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 Protocol Stack is specifically
designed as a model to offer highly reliable and end-to-
end byte stream over an unreliable internetwork.
TCP Characteristics
Here, are the essential characteristics of TCP/IP protocol
•Support for a flexible TCP/IP architecture
•Adding more system to a network is easy.
•In TCP/IP, 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.
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
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 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.
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.

Functions of Internet Layer

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.
Most Common TCP/IP Protocols
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.
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
•It helps you to establish/set up a connection between different
types of computers.
•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.