Network Communication Architecture

Network Communication Architecture
and Protocols
A network architecture is a blueprint of the complete computer communication
network, which provides a framework and technology foundation for
designing, building and managing a communication network. It typically has
a layered structure. Layering is a modern network design principle which
divides the communication tasks into a number of smaller parts, each part
accomplishing a particular sub-task and interacting with the other parts in a
small number of well-defined ways. Layering allows the parts of a communication
to be designed and tested without a combinatorial explosion of cases,
keeping each design relatively simple.
If a network architecture is open, no single vendor owns the technology and
controls its definition and development. Anyone is free to design hardware
and software based on the network architecture. The TCP/IP network architecture,
which the Internet is based on, is such a open network architecture
and it is adopted as a worldwide network standard and widely deployed in
local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), small and large enterprises,
and last but not the least, the Internet.
Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) network architecture, developed by
International Organization for Standardization, is an open standard for communication
in the network across different equipment and applications by
different vendors. Though not widely deployed, the OSI 7 layer model is
considered the primary network architectural model for inter-computing and
inter-networking communications.
In addition to the OSI network architecture model, there exist other network
architecture models by many vendors, such as IBM SNA (Systems Network
Architecture), Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC; now part of HP) DNA
(Digital Network Architecture), Apple computer’s AppleTalk, and Novell’s
NetWare. Actually, the TCP/IP architecture does not exactly match the OSI
model. Unfortunately, there is no universal agreement regarding how to describe
TCP/IP with a layered model. It is generally agreed that TCP/IP has
fewer levels (from three to five layers) than the seven layers of the OSI
model.
Network architecture provides only a conceptual framework for communications
between computers. The model itself does not provide specific methods
of communication. Actual communication is defined by various communication
protocols.