Network Operating System Performance Evaluation and Analysis - Coursework Example

Network Operating System Performance Evaluation and Analysis

The computer operating system forms the most significant program that runs all the processes in the computer. For all the general purposes the computer has, it contains an operating system to run such functions through programs and applications. All the other programs in the computer also known as the computer applications need the operating system to make by making requests to provide service through the application program interface (Gungor, & Hancke, 2009). Additionally, the users can interact with the computer system through user interfaces including graphical user interface and command line. The modern computer operating system, therefore, consists of several components which include; Process management, memory management, error handling, operating system security, application program interface, Input-output management, file systems and network operating system. This paper will focus specifically on the network operating system's performance evaluation and analysis. The paper will focus on the description of network operating system as a component of the computer operating system (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). It will also develop a description of the methods used in the measurement and analysis of network operating system. Additionally, the paper will focus on the significance of networking to the field of computer science and the computer industry coupled with the analysis and evaluation of fundamental elements. Finally, the paper will focus on the future directions in the development of networking operating through research.

Network operating system consists of the part of the computer operating system that is designed for the connection of personal computers, terminals connected to a local area network (LAN) and workstations. The primary responsibility of the network operating system involves the connection of the computer to allow communication from one computer to another and the connected devices (Le Dinh et al., 2007). The networking operating system, therefore, has the reserved software to enhance the capabilities of the computer operating system through the introduction of the ability to networking function. Examples of network operating system include Artisoft's LANtastic, Microsoft LAN Manager, Novell's NetWare, Microsoft Windows Server, Windows NT and Banyan VINES. However, the latest developments have led to the production of computer operating systems with inbuilt networking capabilities such as UNIX, Digital OpenVMS, and Mac OS. The inbuilt capabilities enable of networking enables the computer system to provide additional capabilities such as printer sharing, database sharing, sharing of common files, security sharing, and application sharing (Heidemann et al., 2006).

Based on the connectivity and capacity to share programs and applications, the network operating system is divided into two primary types. The first type known as peer-to-peer network operating system give the users the ability to share files on their computers while at the same time giving access to the files on the computers of other users connected to the same network. In this type of networking, the users have an equal right to use all the resources contained in the network. They are also designed specifically for the small and medium LAN networks. An example is the Windows for Workgroups installed in offices (Gungor, & Hancke, 2009). On the other hand, the second type known as the client/server network operating system uses a centralized system in which the files and applications access are controlled by one or more specific servers. Therefore, the file server source is the main system of operation which gives access to resources and at the same time provides security. Contrary, to the peer-to-peer networks, client/server networks allows access and sharing of resources regardless of the physical position of the workstation (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). Examples of client/server network operating system include Novell Netware and the Windows 2000 Server. These network operating systems enable the users to acquire the resources they need over the networks.

Nonetheless, considering the massive developments in the network operating system sector and the increased number of computer networks, the performance analysis of networking has become one of the basic requirements for computer operating systems. Users, especially at the organizations and business levels, now transfer more data within the minimum time to increase performance and productivity (Anastasi et al., 2011). The modern operating systems are now embedded with more features, therefore provides the necessity to evaluate and analyze the performance of network systems based on the improved functionality. Therefore, it becomes significant to analyze the methods used to measure the performance of network operating systems (Le Dinh et al., 2007). The performance of a network operating system can be measured using two specific methods which involve the analysis of the performance measures and employing modeled measures through Network simulators.

The measures of network performance include Bandwidth, Throughput and Error rates. The measure of bandwidth involves measuring the bits/second by which a computer can produce a maximum rate of data and information transfer. The higher the maximum number of bits a computer can send data over the network per second the higher the performance of the computer system. However, the message delivery also counts. Therefore, Throughput must be measured to ensure efficiency in message delivery. Throughput as a measure of network performance involves the number of messages that can be delivered over the network per unit time. Therefore, the higher the message delivery per unit time the higher the performance of the network (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). However, the measure of bandwidth and throughput has no value when the network consists of high error rates. The measure of error rate or ratio consists of the number of delivered bits within a data stream going through a communication channel that has undergone alteration as a result of noises, bit synchronization, distortion, and interferences. The performance of network operating system using the bit error or ratio is done based on percentages. Therefore, the higher the percentage of bit error the lower the performance, while the lower the percentage of bit error, the higher the delivery of messages and the higher the performance of the network (Le Dinh et al., 2007). All these measures must be kept at their maximum best for the network to function appropriately. Apart from the performance measures, modeling and simulation methods can be used to analyze and evaluate the performance of the network operating system. The process involves the use of state transition diagrams to measure model queuing performance or using Network Simulator to develop simulations on bit transfer levels.

Moreover, further analysis of network operating performance can be done based on measuring the traffic flow information over the network. Traffic flow entails a series of packets which are sent from a specific source to a given anycast, the unicast or multicast destination which the source identifies as the flow destination. Traffic information analysis involves an interface attack method which focuses on the communication patterns between the entities connected to the system (Gungor, & Hancke, 2009). The process involves the interception and examination of messages to deduce the communication pattern from the information. The traffic flow information analysis can be done using tools such as Cisco NetFlow, sFlow, and Cricket. The Cisco NetFlow uses NetFlow switching features to develop the network flow records in their routers through the use of network traffic collectors and network traffic tools for monitoring and analysis. The coordination of the network collectors, monitors and analyzers provide the information required to analyze the network performance. These tools enable the analysis of the interaction between two hosts thereby determining the level of performance by the network (Anastasi et al., 2011). The analysis of the data collected through the NetFlow system can be used to analyze the delays in data and file transfer between two hosts thereby leading to the interpretation of the bandwidth, throughput and the error rate experienced in the network. Therefore, the process of evaluation and analysis coupled with the type of tools used enables analysts to determine the performance of a given network operating system correctly.

Consequently, the analysis an evaluation of the network performance has a great significance to the computer operating system as a whole. The process of performance evaluation and analysis of networks is very important for the management of network system usability. Monitoring the performance of the network provides the system with the ability to improve the provision of quality services (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). Furthermore, the analysis gives the system administrators the capacity to evaluate the manner in which the operating system works with the view of improving the performance of user requests and optimizing the performance of the computer system. In the process, the systems administrator also can get more awareness on the factors of network operation such as processing time, bandwidth, access delay, data transfer, etc. Moreover, regular evaluation and analysis of the network operating system leads to the identification of the loopholes in networking and therefore, gives the network analysts and the software engineers the challenge to develop efficient and effective tools to measure network performance in the future (Le Dinh et al., 2007). Network operating system analysis and evaluation also allow the ability to improve the availability, durability, and reliability of the computer system (Anastasi et al., 2011). Through the improvement of the availability, durability, and reliability of the system the process will also focus increasing the systems testability and maintainability. Therefore, performance analysis enables the analyst to develop the flexibility of the system to be able to accommodate future developments hence giving the system the ability to be sustainable.

The development of a sustainable network operating system, therefore, requires the evaluation of all the fundamental elements of the network. The fundamental elements of evaluation and analysis consist of primarily the network hardware and the software. The hardware devices to be tested, analyzed and evaluated for performance will consist of the storage devices, the processing elements, and the transfer devices. These devices can be further broken down into servers, the switches, the hub, networks routers, network interface card and the shared printers and peripherals. The hardware elements primarily consist of the tangible components that make the connection to form a network possible (Gungor, & Hancke, 2009). On the other hand, the software components consist of the instructions and messages sent over the network, the semaphores and the modules and protocols that control the functionality of the whole network. These software components are the intangible pieces that require no connection but are transferred or control the functions of the network. The connection of theses network elements, therefore, forms the network operating system which allows the communication of all the computer systems connected to the same network. Most importantly, the user interface also is a fundamental element which determines the input and output performance of the network operating system (Le Dinh et al., 2007). Without the user interface, the network operating system cannot be complete. Therefore, a complete analysis of the network operating system must contain the overall performance of the user interface, the hardware and the software elements of the network operating system

The network operating system performance analysis and evaluation shows that most of the network connections are limited to local area networks, and very few organizations can fit in the wide area networks. Moreover, the wide area networks are also limited to geographical location and distance. The future research on network operating systems should, therefore, consider the development of networks with a global area coverage to allow data transfer and sharing over a large area while making information easy to access (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). Apart from the universal capabilities of data sharing and transfer, the future developments in network operating system should expand the ability of networks from provision and management of data to interactive communication over a large geographical area. More so the network operating system at the level of the user interface should be developed to increase the level of data organization so that data in the computers are not mixed up and disorganized. Research on inbuilt data organization software should be developed to increase data organization and increase time management in data access and transfer (Heidemann et al., 2006). Furthermore, future research in the development of faster wireless network operating system should consider the reduction in the number of hardware required to set up a network (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). Research on network operating system should be driven towards gaining simplicity rather than the development of more hardware that will lead to more complication. In conclusion, the network operating system and its components are very important towards achieving the goal of a making the world a global village through increased sharing and transfer of information. Therefore, regular network performance analysis and evaluation are significant to improve the performance of the system and initiate research for improving the ability, reliability, and sustainability of the computer operating system.

Based on the connectivity and capacity to share programs and applications, the network operating system is divided into two primary types. The first type known as peer-to-peer network operating system give the users the ability to share files on their computers while at the same time giving access to the files on the computers of other users connected to the same network. In this type of networking, the users have an equal right to use all the resources contained in the network. They are also designed specifically for the small and medium LAN networks. An example is the Windows for Workgroups installed in offices (Gungor, & Hancke, 2009). On the other hand, the second type known as the client/server network operating system uses a centralized system in which the files and applications access are controlled by one or more specific servers. Therefore, the file server source is the main system of operation which gives access to resources and at the same time provides security. Contrary, to the peer-to-peer networks, client/server networks allows access and sharing of resources regardless of the physical position of the workstation (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). Examples of client/server network operating system include Novell Netware and the Windows 2000 Server. These network operating systems enable the users to acquire the resources they need over the networks.

Nonetheless, considering the massive developments in the network operating system sector and the increased number of computer networks, the performance analysis of networking has become one of the basic requirements for computer operating systems. Users, especially at the organizations and business levels, now transfer more data within the minimum time to increase performance and productivity (Anastasi et al., 2011). The modern operating systems are now embedded with more features, therefore provides the necessity to evaluate and analyze the performance of network systems based on the improved functionality. Therefore, it becomes significant to analyze the methods used to measure the performance of network operating systems (Le Dinh et al., 2007). The performance of a network operating system can be measured using two specific methods which involve the analysis of the performance measures and employing modeled measures through Network simulators.

The measures of network performance include Bandwidth, Throughput and Error rates. The measure of bandwidth involves measuring the bits/second by which a computer can produce a maximum rate of data and information transfer. The higher the maximum number of bits a computer can send data over the network per second the higher the performance of the computer system. However, the message delivery also counts. Therefore, Throughput must be measured to ensure efficiency in message delivery. Throughput as a measure of network performance involves the number of messages that can be delivered over the network per unit time. Therefore, the higher the message delivery per unit time the higher the performance of the network (Hall, & Anderson, 2009). However, the measure of bandwidth and throughput has no value when the network consists of high error rates. The measure of error rate or ratio consists of the number of delivered bits within a data stream going through a communication channel that has undergone alteration as a result of noises, bit synchronization, distortion, and interferences. The performance of network operating system using the bit error or ratio is done based on percentages. Therefore, the higher the percentage of bit error the lower the performance, while the lower the percentage of bit error, the higher the delivery of messages and the higher the performance of the network (Le Dinh et al., 2007). All these measures must be kept at their maximum best for the network to function appropriately. Apart from the performance measures, modeling and simulation methods can be used to analyze and evaluate the performance of the network operating system. Read More