[GRLUG] Poll: OSI Model/Protocol

[Mike Williams]

Knowing the first few layers are, or at least used to be, important in 
understanding network troubleshooting and optimization. Collision 
domains, hub versus bridge / switch versus brouter or layer three 
switch, and such. There are even fancier switches that can understand 
clear up to Layer 7, I think, although I've never worked with them. You 
need a pretty good understanding of the layers to figure out whether 
your bandwidth problems can be solved by replacing hubs with switches 
(in the unlikely event that anyone still has switches in service), 
whether you need a layer 3 switch to fix things, if one of the 
higher-layer ones is needed, or if new cable is the only solution.


On 06/05/2011 07:57 PM, Eric Beversluis wrote:
> I'd like to conduct a poll.
>
> Having exerted some (not very significant) level of effort, a number of
> years ago, acquainting myself with the OSI model/standard, I'm curious
> if I'm the only one who sees imposing this learning task on computer
> students as pointless.
>
> Item: in about 8 years since studying all that, I have seen maybe one or
> two references to the model and, as nearly as I can recall, none of the
> work I've done in this time has needed to utilize knowledge of the
> model.
>
> Item: the de facto standard for networking, TCP/IP, uses a significantly
> different model; nor have I seen any need to understand the TCP/IP
> layers in my work.
>
> I would guess designers and builders of hardware and certain programs
> would use knowledge of the TCP/IP layer protocols. But other than these
> users, who out there has had the need to be acquainted with the OSI
> model?
>
>


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