Computer networking, specially the Internet, is an essential part of the modern human life. Technologies such as Ethernet, Bluetooth, WiFi, ADSL, Lte, 5G, IoT and sensor networks, cloud computing, Web, BitTorrent, Email, Skype, whatsapp are just a few from the ever-growing list of networking products. This course is about the basic ideas and technologies made all these wonders happen. The main topics are different network architectures (packet/circuit switching), network applications, inter-networking principles (TCP/IP), and underlying link technologies.
What are your recommendations for students who want careers in computer science and networking?
It’s a wonderful field—computers and networking have probably had more impact on society than any invention since the book. Networking is fundamentally about connecting stuff, and studying it helps you make intellectual connections: Ant foraging & Bee dances demonstrate protocol design better than RFCs, traffic jams or people leaving a packed stadium are the essence of congestion, and students finding flights back to school in a post-Thanksgiving blizzard are the core of dynamic routing. If you’re interested in lots of stuff and want to have an impact, it’s hard to imagine a better field. — Van Jacobson [Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach]
(17,19/11)
Introduction
Internet, Protocol, Network edge
(24,26/11)
HFC, ADSL, WiFi, Links
Packet switching, Circuit switching, Internet structure
(1,3/12)
Delay, Throughput, Loss
Protocol Layers
(8,10/12)
p2p, client-server, socket programming
Web, Persistent/Non-persistent/Parallel, Request/Response messages
(15,17/12)
Cookie, Web cache, HTTP/2
DNS, Root/TLD/Authoritative/Local DNS servers
(22,24/12)
DNS records, DNS messages, Domain Registration, DNS security
BitTorrent, Video streaming, CDN
(14,16/1)
Mux/Demux
UDP, rdt introduction
Quiz2 (18-20/1)
(21,23/1)
rdt.1/2/3
Pipeline, GBN
(28,30/1)
SR, TCP introduction
rdt in TCP
(4,6/2)
TCP life-cycle, Network layer introduction
Router's internal structure: input ports, switching fabric
(11,13/2)
Router's internal structure: output ports, IP introduction
DHCP, NAT
(18,20/2)
IPv6, middle-boxes
Routing Protocols:LS, DV
(25,27/2)
Routing in Internet: OSPF, BGP
ICMP
Introduction, Error detection and correction
(1,3/3)
Multiple Access (MAC)
MAC address, ARP, Ethernet, Switch, A comprehensive example
Quiz3 (5-7/3)
For each homework/project, late submission (before TA sessions) is accepted but with a penalty of 5% per day.
James F. Kurose , Keith W. Ross, Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach, Pearson, 8th edition, 2020
The following references are also recommended: