What is the Internet protocol: basic concepts

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Today, almost all users for global access to the World Wide Web or to create a normal connection over a local area network use the so-called Internet protocols. In each individual case, the situation with their use and configuration can vary quite significantly. Let's try to define the basic concepts.

What is the Internet protocol: concept and history of creation

It is believed that the progenitor of the entire Internet is the APRANET network, once created in the USA, which at one time was even subordinate to the military department. Its essence was to use batch data transmission, that is, certain portions that could be interpreted and played back on another terminal.

In other words, the Internet protocol both then and now implies a set of certain rules for managing data transfer between computer terminals, servers, mobile devices, etc. It is thanks to such unified settings that it became possible to connect devices around the world to each other throughspecial programs or simultaneous access to the same resource.

What are the protocols of the Internet?

For an example of explaining what an Internet protocol is, consider the most common computer systems running Windows (Mac OS X and other UNIX-like systems like Linux will not be covered here).

Today, several main types are known - these are TCP / IP, UDP, FTP, ICMP, DNS, HTTP, etc. You can go on long enough. How are they all different?

The only difference is in the destination levels. So, for example, there are physical layers (creating a connection using a twisted pair or fiber optic), an ARP layer that includes device drivers, a network layer (standard IP and ICMP protocols), a transport layer (TCP and UDP), and an application layer that includes protocols such as HTTP, FTP, DNS, NFS, etc.

Here, by the way, it is worth noting that absolutely all protocols (even those used to check the Internet) are standardized according to the ISO / OSI system, so that when they are used on different platforms, there will never be failures even in case of different operating systems or equipment from different manufacturers used to establish communication. It is easy to understand that at the moment it does not matter at all what operating system is installed on a computer or laptop or what network components in the form of routers, network cards, modems, etc. are meant to establish communication.

Internet Protocol IP (TCP/IP)

OnToday, the most common protocol is known as TCP/IP. In fact, such a system consists of a basic setting (IP) and an add-on (TCP), which cannot function without the first one, since it does not contain any data about the packets being sent.

The TCP packets themselves are sent as an IP-only request. Therefore, it became necessary to add three parameters to the main protocol, which would ensure the storage of basic transmitted information about the state of the packets themselves. This should include checksum segments, assigning each byte of information a sequence number to determine the priority and queue of sending and receiving, an identifier for the so-called mechanical confirmation of sending and receiving data, as well as resending the request if such data was either not sent or not were accepted.

Here it is worth paying attention to the fact that the totality of such protocols works only on the basis of the IP protocol. But first, in the connection establishment phase, then in the transmission mode, and at the end to establish a connection break after the completion of data transmission and reception.

Setup and verification tools

Configuring the Internet Protocol on Windows systems is easy. You only need to use the network settings (or network adapter), where the appropriate menu bar is selected. It used to be simple, from Windows 7 onwards, there are two categories in the settings: IPv4 and IPv6 (not counting others,default attributes).

Standard settings are made specifically for IPv4 (as it was before). But the new Internet protocol IPv6 still remains unclaimed.

Actually, the check can be done even through access to the network status using the system tray. The icon in the panel constantly notifies the user about the availability of a connection to the local network and the Internet. There is nothing complicated here.

Which would you prefer?

In the matter of preference for the use of a particular protocol, it is worth starting from the purpose for which it is intended. For example, protocols such as FTP are needed, rather, to upload information to a specific site or download files from resources that support such a data transfer system. Checking the Internet in this case can be done using programs that control requests (uploads and downloads) sent to a specific FTP server.

Protocols like UDP are also not always used. Very often, such settings are used in mobile technology. But, as is already clear, now we did not touch on such systems, since we were talking specifically about stationary computer terminals and operating systems of the Windows family installed on them.

However, the question of setting up protocols, even in different operating systems, is fundamentally identical to one another. Only specialized components can differ, and then only by their name, but the very principle of establishing and further using a newly created connection based on some protocolpractically no different.

Moreover, Windows systems are initially configured to use TCP/IP as the universal protocol. Everything else is either configured automatically or not configured at all. And we have not yet considered WAP protocols that comply with mobile communication standards, limiting ourselves only to computers.