Syllabus

Basic Course Information

Network management remains the least understood aspect of networking. Managers of today’s enterprise and carrier networks face great challenges, as they need to manage a variety of devices, protocols and mechanisms, to meet a diverse set of goals in performance, security, availability and costs. This course provides students with a comprehensive view of the network management problem, including its concepts, scope, challenges, and techniques. We will study the network management concepts in concrete applications and scenarios such as MPLS, VPN, VLAN, etc. As a highlight of this course, we will also spend significant amount of time studying emerging networking technologies such as Software Defined Networking, to better prepare students for managing future IT infrastructures.

This class does require python programming. Depending on the need, a few lectures of Python will be provided. However, the programming is always related to this class’s networking topic.

Status of Syllabus:

Current. (Last updated: 08/18/2017)

Course Objectives

• Develop critical thinking dealing with network automation.
• Understand how to write a survey paper in this area.
• Configure SDN to understand the flexibility provided by this technology in the context of network control and management
• Acquire presentation skills of technical papers.
• Understand open problems in the area of network management and controls.

Pre-requisites

A solid knowledge of networking (e.g., layered Internet architecture, basic switching and routing concepts). Students should have taken a general computer networking course such as TCN 5030. Basic programming knowledge is recommended for the project. If you are not sure you meet the requirements, please feel free to talk to me.

Required Textbook

• Automated Network Management Systems by Douglas E. Comer (2007). Available via VitalSource.Com. Also available new or used in Amazon. ISBN 978-0132393089. [ANMS]

• Software Defined Network: A Comprehensive Approach by Goransson and Black. (available in our library). ISBN 978-0124166752. [SDN]

In addition, students expected to do their own research online, using Wikipedia, RFCs, and other technical documentation.

Course Workload and Grading Information

Contacting the Course Staff (Email and Office Hours) and Class Participation

You are all encouraged to visit me during office hours or email me with questions. Class participation is very welcomed and will be rewarded. Do not hesitate to ask questions in the class, in most, if not all cases, the entire class will benefit from the answers received (what you may think as a silly or naïve question may in fact be a genuine question that also other students in the class may have).

When you email us make sure you include [TCN6430] in your email’s subject line in order for the email to receive the proper attention. If you don’t include it, my mail filter will most likely discard your email.

We will use piazza for in-class communication, so you are welcome to post questions there. All enrolled students will be added to the class piazza. If you haven’t received invitation email, please let me know.

Course Policies (Read This Carefully)

• Homework assignment must be done by each student individually

• No late homework or project submission.

• No make-up examinations.

• Instructor reserves right to change course materials or dates as necessary.

Adherence to the University’s Code of Ethics will be strictly monitored and enforced. This will be applicable to homeworks, projects and examinations. By registering for this course the student is assumed to automatically abide by the Code of Ethics which applies to any work generated by the student, including homeworks, examinations, project assignments. Academic integrity violations, such as plagiarism, cheating on an exam etc., will result in a series of actions and penalties including the possibility of the student failing the class or being expelled from the university. Note that all parties involved in cases of academic integrity violations are disciplined. Therefore, students should take this matter seriously and are expected to fully cooperate and support the atmosphere of trust and individual achievement. If you need assistance with class-related issues it is better if you contact the course’s staff. Students are encouraged to discuss among themselves issues related to the course material in order to deepen their understanding, or to share information regarding the use of programming tools, development environments, or debugging techniques.

Exam Policies

• Make sure to complete the assigned work in order to do well in the exam.

• No discussion is permitted during the exams.

• Instructor is not compelled to give credit for something he cannot read or follow logically.

Homeworks and Projects

Information will be provided via moodle and/or class. Some guidelines are provided here in the syllabus.

All assignments and projects will be collected via Gradescope. Each registered student will get automatically enrolled. If you for some reason have not, email me.

Future Changes to This Document

From Faculty’s handbook:

Instructors retain the right to modify the course syllabus for any reason throughout the semester provided that:

• Fair and adequate notice is given to enrolled students either by e-mail, in writing, or through online publishing.
• Modifications to the syllabus are not arbitrary or capricious.
• Students are not unfairly disadvantaged by mid-semester changes to grading standards, attendance standards, or performance measures.

NOTE: In most cases, I will only change this document to accommodate the entire class. I will let you know if there are any changes.