch port. When two connected hosts want to communicate with each other, the switch uses the switching table to establish a connection between the ports. The circuit is maintained until the session is terminated. In the figure, Host A and Host B want to communicate with each other. The switch creates the connection that is referred to as a microsegment. The microsegment behaves as if the network has only two hosts, one host sending and one receiving, providing maximum utilization of the available bandwidth.
Switches reduce collisions and improve bandwidth use on network segments because they provide dedicated bandwidth to each network segment.
Network Latency
Latency is the time a frame or a packet takes to travel from the source station to the final destination. Users of network-based applications experience latency when they have to wait many minutes to access data stored in a data center or when a website takes many minutes to load in a browser. Latency has at least three sources.
First, there is the time it takes the source NIC to place voltage pulses on the wire, and the time it takes the destination NIC to interpret these pulses. This is sometimes called NIC delay, typically around 1 microsecond for a 10BASE-T NIC.
Second, there is the actual propagation delay as the signal takes time to travel through the cable. Typically, this is about 0.556 microseconds per 100 m for Cat 5 UTP. Longer cable and slower nominal velocity of propagation (NVP) result in more propagation delay.
Third, latency is added based on network devices that are in the path between two devices. These are either Layer 1, Layer 2, or Layer 3 devices. These three contributors to latency can be discerned from the animation as the frame traverses the network.
Latency does not depend solely on distance and number of devices. For example, if three properly configured switches separate two computers, the computers may experience less latency than if two properly configured routers separated them. This is because routers conduct more complex and time-intensive functions. For example, a router must analyze Layer 3 data, while switches just analyze the Layer 2 data. Since Layer 2 data is present earlier in the frame structure than the Layer 3 data, switches can process the frame more quickly. Switches also support the high transmission rates of voice, video, and data networks by employing application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) to provide hardware support for many networking tasks. Additional switch features such as port-based memory buffering, port level QoS, and congestion management, also help to reduce network latency.
Switch-based latency may also be due to oversubscribed switch fabric. Many entry-level switches do not have enough internal throughput to manage full bandwidth capabilities on all ports simultaneously. The switch needs to be able to manage the amount of peak data expected on the network. As the switching technology improves, the latency through the switch is no longer the issue. The predominant cause of network latency in a switched LAN is more a function of the media being transmitted, routing protocols used, and types of applications running on the network.
A major disadvantage of Ethernet 802.3 networks is collisions. Collisions occur when two hosts transmit frames simultaneously. When a collision occurs, the transmitted frames are corrupted or destroyed. The sending hosts stop sending further transmissions for a random period, based on the Ethernet 802.3 rules of CSMA/CD.
Because Ethernet has no way of controlling which node will be transmitting at any time, we know that collisions will occur when more than one node attempts to gain access to the network. Ethernet's resolution for collisions does not occur instantaneously. Also, a node involved in a collision cannot start transmitting until the matter is resolved. As more devices are added to the shared media the likelihood of collisions increases. Because of this, it is important to understand that when stating the bandwidth of the Ethernet network is 10 Mb/s, full bandwidth for transmission is available only after any collisions have been resolved. The net throughput of the port (the average data that is effectively transmitted) will be considerably reduced as a function of how many other nodes want to use the network. A hub offers no mechanisms to either eliminate or reduce these collisions and the available bandwidth that any one node has to transmit is correspondingly reduced. As a result, the number of nodes sharing the Ethernet network will have effect on the throughput or productivity of the network.
Collision Domains
When expanding an Ethernet LAN to accommodate more users with more bandwidth requirements, the potential for collisions increases. To reduce the number of nodes on a given network segment, you can create separate physical network segments, called collision domains.
The network area where frames originate and collide is called the collision domain. All shared media environments, such as those created by using hubs, are collision domains. When a host is connected to a switch port, the switch creates a dedicated connection. This connection is considered an individual collision domain, because traffic is kept separate from all other traffic, thereby eliminating the potential for a collision. The figure shows unique collision domains in a switched environment. For example, if a 12-port switch has a device connected to each port, 12 collision domains are created.
As you now know, a switch builds a MAC address table by learning the MAC addresses of the hosts that are connected to each switch port. When two connected hosts want to communicate with each other, the switch uses the switching table to establish a connection between the ports. The circuit is maintained until the session is terminated. In the figure, Host A and Host B want to communicate with each other. The switch creates the connection that is referred to as a microsegment. The microsegment behaves as if the network has only two hosts, one host sending and one receiving, providing maximum utilization of the available bandwidth.
Switches reduce collisions and improve bandwidth use on network segments because they provide dedicated bandwidth to each network segment.
Network Latency
Latency is the time a frame or a packet takes to travel from the source station to the final destination. Users of network-based applications experience latency when they have to wait many minutes to access data stored in a data center or when a website takes many minutes to load in a browser. Latency has at least three sources.
First, there is the time it takes the source NIC to place voltage pulses on the wire, and the time it takes the destination NIC to interpret these pulses. This is sometimes called NIC delay, typically around 1 microsecond for a 10BASE-T NIC.
Second, there is the actual propagation delay as the signal takes time to travel through the cable. Typically, this is about 0.556 microseconds per 100 m for Cat 5 UTP. Longer cable and slower nominal velocity of propagation (NVP) result in more propagation delay.
Third, latency is added based on network devices that are in the path between two devices. These are either Layer 1, Layer 2, or Layer 3 devices. These three contributors to latency can be discerned from the animation as the frame traverses the network.
Latency does not depend solely on distance and number of devices. For example, if three properly configured switches separate two computers, the computers may experience less latency than if two properly configured routers separated them. This is because routers conduct more complex and time-intensive functions. For example, a router must analyze Layer 3 data, while switches just analyze the Layer 2 data. Since Layer 2 data is present earlier in the frame structure than the Layer 3 data, switches can process the frame more quickly. Switches also support the high transmission rates of voice, video, and data networks by employing application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) to provide hardware support for many networking tasks. Additional switch features such as port-based memory buffering, port level QoS, and congestion management, also help to reduce network latency.
Switch-based latency may also be due to oversubscribed switch fabric. Many entry-level switches do not have enough internal throughput to manage full bandwidth capabilities on all ports simultaneously. The switch needs to be able to manage the amount of peak data expected on the network. As the switching technology improves, the latency through the switch is no longer the issue. The predominant cause of network latency in a switched LAN is more a function of the media being transmitted, routing protocols used, and types of applications running on the network.
Network Congestion
Network Congestion
The primary reason for segmenting a LAN into smaller parts is to isolate traffic and to achieve better use of bandwidth per user. Without segmentation, a LAN quickly becomes clogged with traffic and collisions. The figure shows a network that is subject to congestion by multiple node devices on a hub-based network.
These are the most common causes of network congestion:
- Increasingly powerful computer and network technologies. Today, CPUs, buses, and peripherals are much faster and more powerful than those used in early LANs, therefore they can send more data at higher rates through the network, and they can process more data at higher rates.
- Increasing volume of network traffic. Network traffic is now more common because remote resources are necessary to carry out basic work. Additionally, broadcast messages, such as address resolution queries sent out by ARP, can adversely affect end-station and network performance.
- High-bandwidth applications. Software applications are becoming richer in their functionality and are requiring more and more bandwidth. Desktop publishing, engineering design, video on demand (VoD), electronic learning (e-learning), and streaming video all require considerable processing power and speed.
LAN Segmentation
LANs are segmented into a number of smaller collision and broadcast domains using routers and switches. Previously, bridges were used, but this type of network equipment is rarely seen in a modern switched LAN. The figure shows the routers and switches segmenting a LAN.
In the figure the network is segmented into two collision domains using the switch.
Bridges and Switches
Although bridges and switches share many attributes, several distinctions differentiate these technologies. Bridges are generally used to segment a LAN into a couple of smaller segments. Switches are generally used to segment a large LAN into many smaller segments. Bridges have only a few ports for LAN connectivity, whereas switches have many.
Routers
Even though the LAN switch reduces the size of collision domains, all hosts connected to the switch are still in the same broadcast domain. Because routers do not forward broadcast traffic by default, they can be used to create broadcast domains. Creating additional, smaller broadcast domains with a router reduces broadcast traffic and provides more available bandwidth for unicast communications. Each router interface connects to a separate network, containing broadcast traffic within the LAN segment in which it originated.
Controlling Network Latency
When designing a network to reduce latency, you need to consider the latency caused by each device on the network. Switches can introduce latency on a network when oversubscribed on a busy network. For example, if a core level switch has to support 48 ports, each one capable of running at 1000 Mb/s full duplex, the switch should support around 96 Gb/s internal throughput if it is to maintain full wirespeed across all ports simultaneously. In this example, the throughput requirements stated are typical of core-level switches, not of access-level switches.
The use of higher layer devices can also increase latency on a network. When a Layer 3 device, such as a router, needs to examine the Layer 3 addressing information contained within the frame, it must read further into the frame than a Layer 2 device, which creates a longer processing time. Limiting the use of higher layer devices can help reduce network latency. However, appropriate use of Layer 3 devices helps prevent contention from broadcast traffic in a large broadcast domain or the high collision rate in a large collision domain.
Removing Bottlenecks
Bottlenecks on a network are places where high network congestion results in slow performance.
In this figure which shows six computers connected to a switch, a single server is also connected to the same switch. Each workstation and the server are all connected using a 1000 Mb/s NIC. What happens when all six computers try to access the server at the same time? Does each workstation get 1000 Mb/s dedicated access to the server? No, all the computers have to share the 1000 Mb/s connection that the server has to the switch. Cumulatively, the computers are capable of 6000 Mb/s to the switch. If each connection was used at full capacity, each computer would be able to use only 167 Mb/s, one-sixth of the 1000 Mb/s bandwidth. To reduce the bottleneck to the server, additional network cards can be installed, which increases the total bandwidth the server is capable of receiving. The figure shows five NIC cards in the server and approximately five times the bandwidth. The same logic applies to network topologies. When switches with multiple nodes are interconnected by a single 1000 Mb/s connection, a bottleneck is created at this single interconnect.
Higher capacity links (for example, upgrading from 100 Mb/s to 1000 Mb/s connections) and using multiple links leveraging link aggregation technologies (for example, combining two links as if they were one to double a connection's capacity) can help to reduce the bottlenecks created by inter-switch links and router links. Although configuring link aggregation is outside the scope of this course, it is important to consider a device's capabilities when assessing a network's needs. How many ports and of what speed is the device capable of? What is the internal throughput of the device? Can it handle the anticipated traffic loads considering its placement in the network?
The primary reason for segmenting a LAN into smaller parts is to isolate traffic and to achieve better use of bandwidth per user. Without segmentation, a LAN quickly becomes clogged with traffic and collisions. The figure shows a network that is subject to congestion by multiple node devices on a hub-based network.
These are the most common causes of network congestion:
- Increasingly powerful computer and network technologies. Today, CPUs, buses, and peripherals are much faster and more powerful than those used in early LANs, therefore they can send more data at higher rates through the network, and they can process more data at higher rates.
- Increasing volume of network traffic. Network traffic is now more common because remote resources are necessary to carry out basic work. Additionally, broadcast messages, such as address resolution queries sent out by ARP, can adversely affect end-station and network performance.
- High-bandwidth applications. Software applications are becoming richer in their functionality and are requiring more and more bandwidth. Desktop publishing, engineering design, video on demand (VoD), electronic learning (e-learning), and streaming video all require considerable processing power and speed.
LAN Segmentation
LANs are segmented into a number of smaller collision and broadcast domains using routers and switches. Previously, bridges were used, but this type of network equipment is rarely seen in a modern switched LAN. The figure shows the routers and switches segmenting a LAN.
In the figure the network is segmented into two collision domains using the switch.
Bridges and Switches
Although bridges and switches share many attributes, several distinctions differentiate these technologies. Bridges are generally used to segment a LAN into a couple of smaller segments. Switches are generally used to segment a large LAN into many smaller segments. Bridges have only a few ports for LAN connectivity, whereas switches have many.
Routers
Even though the LAN switch reduces the size of collision domains, all hosts connected to the switch are still in the same broadcast domain. Because routers do not forward broadcast traffic by default, they can be used to create broadcast domains. Creating additional, smaller broadcast domains with a router reduces broadcast traffic and provides more available bandwidth for unicast communications. Each router interface connects to a separate network, containing broadcast traffic within the LAN segment in which it originated.
Controlling Network Latency
When designing a network to reduce latency, you need to consider the latency caused by each device on the network. Switches can introduce latency on a network when oversubscribed on a busy network. For example, if a core level switch has to support 48 ports, each one capable of running at 1000 Mb/s full duplex, the switch should support around 96 Gb/s internal throughput if it is to maintain full wirespeed across all ports simultaneously. In this example, the throughput requirements stated are typical of core-level switches, not of access-level switches.
The use of higher layer devices can also increase latency on a network. When a Layer 3 device, such as a router, needs to examine the Layer 3 addressing information contained within the frame, it must read further into the frame than a Layer 2 device, which creates a longer processing time. Limiting the use of higher layer devices can help reduce network latency. However, appropriate use of Layer 3 devices helps prevent contention from broadcast traffic in a large broadcast domain or the high collision rate in a large collision domain.
Removing Bottlenecks
Bottlenecks on a network are places where high network congestion results in slow performance.
In this figure which shows six computers connected to a switch, a single server is also connected to the same switch. Each workstation and the server are all connected using a 1000 Mb/s NIC. What happens when all six computers try to access the server at the same time? Does each workstation get 1000 Mb/s dedicated access to the server? No, all the computers have to share the 1000 Mb/s connection that the server has to the switch. Cumulatively, the computers are capable of 6000 Mb/s to the switch. If each connection was used at full capacity, each computer would be able to use only 167 Mb/s, one-sixth of the 1000 Mb/s bandwidth. To reduce the bottleneck to the server, additional network cards can be installed, which increases the total bandwidth the server is capable of receiving. The figure shows five NIC cards in the server and approximately five times the bandwidth. The same logic applies to network topologies. When switches with multiple nodes are interconnected by a single 1000 Mb/s connection, a bottleneck is created at this single interconnect.
Higher capacity links (for example, upgrading from 100 Mb/s to 1000 Mb/s connections) and using multiple links leveraging link aggregation technologies (for example, combining two links as if they were one to double a connection's capacity) can help to reduce the bottlenecks created by inter-switch links and router links. Although configuring link aggregation is outside the scope of this course, it is important to consider a device's capabilities when assessing a network's needs. How many ports and of what speed is the device capable of? What is the internal throughput of the device? Can it handle the anticipated traffic loads considering its placement in the network?
Discovery 4 : Designing and Supporting Computer Networks (V 4.0)
Cisco Networking Academy
Discovery 4 : Designing and Supporting Computer Networks (V 4.0)
Discovery 4 : Module 1 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 2 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 3 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 4 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 5 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 6 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 7 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 8 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 9 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : FINAL Exam Answers
A Complete Learning Program
The Cisco Networking Academy Program provides skills students need to work in IT fields. The program offers Web-based content, online assessment, hand-on labs, instructor training, and preparation for industry certifications
Discovery 4 : Designing and Supporting Computer Networks (V 4.0)
Discovery 4 : Module 1 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 2 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 3 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 4 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 5 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 6 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 7 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 8 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : Module 9 Exam Answers
Discovery 4 : FINAL Exam Answers
A Complete Learning Program
The Cisco Networking Academy Program provides skills students need to work in IT fields. The program offers Web-based content, online assessment, hand-on labs, instructor training, and preparation for industry certifications
Friday, December 19, 2008
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