Advanced Topics in Internet Computing
CS 176C, Spring 2026
Course Overview
This course takes a first-principles approach to networked systems. Rather than surveying protocols one by one, we study four invariants — State, Time, Coordination, and Interface — and three design principles — Disaggregation, Closed-loop reasoning, and Decision placement — that recur across every networked system. We apply this framework to analyze real systems, predict their behavior under changing constraints, and understand why they evolved the way they did.
The course follows the textbook A First-Principles Approach to Networked Systems and is organized into five areas:
First Principles (Ch 2) We begin by developing the framework — four invariants, three design principles, and the anchored dependency graph — and immediately ground it in TCP, DNS, and DHCP as worked examples. By the end of this unit, you will be able to analyze any networked system by identifying its anchor constraint and tracing how the invariant answers follow.
Medium Access & Wireless Architecture (Ch 3 + Ch 4) We apply the framework to shared-medium systems: 802.11’s evolution from distributed contention to centralized scheduling, cellular access from FDMA to 5G OFDMA, and the disaggregation of wireless infrastructure (CU/DU/RU splits, network slicing, the 5G core).
Queue Management (Ch 6) We study how routers and switches manage buffers — from FIFO to weighted fair queuing, the bufferbloat problem, and the evolution of active queue management (RED, CoDel, PIE, FQ_CoDel).
Multimedia Applications (Ch 8) We examine how perceptual time constraints shape the design of video streaming (DASH, adaptive bitrate), voice over IP, and real-time conferencing systems.
Measurement, Management & the Research Frontier (Ch 9) We cover active and passive measurement, the flexibility-scalability-accuracy tradeoff in network telemetry, programmable switches (PISA/Sonata), and the research tools — NetReplica, NetForge, NetGent — used in the mid-term project and assignments.
Logistics
Almost all lectures will be delivered in-person. We will make the recording for video lectures from last year available on the course website.
- Lecture
- Arpit: Tuesday & Thursday 2:00–3:15 PM, TD-W 1701
- Sanjay will cover lectures when Arpit is traveling
- Discussion Section Primary venue for NetReplica and Agentic Thin Waist training, PA oral check-ins, and attendance.
- Friday 1:00–1:50 PM, NH 1109
- Friday 2:00–2:50 PM, NH 1109
- Office Hours
- Arpit: available after lecture (no separate office hours)
- Sanjay & Sylee: TBA
- Communication
Key Dates
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Apr 2 | PA1 released |
| Apr 15 | PA1 due |
| Apr 7 | PA2 released |
| Apr 29 | PA2 due |
| Apr 21 | PA3 released |
| May 5 | Midterm Exam (in-class, closed-device) |
| May 12 | PA3 due / PA4 released |
| May 16 | Mid-term project proposal due |
| May 30 | Mid-term project final report due |
| Jun 3 | PA4 due |