Unit 4 Lab 1: Computer Networks

Computer Network

A computer network is an interconnected computing system that is capable of sending or receiving data.

Computing Device

A computing device is a physical object that can run a program, such as computers, tablets, cell phones, and smart censors.

Computing System

A computing system is a group of computing devices and programs working together for a common purpose.

Packet

A packet is a small chunk of any kind of data (text, numbers, list, etc) and metadata (information about the data) that is passed through the Internet as a data stream.

Path

A path is a sequence of directly connected computing devices that connect a sender to a receiver.

Protocol

A protocol is a set of rules that specify the behavior of a system.

Router

A router is a computer that passes information from one network to another.

IP Address

An IP address is a unique number assigned to each device on a computer network.

Application Layer Protocol

Application layer protocols are the highest level of abstraction because they manage how data is interpreted and displayed to users. These protocols give meaning to the bits sent by lower-level protocols; user and server computers must agree on what bits mean, and application protocols offer this.

Bandwidth

Bandwidth is the maximum amount of data that can be sent in a fixed amount of time (for digital data, it is measured in bits per second). Higher bandwidth is better because the data will travel more quickly.

Fault Tolerance

Fault tolerance is the ability of a sentence to work around problems.

IP (Internet Protocol)

IP lets your computer pretend it has a direct connection to another computer. The routers at every connection point on the Internet run IP, which transmits packets from one IP address to another.

ISPs (Internet Service Provideres)

ISPs are the companies who sell Internet access to homes and institutions.

Internet Layer Protocol

Internet layer protocols manage the pathways that the data packets travel across networks. These protocols provide an abstraction of the Internet as one large network even though the physical reality on the lower level is one of many subnetworks.

Network Interface Hardware

Network interface hardware manage the connection between an Internet connected device and its local network. These protocols are the least abstract because they deal directly with your physical hardware.

Packet switching

Packet switching means that the Internet sends short bursts of information, not long continuous strings.

Redundancy

Redundancy is the inclusion of back-up elements in case one part fails.

Routing

Routing is the process of finding a path from sender to receiver.

Scalibility

Scalability is the ability of the Internet to keep working as it grows.

The Cloud

Storing data in the cloud means storing it somewhere on the Internet, but you don't know where. The cloud service provider (Google, Dropbox, Amazon, Snap!, etc.) manages the actual storage location.

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)

TCP lets your computer pretend it has a reliable connection to the other computer. The computers (including the servers) at the two endpoints of a communication run TCP, which guarantee the packets arrive successfully.

Internet

The Internet is a computer network that uses open protocols to standardize communication. A computing device connected to an Internet-connected device is required to access the Internet.

World Wide Web

The World Wide Web is a system of linked pages, programs, and files that uses the Internet.

Transport Layer Protocol

Transport layer protocols manage the breakdown of a message into packet to be transferred by lower level protocols and also the reconstruction of the message from the packets upon arrival.