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IP addresses are written using decimal numbers separated by decimal points. This is called
dotted decimal notation of expressing IP addresses.
The different classes of IP addresses is as below:
Network Maximum
Leading Maximumnetwork
Class Format address hosts/
Bit pattern s
Range nodes
For example, your network has 2 servers, 26 clients machines, and 2 router interfaces the total
number of IP addresses required are 30.
9. Finding the number of Hosts and subnets available for a given subnet mask: For example, let
us find the number of hosts and subnets available for an IP 156.233.42.56 with a subnet mask of
7 bits.
a. Class B network has the form N.N.H.H, the default subnet mask is 16 bits long.
There is additional subnet mask of 7 bits long.
b. 7 bits of subnet mask corresponds to (2^7-2)=128-2 = 126 subnets.
c. 9 bits (16-7) of host addresses corresponds to (2^9-2)=512-2 = 510 hosts.
Some times, the subnet mask is specified with the bits available in the default subnet
mask. In this case the bits available in default subnet mask is 16. Therefore, total number
of bits available in the subnet mask are 16+7=23. If you are given a subnet mask of 23
bits long for a class B address, it is understood that it contains the bits from the default
subnet mask as well.
Hence, 126 subnets and 510 hosts are available.
10. The directed broadcast should reach all Hosts on the intended network (or subnet, if sub
netted). For example, the directed broadcast address for an IP network 196.233.24.15
with default subnet mask is 196.233.24.255. This is arrived by putting all 1s for the host
potion of the IP address.
11.
. Telnet is used for terminal emulation that runs programs remotely. Telnet uses TCP/IP
protocol.
3. FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a connection oriented protocol. It uses TCP/IP for file
transfer. Compare this with TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) that uses UDP
(Connectionless protocol). SNMP uses UDP over IP. Tracert, Ping use ICMP as their base
protocol. FTP is used to transfer files.
4. Both FTP and Telnet are client-server protocols. Note that TCP/IP is a client server
oriented protocol.
13. Maximum hop count supported by RIP is 15.
14. The port numbers used by different programs are as below:
I. FTP : Port #21
II. Telnet: Port #23
III. SMTP: Port #25
IV. SNMP: Port #161
It is important to know that FTP, Telnet, SMTP use TCP; whereas TFTP, SNMP use UDP.
15. SNMP is part of TCP/IP protocol suite. It allows you to monitor and manage a network from a
centralized place by using SNMP Manager software. The systems or devices that provide the
responses are called agents (or MIBs). An SNMP agent is any computer running SNMP agent
software.
MIB stands for Management Information Base. It is part of SNMP agent database. A MIB records
and stores information abut the host it is running on. An SNMP manager can request and collect
information from an agent's MIB. Routers are typical MIB agents. SNMP agent generates "trap"
messages that are then sent to an SNMP management console, which is a trap destination.
17. Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is used to resolve or map a known IP address to a MAC
sub layer address to allow communication on a multi-access medium such as Ethernet. Reverse
ARP (RARP) is used to obtain an IP address using an RARP broadcast. RARP can be used to boot
diskless workstations over a network.
18. The 7 layers of OSI model are:
1. The Application Layer: Application layer is responsible for identifying and establishing
the availability of desired communication partner and verifying sufficient resources exist
for communication. Some of the important application layer protocols are: WWW, SMTP,
FTP, etc.
2. The Presentation Layer: This layer is responsible for presenting the data in standard
formats. This layer is responsible for data compression, decompression, encryption, and
decryption. Some Presentation Layer standards are: JPEG, MPEG, MIDI, PICT, Quick
Time, TIFF.
3. The Session Layer: Session Layer is responsible for co-ordinating communication
between systems/nodes. The following are some of the session layer protocols and
interfaces: a) Network File System (NFS), SQL, RPC (Remote Procedure Call), X-
Windows, ASP, DNA SCP.
4. The Transport Layer: The Transport Layer is responsible for multiplexing upper-layer
applications, session establishment, and tearing-down of virtual circuits. This layer is
responsible for flow control, to maintain data integrity.
5. The Network Layer: There can be several paths to send a packet from a given source
to a destination. The primary responsibility of Network layer is to send packets from the
source network to the destination network using a pre-determined routing methods.
Routers work at Network layer.
6. The Data Link Layer:
Data Link Layer is layer 2 of OSI reference model. This layer is divided into two sub-
layers:
A. Logical Link Control (LLC) sub-layer.
B. Media Access Control (MAC) sub-layer.
The LLC sub-layer handles error control, flow control, framing, and MAC sub-layer
addressing.
The MAC sub-layer is the lower of the two sub-layers of the Data Link layer. MAC sub-
layer handles access to shared media, such a Token passing or Ethernet.
7. Physical Layer: The actual flow of signals take place through Physical layer. At
Physical layer, the interface between the DTE and DCE is determined. The following are
some of the standard interfaces are defined at Physical layer: EIA/TIA-232, EIA/TIA-
449,V.24,V.35,X.21,G.703,HSSI (High Speed Serial Interface).
19. Repeaters, Bridges, and Routers:
I. Repeaters work at Physical layer (Layer 1),
II. Bridges and simple switches work at Data Link Layer (Layer 2),
III. Routers work at Network Layer (Layer 3) of ISO Reference Model.
20. CSU / DSU is an acronym for Channel Service Unit / Data Service Unit. CSU/DSU is part of
Customer Premise Equipment (CPE). CSU / DSU connect to a Central Office (CO), a telephone
switching company located nearer to the customer.
21. Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) IEEE Specification 802.1d is used to prevent routing loops. In
Cisco Catalyst 5000 series switches, use BDPUs (Bridge Protocol Data Units) to determine the
spanning tree topology. STP uses a Tree Algorithm (STA) to prevent loops, resulting in a stable
network topology.
22. HTTP is the protocol used for accessing the World Wide Web services. HTTP operates over
TCP/IP. TCP/IP is the protocol, which is used by all internet applications such as WWW, FTP,
Telnet etc. IPX/SPX is proprietary protocol stack of Novell NetWare.
29. Routers can make alternate route decisions based on ICMP messages, if appropriate. Routers
send an ICMP message if the destination is unreachable.
30. Port numbers are used by TCP/ UDP to set up sessions with other hosts. The following are the
recommended port numbers:
1. Numbers 0 - 255 are used for public applications.
2. Numbers 255 - 1023 are assigned to companies so that they can use these port
numbers in their applications.
3. Numbers above 1023 are used by upper layers to set up sessions with other hosts
and by TCP to use as source and destination addresses.
31. Ethernet_II has a type field to identify the upper-layer protocol. 802.3 has only a length field
and can't identify the upper-layer protocol.
32.To find valid hosts given an IP address (say 156.16.3.52) and a subnet mask (sat a 12-bit
subnet). The valid hosts are determined as below:
A 12-bit subnet mask gives us 255.255.255.240; 4094 subnets, each with 14 hosts. (Host
addresses of all zeros and all 1s can't be assigned). The 156.16.3.52 is in the 48 subnet range.
The valid range is through 49 - 62. 63 is a broadcast address.
When you first switch on a router, you enter Setup mode. Setup mode is different
from configuration mode in that setup mode appears when there is no configuration file
present. Upon entering setup mode, you can supply some basic configuration parameters
to Cisco router.
37. You can use "tab" to complete the command that you are typing.
38. SHOW command is extensively used for seeing the status and configuration information of the
router.
Some of the frequently used commands are:
1. SHOW RUNNING-CONFIGURATION -This command displays the router's active
configuration file, passwords, system name, and interface settings, interfaces IP addresses
etc.
2. SHOW INTERFACE - Shows status and configuration information of the local interfaces.
The first line says something like “TokenRing1 is up, line protocol is up”. The first part
“TokenRing1 is up” describes the physical layer components such as electrical cabling and
signaling are OK. The second part “line protocol is up” means that the router is detecting
keep-alive messages. The router may be put into administratively down status, at which
point the line would read, “TokenRing1 is administratively down, line protocol is down.”
3. SHOW INTERFACE SERIAL 0 - Shows the serial 0 configuration.
4. SHOW INTERFACES - Displays statistics for all interfaces configured on the switch.
5. SHOW PROCESS - Displays a router’s CPU utilization.
6. SHOW CONFIG - Displays information on the startup configuration.
7. SHOW VERSION - Displays information about the system hardware (RAM/ROM),
software version, names of configuration files, and boot-images. This command will also
show the current configuration register value.
39. The Cisco router can be configured from many locations.
1. Console port: During the initial installation, you configure the router from a console
terminal connected to the "Console port" of the router.
2. Virtual Terminals (vty): A virtual terminal (vty) is typically accessed through Telnet. A
router can be accessed through vty after it the initial installation in the network. There are
five virtual terminals, namely, vty0,vty1,vty2,vty3,vty4.
3. Auxiliary Port: you can configure a router through auxiliary port. Typically, a modem is
used to configure the modem through aux port.
4. TFTP Server: Configuration information can be downloaded from a TFTP server over the
network.
5. NMS (Network Management Station): You can also manage router configuration through
NMS such as CiscoWorks or HP OpenView.
40. There are five different types of passwords:
1. ENABLE PASSWORD - A global command that restricts access to privileged exec mode. This
is a non-encrypted password.
2. ENABLE SECRET - Assigns a one-way encryptographic secret password, available in versions
10.3 and up. This secret password is used instead of the enable password when it exists.
3. Virtual Terminal Password (vty password): The virtual terminal password is used for Telnet
sessions into the router. The password can be changed at any time. It can be set up when
you configure the router from the console. There can be five distinct passwords
corresponding to each vty (vty0 to vty4) or there can be a single password for all vtys.
4. Auxiliary Password: Auxiliary password is used to set password to the auxiliary port. This
port is used to access a router through a modem.
5. Console Password: Console password is used to set the console port password.
40. There are five different types of passwords:
1. ENABLE PASSWORD - A global command that restricts access to privileged exec mode. This
is a non-encrypted password.
2. ENABLE SECRET - Assigns a one-way encryptographic secret password, available in versions
10.3 and up. This secret password is used instead of the enable password when it exists.
3. Virtual Terminal Password (vty password): The virtual terminal password is used for Telnet
sessions into the router. The password can be changed at any time. It can be set up when
you configure the router from the console. There can be five distinct passwords
corresponding to each vty (vty0 to vty4) or there can be a single password for all vtys.
4. Auxiliary Password: Auxiliary password is used to set password to the auxiliary port. This
port is used to access a router through a modem.
5. Console Password: Console password is used to set the console port password.
41. Internal memory components of a Cisco router:
1. ROM (Read Only Memory); Memory containing micro-code for basic functions to start and
maintain the router. ROM is not typically used after the IOS is loaded.
2. RAM/DRAM : stores the running configuration, routing tables, and packet buffers. Some
routers, such as the 2500 series, run IOS from Flash, not RAM.
3. NVRAM (Non-Volatile Ram): Memory that does not lose information when power is lost.
Stores the system’s configuration file and the configuration register. NVRAM uses a battery
to maintain the data when power is turned off.
4. Flash Memory: Stores the compressed IOS (IOS stands for Cisco Internetwork Operating
System) image. Flash memory is either EEPROM or PCMCIA card. Flash memory enables
you to copy multiple versions of IOS software. This allows you to load a new level of the
operating system in every router in your network and then, to upgrade the whole network
to that version at an appropriate time.
42. While a packet travels through an Internetwork, it usually involves multiple hops. Note that
the logical address (IP address) of source (that created the packet) and destination (final intended
destination) remain constant, the hardware (Interface) addresses change with each hop.
43. Default administrative distances some important routing protocols are as below:
Route Source Default Distance
Directly connect Interface 0
Static Route 1
IGRP 100
RIP 120
Unknown 255
An administrative distance of 0 represents highest trustworthiness of the route.
An administrative distance of 255 represents the lowest trustworthiness of the
route.
Routed and Routing protocols:
- Routing protocols job is to maintain routing tables and route packets appropriately.
Examples of routing protocols are RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF. Routers can support multiple
independent routing protocols and can update and maintain routing tables for each
protocol independently.
- Routed protocols are used to transport user traffic from source node to destination
node. Examples of routed protocols are IP, IPX, AppleTalk.
44. There are three ways a router learns how to forward a packet:
1. Static Routes - Configured by the administrator manually. The administrator must also
update the table manually every time a change to the network takes place. Static routes
are commonly used when routing from a network to a stub (a network with a single route)
network.
The command is
ip route network mask address/interface [distance]
ex: ip route 165.44.34.0 255.255.255.0 165.44.56.5
Here, 165.44.34.0 is the destination network or subnet
255.255.255.0 is the subnet mask
165.44.56.5 is the default gateway.
2. Default Routes - The default route (gateway of last resort) is used when a route is not
known or is infeasible. The command is
ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 165.44.56.
The default gateway is set to 165.44.56.5
3. Dynamic Routes - In dynamic routing, the routing tables are automatically updated.
Dynamic routing uses broadcasts and multicasts to communicate with other routers.
The commands to enable rip are:
router rip
network <major network number>.
Do w nlo a d cc na pr a c t ic e ex a m fr o m Sim ula t io nEx a m s.c o m
45. To enable the Cisco IOS to forward packets destined for obscure subnets of directly connected
networks onto the best route, you use "ip classless" command.
46. There are broadly three types of routing protocols:
1. Distance Vector (Number of hops) - Distance vector routing determines the direction (vector)
and distance to any link in the internetwork. Typically, the smaller the metric, the better the path.
EX: Examples of distance vector protocols are RIP and IGRP. Distance vector routing is useful for
smaller networks. The limitation is that any route which is greater than 15 hops is considered
unreachable. Distance vector protocols listen to second hand information to learn routing tables
whereas, Link state protocols build routing tables from first hand information. Routers with
distance vector protocols send its entire routing table to each of its adjacent neighbors.
2. Link State Routing: Link State algorithms are also known as Shortest Path First (SPF)
algorithms. SPF generates the exact topology of the entire network for route computation, by
listening to the first hand information. Link State protocols take bandwidth into account using a
cost metric. Link State protocols only send updates when a change occurs, which makes them
more efficient for larger networks. Bandwidth and delay are the most widely used metrics when
using Link-State protocols. EX: OSPF and NLSP.
Benefits of Link State protocols:
1. Allows for a larger scalable network
2. Reduces convergence time
3. Allows “supernetting”
3. Balanced Hybrid - Balanced Hybrid combines some aspects of Link State and Distance Vector
routing protocols. Balanced Hybrid uses distance vectors with more accurate metrics to determine
the best paths to destination networks. EX: EIGRP.
47. Distance vector protocol depends only on Hop count to determine the nearest next hop for
forwarding a packet. One obvious disadvantage is that, if you have a destination connected
through two hops via T1 lines, and if the same destination is also connected through a single hop
through a 64KBPS line, RIP assumes that the link through 64KBPS is the best path!
48. RIP (and IGRP) always summarizes routing information by major network numbers. This is
called classfull routing.
49. Convergence is the term used to describe the state at which all the internetworking
devices, running any specific routing protocol, are having identical information about the
internetwork in their routing tables. The time it takes to arrive at identical information of the
internetwork is called Convergence Time.
50. RIP,RIP2, and IGRP use distance vector algorithms.
RIP2 transmits the subnet mask with each route. This feature allows VLSM (Variable Length
Subnet Masks) by passing the mask along with each route so that the subnet is exactly defined.
2. MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit): This is the maximum message length that is
acceptable to all links on the path. The larger MTU means faster transmission of packets.