Network Architecture

Year:
1st year
Semester:
S1
Programme main editor:
I2CAT
Onsite in:
Remote:
ECTS range:
6 ETCS

Professors

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Professors
Michele Pagano
UNIPI
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Professors
Yacine Benchaib
CGE

Prerequisites:

The concepts related to networking in general are introduced during the course ; however, a basic knowledge about computer programming and cryptography might be useful (although they will be briefly covered in the complementary content)

Pedagogical objectives:

At the end of the course the student will be able to understand the working principles of Internet, will know the main protocols of the TCP/IP stack and will be able to use wireshark for network traffic analysis.

Evaluation modalities:

The exam consists of an oral test (that includes an interview on theoretical topics and a practical test on traffic analysis) and/or written exam, and evaluation of lab reports.

Description:

The aim of the course is twofold : on one side it provides an introduction to the general principles of networking and an overview of the main protocols of the TCP/IP stack, on the other side more advanced topics such as end-to-end congestion control and evolution of transport layer protocols are presented.

Topics:

  • Delay, loss and throughput in packet-switched networks
  • Protocol layers and their service models
  • Transport layer services and protocols
  • Evolution of transport layer protocols : TCP variants, DCCP and QUIC

Complementary content:

  • Refresh on architectural principles of telecommunication networks.
  • Refresh on IP addressing implication in routing.
  • Link-state routing protocols.
  • Congestion control and congestion avoidance in TCP.

Required teaching material

books] James F. Kurose, Keith W. Ross, "Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach", 8th edition, Pearson Addison-Wesley Peter L Dordal,"An Introduction to Computer Networks", 2ndedition http://intronetworks.cs.luc.edu (for consultation) [devices] Laptop/Desktop with Linux‬ and Wireshark (to be used also during the final exam) [urls] http://gaia.cs.umass.edu/kurose_ross/index.php

Teaching volume:
lessons:
40 hours
Exercices:
Supervised lab:
20 hours
Project:

Devices:

  • Laboratory-Based Course Structure
  • Open-Source Software Requirements