Ethical Hacking Networking Fundamentals Syllabus

Networking Fundamentals syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Networking Fundamentals in Ethical Hacking, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Basic Networking Concepts

   4 topics

   • OSI Model
   • TCP/IP Model
   • IP Addressing and Subnetting
   • Ports and Protocols
2. 2

   Network Devices

   4 topics

   • Routers and Switches
   • Firewalls
   • Wireless Access Points
   • Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems
3. 3

   Network Security

   4 topics

   • Network Segmentation
   • Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)
   • Network Monitoring and Analysis
   • Secure Network Design

Networking Fundamentals flashcards for Ethical Hacking

20 of 50 cards from the Networking Fundamentals deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What are the seven layers of the OSI model, in order from Layer 1 to Layer 7?

   Physical, Data Link, Network, Transport, Session, Presentation, Application. A common mnemonic is 'Please Do Not Throw Sausage Pizza Away.'

2. At which OSI layer do switches primarily operate, and what address do they use to forward frames?

   Switches operate at Layer 2 (Data Link) and forward frames using MAC addresses.

3. At which OSI layer do routers operate, and what address do they use?

   Routers operate at Layer 3 (Network) and forward packets using IP addresses.

4. Which OSI layer is responsible for reliable, connection-oriented delivery and segmentation, and which protocol exemplifies it?

   Layer 4 (Transport); TCP provides reliable, connection-oriented delivery with sequencing and acknowledgments.

5. What is the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) name at OSI Layers 4, 3, 2, and 1 respectively?

   Layer 4 = Segment (TCP) / Datagram (UDP), Layer 3 = Packet, Layer 2 = Frame, Layer 1 = Bits.

6. What are the four layers of the TCP/IP model?

   Link (Network Access), Internet, Transport, and Application.

7. How do the TCP/IP model layers map to the OSI model?

   TCP/IP Application = OSI Layers 5-7; TCP/IP Transport = OSI Layer 4; TCP/IP Internet = OSI Layer 3; TCP/IP Link = OSI Layers 1-2.

8. Describe the three-step TCP three-way handshake.

   1) Client sends SYN; 2) Server replies SYN-ACK; 3) Client sends ACK. The connection is then established.

9. What are the key differences between TCP and UDP?

   TCP is connection-oriented, reliable, ordered, with flow/congestion control and higher overhead. UDP is connectionless, unreliable, unordered, low-overhead, and faster—used for streaming, DNS, and VoIP.

10. How many bits are in an IPv4 address and an IPv6 address?

    IPv4 uses $32$ bits; IPv6 uses $128$ bits.

11. What are the default (classful) subnet masks for Class A, B, and C networks?

    Class A: $255.0.0.0$ (/8), Class B: $255.255.0.0$ (/16), Class C: $255.255.255.0$ (/24).

12. What formula gives the number of usable hosts in an IPv4 subnet with $h$ host bits?

    $$\text{Usable hosts} = 2^{h} - 2$$ subtracting the network and broadcast addresses.

13. How many usable host addresses does a /24 subnet provide?

    With $8$ host bits: $2^{8} - 2 = 254$ usable hosts.

14. What formula gives the number of subnets created when borrowing $n$ bits from the host portion?

    $$\text{Subnets} = 2^{n}$$

15. List the three private IPv4 address ranges defined by RFC 1918.

    $10.0.0.0/8$, $172.16.0.0/12$, and $192.168.0.0/16$.

16. What is the IPv4 loopback address and what is it used for?

    $127.0.0.1$ (the $127.0.0.0/8$ block); it refers to the local host itself for testing the local TCP/IP stack.

17. What is the CIDR notation for a subnet mask of $255.255.255.192$, and how many usable hosts does it give?

    /26 (26 network bits, 6 host bits); $2^{6} - 2 = 62$ usable hosts.

18. What is the APIPA range, and when is it assigned?

    $169.254.0.0/16$; automatically self-assigned when a host cannot reach a DHCP server.

19. What port and protocol do HTTP and HTTPS use?

    HTTP uses TCP port $80$; HTTPS uses TCP port $443$.

20. What ports do FTP use for control and data channels?

    FTP uses TCP port $21$ for control and TCP port $20$ for active-mode data transfer.

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