10/31/22, 12:14 PM TCP/IP Model: What are Layers & Protocol?

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TCP/IP Model: What are Layers & Protocol? TCP/IP

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By Lawrence Williams Updated October 1, 2022

What is the TCP/IP Model?

TCP/IP Model helps you to determine how
a specific computer should be connected
to the internet and how data should be
transmitted between them. It helps you to
create a virtual network when multiple
computer networks are connected
together. The purpose of TCP/IP model is
to allow communication over large
distances.

TCP/IP stands for Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol. TCP/IP Stack is
specifically designed as a model to offer highly reliable and end-to-end byte stream over
an unreliable internetwork.

In this TCP/IP tutorial, you will learn:

TCP Characteristics
Four Layers of TCP/IP model
Application Layer
Transport Layer
Internet Layer
The Network Interface Layer
Differences between OSI and TCP/IP models
Most Common TCP/IP Protocols
Advantages of the TCP/IP model
Disadvantages of the TCP/IP model

TCP Characteristics
Here, are the essential characteristics of TCP IP protocol:

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Support for a flexible TCP/IP architecture

Adding more system to a network is easy.

In TCP IP protocols suite, the network remains intact until the source, and
destination machines were functioning properly.
TCP is a connection-oriented protocol.
TCP offers reliability and ensures that data which arrives out of sequence should put
back into order.
TCP allows you to implement flow control, so sender never overpowers a receiver
with data.

Four Layers of TCP/IP model

In this TCP/IP tutorial, we will explain different layers and their functionalities in TCP/IP
model:

TCP/IP Conceptual Layers

The functionality of the TCP IP model is divided into four layers and each includes
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The functionality of the TCP IP model is divided into four layers, and each includes
specific protocols.

TCP/IP is a layered server architecture system in which each layer is defined according to
a specific function to perform. All these four TCP IP layers work collaboratively to
transmit the data from one layer to another.

Application Layer
Transport Layer
Internet Layer
Network Interface

Four Layers of TCP/IP model

Application Layer
Application layer interacts with an application program, which is the highest level of OSI
model. The application layer is the OSI layer, which is closest to the end-user. It means
the OSI application layer allows users to interact with other software application.

Application layer interacts with software applications to implement a communicating

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component. The interpretation of data by the application program is always outside the
scope of the OSI model.
Example of the application layer is an application such as file transfer, email, remote
login, etc.

The function of the Application Layers are:

Application-layer helps you to identify communication partners, determining

resource availability, and synchronizing communication.
It allows users to log on to a remote host
This layer provides various e-mail services
This application offers distributed database sources and access for global
information about various objects and services.

Transport Layer
Transport layer builds on the network layer in order to provide data transport from a
process on a source system machine to a process on a destination system. It is hosted
using single or multiple networks, and also maintains the quality of service functions.

It determines how much data should be sent where and at what rate. This layer builds on
the message which are received from the application layer. It helps ensure that data units
are delivered error-free and in sequence.

Transport layer helps you to control the reliability of a link through flow control, error
control, and segmentation or de-segmentation.

The transport layer also offers an acknowledgment of the successful data transmission
and sends the next data in case no errors occurred. TCP is the best-known example of the
transport layer.

Important functions of Transport Layers:

It divides the message received from the session layer into segments and numbers
them to make a sequence.
Transport layer makes sure that the message is delivered to the correct process on
the destination machine.
It also makes sure that the entire message arrives without any error else it should be
retransmitted.

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Internet Layer

An internet layer is a second layer of TCP/IP layes of the TCP/IP model. It is also known as
a network layer. The main work of this layer is to send the packets from any network, and
any computer still they reach the destination irrespective of the route they take.

The Internet layer offers the functional and procedural method for transferring variable
length data sequences from one node to another with the help of various networks.

Message delivery at the network layer does not give any guaranteed to be reliable
network layer protocol.

Layer-management protocols that belong to the network layer are:

1. Routing protocols
2. Multicast group management
3. Network-layer address assignment.

The Network Interface Layer

Network Interface Layer is this layer of the four-layer TCP/IP model. This layer is also
called a network access layer. It helps you to defines details of how data should be sent
using the network.

It also includes how bits should optically be signaled by hardware devices which directly
interfaces with a network medium, like coaxial, optical, coaxial, fiber, or twisted-pair
cables.

A network layer is a combination of the data line and defined in the article of OSI
reference model. This layer defines how the data should be sent physically through the
network. This layer is responsible for the transmission of the data between two devices
on the same network.

Differences between OSI and TCP/IP models

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Difference between OSI and TCP/IP model

Here, are some important differences between the OSI and TCP/IP model:

OSI Model TCP/IP model

It is developed by ISO (International It is developed by ARPANET (Advanced

Standard Organization) Research Project Agency Network).

TCP/IP doesn’t have any clear

OSI model provides a clear distinction
distinguishing points between services,
between interfaces, services, and protocols.
interfaces, and protocols.

TCP refers to Transmission Control

OSI refers to Open Systems Interconnection.
Protocol.

OSI uses the network layer to define routing

TCP/IP uses only the Internet layer
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TCP/IP uses only the Internet layer.
standards and protocols.

OSI follows a vertical approach. TCP/IP follows a horizontal approach.

OSI model use two separate layers physical

and data link to define the functionality of TCP/IP uses only one layer (link).
the bottom layers.

OSI layers have seven layers. TCP/IP has four layers.

A layer of the TCP/IP model is both

OSI model, the transport layer is only
connection-oriented and
connection-oriented.
connectionless.

In TCP, physical and data link are both

In the OSI model, the data link layer and
combined as a single host-to-network
physical are separate layers.
layer.

Session and presentation layers are not a There is no session and presentation
part of the TCP model. layer in TCP model.

It is defined before the advent of the

It is defined after the advent of the Internet.
internet.

The minimum size of the OSI header is 5

Minimum header size is 20 bytes.
bytes.

Most Common TCP/IP Protocols

Some widely used most common TCP/IP protocol are:

TCP:
Transmission Control Protocol is an internet protocol suite which breaks up the message
into TCP Segments and reassembling them at the receiving side.

IP:
An Internet Protocol address that is also known as an IP address is a numerical label. It is
assigned to each device that is connected to a computer network which uses the IP for
communication. Its routing function allows internetworking and essentially establishes
the Internet. Combination of IP with a TCP allows developing a virtual connection
between a destination and a source
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between a destination and a source.

HTTP:
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol is a foundation of the World Wide Web. It is used for
transferring webpages and other such resources from the HTTP server or web server to
the web client or the HTTP client. Whenever you use a web browser like Google Chrome
or Firefox, you are using a web client. It helps HTTP to transfer web pages that you
request from the remote servers.

SMTP:
SMTP stands for Simple mail transfer protocol. This protocol supports the e-mail is known
as a simple mail transfer protocol. This protocol helps you to send the data to another e-
mail address.

SNMP:
SNMP stands for Simple Network Management Protocol. It is a framework which is used
for managing the devices on the internet by using the TCP/IP protocol.

DNS:
DNS stands for Domain Name System. An IP address that is used to identify the
connection of a host to the internet uniquely. However, users prefer to use names instead
of addresses for that DNS.

TELNET:
TELNET stands for Terminal Network. It establishes the connection between the local and
remote computer. It established connection in such a manner that you can simulate your
local system at the remote system.

FTP:
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is a mostly used standard protocol for transmitting
the files from one machine to another.

Advantages of the TCP/IP model

Here, are pros/benefits of using the TCP/IP model:

It helps you to establish/set up a connection between different types of computers.

It operates independently of the operating system
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It operates independently of the operating system.
It supports many routing-protocols.

It enables the internetworking between the organizations.

TCP/IP model has a highly scalable client-server architecture.
It can be operated independently.
Supports a number of routing protocols.
It can be used to establish a connection between two computers.

Disadvantages of the TCP/IP model

Here, are few drawbacks of using the TCP/IP model:

TCP/IP is a complicated model to set up and manage.

The shallow/overhead of TCP/IP is higher-than IPX (Internetwork Packet Exchange).
In this, model the transport layer does not guarantee delivery of packets.
Replacing protocol in TCP/IP is not easy.
It has no clear separation from its services, interfaces, and protocols.

Summary:

The full form of TCP/IP model explained as Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet
Protocol.
TCP supports flexible architecture
Application layer interacts with an application program, which is the highest level of
OSI model.
Internet layer is a second layer of the TCP/IP model. It is also known as a network
layer.
Transport layer builds on the network layer in order to provide data transport from a
process on a source system machine to a process on a destination system.
Network Interface Layer is this layer of the four-layer TCP/IP model. This layer is also
called a network access layer.
OSI model is developed by ISO (International Standard Organization) whereas
TCP/IP model is developed by ARPANET (Advanced Research Project Agency
Network).
An Internet Protocol address that is also known as an IP address is a numerical label.
HTTP is a foundation of the World Wide Web.
SMTP stands for Simple mail transfer protocol which supports the e-mail is known as
a simple mail transfer
SNMP stands for Simple Network Management Protocol.
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DNS stands for Domain Name System.

TELNET stands for Terminal Network. It establishes the connection between the
local and remote computer
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is a mostly used standard protocol for
transmitting the files from one machine to another.
The biggest benefit of TCP/IP model is that it helps you to establish/set up a
connection between different types of computers.
TCP/IP is a complicated model to set up and manage.
What are the different types of TCP/IP layers?
There are four types of TCP/IP layers.

1. Application layer
2. Transport layer
3. Internet layer
4. Network interface

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