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The need for communication protocols

  • 3 things to know
  • A2 Unit 1

Overview

Term communication protocol, four things a communication protocol typically specifies and why protocols are organised into layers.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

Name four things a communication protocol typically specifies.

Key term

Define the term communication protocol.

Key term

Why are communication protocols necessary?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    Define the term communication protocol.

    Model answer

    A communication protocol is an agreed set of rules that governs how two devices exchange data, covering the format of the messages, the order in which they are sent and how errors are handled.

  2. 2

    Why are communication protocols necessary?

    Model answer

    Communication protocols are necessary because equipment from different manufacturers running different software must interpret the same signals in the same way, and without shared rules the bits arriving would be meaningless to the receiver.

  3. 3

    Name four things a communication protocol typically specifies.

    Model answer

    A communication protocol typically specifies the format and structure of each message, the addressing used to identify sender and receiver, the timing and sequence of exchanges, and the method of detecting and recovering from errors.

  4. 4

    What is handshaking?

    Model answer

    Handshaking is an exchange of control signals at the start of a communication, in which the two devices confirm that both are ready and agree the settings, such as speed, that the transfer will use.

  5. 5

    Describe what would happen if two computers used different rules for marking the end of a message.

    Model answer

    The receiving computer would never recognise where one message stopped, so the data of separate messages would run together and be discarded as corrupt or wait indefinitely for an end marker that never arrives.

  6. 6

    Explain why protocols are organised into layers.

    Model answer

    Layering divides a complex job into separate tasks, so that each layer handles one concern and offers a defined service to the layer above without needing to know how the layers below do their work.

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