Understanding Linux Network Internals: Guided Tour to Networking on Linux

Understanding Linux Network Internals: Guided Tour to Networking on Linux

by Christian Benvenuti
Understanding Linux Network Internals: Guided Tour to Networking on Linux

Understanding Linux Network Internals: Guided Tour to Networking on Linux

by Christian Benvenuti

Paperback

$59.99 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    Qualifies for Free Shipping
    Choose Expedited Shipping at checkout for delivery by Thursday, April 4
  • PICK UP IN STORE
    Check Availability at Nearby Stores

Related collections and offers


Overview

If you've ever wondered how Linux carries out the complicated tasks assigned to it by the IP protocols — or if you just want to learn about modern networking through real-life examples — Understanding Linux Network Internals is for you.

Like the popular O'Reilly book, Understanding the Linux Kernel, this book clearly explains the underlying concepts and teaches you how to follow the actual C code that implements it. Although some background in the TCP/IP protocols is helpful, you can learn a great deal from this text about the protocols themselves and their uses. And if you already have a base knowledge of C, you can use the book's code walkthroughs to figure out exactly what this sophisticated part of the Linux kernel is doing.

Part of the difficulty in understanding networks — and implementing them — is that the tasks are broken up and performed at many different times by different pieces of code. One of the strengths of this book is to integrate the pieces and reveal the relationships between far-flung functions and data structures. Understanding Linux Network Internals is both a big-picture discussion and a no-nonsense guide to the details of Linux networking. Topics include:

  • Key problems with networking
  • Network interface card (NIC) device drivers
  • System initialization
  • Layer 2 (link-layer) tasks and implementation
  • Layer 3 (IPv4) tasks and implementation
  • Neighbor infrastructure and protocols (ARP)
  • Bridging
  • Routing
  • ICMP

Author Christian Benvenuti, an operating system designer specializing in networking, explains much more than how Linux code works. He shows the purposes of major networking features and the trade-offs involved in choosing one solution over another. A large number of flowcharts and other diagrams enhance the book's understandability.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780596002558
Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date: 03/01/2005
Pages: 1062
Product dimensions: 7.00(w) x 9.19(h) x 1.90(d)

About the Author

Christian Benvenuti received his masters degree in Computer Science at the Universityof Bologna in Italy. He collaborated for a few years with the International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, where he developed ad-hoc software based on the Linux kernel, was a scientific consultant for a project on remote collaboration, and served as an instructor for several training sessions on networking. The trainings, held mainly in Europe, Africa, and South America were all based on Linux systems and addressed to scientists from developing countries, where the ICTP has been promoting Linux for many years. He occasionally collaborates with a non-profit organization founded by ICTP members, Collaborium.org, to continue promoting Linux on developing countries.

In the past few years he worked as a software engineer for Cisco Systems in the Silicon Valley, where he focused on Layer two switching, high availability, and network security.

Table of Contents

  • Preface
  • Part I: General Background
    • Chapter 1: Introduction
    • Chapter 2: Critical Data Structures
    • Chapter 3: User-Space-to-Kernel Interface


  • Part II: System Initialization
    • Chapter 4: Notification Chains
    • Chapter 5: Network Device Initialization
    • Chapter 6: The PCI Layer and Network Interface Cards
    • Chapter 7: Kernel Infrastructure for Component Initialization
    • Chapter 8: Device Registration and Initialization


  • Part III: Transmission and Reception
    • Chapter 9: Interrupts and Network Drivers
    • Chapter 10: Frame Reception
    • Chapter 11: Frame Transmission
    • Chapter 12: General and Reference Material About Interrupts
    • Chapter 13: Protocol Handlers


  • Part IV: Bridging
    • Chapter 14: Bridging: Concepts
    • Chapter 15: Bridging: The Spanning Tree Protocol
    • Chapter 16: Bridging: Linux Implementation
    • Chapter 17: Bridging: Miscellaneous Topics


  • Part V: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4)
    • Chapter 18: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Concepts
    • Chapter 19: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Linux Foundations and Features
    • Chapter 20: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Forwarding and Local Delivery
    • Chapter 21: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Transmission
    • Chapter 22: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Handling Fragmentation
    • Chapter 23: Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4): Miscellaneous Topics
    • Chapter 24: Layer Four Protocol and Raw IP Handling
    • Chapter 25: Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMPv4)


  • Part VI: Neighboring Subsystem
    • Chapter 26: Neighboring Subsystem: Concepts
    • Chapter 27: Neighboring Subsystem: Infrastructure
    • Chapter 28: Neighboring Subsystem: Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)
    • Chapter 29: Neighboring Subsystem: Miscellaneous Topics


  • Part VII: Routing
    • Chapter 30: Routing: Concepts
    • Chapter 31: Routing: Advanced
    • Chapter 32: Routing: Li nux Implementation
    • Chapter 33: Routing: The Routing Cache
    • Chapter 34: Routing: Routing Tables
    • Chapter 35: Routing: Lookups
    • Chapter 36: Routing: Miscellaneous Topics


  • Colophon

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews