There are several Internet protocols, but within this family, the TCP/IP model is one of the pioneering network protocols in data transmission that we still use on the Internet. For this reason, in The Best Developers we will talk about the TCP/IP model. We will highlight its functions, its layers, but we will focus on the history of Vinton Cerf and Robert E. Kahn, the creators of the model.
What is TCP/IP?
The TCP/IP model is used to describe a set of general guidelines for the design and implementation of network protocols (a set of rules and standards that allow two or more devices to communicate with each other), thus allowing a device to connect and communicate on the network. In this way, TCP/IP offers connectivity and ensures that data reaches the recipient (from the receiver) formatted, addressed, transmitted, routed, and received.
Implementation of the TCP/IP Model
The first time the TCP/IP model was implemented was in the 1970s, when it was implemented on the ARPANET network (the first wide area network “WAN”), developed by order of the United States Department of Defense. This computer network allowed communication between different organizations. The node (each machine in a computer network is a node) was created by the University of California, Los Angeles (it was the center of the world Internet until 1990).
Maintenance of the TCP/IP Protocol
The entire family of protocols is maintained by Internet Engineering Task Force; an open organization whose goal is to contribute to Internet engineering. In this way, the IETF regulates Internet proposals and standards (also known as IETF).
Layers in the TCP/IP Model
To guarantee reliable data exchange between two devices, several functions must be carried out, which is why a layered (level) model is used to group related functions and implement them. The layers are hierarchical and each one is built on its predecessor. In this way, each layer must handle its lower level (requesting services) and its upper level (returning results).
The History of the TCP/IP Protocol
To talk about the TCP/IP protocol, we first have to go back to 1969 and the creation of ARPANET by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (USA). This technology was pioneering and served to work on new projects. For this reason, in 1972, engineer Robert E. Kahn was hired and began working on satellite data transmission and radio waves. Due to the importance the project took on, Kahn decided to summon the developer of ARPANET, Network Control Program, computer scientist Vinton Cerf. And in 1973, Robert E. Kahn and Vinton Cerf became the Fathers of the Internet by creating an open interconnection architecture (a new generation of ARPANET protocols).
The protocol was constantly improved (almost monthly), until Vinton Cerf between 1973 and 1974 created the first TCP specification (TCP v1, TCP v2, a third divided into two: TCP v3 and IP v3) and in 1978 the TCP/IP v4 protocol was standardized (the one we use today).
Robert E. Kahn and Vinton Cerf were the pioneers of the Internet because they hid the differences in network protocols and also, the network was no longer responsible for communication (reliability and data transmission), as was happening in ARPANET. Now it was the host (computers connected to a network) that was responsible. In 1982, the United States Department of Defense declared the TCP/IP protocol the standard for military communications. And in 1985, the Internet Architecture Board promoted the protocol for commercial use in a workshop attended by 250 businessmen.
