ICMP

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Learning Objective
• ICMP Introduction
• ICMP Messages
• Message Format
• Error Reporting Messages

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ICMP
• The Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) is a companion to the IP
protocol & has been designed to compensate for below deficiencies
 The IP protocol has no error-reporting or error-correcting mechanism
The IP protocol also lacks a mechanism for host and management
queries

• ICMP itself is a network layer protocol but its messages are not passed
directly to the data link layer instead, the messages are first encapsulated
inside IP datagram's before going to the lower layer.

• The value of the protocol field in the IP datagram is 1 to indicate that the
IP data is an ICMP message.

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ICMP MESSAGES
• ICMP messages are divided into two broad categories:
error-reporting messages and query messages.
Category Type Message
Error-Reporting 3 Destination Unreachable
Messages 4 Source Quench
11 Time Exceeded
12 Parameter Problem
5 Redirection
Query Messages 8 or 0 Echo Request or Reply
13 or 14 Timestamp Request or Reply

• The error-reporting messages report problems that a router or a host

(destination) may encounter when it processes an IP packet.
• The query messages, which occur in pairs, help a host or a network
manager get specific information from a router or another host.
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Message Format

• An ICMP message has an 8-byte header and a variable-size data section.

Although the general format of the header is different for each message
type, the first 4 bytes are common to all.
8 bits 8 bits 16 bits

• The first field, ICMP type, defines the type of the message.
• The code field specifies the reason for the particular message type.
• The last common field is the checksum field
• The rest of the header is specific for each message type.
• The data section in error messages carries information for finding the
original packet that had the error.

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Error Reporting Messages

Error Reporting

Destination Parameter
Source Quench Time Exceeded Redirection
Unreachable Problems

• One of the main responsibilities of ICMP is to report errors.

• ICMP does not correct errors, it simply reports them.
• Error messages are always sent to the original source because the
only information available in the datagram about the route is the
source and destination IP addresses.
• ICMP uses the source IP address to send the error message to the
source (originator) of the datagram

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 Destination Unreachable

• When a router cannot route a datagram or a host cannot deliver a

datagram, the datagram is discarded and the router or the host sends a
destination-unreachable message back to the source host that initiated
the datagram.
• The code field for this type specifies the reason for discarding the
datagram:
 Code 0. The network is unreachable
 Code 1. The host is unreachable.
 Code 2. The protocol is unreachable.
 Code 3. The port is unreachable.
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Destination Unreachable - Codes
 Code 4. Fragmentation is required, but the DF (do not fragment)
field of the datagram has been set.
 Code 5. Source routing cannot be accomplished
 Code 6. The destination network is unknown.
 Code 7. The destination host is unknown.
 Code 8. The source host is isolated.
 Code 9. Communication with the destination network is
administratively prohibited.
 Code 10. Communication with the destination host is
administratively prohibited.
 Code 11. The network is unreachable for the specified type of
service.

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Destination Unreachable - Codes
• Code 12. The host is unreachable for the specified type of service.
• Code 13. The host is unreachable because the administrator has put
a filter on it.
• Code 14. The host is unreachable because the host precedence is
violated.
• Code 15. The host is unreachable because its precedence was cut
off.

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Source Quench

• The source-quench message in ICMP was designed to add flow control

and congestion control to the IP.
• When a router or host discards a datagram due to congestion, it sends a
source-quench message to the sender of the datagram.
• This message has two purposes –
First, it informs the source that the datagram has been discarded.
Second, it warns the source that there is congestion somewhere in
the path and that the source should slow down (quench) the sending
process.
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Time Exceeded

The time-exceeded message is generated in two cases:

• When the time-to-live value reaches 0, the datagram is discarded
and time-exceeded message is sent by the router to the original
source.
• When all fragments that make up a message do not arrive at the
destination host within a certain time limit.

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Parameter Problem

• If a router or the destination host discovers an ambiguous or missing

value in any field of the datagram, it discards the datagram and sends a
parameter-problem message back to the source.
• The code field in this case specifies the reason for discarding the
datagram:
 Code 0. There is an error or ambiguity in one of the header fields.
 Code 1. The required part of an option is missing.

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 Redirection

• A redirection message is considered an error-reporting message but

the router does not discard the datagram in this case; it is sent to the
appropriate router.
• The code field for the redirection message narrows down the
redirection:
 Code 0. Redirection for a network-specific route.
 Code 1. Redirection for a host-specific route.
 Code 2. Redirection for a network-specific route based on a
specified type of service.
 Code 3. Redirection for a host-specific route based on a specified
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Echo Request and Reply

• The echo-request and echo-reply messages are designed for diagnostic

purposes.
• The combination of echo-request and echo-reply messages determines
whether two systems (hosts or routers) can communicate with each
other.
• A host or router can send an echo-request message to another host or
router. The host or router that receives an echo-request message
creates an echo-reply message and returns it to the original sender.
• Echo-request and echo-reply messages can test the reachability of a
host. This is usually done by invoking the ping command.
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Timestamp Request and Reply

• Two machines (hosts or routers) can use the timestamp-request

and timestamp-reply messages to determine the round-trip time
needed for an IP datagram to travel between them.
• The source creates a timestamp-request message.
• The destination creates the timestamp-reply message.

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 Thank You
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The information contained herein is subject to change without
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their respective owners.

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