Computer Networks -- A Hands on Approach

Dr. Wayne C. Summers
Computer Science Department
New Mexico Highlands University
Las Vegas, NM 87701
(505) 454-3230
summers_wayne@ColumbusState.edu

Abstract

This paper describes two courses developed and taught at New Mexico Highlands University. The two courses are designed to introduce Computer Science and Management Information Systems students to computer networking. They include a large hands-on component to provide students with experience using and designing computer networks.

Introduction

This ancient Chinese proverb should be an axiom for most classrooms. Students respond better to technical courses if the course includes a large degree of hands-on experiences. The courses Computer Networks [11] and Networking in a Business Environment [12] are two such courses. To fully understand networking concepts, students need lots of experience with both networking hardware and software, otherwise they may remember some of the concepts, but not really understand them. Computer Networks and Networking in a Business Environment provide students with the necessary experiences to fully understand many of the computer networking concepts.

Course Background

IS’97.6 – Networks and Telecommunications is one of the recommended courses in the Information Technology Area of the IS’97 Curriculum. "This course provides an in-depth knowledge of data communications and networking requirements including networking and telecommunications technologies, hardware, and software." [3] Most Computer Networks courses involve a lot of theory with little practical experience [1] [2] [4] [5] [7]. Students generally complete the course lacking a full understanding of computer networks and how to implement them. This course uses homework, labs, and projects to provide students with experience with network hardware and software. Many of the homework questions involve research on different hardware and software products used in computer networking. All students are expected to complete a series of small hands-on lab assignments. These labs supplement the material from the textbook. Each student also selects either a real-world hands-on project. These assignments are structured to reinforce many of the concepts discussed in class and to supplement the material from the textbook. It is difficult to find a Computer Networks textbook that is current. New developments and technologies emerge rapidly in networking. White papers provided by several networking hardware vendors are distributed to provide currency to the course. Students are encouraged to use the World-Wide Web as a research tool to add currency to the course and use e-mail as a vehicle for submitting their assignments. Each student is also expected to read journal articles either from print media or the WWW and report each week by e-mail or to an online discussion group on their readings.

Homework

Homework assignments from the textbook, Applied Data Communications [6] have been customized to provide more hands-on experience for the students. Many of the homework assignments require students use the World-Wide Web and professional journals to research a variety of hardware and software components of computer networks. These assignments provide additional relevancy and currency to the course. The students are expected to answer the assignments by submitting their answers electronically. Those Internet URLs pertinent and useful to the other students in the class are included in the class notes document on the instructor’s web site. Listed below are several of the homework assignments that the students are expected to complete.

1. Gather job postings for networking related careers. What types of technical and nontechnical skills are required? What are the salary ranges? Do all jobs require experience?
2. Gather advertisements or product specifications for modems of various types. What are the price ranges of these modems? What are the various modulation techniques employed by these modems?
3. Using a modem advertisement, write a technical memo to a nontechnically oriented manager explaining the features of the modem. Prepare a cost / benefit analysis and make a recommendation.
4. Draw a simple network diagram illustrating the network printing set-up on the computer lab’s network. Be sure to illustrate the number of printers, number of user workstations, and whether or not the printer servers are dedicated.
5. Use recent web or print publications to compare the functionality of the latest versions of Netware, OS/2, Vines and Windows NT. List the strengths and weaknesses of each LAN network operating system and predict the future market direction of each.
6. Investigate and report on high-speed local area networking standards including Fast Ethernet, 100BaseVG, and other standards you may encounter.
7. Gather product literature on a variety of bridges and routers. Prepare a comparative functionality chart detailing the operational differences, as well as price differences.
8. Gather articles on ATM. Summarize the current issues on ATM, focusing on obstacles to widespread deployment.

Lab Assignments

Lab assignments have been designed to provide students with a variety of experiences using a variety of network hardware and software. The following is a list of brief descriptions of the different lab assignments. Each assignment can be completed either individually or with one classmate. Students are asked to select different partners for each assignment in order to provide a variety of experiences. Each student is expected to submit a report on the lab by electronic mail.

1. Students used a World-Wide Web browser to find information on a topic in computer networks. They briefly discussed what they found by e-mail including any URLs that they found.
2. One of the local Middle Schools had a Netday several months earlier and required small tasks be completed to finish the networking in the school. This included attaching RJ45 connectors to CAT-5 cable, installing several hubs, and inventorying the remaining cable and equipment. The class was volunteered to do this work and were asked to report on what they did.
3. Students were assigned two computers, one with Windows 3.11 and the other with Windows 95. They were expected to install two different kinds of network cards and connect the two computers to the campus LAN and download a file from a computer on the LAN. One of the network cards used DIP switches to set the IRQ and other settings while the other network card's settings could be set by software.
4. Students were asked to install Windows NT 4.0 Server on a computer. This required installing the appropriate drivers for the network card and the CD-ROM.
5. Another assignment involved administering a computer network server. Students were required to administer a Windows NT 4.0 Domain and answer a series of questions. To answer the questions, the students needed to use the Event Viewer, the Disk Administrator, and the User Administrator.
6. Students were asked to use several TCP/IP software tools to administer a network. The students were expected to answer questions using programs like tracert, netstat, ping, and route. One lab was completed on a Windows NT network while a second with completed using a UNIX network.
7. To expose students to a Novell Netware network, students were required to install a Netware 4.1 client on a PC.
8. The final lab assignment required that the students select one of the levels of the OSI Model and develop an HTML document that explains the function of the chosen layer, identifying any hardware and /or protocols that are associated with the layer. [This can be found at http://cs.nmhu.edu/osimodel/].

PROJECTS

Each student is expected to select a hands-on project or a research paper. For a hands-on project, students are required to design a web document describing the results of the project and present an oral report to the class. Students selecting a research paper are also expected to design a web document and present an oral report.

Each semester that these courses have been taught, we have had several excellent opportunities for school computer networking projects. Two of the neighboring school districts have used the Netday model to network their elementary, middle and high schools. Different students were selected to assume the duties of Network Designer for each of the schools to be networked. The students are expected to survey the needs of the school, draw the network diagram complete with riser diagrams, and produce a list of equipment needed for the school. The students are then expected to direct the networking of the school on the Netday. Other students in the class have an opportunity to volunteer to assist in the networking of the schools. This provided invaluable practical experience in computer networking. The students not only understand the terminology but also the functionality of the different components in a computer network.

Other projects include designing an advanced computer network for the Computer Science Department, installing a variety of Internet servers on NT and UNIX networks, and installing Novell’s NetWare. Research paper topics include TCP/IP, Switching Networks and others.

Conclusion

The Computer Network course described above has become a very popular course among our CS and MIS students. Although the students complain that there is a lot of work involved in the course, they also recognize the valuable experiences that they receive in such a course. It is common that the students will comment in their electronic journals that they now understand what a CSU/DSU is or how a hub works after helping install the devices at a school Netday. They have actively participated in installing several different computer networks. Students completing this course not only understand the material from the textbook, they have hands-on experiences that further this understanding.

References

[1] CSC130 – Intro Computer Networking/Data Comm, http://www.dist.maricopa.edu/eddev/artic/96/csc/csc130.html, February 1998.

[2] Davie, H. and Muir, D., Computer Communications II – Local Area Networks, http://www.elec.gla.ac.uk/coursedb/1bws.html, February 1998.

[3] Davis, G.B., Gorgone, J.T., Cougar, J.D., Feinstein, D.L., Longnecker, H.E. Jr., IS ’97 Model Curriculum and Guidelines for Undergraduate Degree Programs in Information Systems, ACM, AIS, AITP, 1997, pg. 19.

[4] Drew, Steve, SY11507 Introduction to Computer Systems and Networks, http://www.cit.gu.edu.au/~rwt/bcommtech/icsn.html, February 1998.

[5] Erbschloe, Michael, Optimizing University Education for Telecommunications Management, Telecommunications, February 1996, pp. 55, 62.

[6] Goldman, James E., Applied Data Communications, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1995.

[7] Jones, Ray and Wright, Chris, Data Communications and Networks, http://idun.unl.ac.uk/~ex14jonesr/soc/units/co210/intro.htm, February 1998.

[8] Nguyen, Tin, Computer Networks I course Information, http://www.docs.uu.se/~nguyen/datacom.html, February 1998.

[9] Schlieve, P.L., CECS 5460: Computer networks in Educational Environments, http://www.cecs.unt.edu/faculty/schlieve/cecs5560.html, February 1998.

[10] Smith, Mark W., Establishing a Hands-on Lab Approach for a Course in Local Area Networking with Emphasis on Problem Solving, Proceedings of the Information Systems Education Conference (ISECON), Orlando, FL, October 1997, pg. 180.

[11] Summers, Wayne, CS457/557: Computer Networks, http://csc.ColumbusState.edu/summers/notes/cs457/intro.htm, June 1998.

[12] Summers, Wayne, MIS420/520: Networking in the Business Environment, http://csc.ColumbusState.edu/summers/notes/Mis420/, June 1998.

[13] Varian, Hal, SIMS 250: Computer-Based Communications Systems and Networks, http://info.berkeley.edu/programs/syllabi/node25.html, created – Oct. 16, 1996, viewed - February 1998.

[14] Zic, John, COMP3331 Computer Networks and Applications Home Page, http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~cs3331/, last modified – Feb. 2, 1998, viewed February 1998.