How to Troubleshoot a Network

Check the hardware. When you’re beginning the troubleshooting process, check all your hardware to make sure it’s connected properly, turned on, and working. If a cord has come loose or somebody has switched off an important router, this could be the problem behind your networking issues. There’s no point in going through the process of … Read more

Working with the Open Systems Interconnection Model

No network discussion or network device explanation would be complete without a brief overview of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. Although this model may seem overly complex, it does have value in our later discussions of attacks, defenses, and infrastructure, as you will see. The OSI model is a general framework that enables network … Read more

Splitting the Kernel

In a Unix system, several concurrent processes attend to different tasks. Each process asks for system resources, be it computing power, memory, network connectivity, or some other resource. The kernel is the big chunk of executable code in charge of handling all such requests. Though the distinction between the different kernel tasks isn’t always clearly … Read more

What is a Protocol?

Now that we’ve got a bit of a feel for what the “Internet” is, let’s consider another important word is the title of this book: “protocol.” What is a protocol? What does a protocol do? How would you recognize a protocol if you met one? A Human Analogy It is probably easiest to understand the … Read more

Basic Networking

computer Network A network is any collection of independent computers that communicate with one another over a shared network medium. A computer network is a collection of two or more connected computers. When these computers are joined in a network, people can share files and peripherals such as modems, printers, tape backup drives, or CD-ROM … Read more

VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS

THE CHALLENGES OF VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS Network vulnerability assessments are widely recognized as a crucial component of network security and a key component of any overall Network Security Assessment Service. Vulnerability Assessments are performed to determine the actual security posture of a network environment. They are designed to explore whether or not a malicious attacker can … Read more