Transport Layer Issues

The transport layer is responsible for process to process delivery of

the entire message.
A process is an application program running on the host
The transport layer ensures that the whole message arrives intact
and in order, oversees both error control and flow control at
source to destination lavel.

Issues related to transport layer

Service point addressing

Segmentation and reassembling
Connection control
Flow control
Error control
Service-point addressing: Computers often run several
programs at the same time. For this reason, source-to-
destination delivery means delivery not only from one
computer to the next but also from a specific process
(running program) on one computer to a specific
process (running program) on the other.
The transport layer header must therefore include a
type of address called a service-point address (or port
address).
The network layer gets each packet to the correct
computer; the transport layer gets the entire message
to the correct process on that computer.
Segmentation and reassembly. A message is divided into
transmittable segments, with each segment containing a sequence
number. These numbers enable the transport layer to reassemble
the message correctly upon arriving at the destination and to
identify and replace packets that were lost in transmission.

Connection control. The transport layer can be either connectionless

or connection oriented. A connectionless transport layer treats each
segment as an independent packet and delivers it to the transport
layer at the destination machine. A connection oriented transport
layer makes a connection with the transport layer at the destination
machine first before delivering the packets. After all the data are
transferred, the connection is terminated.
Flow control. Like the data link layer, the transport layer
is responsible for flow control. However, flow control at
this layer is performed end to end rather than across a
single link.

Error control. Like the data link layer, the transport layer
is responsible for error control. However, error control at
this layer is performed process-to- process rather than
across a single link. The sending transport layer makes
sure that the entire message arrives at the receiving
transport layer without error (damage, loss, or
duplication). Error correction is usually achieved through
retransmission.
POINT-TO-POINT PROTOCOL : one of the most common protocols
for point-to-point access is the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP).
Today, millions of Internet users who need to connect their home
computers to the server of an Internet service provider use PPP.

The majority of these users have a traditional modem; they are

connected to the Internet through a telephone line, which provides
the services of the physical layer. But to control and manage the
transfer of data, there is a need for a point-to-point protocol at the
data link layer.
PPP provides several services:
1. PPP defines the format of the frame to be exchanged between
devices.
2. PPP defines how two devices can negotiate the establishment of
the link and the exchange of data.
3. PPP defines how network layer data are encapsulated in the data
link frame.
4. PPP defines how two devices can authenticate each other.
5. PPP provides multiple network layer services supporting a variety
of network layer protocols.
6. PPP provides connections over multiple Links.
7. PPP provides network address configuration. This is particularly
useful when a home user needs a temporary network address to
connect to the Internet.
On the other hand, to keep PPP simple, several services are missing:
1. PPP does not provide flow control. A sender can send several
frames one after another with no concern about overwhelming the
receiver.
2. PPP has a very simple mechanism for error control. A CRC field is
used to detect errors. If the frame is corrupted, it is silently
discarded; the upper-layer protocol
needs to take care of the problem. Lack of error control and
sequence numbering may cause a packet to be received out of
order.
3. PPP does not provide a sophisticated addressing mechanism to
handle frames in a multipoint configuration.
Framing
PPP is a byte-oriented protocol. Figure shows the format of a PPP
frame.

Flag: A PPP frame starts and ends with a 1-byte flag with the bit
pattern 01111110.
Address: The address field in this protocol is a constant value and
set to 11111111 (broadcast address). During negotiation , the two
parties may agree to omit this byte.
Control: This field is set to the constant value 11000000 PPP does not
provide any flow control. Error control is also limited to error
detection.
Protocol: The protocol field defines what is being carried in the data
field: either user data or other information. This field is by default 2
bytes long, but the two parties can agree to use only 1 byte.
Payload field: This field carries either the user data or other
information. The data field is a sequence of bytes with the default of a
maximum of 1500 bytes; but this can be changed during negotiation.
padding is needed if the size is less than the maximum default value or
the maximum negotiated value.
FCS: The frame check sequence (FCS) is simply a 2-byte or 4-byte
standard CRC.
Transition Phases
A PPP connection goes through phases which can be
shown in a transition phase diagram .
Dead. In the dead phase the link is not being used. There is no active
carrier (at the physical layer) and the line is quiet.
Establish. When one of the nodes starts the communication, the
connection goes into this phase. In this phase, options are
negotiated between the two parties. If the negotiation is successful,
the system goes to the authentication phase (if authentication is
required) or directly to the networking phase. The link control
protocol packets, discussed shortly, are used for this purpose.
Several packets may be exchanged here.
Authenticate. The authentication phase is optional; the two nodes
may decide, during the establishment phase, not to skip this phase.
However, if they decide to proceed with authentication, they send
several authentication packets. If the result is successful, the
connection goes to the networking phase; otherwise, it goes to the
termination phase.
Network. In the network phase, negotiation for the network layer
protocols takes place. PPP specifies that two nodes establish a
network layer agreement before data at the network layer can be
exchanged. The mason is that PPP supports multiple protocols at
the network layer If a node is running multiple protocols
simultaneously at the network layer, the receiving node needs to
know which protocol will receive the data.
Open. In the open phase, data transfer takes place. When a
connection reaches this phase, the exchange of data packets can
be started. The connection remains in this phase until one of the
endpoints wants to terminate the connection.
Terminate. In the termination phase the connection is terminated.
Several packets
are exchanged between the two ends for house cleaning and
closing the link.
 Multiplexing
Although PPP is a data link layer protocol, PPP uses another set of
other protocols to establish the link, authenticate the parties
involved, and carry the network layer data.
Three sets of protocols are defined to make PPP powerful:
Link Control Protocol (LCP),
Authentication Protocols (APs), and
Network Control Protocols (NCPs).
Link Control Protocol
The Link Control Protocol (LCP) is responsible for establishing,
maintaining, configuring, and terminating links. It also provides
negotiation mechanisms to set options between the two
endpoints. Both endpoints of the link must reach an agreement
about the options before the link can be established.

Authentication Protocols
Authentication plays a very important role in PPP because PPP is
designed for use over dial-up links where verification of user
identity is necessary. PPP has created two protocols for
authentication: Password Authentication Protocol and Challenge
Handshake Authentication Protocol.
PAP The Password Authentication Protocol (PAP) is a simple
authentication procedure with a two-step process:
1. The user who wants to access a system sends an authentication
identification (usually the user name) and a password.
2. The system checks the validity of the identification and
password and either accepts or denies connection.

CHAP The Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP) is

a three-way hand-shaking authentication protocol that provides
greater security than PAP. In this method, the password is kept
secret; it is never sent online.
1. The system sends the user a challenge packet containing a
challenge value, usually a few bytes.
2. The user applies a predefined function that takes the challenge
value and the user's own password and creates a result. The user
sends the result in the response packet to the system.
3. The system does the same. It applies the same function to the
password of the user (known to the system) and the challenge
value to create a result. If the result created is the same as the
result sent in the response packet, access is granted; otherwise, it is
denied.