Course Title: Design and implement Internetworking systems wireless LANs/WANs

Part B: Course Detail

Teaching Period: Term1 2010

Course Code: ISYS5679C

Course Title: Design and implement Internetworking systems wireless LANs/WANs

School: 130T Vocational Engineering

Campus: City Campus

Program: C6084 - Advanced Diploma of Computer Systems Engineering

Course Contact: Program Manager

Course Contact Phone: +61 3 9925 4468

Course Contact Email: engineering-tafe@rmit.edu.au


Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff

Mohammad Hassan

Phone: +613 9925 4700

Email: mohammad.hassan@rmit.edu.au

Nominal Hours: 100

Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.

Pre-requisites and Co-requisites

Nil.

Course Description

This competency standard unit covers the design, implementation and performance monitoring of internetworking systems. It encompasses safe working practice, evaluating customer requirements, applying sound design principles, complying with regulation and standards, incorporation and advanced wireless LANs technologies and documentation of design and performance monitoring.
Note: This unit applies to all aspects of Electrotechnology - engineering applications only. For general competencies related Information Technologies refer to the latest endorsed IT Training Package.


National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria

National Element Code & Title:

UEENEED023B Design and implement Internetworking systems wireless LANs/WANs

Element:

1. Prepare to design internetworking systems

Performance Criteria:

1.1 OHS processes and procedures for a given work area are obtained and understood.
1.2 Established OHS risk control measures and procedures in preparation for the work are followed.
1.3 Design brief for the advanced wireless LANs technologies is developed and documented in consultations with person(s) of higher authority.
1.4 Work team/group is arranged of appropriately
competent persons in accordance with skills required to meet work outcomes and organisation’s established procedures.
1.5 Activities are planned to meet scheduled timelines in consultation with others involved on the work.
1.6 Strategies are implemented to ensure network development is carried out efficiently.

Element:

2. Design internetworking systems.

Performance Criteria:

2.1 Internetworking system is designed to comply with design brief and consideration of economical and appropriately effective design solutions.
2.2 Advanced wireless LANs technologies are included in the internetworking system design.
2.3 Internetworking system design includes specification of required media that is compliant
with industry standards.
2.4 Internetworking system design is documented in accordance with organisation’s policies and procedures.
2.5 Internetworking system design is presented and discussed with person(s) of higher authority.
2.6 Alterations to the internetworking system design resulting from the presentation/discussion are negotiated with person(s) of higher authority within the constraints of organisation’s policy.
2.7 Final internetworking system design is documented and approval obtained from person(s) of higher authority.

Element:

3. Implement internetworking systems.

Performance Criteria:

3.1 Activities are planned to meet scheduled timelines in consultation with others involved on the work.
3.2 Appropriate development tools and software are selected based on specified requirements and performance standard.
3.3 Knowledge of internetworking arrangements and protocols is applied to installing, configuring and testing advance wireless LANs technologies.
3.4 System malfunctions and performance issues are identified during testing and rectified using logical techniques drawing knowledge of internetworking arrangements and protocol.
3.5 Approaches to issues/problems are analysed to provide most effective solutions.
3.6 Quality of work is monitored against personal performance agreement and/or established
organizational or professional standards.
3.7 Final internetworking system design and implementation are documented in accordance
organisation’s established procedures.

Learning Outcomes



Details of Learning Activities

In this unit you will learn industry recognized skills in designing, implementing and managing Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). The learning unit will emphasis on WLAN, WMAN & WWAN.

Classroom activities:
Lectures: to introduce the important concepts.
• Attending lectures will make it much easier for you to understand the central concepts of the course
• You will feel more comfortable and you will learn more if you read the relevant material before you attend the lectures

Tutorials: to enable you to ask questions and to clarify unresolved issues
• Review the material and prepare your questions before you come to class.
• There will be an overview of course content with a focus on the material students find difficult
• If something is unclear or if you find yourself falling behind please ask for help immediately
• You may be given worksheets to complete during the tutorial

Practical exercises: to give you the hands on experience of implementing and troubleshooting networks
• In general there will be one practical exercise per week
• You will perform the exercise and write it up in a lab journal.
The lab journal will be a bound exercise book
o Loose leaf binders will not be accepted
The write up will be a record of your actions as they are performed and your corresponding observations
The write up must be performed in the lab as you perform the practical exercise, not at a later date
o Write ups not in the lab journal will not be marked
o Write ups which are not done concurrently with the performance of the practical exercise will not be marked
In general the detail of the write up must be sufficient for you to be able to comfortably perform the practical exercise a year or more later directly from the lab journal
Any difficult or tricky points should be especially noted in the lab journal for future reference
Responses to worksheets for practical exercises must be written up in the lab journal
The neatness, completeness and the presentation of the lab journal must be of a quality such that you would be prepared to show it to a future employer as an example of your work.

Work simulated activities: you will progressively implement a networking scenario as you would be expected to do in industry.
• You will be expected to work on a networking scenario progressively as you learn the material required for you to be able to do so.
• Leaving the work to a late stage and then rushing to complete it is bad industrial practice. It will be strongly discouraged and marked down heavily. You will be expected to meet progressive milestones in the completion of this activity.

Occupational Health and Safety:
• Conduct in lecture theatres, classrooms and laboratories will be of a standard required by OH&S legislation as applied to industry.
• You must behave in such a way as not to place the health and safety of yourself or anyone else at risk
• Covered shoes must be worn in all labs
• Thongs and sandals must not be worn in any lab

Preparation for the Work place:
All skills and knowledge in this course are oriented towards current industry practices and technologies. An essential industry expectation is that you are responsible for your behaviour and actions. When you are in employment you will be expected to attend work on time on a regular basis, perform you work on time to an accepted standard and be responsible for what you do. Industry will expect you to comprehend and follow both verbal and written instructions. All industry expectations will be applied to you in this course.
You will be expected to:
• Observe all Occupational Health and Safety requirements
• You must behave in such a way as not to place the health and safety of yourself or anyone else at risk
• Prepare for classes
• Attend all classes regularly and on time
• Use your class time in a productive and responsible way
• Finish your work on time to an accepted standard
• Pay attention to, comprehend and follow both verbal and written instructions.
• It is your personal responsibility to be aware of course requirements and timelines
• Please ask if something is not clear

The Preparation for the Workplace component will be an essential part of the assessment for this course. It will be included in the assessment of the practical and work simulated activities.

Activities Outside of Class:
It is expected that students allocate at least 60% of course hours for reading, independent study, project research, design, implementation, testing and problem solving activities.


Teaching Schedule

Week1
Course Outline, Assessment Criteria
Technology Overview, Wireless Standards & Standardization Body,
How Wireless Network Works, Where to Setup a Wireless Network, Security Issues.

Week2
Radio Frequency Fundamentals
Radio Frequency Characteristics: Wavelength, Amplitude, Frequency, Phase, Polarity, Keying Methods
Basic concepts of RF Behaviour: Wave Propagation, Absorption, Reflection, Loss (Attenuation), Interference, Crosstalk
Basic components of RF mathematics: Watt, Milliwatt (mW), Decibel (dB), dBi, dBd, dBm
Various antenna types: Omni-directional, Semi-directional & Highly-directional Antenna

Week3
Spread Spectrum
Different uses for spread spectrum technologies.
Various types of spread spectrum and differences between them.
Frequency-hopping spread spectrum (FHSS).
Direct-sequence spread spectrum (DSSS).
Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM).
Concepts relevant to the operation of spread spectrum technology.

Lab 1 dB Calculation

Week4
WLANs standards and standardization body: 802.11
Different 802.11 standards, its variances
Network Architecture of different 802.11 standards.
Operating frequency, data rate and range of different 802.11 standards.
Equipments used for different 802.11 standards.

Lab 2: Collect information about LAN installation equipments and cost.

Week5
RF Site Survey
Importance of an RF site survey.
Important things in performing a site survey.
Necessary tasks of an RF site survey.
RF site survey reporting procedures

Lab 3: Identify RF site survey requirements.

Week6
Key Features of Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs)
Interference, Reliability, Bandwidth, Throughput, Security, Human safety, Mobility, Roaming
WLANs Service Sets.

Lab 4: Perform RF site survey.

Week7
WMANs standards and their properties: 802.16
Planning of different 802.16 standards.
Working frequency, data rate and range of different 802.16 standards.
Equipments used for different 802.16 standards
Key features of Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMANs)
Structural design of WMANs.
Single Base Station (BS)
Multiple fixed Subscriber Stations (SS)

Lab 5 Linksys wireless AP set up

Week8-9
Key issues usually related with WMANs
Data Rate, Range, Line-of-Sight, Throughput, Quality of Service (QoS)
Applications of WMANs.
Fixed vs. Mobile characteristics in WMANs.
Spectral efficiency of WMANs

Lab 6 Configuring Aironet 1252 Basic AP Settings

Week10-11
Different WWANs standards and their properties: 802.20
Planning of different 802.20 standards.
Applications of various WWANs standards. Key features of Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs)

Lab 7 Configure an AP as a Repeater

Week12
Configuration and setup of WLANs
WLANs based on RF site survey.
Configuration requirements to setup WLANs.
Configure a WLAN.

Lab 8 Configuring Wireless Adhoc Network

Week13-14
WLAN Security
Strengths, weaknesses and appropriate uses of the WLAN security techniques.
Types of wireless LAN security attacks, and how to identify and prevent them.
Appropriate security solution from the available wireless LAN security solutions.
Uses of the corporate security policies and how they are used to secure a wireless LAN.
How and where the security precautions are used to secure a WLAN.

Lab 9 Configuring Basic Wireless Security

Week15
Revision of LABs

Week16
Lab Exam

Week17
Revision of Lectures
Exam Tutorial

Week18
Written Final Exam


Learning Resources

Prescribed Texts

Coleman, DD and Westcott, DA, (2006)
Certified Wireless Network Administrator Study Guide
Wiley Publishing, Inc. Indianapolis, Indiana


References


Other Resources

Tutorial and Laboratory Instruction sheets will be available online (using RMIT Online Learning Hub) and student’s local S drive.


Overview of Assessment

Assessment may incorporate a variety of methods including written/oral activities and demonstration of practical skills to the relevant industry standards. Participants are advised that they are likely to be asked to personally demonstrate their assessment activities to their teacher/assessor. Feedback will be provided throughout the course.


Assessment Tasks

Assessment task 1: Lab journal: 10%- To be signed by the teacher for each lab session.
Assessment task 2: Assignment : 20%
Assessment task 3 Lab exam: 30%
Assessment task 4: Written Exam 40%


Assessment Matrix

Course Overview: Access Course Overview