UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS 2017
EXAMINATION FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN
DATA COMMUNICATIONS
MDC6204 NETWORK SYSTEMS DESIGN & MANAGEMENT
DATE: AUGUST, 2018 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: Answer Question One & ANY OTHER TWO questions.
QUESTION ONE [20 MARKS]
a) Your company has a class C network address of 200.10.57.0. You want to subdivide your
physical network into 5 subnets (A, B, C, D and E). You will need at least 20 hosts per subnet.
Based on the given information, fill in the table below.
Study the diagram below
Based on the diagram shown above, what kind of cable should be used to make
each connection that is identified by the numbers shown? Explain 2 Marks
(ii) What kind of cable should be used to establish a trunked line between two
Catalyst switches? 1 Mark
c. You work as a network technician at TestKing.com. Your boss, Mrs. Tess King, is
interested in basic switch configurations. Match the IOS command with the appropriate purpose
The convergence of the many different communication media onto a single network
platform is fueling exponential growth in network capabilities. There are three major
trends that are contributing to the future shape of complex information networks. Discuss.
5 Marks
QUESTION TWO [15 MARKS]
a) Discuss the following in relation to hierarchical network designs:
(i) Performance 2 Marks
(ii) Security 2 Marks
(iii) Network Diameter 2 Marks
(iv) Bandwidth aggregation 2 Marks
b) Discuss the benefits that have necessitated the development of the teleworker solution.
4 Marks
c) Discuss the steps involved in building a network baseline 3 Marks
QUESTION THREE [15 MARKS]
a) Discuss the following in relation to switches:
(i) Port security 2 Marks
(ii) Power over Ethernet (PoE) 2 Marks
(iii) Link aggregation 2 Marks
b) Briefly describe four factors that must be taken into account when deciding what type of
Network Operating System to install on a network. 4 Marks
c) Suppose the network you were to design was not for the company but for a home. Home
networking has some fundamentally different properties than other network types.
Describe briefly four of these properties. 4 Marks
QUESTION FOUR [15 MARKS]
a) A wide variety of software and hardware tools are available to make troubleshooting easier.
These tools may be used to gather and analyze symptoms of network problems and often
provide monitoring and reporting functions that can be used to establish the network
baseline. Explain any two of these tools 4 Marks
b) Explain briefly the four key editions core editions of Windows Server 2012.
4 Marks
c) (i) What is IPAM in Windows Server 2012? 2 Marks
(ii) What kinds of problems does IPAM solve? 3 Marks
d) What situations necessitate the use of multiple domains?
