Book Image

Hands-On Network Programming with C

By : Lewis Van Winkle
Book Image

Hands-On Network Programming with C

By: Lewis Van Winkle

Overview of this book

Network programming enables processes to communicate with each other over a computer network, but it is a complex task that requires programming with multiple libraries and protocols. With its support for third-party libraries and structured documentation, C is an ideal language to write network programs. Complete with step-by-step explanations of essential concepts and practical examples, this C network programming book begins with the fundamentals of Internet Protocol, TCP, and UDP. You’ll explore client-server and peer-to-peer models for information sharing and connectivity with remote computers. The book will also cover HTTP and HTTPS for communicating between your browser and website, and delve into hostname resolution with DNS, which is crucial to the functioning of the modern web. As you advance, you’ll gain insights into asynchronous socket programming and streams, and explore debugging and error handling. Finally, you’ll study network monitoring and implement security best practices. By the end of this book, you’ll have experience of working with client-server applications and be able to implement new network programs in C. The code in this book is compatible with the older C99 version as well as the latest C18 and C++17 standards. You’ll work with robust, reliable, and secure code that is portable across operating systems, including Winsock sockets for Windows and POSIX sockets for Linux and macOS.
Table of Contents (26 chapters)
Title Page
Dedication
About Packt
Contributors
Preface
Index

Network-testing etiquette


When network testing, it is always important to behave responsibly and ethically. Generally speaking, don't test someone else's network without their explicit permission. Doing otherwise could cause embarrassment at best, and land you in serious legal trouble at worst.

You should also be aware that some network testing techniques can set off alarms. For example, many network administrators monitor their network's load and performance characteristics. If you decide to load-test these networks without notice, you might set off automated alarms causing inconvenience.

Some other testing techniques can look like attacks. Port scanning, for example, is a useful technique where a tester tries establishing many connections on different ports. It's used to discover which ports on a system are open. However, it is a common technique used by malicious attackers to find weaknesses. Some system administrators consider port scans to be an attack, and you should never port scan...