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TCP Header Explanation

The document provides an overview of the TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) header, detailing its structure and the significance of each field. It explains the roles of fields such as Source Port, Destination Port, Sequence Number, and Control Flags in ensuring reliable data delivery. The TCP header is essential for managing communication, error checking, and flow control in network transmissions.

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26 views2 pages

TCP Header Explanation

The document provides an overview of the TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) header, detailing its structure and the significance of each field. It explains the roles of fields such as Source Port, Destination Port, Sequence Number, and Control Flags in ensuring reliable data delivery. The TCP header is essential for managing communication, error checking, and flow control in network transmissions.

Uploaded by

nanisai3108
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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TCP Header and Its Fields

Introduction

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a connection-oriented, reliable protocol in the Transport Layer of the

OSI and TCP/IP models. It ensures error-free, in-order delivery of data between systems. Each TCP segment

contains a TCP header which carries crucial information for managing TCP communication.

TCP Header Format Diagram

0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 bits

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

| Source Port | Destination Port | Sequence Number |

|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| Acknowledgment Number (if ACK flag is set) |

|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| Data |Rese-| Control Flags | Window Size |

|Offset |rved |URG|ACK|PSH|RST|SYN|FIN| |

|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| Checksum | Urgent Pointer (if URG flag is set) |

|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| Options and Padding (if any) |

|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Explanation of Each TCP Header Field

Source Port (16 bits):

Identifies the port number of the sender application (e.g., port 80 for HTTP).

Destination Port (16 bits):

Identifies the receiver application's port number.

Sequence Number (32 bits):

Used for data ordering. It specifies the number of the first byte of data in the segment.

Acknowledgment Number (32 bits):

Specifies the next byte expected by the receiver, enabling reliable delivery.
TCP Header and Its Fields

Data Offset (4 bits):

Indicates the size of the TCP header (in 32-bit words). Minimum is 5 (i.e., 20 bytes).

Reserved (3 bits):

Reserved for future use; must be set to 0.

Control Flags (6 bits):

URG: Urgent pointer valid | ACK: Acknowledgment valid | PSH: Push data

RST: Reset connection | SYN: Synchronize sequence | FIN: Finish connection

Window Size (16 bits):

Specifies the number of bytes the sender is willing to receive (flow control).

Checksum (16 bits):

Used for error checking on the TCP header and data.

Urgent Pointer (16 bits):

Valid only if URG flag is set. Points to the last urgent byte in the segment.

Options (Variable length):

Used for additional features (e.g., MSS, Window Scaling, Timestamps).

Padding (Variable):

Ensures that the TCP header ends on a 32-bit boundary.

Conclusion

The TCP header plays a vital role in ensuring reliable communication between sender and receiver. Its

well-structured fields support sequencing, flow control, error detection, and proper connection

establishment/termination - forming the backbone of TCP's reliable data transfer.

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