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The Transport Layer (Layer 4) of the OSI model is responsible for end-to-end communication, flow control, and error recovery. It ensures complete data transfer and provides services such as connection-oriented communication (TCP) and connectionless communication (UDP).
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HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) operates at the Application Layer of the TCP/IP model. It is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide Web, where hypertext documents include hyperlinks to other resources that the user can easily access.
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The primary purpose of the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is to resolve IP addresses to MAC addresses. When a device needs to communicate with another device on the same local network, it uses ARP to discover the MAC address associated with the IP address of the destination device.
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Mesh topology provides the highest redundancy among network topologies. In a full mesh network, each node is connected to every other node, creating multiple paths for data to travel. This redundancy ensures that if one connection fails, data can still reach its destination through an alternate path.
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The purpose of the three-way handshake in TCP is to establish a reliable connection between a client and a server. The process involves: 1) SYN - The client sends a synchronization packet to the server, 2) SYN-ACK - The server acknowledges the client's request and sends its own synchronization packet, and 3) ACK - The client acknowledges the server's response. This ensures both parties are ready to exchange data.
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Flow control is NOT a function of the Network Layer (Layer 3) in the OSI model. Flow control is a function of the Transport Layer (Layer 4). The Network Layer is responsible for routing, logical addressing (IP addresses), and packet forwarding between different networks.
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SSH (Secure Shell) is used for secure remote command-line access. Unlike Telnet, which transmits data in plaintext, SSH encrypts all communications, providing secure remote administration of network devices and servers.
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The primary difference between TCP and UDP is that TCP is connection-oriented, while UDP is connectionless. TCP establishes a connection before data transfer, ensures reliable delivery through acknowledgments and retransmissions, and provides flow control. UDP, on the other hand, sends datagrams without establishing a connection, offering faster but less reliable communication.
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A switch operates at Layer 2 (Data Link Layer) of the OSI model and makes forwarding decisions based on MAC addresses. It builds a MAC address table to identify which devices are connected to which ports, allowing it to forward frames only to the intended recipient port, unlike a hub which broadcasts to all ports.
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The purpose of the Domain Name System (DNS) is to translate domain names to IP addresses. Humans find it easier to remember domain names like www.example.com, but computers use IP addresses to locate and communicate with each other. DNS acts as the internet's phonebook, converting human-readable domain names into machine-readable IP addresses.
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172.16.0.0 - 172.31.255.255 is a private IP address range defined in RFC 1918. The other private IP address ranges are 10.0.0.0 - 10.255.255.255 and 192.168.0.0 - 192.168.255.255. Private IP addresses are used for internal networks and are not routable on the internet.
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The purpose of a subnet mask is to determine which part of an IP address is the network portion and which part is the host portion. It helps devices identify whether a destination IP address is on the same local network or a remote network, which is essential for routing decisions.
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SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol) is used for securely transferring files over a network. Unlike FTP, which transmits data in plaintext, SFTP uses SSH to encrypt both commands and data, preventing passwords and sensitive information from being transmitted in the clear over the network.
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The primary function of a firewall is to monitor and control incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules. Firewalls act as a barrier between a trusted internal network and untrusted external networks, such as the internet, to prevent unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications.
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A characteristic of a stateful firewall is that it maintains information about active connections and makes decisions based on the state of the connection. Unlike stateless firewalls, which examine each packet individually, stateful firewalls track the state of network connections and can make more intelligent decisions about whether to allow or deny traffic.
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The purpose of NAT (Network Address Translation) is to map multiple private IP addresses to a single public IP address. This allows multiple devices on a local network to share a single public IP address when accessing the internet, conserving the limited number of available IPv4 addresses and providing a layer of security by hiding internal network addresses.
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OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) is a link-state routing protocol. Link-state routing protocols maintain a complete map of the network topology and use Dijkstra's algorithm to calculate the shortest path to each destination. OSPF is widely used in large enterprise networks due to its scalability and fast convergence.
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The purpose of VLANs (Virtual Local Area Networks) is to logically segment a physical network into multiple broadcast domains. VLANs allow network administrators to group devices together even if they are not physically connected to the same switch, improving network security, performance, and management.
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DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is used for dynamic IP address assignment. DHCP allows a server to automatically assign IP addresses and other network configuration information to devices on a network, eliminating the need for manual configuration and reducing the likelihood of IP address conflicts.
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The primary advantage of IPv6 over IPv4 is its larger address space. IPv4 uses 32-bit addresses, allowing for approximately 4.3 billion unique addresses, which has become insufficient for the growing number of internet-connected devices. IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, providing an enormous number of unique addresses (approximately 3.4 × 10^38), ensuring the continued growth of the internet.
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A characteristic of a distributed system is that its components are located on multiple networked computers that communicate and coordinate their actions. These systems appear as a single coherent system to users, but their components are spread across multiple machines, providing benefits such as improved performance, reliability, and scalability.
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The purpose of SSL/TLS (Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security) in network communications is to provide secure, encrypted communication over a computer network. SSL/TLS protocols ensure privacy, data integrity, and authentication in network communications, commonly used for securing web traffic (HTTPS), email, instant messaging, and voice over IP (VoIP).
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A characteristic of a denial-of-service (DoS) attack is that it makes a machine or network resource unavailable to its intended users. This is typically accomplished by flooding the target with superfluous requests in an attempt to overload systems and prevent some or all legitimate requests from being fulfilled.
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The purpose of a proxy server is to act as an intermediary for requests from clients seeking resources from other servers. Proxy servers provide functionality such as caching, filtering, and anonymity. They can improve performance by caching frequently requested content and enhance security by filtering malicious content and hiding the client's IP address.
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A characteristic of a virtual private network (VPN) is that it creates a secure, encrypted connection over a less secure network, such as the internet. VPNs allow users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network, providing security, privacy, and anonymity.
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The purpose of the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is to prevent network loops in Ethernet networks with redundant paths. STP creates a loop-free logical topology for Ethernet networks by selectively disabling links that would create loops, while still allowing for redundancy in case of link failures.
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A characteristic of a content delivery network (CDN) is that it distributes content across multiple geographically distributed servers to improve access speed and reliability. By serving content from servers closer to the user, CDNs reduce latency, improve load times, and increase availability and redundancy of web content.
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The purpose of the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) is to send error messages and operational information indicating success or failure when communicating with another IP address. ICMP is used by network devices to send error messages and operational information, such as the familiar "Destination Unreachable" message or the "Echo Request" and "Echo Reply" messages used by the ping utility.
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A characteristic of a software-defined network (SDN) is that network control is decoupled from the physical infrastructure and programmable. SDN allows network administrators to manage network services through abstraction of lower-level functionality, making network management more flexible, automated, and responsive to changing business needs.
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The purpose of the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is to monitor and manage network devices. SNMP is widely used in network management systems to monitor network-attached devices for conditions that warrant administrative attention, such as performance issues, device failures, or security breaches.
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A characteristic of a load balancer is that it distributes network or application traffic across multiple servers. Load balancers improve responsiveness and availability of applications, websites, and databases by distributing workloads across multiple computing resources, ensuring no single server becomes a bottleneck or point of failure.
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The purpose of the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) is to exchange routing information between different autonomous systems on the internet. BGP is the protocol that makes the internet work by determining the best paths for data traffic to travel across the complex web of networks that constitute the global internet.
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A characteristic of a network intrusion detection system (NIDS) is that it monitors network traffic for suspicious activity and issues alerts. Unlike intrusion prevention systems (IPS), which actively block malicious traffic, NIDS are passive systems that detect potential security breaches and notify administrators, allowing them to take appropriate action.
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The purpose of the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) is to establish a direct connection between two nodes. PPP is a data link layer protocol used to establish a direct connection between two networking nodes. It can provide connection authentication, transmission encryption, and compression, and is commonly used for dial-up and broadband connections.
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A characteristic of a peer-to-peer (P2P) network is that each node can function as both a client and a server. In P2P networks, participants make a portion of their resources directly available to other network participants without the need for central coordination by servers or hosts. This distributed architecture allows for scalability and resilience.
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The purpose of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) is to synchronize the clocks of computers on a network. NTP is designed to synchronize the clocks of computers over a network to within a few milliseconds of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is essential for various applications, including authentication, logging, and distributed systems coordination.
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A characteristic of a multicast transmission is that data is sent from one source to multiple specific destinations. Unlike unicast (one-to-one) and broadcast (one-to-all), multicast (one-to-many) allows efficient delivery of information to a group of interested receivers without overwhelming the entire network, making it ideal for applications such as video streaming and stock market updates.
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The purpose of the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is to transfer files between a client and a server on a computer network. FTP uses separate control and data connections between the client and the server, allowing users to upload, download, delete, rename, move, and copy files on a server.
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A characteristic of a network address translation (NAT) traversal technique is that it enables hosts behind NAT devices to establish peer-to-peer connections. NAT traversal techniques, such as STUN, TURN, and ICE, allow applications to establish connections across NAT devices, which is essential for voice over IP (VoIP), online gaming, and other peer-to-peer applications.
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The purpose of the Post Office Protocol (POP3) is to retrieve email from a mail server. POP3 is a standard mail protocol used to receive emails from a remote server to a local email client. POP3 downloads emails to the local device and typically deletes them from the server, unlike IMAP, which synchronizes emails between the server and multiple devices.
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Explore More QuizzesComputer networks form the backbone of modern communication systems, enabling the exchange of data and resources between computing devices. From the internet that connects billions of devices worldwide to local networks that power businesses and homes, understanding networking concepts is essential for IT professionals and anyone interested in technology.
The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model provides a conceptual framework that standardizes the functions of a telecommunication or computing system into seven abstract layers. Each layer serves a specific purpose and interacts with the layers above and below it, creating a modular approach to network design and troubleshooting.
The seven layers of the OSI model, from top to bottom, are:
While the OSI model provides a theoretical framework, the TCP/IP model represents the practical implementation used in most modern networks. The TCP/IP model consists of four layers that map to the OSI model's seven layers:
The TCP/IP model's simplicity and practical design have made it the de facto standard for internet communications, with protocols like TCP, IP, HTTP, and DNS forming the foundation of modern networking.
Network protocols are sets of rules that govern data exchange between devices. These protocols define how data is formatted, transmitted, and received, ensuring that devices can communicate effectively despite differences in hardware, software, or architecture.
Some of the most important network protocols include:
As networks become increasingly interconnected, security has become a critical concern. Network security encompasses the policies, practices, and technologies designed to protect the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of computer networks and data.
Key components of network security include:
Distributed systems consist of multiple autonomous computers that communicate through a network to achieve a common goal. These systems appear as a single coherent system to users, but their components are spread across multiple machines, providing benefits such as improved performance, reliability, and scalability.
Characteristics of distributed systems include:
Examples of distributed systems include cloud computing platforms, peer-to-peer networks, and distributed databases, all of which leverage network connectivity to provide powerful, scalable computing solutions.
The field of computer networking continues to evolve rapidly, with several emerging trends shaping the future of network design and management:
As these technologies mature, they will continue to transform how networks are designed, deployed, and managed, creating new opportunities and challenges for IT professionals.
Computer networks are complex systems that enable the modern digital world. Understanding the fundamental concepts, protocols, and technologies that underpin network communication is essential for anyone working in IT or interested in technology. From the OSI and TCP/IP models that provide theoretical frameworks to the practical protocols that enable everyday communication, networking knowledge forms the foundation of our connected world.
As networks continue to evolve, staying informed about emerging trends and technologies will be crucial for professionals and enthusiasts alike. Whether you're designing a small home network or managing a global enterprise infrastructure, the principles of computer networking remain the same: reliable, efficient, and secure communication between devices.