Comparison of the Layers of the OSI and TCP/IP Models
The TCP/IP protocol suite was developed by DARPA in the early 1970s. The OSI networking model was developed in Europe in 1986. This article compares the two networking standards. More ...
Unicast, Multicast, Broadcast. What Does It Mean?
Unicast, Multicast, and Broadcast are different network transmission methods. Unicast is a transmission between a single sender and a single receiver, while Broadcast is a transmission from a single sender to all clients on the network. More ...
IPv6 Multicast Addresses
An IPv6 multicast address defines a group of devices known as a multicast group. Unlike IPv4, there is no broadcast address in IPv6. Instead, IPv6 uses multicast. A packet sent to a multicast group always has a unicast source address. More ...
IPv6 Packet Fragmentation
Unlike in IPv4, an IPv6 router does not fragment a packet unless it is the source of the packet. The fields used in the IPv4 header for fragmentation do not exist in the IPv6 header. More ...
A Simple Description of the IPv6 Header and Datagram
This article provides a simple description of the IPv6 header and datagram without a lot referring back to IPv4. More ...
Major Protocols in the TCP/IP Suite
This is a chart of the layers of the TCP/IP Suite and the major protocols in each layer. As you move your mouse pointer over each protocol acronym, a brief description of the protocol appears. This is not a comprehensive list. More ...
Wireless Standards - 802.11a 802.11b 802.11g 802.11n 802.11i Explained
The IEEE 802.11 family of standards which provides for Wireless Ethernet or (Wi-Fi) has evolved over the years. This article explains the differences between 802.11a 802.11b 802.11g 802.11n and 802.11i. More ...
RIP (Routing Information Protocol)
RIP is an Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) that uses hop count as a metric. RIP comes in versions 1, 2, and RIPng (RIP next generation) an extension of RIPv2 for support of IPv6. More ...
Video Streaming Protocols
Video surveillance systems currently are undergoing a transition where more and more traditional analog solutions are being replaced by digital solutions. Here, some of the network protocols used in video streaming are described. More ...
TCP/IP Protocol Suite
A good portion of the knowledge required to be a network technician relates to the TCP/IP protocol suite. This article describes the most important protocols in the TCP/IP protocol suite. Many other less frequently used protocols exist. More ...
Free eBook: Introduction to 802.11 Wireless
The growth of wireless mobile devices is incredible. If you're an IT professional you'll need to understand wireless technology. This free ebook by Aaron Balchunas explains everything from radio frequency to wireless authentication protocols. More ...
Routing Datagrams
Systems can deliver packets only to other devices attached to the same physical network. A gateway is a network point, referred to as a router, that acts as an entrance to another network. More ...
Internet Protocol versions IPv4, IPv5 and IPv6
Internet Protocol is the part of the TCP/IP protocol that is responsible for addressing packets. IPv4 uses a 32-bit address IPv6 uses a 128-bit address. This article describes how IPv4 are converted to IPv6 addresses. More ...
IPv6 Global Unicast Addresses
Global unicast addresses (GUAs) are globally routable and reachable in the IPv6 Internet; they are equivalent to public IPv4 addresses. GUA addresses are also known as aggregatable global unicast addresses. More ...
Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs)
A Virtual LAN (VLAN) is a subgroup within a local network. VLANs make it easy for network administrators to separate a single switched network into subnetworks to match the functional and security requirements of their network without having to make major changes in the existing network infrastructure. More ...
