32524 LANS and Routing

Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a particular semester, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.

Subject level:

Postgraduate

Recommended studies: competency in the use of PCs, fundamental knowledge of the working principles of a computer, basic understanding of computer networking and the internet

Handbook description

This subject provides students with knowledge of LAN hardware and physical layer standards, and basic computer networking concepts and principles, and introduces local area network (LAN) design and the use of routers and routing in autonomous system intranets. It also explains how these access WANS. Use of the Cisco Academies online resources and practical work in wiring and configuring LANs, including Cisco routers, is an integral part of this subject.

Subject objectives/outcomes

On successful completion of this subject students will be able to:

1. Appreciate the role of higher OSI layers, and especially those used for Internet-based services using a top down approach.
2. Understand the importance of Networking Standards, and their relationship to the OSI architecture.
3. Understand the characteristics of Transport Layer (Layer 4) and Network Layer (Layer 3) technologies and, specifically, those relevant to the Internet Protocol.
4. Understand the characteristics of Physical Layer (Layer 1) and Data Link Layer (Layer 2) technologies and, specifically, those relevant to the Local Area Network (LAN).
5. Understand the interaction between Data Link and Network Layer technologies.
6. Recognise and make suitable choices for physical networking equipment and media. Construct and install Ethernet networks that conform to EIA standards.
7. Demonstrate proficiency in IP Address and Subnet Mask calculations, and recognize efficient IP subnet designs.
8. Study the basic components of a Cisco router, its interfaces, and become familiar with the basic CLI (Command Line Interface) and configuration.
9. Demonstrate successful configuration of a range of routing protocols, static and dynamic, on simple multi-network designs using Cisco routers.
10. Understand how a router generates its routing table and uses it.
11. Appreciate the difference between several important dynamic routing protocols, and their specific limitations.

Contribution to course aims and graduate attributes

This subject introduces students to identify, interpret and analyse network requirements (A1) and apply principles of sustainability to design small/medium sized network systems. It develops students problem-analysing, problem-solving, knowledge synthesising, networking designing skills (B1, B2, B3, B4), and assures students skills on implementing and testing small/medium sized networks (B5). Students will have developed professional communication skills as effective team work players (E1, E2). These will be achieved through learning technical knowledge, practising network designing and implementation, developing network testing and troubleshooting strategies, writing professional-level reports and organising group works. (Objectives: 1 through 9)

This Subject contributes to the following Graduate Attributes:

A.1. Need analysis, B.1. Problem solving, B.2. Design, B.3. Synthesise, B.4. Decision-making, B.5. Implement and test solutions, E.1. Communicate effectively, E.2. Teams

A complete list and description of Graduate Attributes for the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology can be found at http://feit.uts.edu.au/faculty/graduate-attributes.html.

Teaching and learning strategies

Normal class contact time is comprised of four hours tutorial/laboratory session per week. In the laboratory a workshop approach is used which combines learning by doing small group and whole class discussion, a short presentation, web research, online activities, hands-on activities, question and answer sessions, and online tests with immediate feedback. It is expected that students will need to spend an additional four hours in self-directed study for each lab session.
An online discussion forum is used to disseminate information to all students, and to allow students to pose questions, and more importantly, to answer each others’ questions. Students are expected to log into the forum on a frequent basis to read messages and to engage in dialogue on the subject matter.

Students are expected to pre-read all chapters (online version or hard copy text) before they are covered in each lecture. Further, careful notes made at this time will greatly assist with the written exam and the online final exams. During lab sessions students should make careful notes in their Engineering Journals which will be very helpful with the skills based assessments. The final written exam questions will also come from these sources.

The workload for this subject will require students to exercise considerable diligence and to strive for efficient utilisation of class time and laboratory facilities. Accordingly, all computer activities which are not directly and expressly related to the curriculum are strictly prohibited in all networking labs. Any detected infringement will result in immediate expulsion from the laboratory.

Content

Major topics to be covered in this subject are:

1. Networking: A top-down approach
2. Application Layer functionality and protocols
3. OSI Transport Layer
4. OSI Network Layer: Addressing the network using IPv4, Packet forwarding and Routing
5. Data Link Layer: Concepts and Technologies
6. Physical Layer: Interconnection strategies in building the network
7. Planning and Cabling
8. Introduction to Routing and Packet Forwarding
9. Static Routing
10. Dynamic Routing Protocols: Distance Vector Routing, RIPv1 and RIPv2, EIGRP, Link State Routing and OSPF
11. Configuring and Testing Networks

Assessment

Assessment Item 1: CCNA1 Online Final Exam

Assessment Item 2: CCNA1 Skills Based Assessment

Assessment Item 3: Case Study

Assessment Item 4: CCNA2 Online Final Exam

Assessment Item 5: Final Skills Based Assessment

Assessment Item 6: Final Written Exam

Minimum requirements

Whilst there is no requirement to pass any individual assessment component, students must achieve an aggregated mark of 50% or more from all assessment components and attend both Online Final Exam and the final Skills Based Assessment to pass this subject.

Required texts

The primary source of information for this subject will be online course material. All students who are enrolled in this subject will be given access to CCNA Exploration 4.0 Network Fundamentals and Routing Protocols and Concepts through the Cisco Networking Academy website (https://cisco.netacad.com/) or UTS mirror website (http://www.iwork.uts.edu.au/enrolled/cisco/). Note that both sites contain all the online course material. The Cisco Networking Academy site also contains additional learning resources, and the UTS mirror website is hosted locally. So, you should use UTS mirror site in preference to the Cisco Networking Academy site whenever possible.

Recommended texts

1. Mark A. Dye, Rick McDonald and Antoon W. Rufi: Network Fundamentals: CCNA Exploration Companion Guide (1st Edition), Cisco Press, 2008.
2. Rick Graziani and Allan Johnson, Routing Protocols and Concepts: CCNA Exploration Companion Guide (1st Edition), Cisco Press, 2008.

Other resources

1. UTS mirror website for online course material (login: your UTS ID and UTS Email password):
   http://www.iwork.uts.edu.au/enrolled/cisco/
2. Cisco Networking Academy website for online course material (login: your Cisco NetSpace account):
   https://cisco.netacad.com/ (or https://www.netacad.com/)
3. Cisco’s assessment server for online quizzes and examinations (login: your Cisco NetSpace account):
   https://cisco.netacad.com/ (or https://www.netacad.com/)
4. UTS Online for online discussion and dissemination of course information (login: UTS ID and UTS Email password):
   http://www.online.uts.edu.au