TCP/IP
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. A communications protocol
developed under contract from the U.S. Department of Defense to internetwork
dissimilar systems. It is a de facto Unix standard that is the protocol of the Internet and widely supported on all
platforms. It is also a common shorthand, which refers to the suite of transport
and application protocols that run over IP.
The TCP part of TCP/IP provides transport functions, which ensures that the
total amount of bytes sent is received correctly at the other end. The IP part of
TCP/IP provides the routing mechanism. TCP/IP is a routable protocol, which
means that the messages transmitted contain the address of a destination network,
as well as a destination station. This allows TCP/IP messages to be sent to
multiple networks within an organization or around the world, hence its use in
the worldwide Internet.