Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is a communication protocol operating at data link layer the OSI model to prevent bridge loops and the resulting broadcast storms. It creates a loop − free topology for Ethernet networks.Working PrincipleA bridge loop is created when there are more than one paths between two nodes in a given network. When a message is sent, particularly when a broadcast is done, the bridges repeatedly rebroadcast the same message flooding the network. Since a data link layer frame does not have a time-to-live field in the header, the broadcast frame may loop forever, thus swamping the channels.Spanning ... Read More

In data communications, wormhole switching a flow control technique where large data frames or packets are partitioned and then transmitted. When a switching device (a bridge or a switch) receives a data packet, it partitions the packet into small parts called flow control units or flits. The flits are transmitted one by one instead of the whole packet. Also called wormhole flow control, wormhole switching is subtype of flit-buffer flow control methods and is based upon fixed links.Working PrincipleIn this technique, each packet or frame is broken into smaller pieces of data called flits. The header flits contain the destination ... Read More

In data communications, cut-through switching is a method of switching data frame or data packets, where the switching device (bridge or switch) forwards the frames or packets as soon as the destination address is available without waiting for the rest of the data to arrive.Working PrincipleCut-through switching is used in packet switching systems. In packet-switching, the message is divided into a number of units called packets that are individually routed from the source to the destination. There is no need to establish a dedicated circuit for communication, since it is a connectionless network switching technique.In cut − through switching, when ... Read More

A bridge is a network device that connects multiple LANs (local area networks) together to form a larger LAN. The process of aggregating networks is called network bridging. A bridge connects the different components so that they appear as parts of a single network. Bridges operate at the data link layer of the OSI model and hence also referred as Layer 2 switches.The following diagram shows a bridges connecting two LANs −Uses of BridgeBridges connects two or more different LANs that has a similar protocol and provides communication between the devices (nodes) in them.By joining multiple LANs, bridges help in ... Read More

Virtual Local Area Networks or Virtual LANs (VLANs) are a logical group of computers that appear to be on the same LAN irrespective of the configuration of the underlying physical network. Network administrators partition the networks to match the functional requirements of the VLANs so that each VLAN comprise of a subset of ports on a single or multiple switches or bridges. This allows computers and devices in a VLAN to communicate in the simulated environment as if it is a separate LAN.Features of VLANsA VLAN forms sub-network grouping together devices on separate physical LANs.VLAN's help the network manager to ... Read More

Network switching is the process of forwarding data frames or packets from one port to another leading to data transmission from source to destination. Data link layer is the second layer of the Open System Interconnections (OSI) model whose function is to divide the stream of bits from physical layer into data frames and transmit the frames according to switching requirements. Switching in data link layer is done by network devices called bridges.BridgesA data link layer bridge connects multiple LANs (local area networks) together to form a larger LAN. This process of aggregating networks is called network bridging. A bridge ... Read More

Both Synchronous and Asynchronous Transmission are types of serial data transmission techniques in which data is transmitted between the sender and the receiver based on a clock pulse used for synchronization.Read through this article to find out more about synchronous and asynchronous transmission and how they are different from each other.What is Synchronous Transmission?Synchronous transmission is a technique of data transmission in which a sender transmits a continuous stream of data along with periodic timing signals supplied by an external clocking system in order to ensure that the transmitter and the receiver are in sync.In Synchronous transmission, data is transferred ... Read More

In digital electronics, both combinational and sequential circuits are the most widely used circuits. These are two broad categories of circuits defined in the digital electronics where one type of circuit is independent of time and other is dependent on time. Read this article to find out more about combinational circuits and sequential circuits and how these two circuits are different from each other. Let's start with a basic overview of combinational and sequential circuits so that it becomes easier to understand how they are different from each other. What is a Combinational Circuit? A combinational circuit is one whose ... Read More

Both Block cipher and Stream cipher belong to the family of symmetric key ciphers which are the basically encryption methods primarily used for converting the plaintext into ciphertext directly.Go through this article to find out more about the features of block ciphers and stream ciphers and how they are different from each other.What is Block Cipher?A block cipher is a symmetric cryptographic technique that uses a shared, secret key to encrypt a fixed-size data block. During encryption, plaintext is used, and ciphertext is the resultant encrypted text. The plaintext and ciphertext are both encrypted using the same key.A block cipher ... Read More

As we know that both DES and AES are the type of symmetric key block cipher which are used in such encryption where only one key (a secret key) is used to both encrypt and decrypt electronic information. The entities communicating via symmetric encryption must exchange the key so that it can be used in the decryption process. Now on the basis of characteristics we can distinguish between AES and DES.Following are the important differences between DES and AES ciphers.Sr. No.KeyDES CipherAES Cipher1DefinitionData Encryption Standard also known as DES is a symmetric key block cipher that was introduced in the ... Read More