Chapter 2. The TCPIP Model

Chapter 2. The TCP/IP Model

Terms you'll need to understand:

• Application Layer

• Encapsulation

• Hardware Layer

• Internet Layer

• ISO/OSI Reference Model

• Layered Model

• Network Interface Layer

• Network Protocol

• TCP/IP

• Transport Layer

Concepts you'll need to master:

• Describe the advantages of using a layered network model.

• Describe the functions of the Network Interface, Internet, Transport, and Application layers of the TCP/IP model.

• Describe basic peer-to-peer communication and related TCP/IP protocols.

Chapter 1, "Local Area Networks," introduced some fundamental networking concepts you need to understand to progress through the rest of this book. This chapter builds on the previous one and describes the TCP/IP network model, which is the most commonly used family of protocols across the Internet. The TCP/IP model is a layered model. In this chapter, you'll see how the layers fit together to provide a complete network communication service as well as the protocols that are used in each layer of the model.

The ISO/OSI 7 Layer Reference Model is not discussed in any detail in this book as it is not specifically required for the Solaris 9 Network Administrator exam. It is assumed, however, that the reader possesses a basic familiarity with this model, for comparison purposes only. This chapter contains a small section outlining the differences between the two models, and the "Need to Know More" section at the end of this chapter identifies a reference for additional reading about the ISO/OSI Reference model.