Communication Networks - How do we explore and learn through iterative enquiry?

Learning is a process of iterative enquiry. It is imperative that we have the right questions to comprehend simple to complex know-how.

This series will explore and list the questions that would help in understanding technology areas.  

In this post we will explore Communication Netwroks.

Communication Networks provide

• Connectivity between elements
• Transport for
• control signals –establish connection and routing path, monitor connection status, disconnect; 
• data for management of the network for faults, configuration, accounting, performance and security; 
• user data - information that needs to be communicated: voice, data like sensor data, text, image, audio, video 
• Signalling and Media Gateways: Conversion of signaling and user data formats based on the transporting media.

Let us explore the list of questions that would enable us to comprehensively understand a communication network.

What are the foundational questions?

• How is the network structured?

• What are the drivers of the evolution of this communication network?
• What is the network architecture? 
• What are the network resources provided for communicating control and user data?
• What are the different topologies?
• What are the various elements and their functions ?
• What are the key interfaces in the network? 

• What are the key scenarios?

• How is the network set-up? 
• What are the key design considerations?
• What are the key configurable parameters?
• How is the user set-up?
• How does the user register/attach/connect to the network?
• How is the user activated on the network?
• What are the key end-to-end scenarios? 
• What are the key processes & procedures for 
• Accessing the network resources?
• Establishing a connection? 
• Transmission & Reception of control and user data?
• Monitoring and Controlling the established connection
• Disconnecting / Detaching from the network

What are the advanced questions?

We will need to dive deeper in to the technology as design and development engineers, deployment engineers and technology users.

• What are the applicable standards and specifications?

• What are the key underlying technologies? 

• How are the resources multiplexed?
• What are the multiple access protocols?
• What are the underlying technologies for control signaling?
• What are the underlying technologies for data transmission? 
• encoding & decoding?
• modulating & de-modulating?
• compression & de-compression?

• What are the key protocols?

• What are key control and data plane procedures?
• What are the protocol stacks on the control plane in different elements and interfaces of the network?
• What are the protocol stacks on the data plane in deifferent elements and interfaces of the network?

• How are the end-to-end user scenarios achieved?

• Which network elements are involved?
• Which protocol layers are involved? 
• What is the role of each layer?
• What are the message flows between 
• network elements? 
• peer to peer?
• layer to layer?

• What are the conformance and performance requirements for

• network elements?
• network interfaces?
• protocol layers?

• What are the operations and business support protocols for the network?

• How is the network operations managed for Faults, Configuration, Performance & Security?
• How is the network usage monitored?
• How is the user usage monitored?
• What are the various accounting methods?
• How is the billing generated?

• What are the applicable standards and recommendations for the operation management? 

Have I missed any questions??