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

Connectivity options


Once you've figured out what your device does, and that it benefits from an internet connection, you still have to decide how to connect it. There are many options with various trade-offs.

Wi-Fi

Perhaps Wi-Fi needs no introduction. Almost every modern home with internet access has Wi-Fi available. This is in large part because residential Internet Service Providers (ISPs) typically use modems with built-in Wi-Fi. If your IoT device is deployed indoors, there is a good chance that a Wi-Fi network is available. This is particularly true for residential and commercial devices.

Wi-Fi is the most popular Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology and is based around the IEEE 802.11 standards. It typically operates on either a 2.4 GHZ or a 5 GHZ radio frequency.

Two main operation modes are provided by Wi-Fi. In ad hoc mode, devices communicate directly to one another. However, infrastructure mode is much more common. In infrastructure mode, devices on a WLAN all connect to...