What is Network software ?
Network software’s are Communication programs that are used in combination with network devices to enable transmission of data between network terminals. They have features such as Dialing, file transfer, internet access and others.
There are two categories of network software’s; Network operating system (NOS) and Network protocols.
What is Network Operating System (NOS)?
A network operating system is a supervisory software program that resides on the server and controls a network by;
(i) Defining who can use the network
(ii) Determining how information is shared
(iii) Controlling access by multiple users to network resources such as files and hard ware
(iv) Provides for certain administrative functions, including security
Examples of common NOS;
- Novell Netware
- Microsoft Windows NT,
- windows server*,
- AppleShare,
- UNIX,
- Linux
Network operating system carries out the following administration activities:
1. Managing the Security of the network by providing Security features such as authentication, authorization, logon restrictions and access control.
2. File management.
3. Providing basic operating system features such as support for processors, protocols, automatic hardware detection and supporting multi-processing of applications.
4. Providing name and directory services.
5. Coordinates the activities of multiple computers across a network.
6. Providing file, print, web services, and back-up and replication services.
What is Network protocols?
A protocol is a set of rules and procedure (standard) for connection and data transfer between devices on a network. Protocols control all aspects of data exchange, which include the following:
- How the physical network is built.
- How devices connect to the network.
- How the data is formatted for transmission.
- How that data is sent/transmitted.
- How to deal with errors in data transfer.
The Protocols are created and maintained by a number of different organizations and committees including:
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE),
American National Standards Institute (ANSI),
Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA),
Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA)
International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
Functions of protocol in a communications network
Identifying each device in the communication path
Securing the attention of the other device
Verifying correct receipt of the transmitted message
Determining that a message requires retransmission if it is incomplete or has errors.
Performing recovery when errors occur
Commonly used protocols
TCP/IP-transmission control protocol/Internet protocol.
HTTP- Hypertext transfer protocol
FTP- file transfer protocol.
POP- post office protocol
SMTP-Simple mail transfer protocol
IPX/SPX-stands for Internetwork Packet Exchange/Sequenced Packet Exchange. IPX and SPX are networking protocols used primarily on networks using the Novell NetWare operating systems
NETBEUI-(NetBIOS Extended User Interface) is a new, extended version of NetBIOS, the program that lets computers communicates within a local area network. it does not support the routing of messages to other networks,
Telnet (Telecommunication Network) for Remote access between computers
IMAP; Internet Message Access Protocol.
The Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) which is a data link protocol commonly used in establishing a direct connection between two networking nodes.
