COIT12206 - TCP/IP Principles and Protocols

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit provides you with an in-depth understanding of the role and function of TCP/IP protocols in contemporary network communication. The unit details the underlying technologies and relationships between the five network layers. You will gain an understanding of how data is encapsulated, addressed, and routed over networks. On completion of the unit, you will be able to explain the mechanisms used to facilitate communication between applications over the internet.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 2
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Prerequisite: COIT11233 - Information and Communication Technology Foundations or COIT11238 - Networked Infrastructure Foundations

Note: Students who are currently enrolled in or who have previously completed COIT13147 - Networks cannot enrol in this unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2024

Term 1 - 2024 Profile
Brisbane
Cairns
Melbourne
Online
Rockhampton
Sydney

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 25%
2. Practical Assessment 40%
3. Online Quiz(zes) 35%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2023 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 87.50% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 21.52% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Students and Tutor
Feedback
A smaller set of slides that follows the lecture more closely would be preferred
Recommendation
Reduce the comprehensive publisher-provided slides to match the size and content of the lectures
Action Taken
The relevant teaching staff has been working on revising the teaching materials, and these updates will be implemented in the subsequent terms.
Source: Students
Feedback
There are many Wireshark activities but no specific instruction or class introduction to this tool
Recommendation
Devote one workshop or tutorial to introducing Wireshark and provide resource links to introductory materials in Moodle
Action Taken
During the Week 5 lecture class, the lecturer demonstrated the usage of Wireshark and also provided the class with recommended learning resources.
Source: Course Committee
Feedback
Some topics may need to be updated, for example, ADSL, ATM, and FTP
Recommendation
Review and update the underlying technologies that are presented in the unit
Action Taken
The relevant teaching staff has been working on revising the teaching materials, and these updates will be implemented in the subsequent terms.
Source: Staff Feedback
Feedback
The teaching material should be updated to eliminate outdated technologies.
Recommendation
The lecture slides should be revised to eliminate outdated information and integrate the most up-to-date networking technologies. For example, outdated network technologies like "Cable Modem," "T Line," and "SONET" should be removed, while contemporary technologies such as "Switched WAN," "Ethernet Over WAN," and "SD-WAN" should be introduced.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Staff Feedback
Feedback
Too many PowerPoint slides in some of the lectures.
Recommendation
Condense lecture slides to approximately 50 slides for Weeks 4, 5, 10, and 11.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Apply routing and forwarding principles to interconnect multiple computer networks
  2. Construct addressing schemes that achieve business goals while adhering to technical standards
  3. Illustrate the operation of application and transport protocols that are commonly used in delivering internet applications
  4. Justify the selection of network techniques and protocols to meet business requirements
  5. Apply testing and analysis tools to solve network design problems
  6. Explain the role of traditional networking protocols in contemporary technologies.

Australian Computer Society (ACS) recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is in use in over 100 countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles.

ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile at https://www.acs.org.au/professionalrecognition/mysfia-b2c.html

This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA. The SFIA code is included:

  • Network Support (NTAS)
  • Problem Management (PBMG)
  • System Design (DESN)
  • Service Desk and Incident Management (USUP)

The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Framework defines knowledge, skills and tasks needed to perform various cyber security roles. Developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the NICE Framework is used by organisations to plan their workforce, including recruit into cyber security positions.

This unit helps prepare you for roles such as Systems Security Analyst, Network Operations Specialist and Systems Administrator, contributing to the following knowledge and skills:

  • K0001 Knowledge of computer networking concepts and protocols, and network security methodologies.
  • K0050 Knowledge of local area and wide area networking principles and concepts including bandwidth management.
  • K0061 Knowledge of how traffic flows across the network (e.g., Transmission Control Protocol [TCP] and Internet Protocol [IP], Open System Interconnection Model [OSI], Information Technology Infrastructure Library, current version [ITIL]).
  • K0104 Knowledge of Virtual Private Network (VPN) security.
  • K0159 Knowledge of Voice over IP (VoIP).
  • K0180 Knowledge of network systems management principles, models, methods (e.g., end-to-end systems performance monitoring), and tools.
  • K0322 Knowledge of embedded systems.
  • K0332 Knowledge of network protocols such as TCP/IP, Dynamic Host Configuration, Domain Name System (DNS), and directory services.
  • S0004 Skill in analyzing network traffic capacity and performance characteristics.
  • S0035 Skill in establishing a routing schema.
  • S0041 Skill in installing, configuring, and troubleshooting LAN and WAN components such as routers, hubs, and switches.
  • S0056 Skill in using network management tools to analyze network traffic patterns (e.g., simple network management protocol).
  • S0162 Skill in applying various subnet techniques (e.g., CIDR)

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 - Written Assessment • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • •
3 - Online Quiz(zes) • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 - Communication • •
2 - Problem Solving • • • • •
3 - Critical Thinking • • • •
4 - Information Literacy • • •
6 - Information Technology Competence • • • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10