Which protocol provides reliable, ordered and error checked delivery of a stream of packets?

Which protocol provides reliable, ordered and error checked delivery of a stream of packets?

• A. UDP
• B. ICMP
• C. TCP
• D. IP

Answer: (C)

Reliable, ordered delivery of a data stream is provided by the Transmission Control Protocol. TCP creates a connection and sends data as a stream of bytes with mechanisms to ensure everything arrives correctly. It numbers each byte, waits for acknowledgments, and retransmits lost data, so the entire stream ends up in the correct order and without missing parts. It also includes a checksum to detect corruption, adding an error-detection layer. This combination of reliability, ordering, and error checking is what makes TCP suitable for delivering streams like web pages or file transfers. In contrast, what UDP offers is a best-effort delivery without guarantees of arrival or order, making it faster but less reliable. ICMP is used for control and diagnostic messages between network devices, not for delivering streaming data. IP handles packets without guaranteeing delivery, order, or error checking, serving as the underlying best-effort protocol that TCP builds upon.

Reliable, ordered delivery of a data stream is provided by the Transmission Control Protocol. TCP creates a connection and sends data as a stream of bytes with mechanisms to ensure everything arrives correctly. It numbers each byte, waits for acknowledgments, and retransmits lost data, so the entire stream ends up in the correct order and without missing parts. It also includes a checksum to detect corruption, adding an error-detection layer. This combination of reliability, ordering, and error checking is what makes TCP suitable for delivering streams like web pages or file transfers.

In contrast, what UDP offers is a best-effort delivery without guarantees of arrival or order, making it faster but less reliable. ICMP is used for control and diagnostic messages between network devices, not for delivering streaming data. IP handles packets without guaranteeing delivery, order, or error checking, serving as the underlying best-effort protocol that TCP builds upon.