protocol
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protocol



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DEFINITION - In information technology, a protocol (from the Greek protocollon, which was a leaf of paper glued to a manuscript volume, describing its contents) is the special set of rules that end points in a telecommunication connection use when they communicate. Protocols exist at several levels in a telecommunication connection. For example, there are protocols for the data interchange at the hardware device level and protocols for data interchange at the application program level. In the standard model known as Open Systems Interconnection (OSI), there are one or more protocols at each layer in the telecommunication exchange that both ends of the exchange must recognize and observe. Protocols are often described in an industry or international standard.

On the Internet, there are the TCP/IP protocols, consisting of:

There are many other Internet protocols, such as the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) and the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).

LAST UPDATED: 13 Apr 2007

Read more about protocol:
- There is a comprehensive Protocol Directory.
- SearchNetworking.com offers a comprehensive list of white papers about network technologies.


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