Unique number: 55820, Time: Mon Wed 2-3:30PM, Classroom: RAS 215
Instructor: Yin Zhang, Email: yzhang at cs.utexas.edu, Office hours: Mon Wed 3:30-4:30PM, Office: ACES 5.248
Teaching Assistant: Ms. Mi Kyung Han (TA page), Email: hanmi2 at cs.utexas.edu, Hours: Tue Thu 2:30-3:30PM (and by appointment), Desk: ACES 6th floor Student Lounge
This is the first graduate-level course in computer networks. It covers fundamental principles for designing computer networks, with a particular emphasis on the design of the Internet. Topics include:
1. Networking review: packet- and circuit-switching primer, basic network operations, functionalities, protocols ...
2. Network design principles: signaling, state management, randomization, indirection, multiplexing, virtualization, scalability
3. Internet design: end-to-end principle, the big picture, lessons learned
4. Current research and practices: network security, network management, overlays/DHT/p2p, emerging network architecture, extreme networking
The goal is to teach networking fundamentals and techniques that will have a long half-life (when today's hot topic is no longer hot, the principles covered in this course will still be relevant and important).
An introductory course on computer networks is assumed (although we will spend about 2 weeks reviewing the basic networking knowledge).
The course will involve a mid-term exam, 2-4 homework assignments, and a research project. Project can be done in groups of 2-3 students. Grades will be determined as follows:
o
Class Participation (5%)
You are expected to attend every class and actively participate in class
discussions.
o
Paper Reviews (10%)
After reviewing networking basics,
you are expected to read all the required papers before each class and hand in
a short review of one paper of your choice at the beginning of each class. You will be graded based on the thoroughness
and insightfulness of your review. Please
use the following review format.
o
Mid-term Exam (20%)
Note that there will be no final exam. Instead, you are expected to
present your final project report in class.
o
Homework Assignments (30%)
There will be 2-4 written homework assignments. The problem sets are
designed to help you better understand the materials covered in class.
You will be graded based on the correctness and clarity of your answers.
o
Research Project (35%)
You are expected to propose, complete, and present a research project to
investigate novel research ideas in a topic in computer networks. This
will contribute to a significant fraction of your grade and your time
commitment for this course. You will be graded based on the originality
and quality of your work. High-quality work could potentially lead to
conference publications. See the project page
for more details.
There is a mailing list associated with this course: cs386m-s8@utlists.utexas.edu. Be sure to subscribe to the mailing list regardless of whether you are registered for the course, as I will be sending out special announcements using this list.
To add yourself to the list, do the following:
For more help on how to use UT Lists, check out http://www.utexas.edu/its/mailinglists/start.php and https://utlists.utexas.edu/sympa/help
All assignments, lecture slides, as well as special announcements are posted on the class web page with the URL: http://www.cs.utexas.edu/~yzhang/teaching/cs386m-s8/ . I do not have a fixed schedule for posting updates, but it is a good idea to check it often. At the very least, check once a week for assignment due dates and special announcements.
You are responsible for downloading and printing the homework from the class web page. There will be no hard-copy handouts of these in class.
The class web page will have links to the TA's web page, with information on office hours, homework solutions, etc. If you have questions about homework, please send email to the TA or to the class mailing list, or visit during her office hours. She will be responsible for grading homework. Also, she will answer student questions sent to the class mailing list.
o The Computer Sciences Department Rules to Live By
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