CS 656: Internet and Higher Layer Protocols, Spring 2009

Section 002: Mondays/Wednesdays 8:30am-9:55am, Classroom KUPF 203

Instructor

  Cristian Borcea
  Office: GITC 4303
  Phone: 973 596-3662
  Office Hours: Tuesdays 11am-1pm
email

News

  • 05/08 The grades are posted. Have a great summer!


  • 05/06 To help you prepare for the final, I'm posting the questions and solutions for Homework 12.


  • 04/30 Homework 11 is posted and due on Sunday (05/03).


  • 04/23 Homework 10 is posted and due on Sunday (04/26).


  • 04/22 Since we lost one lecture due to snow in February, there will be a make-up lecture on Wednesday, May 6 (reading day). I decided to have the project presentations on that day in order to give you more time to work on the projects. The last two lectures, covered next week and on Monday, May 4, will be on multimedia and security in the Internet.


  • 04/22 The slides for lectures 12 and 13 are posted.


  • 04/14 Homework 9 is posted and due on Sunday (04/19).


  • 04/13 The slides for lecture 11 are posted.


  • 04/08 The final project presentations will be on Wednesday 04/29.


  • 04/07 Homework 8 is posted and due on Sunday (04/12).


  • 04/01 The slides for lectures nine and ten are posted.


  • 03/31 Homework 7 is posted and due on Sunday (04/05).


  • 03/25 The second design review of the project will be on Monday, 04/06.


  • 03/25 The slides for lecture eight are posted.


  • 03/05 Homework 6 is posted and due on Sunday (03/08).


  • 02/27 The slides for lecture seven are posted.


  • 02/24 Homework 5 is posted and due on Sunday (03/01).


  • 02/22 The first design review of the project will be on Monday, 03/09. The midterm will be on Wednesday, 03/11.


  • 02/19 The slides for the sixth lecture are posted.


  • 02/17 It's still early to talk about the final exam, but the registrar informed me that the final is scheduled for Thursday (05/07), 14:30pm-5pm, FMH 206 (note the time and place, which are different from our usual meetings).


  • 02/17 Homework 4 is posted and due on Sunday (02/22).


  • 02/13 The slides for the fifth lecture are posted.


  • 02/10 Homework 3 is posted and due on Sunday (02/15).


  • 02/08 The slides for the fourth lecture are posted.


  • 02/08 The project ideas are posted. We'll discuss them tomorrow.


  • 02/03 Homework 2 is posted and due on Sunday (02/08).


  • 02/02 The slides for the third lecture are posted.


  • 01/27 Homework 1 is posted and due on Sunday (02/01).


  • 01/26 The slides for the second lecture are posted.


  • 01/20 The slides for the first lecture are posted. I also posted the readings, book chapters and research papers, for the entire semester. Look for them in the weekely schedule below. I will provide the required user name and password in class tomorrow (or you can email me if you want this information earlier).

    • Goals

    Short Description

    This course studies the architecture and protocols of the Internet. Topics to be covered include: naming, web protocols, peer-to-peer networks, transport protocols, routing, multicasting, quality of service, multimedia and security. Additionally, students will read and present research papers for a deeper understanding of networking concepts. Students will apply what they learn in designing novel network protocols or services during a semester-long project.

    Prerequisites

    CS 456 or equivalent. Students should be capable of programming in either Java or C/C++.

    Book

    Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach (4th Edition, 2007)
    by James F. Kurose and Keith W. Ross
    Publisher: Addison Wesley
    ISBN: 0321497708

    Schedule

    Week Topic Readings
    1 Introduction. Network layering concepts. Slides.
    2 IP Addressing. DNS. The client-server model. Slides.
    3 HTTP. Slides. Project ideas.
    4 Email. P2P Networks. Slides. Project teams formed and project idea selected.
    5 UDP. Principles of Reliable data transfer. Slides.
    6 TCP. Slides.
    • Chapters 3.5 to 3.8
    7 First design review of the project.
    8 Midterm. Discussion of midterm solutions.
    9 IP. Slides.
    • Chapters 4.1 to 4.4
    10 Routing. Slides. Second design review of the project.
    11 Multicasting. Slides.
    • Chapters 4.7
    12 QoS in the Internet. Slides.
    13 Wireless and mobile networks. Slides.
    • Chapter 6
    14 Multimedia. Slides.
    • Chapters 7.1 to 7.4
    15 Network Security. Slides. Final project presentations.
    • Chapter 8

    Lecture Notes and Assigned Readings

    The lecture slides will be posted on the class's webpage prior to the lecture. Students are required to read the assigned book chapters before each lecture.

    Exams

    There will be two exams: a midterm, and a final exam. Both exams are closed book/notes. The final exam will cover only the material taught after the midterm.

    Project

    Students will form teams to design novel network protocols or services. The instructor will provide several project ideas. Each team will select one of these ideas, design a sound solution, and implement a prototype. We will have two design reviews during the semester and one final project presentation at the end of the semester. Each of these project phases (the two design reviews and the final presentation) will be graded separately.

    Homework

    Homework will be assigned weekly to prepare students with the type of questions encountered in exams. Each student is required to submit electronically one short question every week. The questions are due each Monday by midnight. The homework consists of a few of these questions selected/edited by the instructor and posted by noon on Tuesdays. The homework is due (electronically) by midnight on Sundays. Late submissions will not be accepted. The solutions will be discussed in class on Mondays, and the graded homework emailed back to you on Wednesdays.

    Reading and Presenting Research Papers

    Each student is required to read and present one research paper during the semester. In this way, students will learn fundamental lessons from the design of the Internet and be exposed to recent developments in the networking area. As byproducts, students will understand how networking research is done and learn to speak in public about a research topic. The papers will be selected by the instructor from top conferences and journals. The presentations (using power point slides) will take place in class, and extra-credit will be assigned for active participation in the discussions.

    Grading

    Policy of Missed Exams

    A make-up exam may be taken only after providing written documentation from the Dean of Students.

    Honor Code

    The NJIT Honor Code will be upheld, and any violations will be brought to the immediate attention of the Dean of Students. Note in particular that copying homework or programming assignments, in full or in part, is forbidden.

    Modifications to Syllabus

    The students will be consulted and must agree to any modifications or deviations from the syllabus throughout the course of the semester.