Networking fundamentals
Computer networking can be defined as an interconnection between two or more computers that allows the computers to share resources. This definition describes both the minimum requirement of having a network—at a minimum, there must be a physical means of connecting the computers—and the objective of networking, which is to share resources (examples include files, computational power, and many others).
The seven-layer OSI model
At this point, we will introduce a conceptual model that will hopefully clarify a number of basic networking concepts—the Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) reference model. This model was created by the International Organization for Standards (ISO) in 1978, and was revised in 1984. It divides networking into seven layers, as follows:
- Physical: This is simply the network's physical characteristics, including the hardware and network topology.
- Data link layer: This layer is responsible for getting data to the physical layer, as well as error detection...
