Instructor: Dr. Richard J. Nieporent

This course provides a detailed examination of the conceptual framework for modeling communications between processes residing on independent hosts, and the rules and procedures that mediate the exchange of information between two communicating processes. The OSI Reference Model (OSIRM) is used as the basis for identifying the services and protocols required for communications to take place between processes on autonomous hosts. The OSIRM is presented and the fundamentals of protocol design are examined. The service definitions and protocol specifications for implementing each of the seven layers of the Reference Model are analyzed in detail. The TCP/IP protocol suite, the open system protocol architecture that is used for the design and develop of the Internet, is presented and compared with OSI. In addition, the IBM SNA and DECNET DNA vendor network architectures are presented and their protocol implementations are discussed.

The network layer sub-architecture is introduced to explain the relationship between the network layer and real networks (subnets). Internetworking among heterogeneous subnets is described in terms of addressing and routing, and techniques for identifying different protocol suites sent over the subnets are explained. The application layer sub-architecture for providing common application services is presented, and the OSI core building blocks for developing applications are described. The basic OSI and TCP/IP application layer protocols are presented and their operation described. Finally, interoperability techniques for implementing multiprotocol internets are presented, and techniques for OSI and TCP/IP coexistence are described.

Topics include the OSI, TCP/IP, DECnet, and SNA protocol architectures; layering, encapsulation, SAPs, and PDUs; sliding window algorithms, flow and error control, and the HDLC and PPP protocols; the OSI network layer organization, virtual circuits and datagrams, routing and congestion control algorithms, the X.25 and Frame Relay protocols and network layer protocol ID techniques; internetworking, NSAP and IP global addressing, the CLNP, IPv4 and the evolving IPv6 internetworking protocols, and the RIP, OSPF, ES-IS, and IS-IS routing protocols; transport layer design issues and the TP4 and TCP protocols; session layer dialog control and activity management; the presentation layer ASN.1 abstract syntax and the BER transfer syntax; the OSI upper layer architecture and the ACSE, CCR, ROSE, and RTSE application service elements; The OSI VT, FTAM and MOTIS application protocols, the TCP/IP TELNET, FTP and SMTP application protocols; OSI transitioning tools, multiprotocol networks, and the encapsulation, tunneling and convergence techniques.

Spring 2012

Course Information


Course Administration Course Objective Schedule Course Books Instructor

Viewgraphs, notes, homeworks and solutions. A Valid User Account Required


Computer Network Information

  • Standards Organizations
    • IEEE - The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standards organization responsible for the development of IEEE 802.X LAN standards

    • IETF - The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is the standards organization responsible for the development of TCP/IP standards

      • RFCs - The complete set of Internet standards documents

      • IANA - All of the numbers and parameters that have been assigned by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority such as port numbers, Ethertypes, IP protocol numbers, etc.

    • ISO - The International Standards Institute (ISO) is the standards organization responsible for the development of OSI standards

    • ITU-T - The International Telecommunication Union Telecommuniction Standardization Sector (ITU-T) is the standards organization responsible for the development of X (data communications) and I (ISDN) standards

    • ETSI - The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ITU-T) develops standards for the European community

    • ANSI - The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is the US representative to ISO that is responsible for the US contribution to the development of OSI standards

  • Vendor Organizations
    • 10 Gigabit Ethernet Alliance - A consortium of organizations promoting the use and availability of Ethernet ranging from Fast Ethernet to Gigabit Ethernet to 10 Gigabit Ethernet

    • WiMAX Forum - A consortium of organizations to certify and promote the compatibility and interoperability of broadband wireless products based upon the harmonized IEEE 802.16/ETSI HiperMAN standard

    • WiFi Alliance - A consortium of organizations devoted to the proliferation of Wi-Fi technology across devices and market segments

    • Bluetooth SIG - A consortium of organizations interested in the development and promotion of the Bluetooth technology

    • ZigBee Alliance - A consortium of organizations interested in the development of low-power, wirelessly networked, monitoring and control products based on an open global standard

    • Broadband Forum - A consortium of organizations interested in the development of Broadband networks

    • The World Wide Web Consortium - A consortium of organizations developing standards for the World Wide Web (WWW)


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