Unit - III

Network Layer
Switching – Circuit Switched Networks - Packet Switching –
Structure of a Switch - Routing algorithms: Shortest Path events -
Distance Vector Routing - Link State Routing - Congestion control
algorithms: Traffic aware routing - Admission Control -
Internetworking: Tunneling - Internetwork Routing - Packet
Fragmentation.
Switching

 Switching in a computer network is achieved by using switches.

 A switch is a small hardware device which is used to join multiple
computers together with one local area network (LAN).
 Network switches operate at layer 2 (Data link layer) in the OSI model.
 Switching is transparent to the user and does not require any configuration
in the home network.
 Switches are used to forward the packets based on MAC addresses.
 A Switch is used to transfer the data only to the device that has been
addressed. It verifies the destination address to route the packet
appropriately.
 It is operated in full duplex mode.
 Packet collision is minimum as it directly communicates between source
and destination.
 It does not broadcast the message as it works with limited bandwidth.
Network Layer
 The Network Layer is the third layer of the OSI model.
 It handles the service requests from the transport layer and
further forwards the service request to the data link layer.
 The network layer translates the logical addresses into physical
addresses
 It determines the route from the source to the destination and
also manages the traffic problems such as switching, routing
and controls the congestion of data packets.
 The main role of the network layer is to move the packets from
sending host to the receiving host.
Process of Switching

 Frame Reception: The switch receives a data frame or packet from a

computer connected to its ports.
 MAC Address Extraction: The switch reads the header of the data frame and
collects the destination MAC Address from it.
 MAC Address Table Lookup: Once the switch has retrieved the MAC
Address, it performs a lookup in its Switching table to find a port that leads to
the MAC Address of the data frame.
 Forwarding Decision and Switching Table Update: If the switch matches
the destination MAC Address of the frame to the MAC address in its switching
table, it forwards the data frame to the respective port. However, if the
destination MAC Address does not exist in its forwarding table, it follows the
flooding process, in which it sends the data frame to all its ports except the
one it came from and records all the MAC Addresses to which the frame was
delivered. This way, the switch finds the new MAC Address and updates its
forwarding table.
 Frame Transition: Once the destination port is found, the switch sends the
data frame to that port and forwards it to its target computer/network.
Types of Switching
Circuit Switching

 Circuit switching is a switching technique that establishes a dedicated

path between sender and receiver.
 In the Circuit Switching Technique, once the connection is established then
the dedicated path will remain to exist until the connection is terminated.
 Circuit switching in a network operates in a similar way as the telephone
works.
 A complete end-to-end path must exist before the communication takes
place.
 In case of circuit switching technique, when any user wants to send the
data, voice, video, a request signal is sent to the receiver then the
receiver sends back the acknowledgment to ensure the availability of the
dedicated path. After receiving the acknowledgment, dedicated path
transfers the data.
 Circuit switching is used in public telephone network. It is used for voice
transmission.
 Fixed data can be transferred at a time in circuit switching technology.
Characteristics of Circuit Switched
Network
 It is also known as the public network.
 Handling digital data and traffic is easy as the signals are voice
signals.
 The transfer of electric current along with the voice signal is
possible.
 The process is known as connection-oriented.
 In a circuit switching network, the establishment of the path
takes place first and then the data transmission takes place.
 The amount of data transferred in the circuit switching is fixed.
 The termination of the path is possible only when there is a
termination of the connection.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Circuit
Switching

Advantages

 This type of switching technique is suitable for the continuous

transmission of data as the data remains in conservation.

 The rate of communication is steady as a dedicated path for

transmission.

 With the establishment of the circuit, there are no

intermediate delays that make it suitable for voice and data
transmission.
 Disadvantages

 As there is an establishment of a dedicated connection

between both ends, the transmission of any other data is
challenging.

 Data with low volume demand high bandwidth.

 The usage of system resources becomes underutilized as the

repetition of resources for other connections is not possible.

 The establishment time is high.

Types of Switches in Circuit
Switching
 Space Division Switches
 In space division switching, the paths in the circuit are separated from
each other.
 The main purpose of the space division was for the analog network.
However, it is used for both analog and digital switching.
 A switch known as a cross point is used in space division switches.
 It finds applications in digital communication and uses semiconductor
gates.
 The advantage of a space-division switch is that it is instantaneous and
the disadvantage is the number of cross points is dependent on the
blocking.
 Time-Division Switches

 In the time-division switching method, the number of

connections travels along the same trunk line.

 The breaking of the streams into segments takes place with

the help of time-division multiplexing, making sure that the
segments are sent at specific intervals.

 The detection of the elements happens with the help of a de-

multiplexer.
Packet Switching

 The packet switching is a switching technique in which the

message is sent in one go, but it is divided into smaller pieces, and
they are sent individually.
 The message splits into smaller pieces known as packets and
packets are given a unique number to identify their order at the
receiving end.
 Every packet contains some information in its headers such as
source address, destination address and sequence number.
 Packets will travel across the network, taking the shortest path as
possible.
 All the packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct
order.
 If any packet is missing or corrupted, then the message will be sent
to resend the message.
 If the correct order of the packets is reached, then the
Approaches Of Packet Switching:
 Datagram Packet switching:
 It is a packet switching technology in which packet is known as
a datagram, is considered as an independent entity. Each
packet contains the information about the destination and
switch uses this information to forward the packet to the
correct destination.
 The packets are reassembled at the receiving end in correct
order.
 In Datagram Packet Switching technique, the path is not fixed.
 Intermediate nodes take the routing decisions to forward the
packets.
 Datagram Packet Switching is also known as connectionless
switching.
 Virtual Circuit Switching
 Virtual Circuit Switching is also known as connection-oriented
switching.
 In the case of Virtual circuit switching, a preplanned route is
established before the messages are sent.
 Call request and call accept packets are used to establish the
connection between sender and receiver.
 In this case, the path is fixed for the duration of a logical
connection.
Differences b/w Datagram approach
and Virtual Circuit approach

Datagram approach Virtual Circuit approach

Node takes routing decisions to Node does not take any routing
forward the packets. decision.

Congestion can occur when the node

Congestion cannot occur as all the
is busy, and it does not allow other
packets travel in different directions.
packets to pass through.

It is more flexible as all the packets

It is not very flexible.
are treated as an independent entity.
 Message Switching
 Message Switching is a switching technique in which a message is transferred as a
complete unit and routed through intermediate nodes at which it is stored and
forwarded.
 In Message Switching technique, there is no establishment of a dedicated path
between the sender and receiver.
 The destination address is appended to the message. Message Switching provides a
dynamic routing as the message is routed through the intermediate nodes based on
the information available in the message.
 Message switches are programmed in such a way so that they can provide the most
efficient routes.
 Each and every node stores the entire message and then forward it to the next node.
This type of network is known as store and forward network.
 Message switching treats each message as an independent entity.
 Advantages Of Message Switching

 Data channels are shared among the

communicating devices that improve the efficiency
of using available bandwidth.
 Traffic congestion can be reduced because the
message is temporarily stored in the nodes.
 Message priority can be used to manage the
network.
 The size of the message which is sent over the
network can be varied. Therefore, it supports the
data of unlimited size.
 Disadvantages Of Message Switching

 The message switches must be equipped with

sufficient storage to enable them to store the
messages until the message is forwarded.
 The Long delay can occur due to the storing and
forwarding facility provided by the message
switching technique.
Difference Between Packet Switching and Circuit
Switching
Packet Switching Circuit Switching

In packet switching data is divided into There is a dedicated path for each packet in
packets, and packets is sent independently. circuit switching.

In Packet switching, data is processed at all

In-Circuit switching, data is processed at the
intermediate nodes including the source
source system only.
system.

The delay between data units in packet The delay between data units in circuit
switching is not uniform. switching is uniform.

Packet switching is less reliable. Circuit switching is more reliable.

Transmission of the data is done not only by

the source but also by the intermediate Transmission of the data is done by the source.
routers.

Wastage of resources is more in Circuit

Less wastage of resources.
Switching.
 Packet Switching Circuit Switching

In Packet Switching there is no physical path In-Circuit Switching there is a physical path
between the source and the destination. between the source and the destination.

Call setup is not required in packet switching. Call setup is required in circuit switching.

Packet switching requires complex protocols Circuit switching requires simple protocols for
for delivery. delivery.

Latency is high in Packet switching. Latency is low in circuit switching.

Littel bit more overheating in packet switching. Overheading is low in circuit switching.
Routing Algorithm
• In order to transfer the packets from source to the destination, the network
layer must determine the best route through which packets can be
transmitted.
• Whether the network layer provides datagram service or virtual circuit
service, the main job of the network layer is to provide the best route. The
routing protocol provides this job.
• The routing protocol is a routing algorithm that provides the best path
from the source to the destination.
• The best path is the path that has the "least-cost path" from source to the
destination.
• Routing is the process of forwarding the packets from source to the
destination but the best route to send the packets is determined by the
routing algorithm.
Types of Routing Algorithms
Adaptive Algorithms

 These are the algorithms that change their routing decisions

whenever network topology or traffic load changes.
 The changes in routing decisions are reflected in the topology as
well as the traffic of the network.
 Also known as dynamic routing, these make use of dynamic
information such as current topology, load, delay, etc. to select
routes.
 Optimization parameters are distance, number of hops, and
estimated transit time.
 Isolated:
 In this method each, node makes its routing
decisions using the information it has without
seeking information from other nodes.
 The sending nodes don’t have information about the
status of a particular link.
 The disadvantage is that packets may be sent
through a congested network which may result in
delay.
 Examples: Hot potato routing, and backward
learning.
 Distributed:
 In this method, the node receives information from
its neighbors and then takes the decision about
routing the packets.
 A disadvantage is that the packet may be delayed if
there is a change in between intervals in which it
receives information and sends packets.
 It is also known as a decentralized algorithm as it
computes the least-cost path between source and
destination.
 Centralized:
 In this method, a centralized node has entire
information about the network and makes all the
routing decisions.
 The advantage of this is only one node is required
to keep the information of the entire network and
the disadvantage is that if the central node goes
down the entire network is done.
 The link state algorithm is referred to as a
centralized algorithm since it is aware of the cost of
each link in the network.
2. Non-Adaptive Algorithms

 These are the algorithms that do not change their routing

decisions once they have been selected.
 This is also known as static routing as a route to be taken is
computed in advance and downloaded to routers when a router is
booted.
• Flooding:
• This adapts the technique in which every incoming
packet is sent on every outgoing line except from
which it arrived.
• One problem with this is that packets may go in a
loop and as a result of which a node may receive
duplicate packets.
• These problems can be overcome with the help of
sequence numbers, hop count, and spanning trees.
• Random walk:
• In this method, packets are sent host by host or
node by node to one of its neighbors randomly.
• This is a highly robust method that is usually
implemented by sending packets onto the link
which is least queued.
 3. Hybrid Algorithms
 As the name suggests, these algorithms are a
combination of both adaptive and non-adaptive
algorithms.
 In this approach, the network is divided into several
regions, and each region uses a different algorithm.
• Link-state:
• In this method, each router creates a detailed and
complete map of the network which is then shared
with all other routers.
• This allows for more accurate and efficient routing
decisions to be made.
• Distance vector:
• In this method, each router maintains a table that
contains information about the distance and
direction to every other node in the network.
• This table is then shared with other routers in the
network.
• The disadvantage of this method is that it may lead
to routing loops.
Distance Vector Routing (DVR)

 Distance Vector Routing (DVR) Protocol is a method

used by routers to find the best path for data to
travel across a network.
 Each router keeps a table that shows the shortest
distance to every other router, based on the number
of hops (or steps) needed to reach them.
 Routers share this information with their neighbors,
allowing them to update their tables and find the
most efficient routes.
 This protocol helps ensure that data moves quickly
and smoothly through the network.
 Three Keys to understand the working of Distance Vector
Routing Algorithm:

• Knowledge about the whole network: Each router shares its knowledge
through the entire network. The Router sends its collected knowledge
about the network to its neighbors.
• Routing only to neighbors: The router sends its knowledge about the
network to only those routers which have direct links. The router sends
whatever it has about the network through the ports. The information is
received by the router and uses the information to update its own routing
table.
• Information sharing at regular intervals: Within 30 seconds, the router
sends the information to the neighboring routers.
Algorithm

At each node x,
Initialization

for all destinations y in N:

Dx(y) = c(x,y) // If y is not a neighbor then c(x,y) = ∞
for each neighbor w
Dw(y) = ? for all destination y in N.
for each neighbor w
send distance vector Dx = [ Dx(y) : y in N ] to w
loop
wait(until I receive any distance vector from some neighbor w)
for each y in N:
Dx(y) = minv{c(x,v)+Dv(y)}
If Dx(y) is changed for any destination y
Send distance vector Dx = [ Dx(y) : y in N ] to all neighbors
forever
Let's understand through an
example:
 In the above figure, each cloud represents the network, and
the number inside the cloud represents the network ID.
 All the LANs are connected by routers, and they are
represented in boxes labeled as A, B, C, D, E, F.
 Distance vector routing algorithm simplifies the routing
process by assuming the cost of every link is one unit.
Therefore, the efficiency of transmission can be measured by
the number of links to reach the destination.
 In Distance vector routing, the cost is based on hop count.
In the above figure, we observe that the router sends the knowledge to the
immediate neighbors. The neighbors add this knowledge to their own knowledge
and sends the updated table to their own neighbors. In this way, routers get its
own information plus the new information about the neighbors.
 Routing Table
Two process occurs:
 Creating the Table
 Updating the Table
Creating the Table
Initially, the routing table is created for each router that contains atleast three types of
information such as Network ID, the cost and the next hop.

•NET ID: The Network ID defines the final destination of the packet.
•Cost: The cost is the number of hops that packet must take to get there.
•Next hop: It is the router to which the packet must be delivered.
1.A sends its routing table to B, F &
E.
2.B sends its routing table to A & C.

3.C sends its routing table to B & D.

 Updating the Table
 When A receives a routing table from B, then it uses its information to
update the table.
 The routing table of B shows how the packets can move to the
networks 1 and 4.
 The B is a neighbor to the A router, the packets from A to B can reach
in one hop. So, 1 is added to all the costs given in the B's table and
the sum will be the cost to reach a particular network.
After adjustment, A then combines this table with its own table to
create a combined table.
 The combined table may contain some duplicate data.
 In the above figure, the combined table of router A contains
the duplicate data, so it keeps only those data which has the
lowest cost.
 For example, A can send the data to network 1 in two ways.
The first, which uses no next router, so it costs one hop.
 The second requires two hops (A to B, then B to Network 1).
 The first option has the lowest cost, therefore it is kept and
the second one is dropped.
The process of creating the routing table continues for
all routers. Every router receives the information from
the neighbors, and update the routing table.
 Advantages of Distance Vector routing
 Shortest Path : Distance Vector Routing finds the shortest path for data to
travel in a network.
 Usage : It is used in local, metropolitan, and wide-area networks.
 Easy Implementation : The method is simple to set up and doesn’t require
many resources.

 Disadvantages of Distance Vector Routing Algorithm

 It is slower to converge than link state.
 It is at risk from the count-to-infinity problem.
 It creates more traffic than link state since a hop count change must be
propagated to all routers and processed on each router. Hop count updates
take place on a periodic basis, even if there are no changes in the
network topology , so bandwidth -wasting broadcasts still occur.
 For larger networks, distance vector routing results in larger routing tables
than link state since each router must know about all other routers. This can
also lead to congestion on WAN links.
Link State Routing
 Link state routing is a technique in which each router shares the
knowledge of its neighborhood with every other router in the
internetwork.
The three keys to understand the Link State Routing algorithm:

• Knowledge about the neighborhood: Instead of sending its

routing table, a router sends the information about its neighborhood
only. A router broadcast its identities and cost of the directly
attached links to other routers.
• Flooding: Each router sends the information to every other router
on the internetwork except its neighbors. This process is known as
Flooding. Every router that receives the packet sends the copies to
all its neighbors. Finally, each and every router receives a copy of the
same information.
• Information sharing: A router sends the information to every other
router only when the change occurs in the information.
Link State Routing has two phases:
 Reliable Flooding
 Initial state: Each node knows the cost of its neighbors.
 Final state: Each node knows the entire graph.

 Route Calculation
 Each node uses Dijkstra's algorithm on the graph to calculate the optimal
routes to all nodes.

 The Link state routing algorithm is also known as Dijkstra's algorithm which
is used to find the shortest path from one node to every other node in the
network.
 The Dijkstra's algorithm is an iterative, and it has the property that after kth
iteration of the algorithm, the least cost paths are well known for k
destination nodes.
Algorithm
Initialization
N = {A} // A is a root node.
for all nodes v
if v adjacent to A
then D(v) = c(A,v)
else D(v) = infinity
loop
find w not in N such that D(w) is a minimum.
Add w to N
Update D(v) for all v adjacent to w and not in N:
D(v) = min(D(v) , D(w) + c(w,v))
Until all nodes in N
 c( i , j): Link cost from node i to node j. If i and j nodes are not directly
linked, then c(i , j) = ∞.
 D(v): It defines the cost of the path from source code to destination v
that has the least cost currently.
 P(v): It defines the previous node (neighbor of v) along with current
least cost path from source to v.
 N: It is the total number of nodes available in the network.
Shortest Path Algorithm in Computer Network
 It refers to the algorithms that help to find the shortest path
between a sender and receiver for routing the data packets
through the network in terms of shortest distance, minimum
cost, and minimum time.
 It is mainly for building a graph or subnet containing routers as
nodes and edges as communication lines connecting the
nodes.
 Hop count is one of the parameters that is used to measure
the distance.
 Hop count: It is the number that indicates how many routers
are covered. If the hop count is 6, there are 6 routers/nodes
and the edges connecting them.
 Another metric is a geographic distance like kilometers.
 We can find the label on the arc as the function of bandwidth,
average traffic, distance, communication cost, measured
Common Shortest Path Algorithms
 Dijkstra’s Algorithm
 Bellman Ford’s Algorithm
 Floyd Warshall’s Algorithm
Dijkstra’s Algorithm
 The Dijkstra’s Algorithm is a greedy algorithm that is used to find the minimum
distance between a node and all other nodes in a given graph. Here we can
consider node as a router and graph as a network. It uses weight of edge .ie,
distance between the nodes to find a minimum distance route.
 Algorithm:
 1: Mark the source node current distance as 0 and all others as infinity.
 2: Set the node with the smallest current distance among the non-visited nodes
as the current node.
 3: For each neighbor, N, of the current node:
 Calculate the potential new distance by adding the current distance of the
current node with the weight of the edge connecting the current node to N.
 If the potential new distance is smaller than the current distance of node N,
update N's current distance with the new distance.
 4: Make the current node as visited node.
 5: If we find any unvisited node, go to step 2 to find the next node which has
the smallest current distance and continue this process.
Example

Example
Bellman Ford’s Algorithm
 The Bell man Ford’s algorithm is a single source graph search algorithm
which help us to find the shortest path between a source vertex and any
other vertex in a give graph. We can use it in both weighted and unweighted
graphs. This algorithm is slower than Dijkstra's algorithm and it can also use
negative edge weight.
 Algorithm
 1: First we Initialize all vertices v in a distance array dist[] as INFINITY.
 2: Then we pick a random vertex as vertex 0 and assign dist[0] =0.
 3: Then iteratively update the minimum distance to each node (dist[v]) by
comparing it with the sum of the distance from the source node (dist[u]) and
the edge weight (weight) N-1 times.
 4: To identify the presence of negative edge cycles, with the help of following
cases do one more round of edge relaxation.
 We can say that a negative cycle exists if for any edge uv the sum of
distance from the source node (dist[u]) and the edge weight (weight) is less
than the current distance to the largest node(dist[v])

Floyd Warshall’s Algorithm
 The Floyd Warshall’s Algorithm is used to find the shortest path between any two nodes in a given
graph. It keeps a matrix of distances between each pair of vertices.it will continue iterating the
matrix until it reaches at a shortest path.
 Algorithm:
 1: Using the data about the graph, make a matrix.
 2: By taking all vertices as an intermediate vertex, we have to update the final matrix.
 3: It is to be noted that it includes at a time we pick one vertex, and we update the shortest path
which includes this chosen vertex as an in-between point along the path.
 4: When we select a vertex say k almost like the middle of the path, in previous calculations we
have already taken all vertices P{0,1,2..,k-1} as potential middle points.
 5: We have to consider the following subpoints while dealing with the source and destination
vertices I,j respectively
 If vertex k is not the part of shortest path from I to j, we don’t have to change dist[i][j] value .ie, it
will remain unchanged.
 If vertex k is indeed part of shortest path from I to j, update dist[i][j] to the sum of dist[i][k] and
dist[k][j] but note that only if dist[i][j] is greater than this value we newly calculated.
What is Congestion?

 Congestion in a computer network happens when there is too

much data being sent at the same time, causing the network
to slow down.
 Just like traffic congestion on a busy road, network congestion
leads to delays and sometimes data loss.
 When the network can’t handle all the incoming data, it gets
“clogged,” making it difficult for information to travel smoothly
from one place to another.
Congestion Control Algorithm
 Congestion control is a crucial concept in computer networks.
 It refers to the methods used to prevent network overload and
ensure smooth data flow.
 When too much data is sent through the network at once, it
can cause delays and data loss.
 Congestion control techniques help manage the traffic, so all
users can enjoy a stable and efficient network connection.
 These techniques are essential for maintaining the
performance and reliability of modern networks.
Effects of Congestion in Computer Network

 Improved Network Stability: Congestion control helps keep the network stable by
preventing it from getting overloaded. It manages the flow of data so the network
doesn’t crash or fail due to too much traffic.
 Reduced Latency and Packet Loss: Without congestion control, data transmission can
slow down, causing delays and data loss. Congestion control helps manage traffic
better, reducing these delays and ensuring fewer data packets are lost, making data
transfer faster and the network more responsive.
 Enhanced Throughput: By avoiding congestion, the network can use its resources more
effectively. This means more data can be sent in a shorter time, which is important for
handling large amounts of data and supporting high-speed applications.
 Fairness in Resource Allocation: Congestion control ensures that network resources are
shared fairly among users. No single user or application can take up all the bandwidth,
allowing everyone to have a fair share.
 Mitigation of Network Congestion Collapse: Without congestion
control, a sudden spike in data traffic can overwhelm the
network, causing severe congestion and making it almost
unusable. Congestion control helps prevent this by managing
traffic efficiently and avoiding such critical breakdowns.
 Better User Experience: When data flows smoothly and
quickly, users have a better experience. Websites, online
services, and applications work more reliably and without
annoying delays.
 Congestion Control is a mechanism that controls the entry of
data packets into the network, enabling a better use of a
shared network infrastructure and avoiding congestive
collapse.
 Congestive-avoidance algorithms (CAA) are implemented at
the TCP layer as the mechanism to avoid congestive collapse
in a network.
 There are two congestion control algorithms which are as
follows:
 Leaky Bucket Algorithm
 Token Bucket Algorithm
Leaky Bucket Algorithm
 The leaky bucket algorithm discovers its use in the context of
network traffic shaping or rate-limiting.
 A leaky bucket execution and a token bucket execution are
predominantly used for traffic shaping algorithms.
 This algorithm is used to control the rate at which traffic is
sent to the network and shape the burst traffic to a steady
traffic stream.
 The disadvantages compared with the leaky-bucket algorithm
are the inefficient use of available network resources.
 The large area of network resources such as bandwidth is not
being used effectively.
Similarly, each network interface contains a leaky bucket and the following steps
are involved in leaky bucket algorithm:

When host wants to send packet, packet is thrown into the bucket.

The bucket leaks at a constant rate, meaning the network interface transmits
packets at a constant rate.

Bursty traffic is converted to a uniform traffic by the leaky bucket.

In practice the bucket is a finite queue that outputs at a finite rate.
Token Bucket Algorithm
 The leaky bucket algorithm has a rigid output design at an average rate
independent of the bursty traffic.
 In some applications, when large bursts arrive, the output is allowed to
speed up. This calls for a more flexible algorithm, preferably one that
never loses information. Therefore, a token bucket algorithm finds its uses
in network traffic shaping or rate-limiting.
 It is a control algorithm that indicates when traffic should be sent. This
order comes based on the display of tokens in the bucket.
 The bucket contains tokens. Each of the tokens defines a packet of
predetermined size. Tokens in the bucket are deleted for the ability to
share a packet.
 When tokens are shown, a flow to transmit traffic appears in the display
of tokens.
 No token means no flow sends its packets. Hence, a flow transfers traffic
up to its peak burst rate in good tokens in the bucket.
Need of Token Bucket Algorithm
 Video and audio conferencing require a bounded delay and
loss rate.
 Video and audio streaming requires a bounded packet loss
rate, it may not be so sensitive to delay.
 a -critical applications (real-time control) in which bounded
delay is considered to be an important factor.
 Valuable applications should provide better services than less
valuable applications.
Advantages
 Stable Network Operation: Congestion control ensures that networks
remain stable and operational by preventing them from becoming
overloaded with too much data traffic.
 Reduced Delays: It minimizes delays in data transmission by
managing traffic flow effectively, ensuring that data packets reach
their destinations promptly.
 Less Data Loss: By regulating the amount of data in the network at
any given time, congestion control reduces the likelihood of data
packets being lost or discarded.
 Optimal Resource Utilization: It helps networks use their resources
efficiently, allowing for better throughput and ensuring that users can
access data and services without interruptions.
 Scalability: Congestion control mechanisms are scalable, allowing
networks to handle increasing volumes of data traffic as they grow
without compromising performance.
 Adaptability: Modern congestion control algorithms can adapt to
changing network conditions, ensuring optimal performance even in
dynamic and unpredictable environments.
Disadvantages
 Complexity: Implementing congestion control algorithms can
add complexity to network management, requiring
sophisticated systems and configurations.
 Overhead: Some congestion control techniques introduce
additional overhead, which can consume network resources
and affect overall performance.
 Algorithm Sensitivity: The effectiveness of congestion control
algorithms can be sensitive to network conditions and
configurations, requiring fine-tuning for optimal performance.
 Resource Allocation Issues: Fairness in resource allocation,
while a benefit, can also pose challenges when trying to
prioritize critical applications over less essential ones.
 Dependency on Network Infrastructure: Congestion control
relies on the underlying network infrastructure and may be
less effective in environments with outdated or unreliable
Traffic aware routing
 Traffic awareness is one of the approaches for congestion
control over the network. The basic way to avoid congestion is
to build a network that is well matched to the traffic that it
carries. If more traffic is directed but a low-bandwidth link is
available, congestion occurs.
 The main goal of traffic aware routing is to identify the best
routes by considering the load, set the link weight to be a
function of fixed link bandwidth and propagation delay and the
variable measured load or average queuing delay.
 Least-weight paths will then favour paths that are more lightly
loaded, remaining all are equal.
 The traffic aware routing is diagrammatically represented as
follows −
 Explanation
 Step 1 − Consider a network which is divided into two parts, East and West
both are connected by links CF and EI.

 Step 2 − Suppose most of the traffic in between East and West is using link CF,
and as a result CF link is heavily loaded with long delays. Including queueing
delay in the weight which is used for shortest path calculation will make EI
more attractive.

 Step 3 − After installing the new routing tables, most of East-West traffic will
now go over the EI link. As a result in the next update CF link will appear to be
the shortest path.

 Step 4 − As a result the routing tables may oscillate widely, leading to erratic
routing and many potential problems.

 Step 5 − If we consider only bandwidth and propagation delay by ignoring the

load, this problem does not occur. Attempts to include load but change the
weights within routing scheme to shift traffic across routes arrow range only to
slow down routing oscillations.
Features

 It is a congestion technique.
 These roots can be changed in accordance with traffic patterns
because, as network users, we can sleep in various time zones
throughout the day.
 As there are heavily used paths so roots can be changed to
shift traffic away.
 Traffic can be split across multiple paths.
Admission Control
 It is one of techniques that is widely used in virtual-circuit networks to
keep congestion at bay. The idea is do not set up a new virtual circuit
unless the network can carry the added traffic without becoming
congested.

 Admission control can also be combined with traffic aware routing by

considering routes around traffic hotspots as part of the setup
procedure.
Internetworking
 The word “internetworking,” which combines the words “inter”
and “networking,” denotes a connection between completely
distinct nodes/segments.
 This connection is made possible by intermediary hardware like
routers or gateways. Catenet was the initial title for associate
degree internetwork.
 Private, public, commercial, industrial, and governmental networks
frequently connect to one another.
 Therefore, a degree of internetwork could be a collection of
several networks that operate as a single large network and are
connected by intermediate networking devices.
 The trade, goods, and methods used to address the difficulty of
creating and managing internet works are referred to as
internetworking.
There is chiefly 3 units of Internetworking:

 Extranet
 Intranet
 Internet
 Extranet
 It’s a network of the internetwork that’s restricted in scope to
one organization or entity however that additionally has
restricted connections to the networks of one or a lot of
different sometimes, however not essential.
 It’s the very lowest level of Internetworking, usually enforced
in an exceedingly personal area.
 Associate degree extranet may additionally be classified as a
Man, WAN, or different form of network however it cannot
encompass one local area network i.e. it should have a
minimum of one reference to associate degree external
network.
 Intranet
 This associate degree computer network could be a set of
interconnected networks, which exploits the Internet Protocol
and uses IP-based tools akin to web browsers and FTP tools,
that are underneath the management of one body entity.
 That body entity closes the computer network to the
remainder of the planet and permits solely specific users.
 Most typically, this network is the internal network of a
corporation or different enterprise.
 An outsized computer network can usually have its own
internet server to supply users with browsable data.
 Internet
 A selected Internetworking, consisting of a worldwide
interconnection of governmental, academic, public, and
personal networks based mostly upon the Advanced analysis
comes Agency Network (ARPANET) developed by ARPA of the
U.S. Department of Defense additionally home to the World
Wide Web (WWW) and cited as the ‘Internet’ to differentiate
from all different generic Internetworks.
 Participants within the web, or their service suppliers, use IP
Addresses obtained from address registries that manage
assignments.
Internetwork Addressing
 The internetwork addresses set up devices singly or
collectively. Depending on the protocol family and because of
the OSI layer, addressing strategies vary.
 DLL, MAC addresses, and network-layer addresses are
the three types of internetwork address area units that are
typically employed.
DLL Addresses
 All the physical network associations of network devices are
clearly identified by a data-link layer address.
 Area units are frequently used as physical addresses or
hardware addresses in data-link addresses.
 Data-link addresses can occasionally be found within a flat
address space and are pre-configured with a fixed relationship
to a particular device.
 End systems typically only have one data-link address since
they only have one physical network association.
 As a result of having many physical network connections,
routers and other internetworking equipment frequently have
various data-link addresses.
MAC (Media Access Control)
Addresses
 Data-link layer addresses are included in MAC addresses.
 MAC addresses create network entities in LANs that use the
data-link layer’s IEEE(Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers) MAC addresses.
 For each local area network interface, a unique MAC address
designates a particular area unit.
 MAC addresses are expressed as twelve hexadecimal numbers
and are forty-eight bits long.
 The Organisational Unique Identifier (OUI) is made up of the
first 12 hexadecimal digits, which are typically managed by
the IEEE and identify the maker or seller.
Network Layer Addresses
 The network addresses can occasionally be seen in both
gradable address areas and the more common virtual or
logical address area units.
 The relationship between the network address and the tool is
logical and flexible; it typically depends either on the
properties of the physical network or on groupings without any
physical foundation.
 For each network-layer protocol that a finished system
supports, a network-layer address is required.
 For each supported network-layer protocol, routers and other
internetworking devices require a single network-layer address
for every physical network association.
Challenges to Internetworking
 There is no guarantee that useful internetwork will be
implemented.
 There are many difficult fields, especially in the ones of
dependability, connection, adaptability, and network
management.
 However, each and every one of these fields is crucial to the
creation of an efficient and cost-effective internetwork.
Fragmentation
 Fragmentation is an important function of network layer.
 It is technique in which gateways break up or divide larger packets
into smaller ones called fragments.
 Each fragment is then sent as a separate internal packet.
 Each fragment has its separate header and trailer.

 Sometimes, a fragmented datagram can also get fragmented further

when it encounters a network that handles smaller fragments.
 Thus, a datagram can be fragmented several times before it reaches
final destination.
 Reverse process of the fragmentation is difficult.
 Reassembling of fragments is usually done by the destination host
because each fragment has become an independent datagram.
1. Transparent Fragmentation:
 This fragmentation is done by one network is made
transparent to all other subsequent networks through which
packet will pass.
 Whenever a large packet arrives at a gateway, it breaks the
packet into smaller fragments as shown in the following figure
i.e the gateway G1 breaks a packet into smaller fragments.
 Advantage:
 End devices (sender and receiver) do not need to handle
fragmentation or reassembly logic, reducing their computational
burden.
 Fragmentation and reassembly occur entirely within the network,
making the process invisible to end applications.
 Transparent fragmentation ensures compatibility across networks with
varying MTU sizes without requiring changes at the endpoints.
 Applications can send data without worrying about MTU sizes, as the
network handles fragmentation and reassembly.
 Disadvantage:
 Exit fragment that recombines fragments in a network must known
when it has received all fragments.
 Some fragments chooses different gateways for exit that results in
poor performance.
 It adds considerable overhead in repeatedly fragmenting and
2. Non-Transparent Fragmentation:
 This fragmentation is done by one network is non-transparent
to the subsequent networks through which a packet passes.
 Packet fragmented by a gateway of a network is not
recombined by exit gateway of same network as shown in the
below figure.
 Advantages of Non-Transparent Fragmentation is as
follows :

 We can use multiple exit gateways and can improve the network
performance.
 It has a higher throughput.

 Disadvantages of Non-Transparent Fragmentation is as

follows :

 Every host has capability of reassembling fragments.

 When a packet is fragmented, fragments should be numbered in
such a way that the original data stream can be reconstructed.
 Total overhead increases due to fragmentation as each fragment
must have its own header.