15-441 is an introductory course to computer networks. The emphasis will be on the basic performance and engineering tradeoffs in the design and implementation of computer networks. To make the issues more concrete, the class includes several multi-week projects requiring significant design and implementation.
The goal is for students to learn not only what computer networks are and how they work today, but also why they are designed the way they are and how they are likely to evolve in the future. We will draw examples primarily from the Internet. Topics to be covered include: congestion/flow/error control, routing, addressing, naming, multi-casting, switching, internetworking, and network security. Evaluation is based on homework assignments, the projects, and two mid-term exams.
Because this course has a big project component, you must be proficient in C programming on UNIX systems. It is required that you have taken 15-213 and gotten a "C-" or higher since many of the programming skills you will need are taught in that course.
| Name | Office | |
|---|---|---|
| Ed Bardsley | ebardsle at andrew dot cmu dot edu | WeH 5201 cluster |
| Eric Burns | latinum at cs dot cmu dot edu | NSH 4511 |
| David Craft | dcraft at andrew dot cmu dot edu | WeH 7th floor whiteboard |
| Debabrata Dash | ddash+ at cs dot cmu dot edu | WeH 8th floor whiteboard |
| Maksim Tsvetovat | maksim at cs dot cmu dot edu | WeH Grad lounge (4th floor) |
Course Secretary: Barbara Grandillo <bag@cs.cmu.edu>,
Wean Hall 8018, Tel: 268-7550
Your final grade for the course will be based on the following weights for the individual assignments:
The midterm will be an in-class, closed-book exam, covering all material up to that point in the course. The final exam will be a closed-book exam, covering material from the whole year, with emphasis on the second half of the course.
Project 1 will focus on the implementation of IRC-like chat server, focusing first on ensuring familiarity with socket programming, and second on an implementation of routing protocols within the application. Project 2 will focus on file transfers and the protocol components necessary for efficient and reliable file transfer (retransmission, congestion control, caching, etc.) Both projects are to be done in groups of two students.
The homework will combine both textbook-like questions as well as hands-on experimental exercises. There will be three homework assignments.
Students are encouraged to talk to each other, to the TAs, to the instructors, or to anyone else about any of the assignments. Any assistance, though, must be limited to discussion of the problem and sketching general approaches to a solution. Each student must write out his or her own solutions to the homework. The project handouts have more detailed information about collaboration when working on the projects, but, basically, each programming project group must write their own code and documentation for the programming projects done as a group.
Consulting another student's or group's solution is prohibited, and submitted solutions may not be copied from any source. These and any other form of collaboration on assignments constitute cheating. If you have any question about whether some activity would constitute cheating, please feel free to ask the instructors.
Take project and homework deadlines seriously. Our experience is that students often seriously underestimate the effort involved in programming assignments and projects. If we give you 4 weeks to complete an assignment, there is typically a reason. In the interest of fairness, we have adopted the following lateness policy: