Connection: An Innovative Approach to Analyze Different Network Servers Due to Lack Of Response Times.
Wifi is one of the most important things in the world at the moment. If the whole world loses wifi, the output would almost be the same as if we ran out of food altogether. As humans, we rely on wifi for many of our tasks ranging from communication, learning, working, etc. For example, since 2000, from only 413 million internet users, the number of users has only increased. In 2016, it was reported that the number of users grew to over 3.4 billion since 2000.
The increase in popularity of the internet and wifi, in general, is a positive factor for us as humans as it indicates that we are evolving into a much more advanced species. With more users, internet companies receive various opportunities to grow and innovate new internet technology. The most recent and popular example is 5G internet. Instead of modems or routers emitting 2.4 GHz wireless frequencies, 5G networks allow the modems and routers to emit 5 GHz frequencies, which provides a faster connection at short distances at the moment. Though, it’s only a matter of time until it will be able to emit that amount of frequency over longer distances.
With new ground-breaking internet innovation happening every year, it’s challenging to predict where the internet industry is going and how internet technology will be like in the future. However, as much as there are advancements and positives about new internet technology, and the internet itself, there are also some negatives. Aside from the health effects of internet radiation of different frequencies, the biggest problem with the internet at the moment is sustainability. No matter what network you are on (2.4 GHz network or 5 GHz network), if there are multiple users, the network latency will be above average. When latency increases, the response time of the web and applications that use the network slows down dramatically. This observation leads me to question that, “what’s the use of higher frequencies (fast response times) of the networks if they cannot be at their optimal performance that they are known for when there are multiple users on the same network?” For example, as the world is moving more towards the internet as they’re starting to do their tasks online (especially during COVID, such as online school, working from home, etc.). There will be multiple users on the same network, which in the end, will slow down the performance of the network according to current standards since there is no depth in the rate of frequencies due to various processes needing the network to run. In other words, the network essentially isn’t strong enough to send information to different user processes at the same frequency for a steady amount of time. I have experienced this phenomenon, where as my family members start to use the internet for their tasks, the network latency increases. We tried to switch different modems (we even got the best one our service provider was giving us because, according to him, “it reduces almost all latency.”), but the problem was still there. Thus, which is why I came up with a general statement that companies and service providers should not focus on the speed of the internet only; they should also focus on the sustainability of the network over various processes of the users.
To back my statement up and see if I was correct, I created a simulation that allows users to track different modems (or routers) on the same network or server called Connection. Essentially, users can track and analyze the performance of each router/modem with latency returns, network returns, IP address validations (for safety), and much more! With this simulation, it allows everyone to see if their wifi is really that fast as their service provider states it to be.
Connection brings a new, innovative, and straightforward approach to analyze network servers. Suppose a network is slow, for example. In that case, users can analyze the network return time based on links of every modem connected (portrayed by the software) and make appropriate decisions based on the analysis. With the use of the Graph data structure, users could add, remove, and view (like stated above) the modems that are connected to the network. Essentially, the graph converts each modem into a vertex and then connects each modem prompted with a time in milliseconds (this will be how long it takes for the modem or router to get information back from the network) as the edge between the two vertices. With this whole process being done for every addition of the modem, this allows the users to view the entire network to be seen as a spider-web or a mind-map when prompted.
In terms of the security of the network and the routers or modems being added into the software, this software converts each IP address inputted into a hashcode in the format of sha224. Moreover, this software also allows viewers to either validate their IP to see if it matches a particular modem or if it is fake. To do this, the software uses a brute-force algorithm called Naive-Pattern Search that checks if a user-inputted IP address matches any of the IP addresses under the network. If so, it will return the modem; else, it will return an error message. Since this is a brute-force algorithm, the algorithm's time complexity is O(n + k) as it compares each character for both the user input and the goal value (the valid IP address of the modem). In terms of space complexity, the algorithm takes linear space.
Additionally, when it comes to analyzing the return times of the whole network itself, the software uses a specific equation to calculate the total latency. With the equation, latency / total modems, the software will return the average latency of the network, and to calculate the total latency, the software returns the latency itself. To calculate the latency, it sums up all the times (time in milliseconds calculated when modem or router first added to the network) it took the network to send information to each router in the network. In terms of viewing this information, the user can type one command when wanted, ‘/check_total_latency,’ to view the average and total latency.
Along with the Graph data structure, the software also uses a bi-directional Linked List to allow users to add multiple networks for them to analyze. Users can add a network, remove a network, and obviously, view a particular network by typing just one command. This allows users with multiple networks (such as business owners) to analyze what processes take up so much performance in the network. In terms of performance, along with the network commands, the linked list also has a linear run and spacetime.
To explore my project on Github: https://github.com/GEEGABYTE1/Connection
Overall, the network is one of the greatest inventions ever made by humans. It has re-defined the capabilities of humans in terms of innovation. Wifi has made life so much simpler for us, making our daily tasks much easier for us, such as learning, working, communicating, etc. Furthermore, several network companies and service providers are working hard every day to bring innovation to the industry to make networks even more helpful. As stated before, one of the most recent technologies in the industry is 5G networks and internet extenders to increase the speed and range. However, although companies are innovating to improve the speed of networks for better response times, they are not as stable when there are multiple users on them. It’s essentially like saying that a Buggati is one of the fastest cars ever made; however, its max speed will never be needed on a highway or on a typical city main road. Yes, companies are working on innovating new pieces of technology to increase the range of the networks and make them more robust (for example, the introduction to internet extenders). Still, their rate of innovation is low, compared to the rate of innovation of the network's speed. Liked stated earlier, if there is no sustainability in the network, then the speed of the network itself is of no use, which is why I created a program to help users identify and gain more knowledge about their networks and modems/routers and if their networks are performing the way they are stated to be.
Resources
Reilly. “What Is the Difference between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz?” Stuff Fibre, 31 Aug. 2016, support.stuff-fibre.co.nz/hc/en-us/articles/226438147-What-is-the-difference-between-2–4-GHz-and-5-GHz-.
Soffar, Heba. “The Importance and Uses of Wi-Fi Technology.” Online Sciences, 16 Feb. 2021, www.online-sciences.com/technology/the-importance-and-uses-of-wi-fi-technology/#:~:text=Wi%2DFi%20is%20wireless%20LAN,connected%20to%20a%20USB%20Port.
