Network Fundamentals

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Network Fundamentals

• Summer 1998
• Thane B. Terrill

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Introduction

• Networks are like cars in that they are full of
  simple things that once put together become very
  complicated. The secrete to understanding a
  network is to understand the overall
  relationships between the components. Therefore,
  when a problem occurs, you can isolate the
  problem to one area of the network.

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2.1 File Servers (p. 157)

• 2.1.1 A shared resource 2.1.2 Common hard disk
  2.1.3 Centralized security 2.1.3.1 User rights
  2.1.3.2 Data protection 2.1.4 Serving files
  2.1.5 Hardware characteristics 2.1.6 Huge
  storage area 2.1.7 Fast I/O (input/output)

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2.2 Application servers

• 2.2.1 Shared applications 2.2.2 For
  "mission-critical" jobs 2.2.3 Hardware
  characteristics 2.2.3.1 Fast processors 2.2.3.2
  Large amounts of RAM 2.2.3.3 Large storage area

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2.3 PCs and NCs (p. 113)

• 2.3.1 Hardware characteristics 2.3.2 Superior
  video and sound 2.3.3 Ergonomics

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2.4 Network Computers

• 2.4.1 Moves processing to server 2.4.2 Computer
  as appliance 2.4.3 X-windows 2.4.4 Java 2.4.5
  WinTerm (Win Frame, Citrix, Hydra)2.4.6 Dumb
  terminal replacement

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2.5 Network operating systems

• 2.5.1 NetWare 2.5.2 Windows NT 2.5.3 Unix
  2.5.4 Lantastic and other peer-to-peer systems

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2.5.5 OSI network model

• Physical -- vocal cords
• Datalink -- moving air
• Network -- creating sounds (Do, Ra, Me)
• Transport -- organizing sounds into words, etc.
• Application -- the musical score

Physical (hardware)
Datalink (packets)
Network (datagrams)
Transport (byte-stream)
Application (data)
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2.6 Novell NetWare

• 2.6.1 Market Leader -- especially in large
  organizations 2.6.2 Fastest and most secure
  system 2.6.3 Excellent directory service 2.6.4
  Not good as an application server

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2.7 Windows NT (p. 83)

• 2.7.1 Fastest growing system for small sites
  2.7.2 Considered easiest to administer 2.7.3
  Good as an application server 2.7.4 Weak network
  security and poor directory services 2.7.5 NT
  Workstation is an inexpensive server 2.7.6 NT
  comes bundles with many programs, like a web
  server

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2.8 Unix

• 2.8.1 Many versions of Unix exist 2.8.2
  Powerful 2.8.3 Runs on many computer platforms
  2.8.4 Scalable 2.8.5 Suitable for
  mission-critical jobs 2.8.6 Flexible commands
  and utilities 2.8.7 Difficult to use 2.8.8
  Almost a requirement in a university environment

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2.9 Lantastic

• 2.9.1 Peer-to-peer 2.9.2 Each computer can be a
  "server" 2.9.3 Good for very small networks
  2.9.4 Mostly used to share printers 2.9.5
  Frequently used in small educational settings
  2.9.6 Easy to use and administer 2.9.7 Can be
  integrated with other server systems