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Contents

Course Details

Course Code COMP3331/9331
Course Title Computer Networks and Applications
Units of Credit 6
Lecture Wen Hu
Admin Isura Nirmal
Classes Lectures: Mon 14:00-16:00 Hrs ( Science Theatre ) and Thu 14:00 -16:00 Hrs ( Science Theatre ).
Timetable for all lectures.
Consultations Thursdays 13:00 - 13:55
Venue: Room 606, K17 (CSE Building)
Course Website www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~cs3331
Course Contact Email cs3331@cse.unsw.edu.au
Course Forum You must join the forum first via the following link: https://edstem.org/au/join/qqtmnd


Handbook Entry Handbook Entry (may be slightly dated)

Course Summary

This course is an introductory course on computer networks aimed at students with a computer science / electrical engineering background. We will focus on common paradigms and protocols used in present data communication. Through lectures, in-class activities, labs and assignments, you will learn the theory and application of:

(1) Medium access control, congestion control, flow control, and reliable transmission,

(2) Addressing and naming,

(3) Routing and switching,

(4) Widely used protocols such as Ethernet, IP, TCP, UDP, HTTP, etc.

(5) Special-purpose networks, including content delivery, peer-to-peer, and wireless networks, and

(6) Security threats and standard defensive techniques (if time permits)

This is a combined undergraduate and postgraduate course.

Course Timetable

There will be 4 hours of lectures every week:

(i) 2-hour lecture on Monday from 14:00 - 16:00 and

(ii) 2-hour lecture on Thursday from 14:00 - 16:00

Lectures will be delivered in person in Science Theatre . Lecturers will be recorded, and the video recordings will be available for viewing.

There will be 2-hour labs during 8 weeks (starting in Week 2). All lab classes will be in-person. The detailed lab schedule will be posted on the Labs page.

Course Aims

The course aims to give students an overview of the core topics in computer networks and the Internet's architecture and protocols. Students will be introduced to network programming and learn to design and implement network protocols and applications and evaluate network performance. As an introductory course, one of the aims is to prepare students for more advanced study in follow-on courses.

Student Learning Outcomes

CLO1 : Describe the current architecture of the Internet and the entities involved in its operations

CLO2 : Identify soundness and/or potential flaws in proposed protocols

CLO3 : Design networked applications and protocols and implement them in C, Java or Python

CLO4 : Analyse and evaluate the performance of computer networks

CLO5 : Capture and analyse network traffic

CLO6 : Explain security and ethical issues in computer networking

Assumed Knowledge

Before commencing this course, students should:

  • Have a good understanding of data structures and algorithms and basic probability theory.
  • Write working programs in C, Java, or Python. The course will include a programming assignment and lab exercises.

Teaching Rationale

This course takes a top-down approach to teaching computer networks. The rationale is that most students have first-hand experience using applications over the Internet. This allows them to relate to each protocol stack layer as we travel down the layers. Once committed, they participate in appropriate cognitive aspects, such as learning the details with a focus on understanding them. Students get mentally prepared to answer questions. Very often, there is no single answer, or the answers can be unexpected. This results in deep learning and gives students a sense of accomplishment and confidence.

Learning will be primarily facilitated through the delivery of lectures. The hands-on laboratories will provide an opportunity to understand better the concepts discussed in the lectures. The sample problems, homework problem set, and tutorials will help develop problem-solving skills and prepare for the exams. The programming assignments mainly aim to familiarise students with basic network programming and network protocol design.

Teaching Strategies

  • Lectures: introduce the theory and demonstrate how they apply in practice
  • Lab Work: reinforce concepts taught in lectures by conducting hands-on experiments and network performance
  • Assignment: allow students to design and implement network protocols and evaluate network performance
  • Homework Problems (Not assessed/marked): allow students to solve problems based on content from lectures, develop problem-solving skills, assist with exam preparation
  • Consultations, Tutorials and Course Forum: allow students to ask questions and seek help from the teaching team.

Assessment

There will be four assessment components as listed below:

Component Weight
Lab Exercises 20%
Programming Assignment 20%
Mid-term Exam 20%
Final Exam 40%

To pass the course, a student MUST receive at least 40% marks in the final exam. The following formula outlines precisely how the final mark will be computed:

lab = marks for lab exercises (scaled to 20) 
assign = marks for the programming assignment (out of 20 marks) 
midTerm = mark for the mid-term exam (out of 20 marks) 
finalExamScaled = scaled mark for the final exam (out of 40 marks) 
mark = lab + assign + midTerm + finalExamScaled 
grade = HD|DN|CR|PS if mark >= 50 && finalExamScaled >= 16 
      = FL          if mark < 50
      = UF          finalExamScaled < 16
In this course, the final and mid-term exams will use the Inspera platform. The mid-exam is non-invigilated (take home), open book and open notes, while the final-exam is invigilated (on-campus) and close book. More information for students about Inspera can be found here: https://www.student.unsw.edu.au/exams/inspera .

Student Conduct

The Student Code of Conduct ( Information , Policy ) sets out what the University expects from students as members of the UNSW community. As well as the learning, teaching and research environment, the University aims to provide an environment that enables students to achieve their full potential and to provide an experience consistent with the University's values and guiding principles. A condition of enrolment is that students inform themselves of the University's rules and policies affecting them and conduct themselves accordingly.

In particular, students are responsible for observing standards of equity and respect in dealing with every University community member. This applies to all activities on UNSW premises and all external activities related to study and research. This includes behaviour in person and on social media; for example, Facebook groups are set up to discuss UNSW courses or coursework. Behaviour that is considered in breach of the Student Code Policy as discriminatory, sexually inappropriate, bullying, harassing, invading another's privacy or causing any person to fear for their safety is serious misconduct. It can lead to severe penalties, including suspension or exclusion from UNSW.

If you have any concerns, you may raise them with your lecturer or approach the School Ethics Officer , Grievance Officer , or one of the student representatives.

Plagiarism is defined as using the words or ideas of others and presenting them as your own. UNSW and CSE treat plagiarism as academic misconduct, which means it carries penalties as severe as being excluded from further study at UNSW. There are several sources to help you understand what plagiarism is and how it is dealt with at UNSW:

Make sure that you read and understand the above. Ignorance is not accepted as an excuse for plagiarism. In particular, you are responsible for securely storing your assignment files such that they are not accessible by anyone but you by setting proper permissions on your CSE home directory and/or online code repositories. Note also that plagiarism includes paying or asking another person to do a piece of work for you and then submitting it as your work. Plagiarism also covers collusion: working on an individual assessment with other students. If the assignment is individual, do it yourself or ask your tutor or the forum for help.

UNSW is committed to fostering a learning culture informed by academic integrity. All UNSW staff and students are responsible for adhering to this principle of academic integrity. Plagiarism undermines academic integrity and is not tolerated at UNSW. Plagiarism at UNSW is defined as using the words or ideas of others and passing them off as your own. This encompasses copying works from your fellow students (plagiarism) or asking/paying someone to do the work for you (contract cheating).

Course Schedule

The following table lists the tentative weekly schedule. Students will be informed of any changes during the lecture and by announcements on the notices page.


Week Lecture Dates Lecture Topics Labs Assessment Tasks
1 9 & 12 Sep Course Logistics
Introduction:
  • What is the Internet?
  • Network edge and core
  • Performance of networks
Introduction:
  • Layering and Encapsulation
Self-Study of Lab
resources and tools
(no submission and no marks)
2 16 & 19 Sep Application Layer:
  • Principles of networked applications
  • The Web & HTTP
  • Email
  • Domain Name Service (DNS)
  • Peer-to-Peer Networks and DHT
Lab 1 Lab 1 submission deadline: 10:00 Tue 24 Sep




3 23 & 26 Sep

Application Layer:
  • Content Distribution Networks
  • Socket Programming

Transport Layer:

  • Transport services
Lab 2 Lab 2 submission deadline: 10:00 Tue 1 Oct





4 30 Sep & 3 Oct

Transport Layer:
  • Multiplexing & Demultiplexing
  • UDP
  • Principles of reliable data delivery
  • Pipelined Protocols
Lab 3
Lab 3 submission deadline: 10:00 Tue 8 Oct

5 10 Oct
Transport Layer:
  • TCP
  • Connection management & flow control
  • Congestion control
Tutorial 1
(No lecture on 7 Oct due to a public holiday)
6 No lecture No lecture
No Lab



7 21 & 24 Oct
Note: Mid-term exam will take place on the 21/10. Hence, there is no lecture on that day.
Network Layer, Data Plane:
  • Overview
  • IP
Programming Tutorial Mid-term Test on 21 Oct during lecture hours

8
28 & 31 Oct
Network Layer, Data Plane:
  • IP Addressing
  • NAT
  • IPv6
Network Layer, Control Plane:
  • Routing algorithms
  • Link State
Lab 4
Lab 4 submission deadline: 10:00 Tue 5 Nov


9 4 & 7 Nov

Network Layer, Control Plane:
  • Distance Vector
  • ICMP
Link Layer:
  • Error detection
  • Multiple Access Protocols
Lab 5
Lab 5 submission deadline: 10:00 Tue 12 Nov

Assignment Due: 8 Nov
10 11 & 14 Nov

Link Layer:
  • Link-Layer Addressing and ARP
  • Ethernet
  • Switches
Wireless Networks
  • Wireless Characteristics
  • 802.11
  • CSMA/CA
A Day in the Life of a Web request


Tutorial 2

Exam Period
T3 Exams
Final Exam


Resources for Students

Course Textbook:

  • Computer Networking - A Top-Down Approach Featuring the Internet, J. Kurose and K. Ross, Pearson, 8th Edition, 2020 (Seventh edition will suffice for most parts). UNSW Bookshop Print Version Link - Print Version , Digital Version Link - E-book Version

Reference Texts:

  • Unix Network 1 - Networking APIs: Sockets and XTI, W. Richard Stevens, Prentice-Hall, Second Edition, 1998.
  • Java Network Programming, E. R. Harold, O'Reilly, Third Edition, 2004.
  • Learning Python, Mark Lutz, O'Reilly, Fifth Edition, 2013.
  • Computer Networks: A Systems Approach, Larry Peterson and Bruce Davie, Morgan Kaufmann, Fifth Edition, 2011.
  • Introduction to Computer Networks and Cybersecurity, John Wu and J. David Irwin, CRC Press, 2013.
  • Computer Networks, Andrew Tanenbaum and David Wetherall, Fifth Edition, Pearson, 2010.
  • Wireless and Mobile Networking, Mahbub Hassan, CRC Press, 2022

Links to additional reading material will be available on the lecture notes page.

Software:

For the labs, we will be using several Unix-based network utility programs. The purpose of these programs and information on how to use them will be provided in the lab handouts. We will also use a packet sniffing tool called Wireshark, which is widely deployed on CSE machines. In addition, we will also use Ns-2, a widely used network simulator for a few labs. Ns-2 is installed on the CSE lab machines. The simulator is written in C++. However, it uses OTcl as its command and configuration interface. In the lab exercises, we will use scripts written in OTcl. We will provide the necessary scripts for the lab exercises. You will be expected to run the scripts, make some changes in the scripts, and specific performance metrics. You will not be required to write C++ code. Detailed resources for all tools will be available on the lab exercises page.

The programming assignment is expected to be developed in C, Java or Python . Students are assumed to have sufficient expertise in one of these programming languages. Links to C, Java and Python network programming resources will be available on the assignment page. Students will work on some simple client-server applications in two lab exercises, which should be a helpful starting point for the assignment.

Course Evaluation and Development

Student feedback on this course is obtained through the myExperience survey at the end of each term. We value student feedback and take it seriously, using it as a basis for continuous improvements to the course. We strongly encourage students to promptly inform the course lecturer of any issues that may arise. We are open to suggestions and criticisms and committed to taking appropriate actions to rectify any problems and enhance the student's learning experience.

Based on the feedback received for previous terms, we note that it was generally positive. Consequently, we do not anticipate making any significant changes to the course. However, it was brought to our attention that some students found the programming assignment quite challenging and would perhaps benefit from additional help with coding. In response to this concern, we will be offering additional help sessions and tutorials on network programming. We hope that this extra support will assist students in completing the assignment on time ensuring a better learning experience for everyone.

Special Consideration

You can view the Special Consideration policy at the link here .

UNSW centrally handles special considerations (in the Student Lifecycle division), so all special consideration requests must be submitted via the UNSW Special Consideration website. If you believe your work for any assessment component in this course was affected by unforeseen adverse circumstances, you could apply for Special Consideration. Special consideration requests must be accompanied by documentation on how you have been impacted, which Student Lifecycle will verify. Do not email the LiC directly about special consideration. If your request is reasonable and your work has been impacted, then:

  • Lab submission: You may be granted an extension of a few days.
  • Assignment: You may be granted an extension of a few days.
  • Mid-Term Exam: Your final exam marks maybe scaled up to cover the mid-term component.
  • Final Exam: You may be offered a Supplementary Exam

Note the use of the word "may". None of the above is guaranteed. It depends on you making a convincing case that the circumstances have impacted your ability to work. UNSW expects you to be available to sit for the supplementary exams if required. If you are awarded a supplementary exam and do not attend, your exam mark will be zero.

If you are registered with Equitable Learning Services (ELS), please forward your documentation to your Course Admin within the first two weeks of the term.

Contacting LiC and Course Admin: No personal emails, please. Please use cs3331@cse.unsw.edu.au

Resource created Thursday 22 August 2024, 03:44:19 PM, last modified Monday 09 September 2024, 10:20:23 PM.


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