WANs and Routers

Objectives:
Students completing this module should be able to:
Identify organizations responsible for WAN standards
Explain the difference between a WAN and LAN and the type of addresses each uses
Describe the role of a router in a WAN
Identify internal components of the router and describe their functions
Describe the physical characteristics of the router
Identify common ports on a router
Properly connect Ethernet, serial WAN, and console ports

Introduction to WANs
A wide-area network (WAN) is a data communications network spanning a large geographic area such as a state,
province, or country.
WAN Devices

Routers - offer many services, including internetworking and WAN interface ports
Switches - connect to WAN bandwidth for voice, data, and video communication
Modems - interface voice-grade services; channel service units/digital service units (CSU/DSUs) that interface T1/E1
services; and Terminal Adapters/Network Termination 1 (TA/NT1s) that interface Integrated Services Digital Network
(ISDN) services
Communication servers - concentrate dial-in and dial-out user communication

WAN Services

The WAN physical layer describes the interface between

the data terminal equipment (DTE) and the data circuit-
terminating equipment (DCE).
Typically, the DCE is the service provider, and the DTE is
the attached device.

Data Link Encapsulations

WANs Protocols
High-Level Data Link Control (HDLC) - an IEEE standard; might not be compatible with different vendors because
of the way each vendor has chosen to implement it; supports both point-to-point and multipoint configurations with
minimal overhead.
Frame Relay - uses high-quality digital facilities; uses simplified framing with no error correction mechanisms which
means it can send Layer 2 information much more rapidly than other WAN protocols
Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) - described by RFC 1661; two standards developed by the IETF; contains a protocol
field to identify the network layer protocol.
Simple Data Link Control Protocol (SDLC) - an IBM-designed WAN data link for System Network Architecture
(SNA) environments; largely being replaced by the more versatile HDLC.
Routers Connected by WAN Technologies WANs Technologies

Circuit-Switched Services
POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service)
ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)
Packet-Switched Services
X.25
Frame Relay (ISDN)
Cell-Switched Services
ATM
SMDS (Switched Multimegabit Data Service)
Dedicated Digital Services
T1, T3, E!, E3
xDSL (DSL for Digital Subscriber Line and x for a family of
technologies)
SONET
Other WAN Services
Dial-up modems (switched analog)
Cable modems (shared analog)
Wireless

Router Basic
Computers have four basic components: a CPU, memory, interfaces, and a bus. A router also has these components,
therefore it can be called a computer. However, it is a special purpose computer
The router is a computer that selects the best paths, and manages the switching of packets between two different
networks.

Internal Configuration Components Internal Configuration Components

RAM/DRAM - Stores routing tables, ARP cache, fast-switching cache,

packet buffering (shared RAM), and packet hold queues.
NVRAM - nonvolatile RAM; stores a router’s backup/startup configuration
file; content remains when you power down or restart.
ROM - contains power-on diagnostics, a bootstrap program, and
operating system software; software upgrades in ROM require replacing
pluggable chips on the CPU
Flash - erasable, reprogrammable ROM; holds the operating system
image and microcode; allows you to update software without removing
and replacing chips on the processor; content remains when you power
down or restart; multiple versions of IOS software can be stored in Flash
memory
Interface - network connection through which packets enter and exit a
router; it can be on the motherboard or on a separate interface module

Function of Routers in a WAN

Routers are the backbone devices of large intranets and of the Internet. They operated at Layer 3 of the OSI model,
making decisions based on network addresses (on the Internet, by using the Internet Protocol, or IP).
The two main functions of routers are the selection of best paths for incoming data packets, and the switching of packets
to the proper outgoing interface.
Routers accomplish this by building routing tables and exchanging the network information contained within them with
other routers.

Network Layer Path Determination

Internetwork Routers
Any internetwork must include the following:
Consistent end-to-end addressing
Addresses that represent network topologies
Best path selection
Dynamic routing
Switching
Academy Approach to Labs
In the academy lab, all the networks will be connected with serial or Ethernet cables and the students can see and
physically touch all the equipment.
Devices that make up the WAN cloud are simulated by the connection between the back-to-back DTE-DCE cables.
Router Internal Components

Internal Components of a 2600 Router

External Connections on a 2600 Router Router External Connections

Computer or Terminal Console Connection Modem Connection to Console or Auxiliary Port

Connecting LAN Interfaces

DCE Serial Connections

Router Serial WAN Connectors