{"id":817,"date":"2025-12-19T09:53:19","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T08:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/?post_type=manual_kb&#038;p=817"},"modified":"2026-05-30T16:50:31","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T14:50:31","slug":"protocols-tcp","status":"publish","type":"manual_kb","link":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/","title":{"rendered":"Protocols &#8211; TCP"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a core network protocol used to ensure reliable communication between devices over the internet. It defines how data is broken into packets, transmitted between systems, and correctly reassembled at the destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP is one of the main components of the TCP\/IP protocol suite and operates at the transport layer of network communication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#How_TCP_works\" >How TCP works<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#1_Connection_establishment_three-way_handshake\" >1. Connection establishment (three-way handshake)<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#2_Data_transfer\" >2. Data transfer<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#3_Connection_termination\" >3. Connection termination<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#Key_characteristics_of_TCP\" >Key characteristics of TCP<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#TCP_vs_UDP\" >TCP vs UDP<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#Practical_use_cases\" >Practical use cases<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#Practical_implications\" >Practical implications<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-tcp\/#Summary\" >Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_TCP_works\"><\/span>How TCP works<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div id=\"mybox-1980959475\" class=\"mybox-content mybox-entity-placement\"><div class=\"early-access-banner-inpost\">\r\n  <div class=\"banner-left-inpost\">\r\n    <div class=\"icon-box-inpost\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/square-info-icon.svg\" alt=\"Info\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"text-box-inpost\">\r\n      <span class=\"label-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Early access<\/span><\/span>\r\n      <h4><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Still need help?<\/span><\/h4>\r\n      <p><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Contact our customer service team.<\/span><\/p>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div class=\"banner-right-inpost\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/panel.mybox.com\/helpdesk2\/v\/list\/\" class=\"banner-button-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Message us<\/span><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\"><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP establishes a connection between two devices before any data is exchanged. This connection ensures that both sides are ready to communicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The communication process includes three main stages:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Connection_establishment_three-way_handshake\"><\/span>1. Connection establishment (three-way handshake)<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before data transfer begins, TCP performs a handshake:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the client sends a synchronization request (SYN)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the server responds with SYN-ACK<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the client confirms with ACK<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After this process, a stable connection is established.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Data_transfer\"><\/span>2. Data transfer<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once the connection is active:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>data is split into smaller packets<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>each packet is numbered<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>packets are transmitted to the destination<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the receiver confirms received data<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If any packets are lost or arrive out of order, TCP requests retransmission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Connection_termination\"><\/span>3. Connection termination<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After data transfer is complete, the connection is closed in a controlled way to ensure no data is lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Key_characteristics_of_TCP\"><\/span>Key characteristics of TCP<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>connection-oriented communication<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>reliable data delivery<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>ordered packet transmission<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>error detection and retransmission<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>flow control to avoid overwhelming the receiver<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"TCP_vs_UDP\"><\/span>TCP vs UDP<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>TCP \u2260 UDP<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Feature<\/th><th>TCP<\/th><th>UDP<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Connection<\/td><td>Required<\/td><td>Not required<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Reliability<\/td><td>High<\/td><td>No guarantee<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Ordering<\/td><td>Guaranteed<\/td><td>Not guaranteed<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Speed<\/td><td>Slower<\/td><td>Faster<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Use cases<\/td><td>Web, email, file transfer<\/td><td>Streaming, gaming, real-time apps<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP is used when reliability is more important than speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_use_cases\"><\/span>Practical use cases<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP is used in:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>web browsing (HTTP\/HTTPS)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>email communication (SMTP, POP3, IMAP)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>file transfers (FTP, SFTP)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>database communication<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>API requests between systems<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_implications\"><\/span>Practical implications<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP ensures that data arrives completely and in the correct order, even if parts of the network are unstable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, because of its reliability mechanisms, TCP may introduce slightly higher latency compared to connectionless protocols.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most modern internet services rely on TCP as their default transport layer protocol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TCP is a transport protocol that ensures reliable, ordered, and error-checked delivery of data between systems. It is a fundamental part of internet communication and is widely used in web services, email, and file transfer systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","manualknowledgebasecat":[25],"manual_kb_tag":[1705,1837,1853,1736,1838,1854,1823,1839,1855,1824,1840,1856,1825,1841,1826,1842,1827,1843,1828,1844,1829,1845,1830,1846,1831,1847,1832,1848,1833,1849,1834,1850,1835,1851,1836,1852],"class_list":["post-817","manual_kb","type-manual_kb","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","manualknowledgebasecat-hosting","manual_kb_tag-transmission-control-protocol","manual_kb_tag-fin-packet","manual_kb_tag-transport-layer","manual_kb_tag-protocols","manual_kb_tag-listen-state","manual_kb_tag-reliable-transmission","manual_kb_tag-transport-layer-protocol","manual_kb_tag-syn-sent-state","manual_kb_tag-ordered-delivery","manual_kb_tag-connection-oriented-protocol","manual_kb_tag-syn-received-state","manual_kb_tag-duplicate-prevention","manual_kb_tag-reliable-data-transfer","manual_kb_tag-established-state","manual_kb_tag-three-way-handshake","manual_kb_tag-fin-wait-1-state","manual_kb_tag-client-server-model","manual_kb_tag-fin-wait-2-state","manual_kb_tag-sequence-numbers","manual_kb_tag-close-wait-state","manual_kb_tag-checksum-verification","manual_kb_tag-last-ack-state","manual_kb_tag-packet-retransmission","manual_kb_tag-time-wait-state","manual_kb_tag-acknowledgement-flag","manual_kb_tag-closing-state","manual_kb_tag-flow-control-mechanisms","manual_kb_tag-ordered-packet-delivery","manual_kb_tag-tcp-connection-states","manual_kb_tag-duplicate-packet-prevention","manual_kb_tag-tcp-state-machine","manual_kb_tag-connection-termination","manual_kb_tag-syn-packet","manual_kb_tag-error-detection","manual_kb_tag-ack-packet","manual_kb_tag-tcp-protocol"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/manual_kb"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9052,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/817\/revisions\/9052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"manualknowledgebasecat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manualknowledgebasecat?post=817"},{"taxonomy":"manual_kb_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb_tag?post=817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}