In-depth analysis of the TCP/IP protocol: The core cornerstone of Internet communication

17/10/2024

<p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">The TCP/IP protocol is the foundation of modern Internet communication, and almost all devices rely on it for seamless data transfer. To understand how the Internet works, the TCP/IP protocol is undoubtedly an important concept that cannot be bypassed.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><br/></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;">Components of the TCP/IP protocol</span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;"><br/></span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">The TCP/IP protocol consists of two main components: TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and IP (Internet Protocol). These two protocols work in tandem to ensure that the transfer of data from one device to another is both reliable and accurate.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">The IP protocol is responsible for breaking up data into packets and sending these packets over the network to a specified destination device.The main function of the IP protocol is to find the optimal path that will allow the packets to travel efficiently through the network.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">The TCP protocol, on the other hand, ensures that these packets are not lost, out of order, or otherwise problematic during transmission.The TCP protocol creates a virtual connection between the sending and receiving of data, ensuring that the data is complete and error-free.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><br/></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;">Layered Architecture of TCP/IP</span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;"><br/></span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">The TCP/IP protocol is a layered architecture, with four main layers in common, each with its own responsibilities:</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">1.Application Layer: </span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">Responsible for network interactions of applications, such as browsers, e-mail clients, etc.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">2.Transport Layer: </span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">Provides reliable data transmission to ensure the accuracy of data from source to target, this layer is mainly realized through TCP or UDP.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">3.Network Layer: </span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">Responsible for routing and forwarding of data packets, the IP protocol works in this layer.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">4.Data Link Layer: </span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">This layer deals with the actual physical network communication, including how packets are transmitted over physical media (e.g., optical fiber, radio waves, etc.).</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><br/></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;">TCP/IP workflow</span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体;"><br/></span></strong></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">1. Establishing a connection: </span></span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">At the TCP layer, the sender and receiver first establish a connection through the </span>“<span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">three handshakes</span>” <span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">to ensure that both sides are ready to transmit data.</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">2.Data transmission:</span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"> The IP protocol slices data into small packets and sends them over the network. These packets do not necessarily arrive in sequence, but TCP ensures that they are correctly reassembled at the receiver.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">3.Acknowledgement of Data Receipt: </span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">After receiving a packet, the receiver sends an acknowledgement message telling the sender that the data has arrived successfully. If a packet is lost, TCP will resend the lost packet.</span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">4. Terminate Connection:</span></span></strong><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;"> After the data transmission is completed, the sender and receiver will end the connection by </span>“<span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">four waves</span>”<span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;">.</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Calibri;"><br/></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 2em;"><span style="font-family: 宋体; font-size: 16px;">TCP/IP protocol as the core of Internet communication, its reliability and flexibility for the smooth operation of modern networks has laid a solid foundation. Proxy services like 711Proxy provide a stronger guarantee for the practical application of the TCP/IP protocol, ensuring that data can still be transmitted efficiently and securely in a complex network environment.</span></p><p><br/></p>