UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS: 2017/2018
EXAMINATION FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN
INFORMATION COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
BCT 1201 PRINCIPLES OF DATA COMMUNICATION
FULL TIME/PART TIME/DISTANCE LEARNING
DATE: AUGUST 2018 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: Answer Question One & ANY OTHER TWO questions.
QUESTION ONE
a) Discuss using appropriate diagrams the operation of the standard TCP way hand shake
used to setup a connection between two Transport level entities. [15 Marks]
b) In relation to (a) above, If the underlying network is not reliable packets can be lost during
connection setup. For each of the possible situations listed below, draw a sketch that shows
the situation, describe the problem that arises, and discuss the techniques that can be used
to prevent protocol failure.
i.The connection request is lost [5 Marks]
ii.The ACK packet from the receiver is lost [5 Marks]
iii.A connection request stored in the network is suddenly delivered to a destination
host after the connection to which it refers has been used and terminated [5 Marks]
QUESTION TWO
a) Define framing as used in data communication. [2 Marks]
b) Describe two framing methods, and give the advantages and disadvantages of these
methods. [5 Marks]
c) Using a diagram, describe the physical characteristics of an optical fiber and explain how
it can be used to transmit data. [4 Marks]
d) Optical fiber networks are replacing copper networks at a rapid rates. Briefly discuss why
this is happening and outline the benefits to telecommunications companies. [9 Marks]
QUESTION THREE
a) Explain the different data transmission modes with example [6 Marks]
b) With the aid of a diagram, explain satellite and terrestrial microwave transmission
[6 Marks]
c) What is modulation? [2 Marks]
d) Explain AM, FM and PM with 5 waveforms. [6 Marks]
QUESTION FOUR
a) Explain FDDI in detail [5 Marks]
b) With relation to (a) above, how does the backup system work in case of one or both rings
are broken [5 Marks]
c) Explain Data link, Network and Transport layer in detail. [10 Marks]
QUESTION FIVE
a) Briefly describe the working of the following;
i.Circuit Switching [5 Marks]
ii.Packet Switching [5 Marks]
b) State and explain FIVE uses of the OSI reference model [5 Marks]
c) Define multiplexing [1 Mark]
d) State and explain [with the aid of a diagram], any TWO multiplexing techniques
[4 Marks]
