Course details

Data Communications, Computer Networks and Protocols (in English)

PDSe Acad. year 2025/2026 Summer semester 5 credits

Current academic year

Active network devices and their function. IP routing. Network security and detection of networking attacks. VoIP communication. Network management and monitoring. Transport and application layer security. P2P networks. Blockchain.

Guarantor

Matoušek Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D., M.A. (DIFS)

Course coordinator

Ryšavý Ondřej, doc. Ing., Ph.D. (DIFS)

Language of instruction

English

Completion

Examination

Time span

  • 26 hrs lectures
  • 13 hrs laboratories
  • 13 hrs projects

Assessment points

  • 55 pts final exam
  • 12 pts numeric exercises
  • 12 pts labs
  • 24 pts projects

Department

Department of Information Systems (UIFS)

Lecturer

Matoušek Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D., M.A. (DIFS)

Instructor

Matoušek Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D., M.A. (DIFS)
Mutua Nelson Makau, M.Sc. (DIFS)

Learning objectives

Understand basic principles of network communication. Security of network communication. Deep analysis of selected network traffic, detection of attacks. Network monitoring and troubleshooting. Security and privacy in communication. Modern communication technologies.

Understand principles of network communication and architecture of advanced network services. Be aware of security risks and get acquainted with tools for detection an mitigation of security incidents.
Understanding communication principles in current computer networks.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

Basics of computer networks, IP addressing, network services: WWW, DHCP, DNS. Principles of Internet. Basic Unix configuration.

Study literature

  • Kurose, J.F., Ross, K. W: Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach Featuring the Internet, Edition 8. Addison-Wesley, 2021. 
  • Andrew Tanenbaum, David Wetherall: Computer Networks, Pearson; Global edition, 2021.
  • George Varghese. Network Algorithmics. Elsevier, Inc., 2005. 

Fundamental literature

Syllabus of lectures

  1. Introduction to IP networking. Basic configuration of network devices.
  2. Static and dynamic routing. Routing algorithms.
  3. IPv6 networking and tunneling.
  4. L2 network security.
  5. Privacy and anonymity on the Internet.
  6. Network security: algorithms, encryption, hashes, certificates.
  7. Packet classification. IP address lookup.
  8. Intrusion detection.
  9. Network monitoring. NTP, syslog, SNMP and NetFlow.
  10. Principles of DNS. DNS security (DNSSEC, DoT, DoH).
  11. SDN Networking.
  12. Bitcoin protocol, blockchain.
  13. Summary.

Syllabus of laboratory exercises

  1. Analysis of captured network communication.
  2. Static and dynamic routing.
  3. Configuration of IPv6 networks. IPv6 over IPv4.
  4. Privacy and anonymity on Internet.
  5. Encryption techniques using OpenSSL.
  6. Network monitoring using SNMP and Netflow.

Syllabus - others, projects and individual work of students

  • Design, modeling and implementation of a network application.

Progress assessment

  • Project - 21 points 
  • Hands-on Labs - 12 points
  • In-class Activity - 12 points
  • Final exam is performed in written form. The maximal amount of points one can get is 55 points - the minimal number of points which must be obtained from the final exam is 20, otherwise, no points will be assigned to a student. 

 


Active participation in hands-on labs, project assignment, and final exam are the monitored, and points earning an education. The minimal number of points that can be obtained from the final exam is 25. Otherwise, no points will be assigned to a student.

Course inclusion in study plans

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