Computer and

Communication Networks
EE-357
By Dr Mir Yasir Umair
Associate Professor, MCS, NUST
Transport Layer
TCP Segments
 Chapter 3 outline
3.1 transport-layer services 3.5 connection-oriented
3.2 multiplexing and demultiplexing transport: TCP
▪ segment structure
3.3 connectionless transport: UDP ▪ reliable data transfer
3.4 principles of reliable data transfer ▪ flow control
▪ connection management

3.6 principles of congestion

control
3.7 TCP congestion control

Transport Layer 3-3

 TCP: Overview
• point-to-point: ❖ full duplex data:
o one sender, one receiver ▪ bi-directional data flow in
same connection
• reliable, in-order byte ▪ MSS: maximum segment size
steam:
o no “message boundaries”
❖ connection-oriented:
▪ handshaking (exchange of
• pipelined: control msgs) inits sender,
o TCP congestion and flow receiver state before data
control set window size exchange

❖ flow controlled:
▪ sender will not overwhelm
receiver

Transport Layer 3-4

 TCP: Overview
MSS – Maximum Segment Size is the length in bytes of largest
frame that can be sent by the sending side

Example: If Size of file: 500,000 bytes and MSS = 1000 bytes

• # of segments = 500

• Seq #
o 1st segment = 0
o 2nd segment = 1000
o 3rd segment = 2000
 TCP segment structure
32 bits
URG: urgent data counting
(generally not used) source port # dest port #
by bytes
sequence number of data
ACK: ACK #
valid acknowledgement number (not segments!)
head not
PSH: push data now len used
UAP R S F receive window
(generally not used) # bytes
checksum Urg data pointer
rcvr willing
RST, SYN, FIN: to accept
options (variable length)
connection estab
(setup, teardown
commands)
application
Internet data
checksum (variable length)
(as in UDP)

Transport Layer 3-6

 TCP segment structure
• Source Port (16 bits): Identifies source user process
• Destination Port (16 bits)
• Sequence Number (32 bits): Sequence number of the first byte in
the segment. .
• ACK number (32 bits): Next byte expected
• Data offset (4 bits): length of header in terms of 32-bit words
• Reserved (6 bits)
• Checksum (16 bits)
 TCP segment structure
• Flags (6 bits):
o URG = Urgent pointer field significant,
o ACK = ack field significant,
o PSH = push function,
o RST = reset the connection,
o SYN = synchronize the sequence numbers,
o FIN = no more data from sender
• Window (16 bits): for flow control - # of bytes receiver is willing
to accept
• Urgent pointer (16 bits): Points to the byte following urgent data.
Let receiver know how much urgent data is coming.
 TCP seq. numbers, ACKs
outgoing segment from sender
sequence numbers: source port #
sequence number
dest port #

o byte stream “number” of first acknowledgement number

byte in segment’s data rwnd
checksum urg pointer
acknowledgements: window size
o seq # of next byte expected N
from other side
o cumulative ACK

Q: how receiver handles sender sequence number space

out-of-order segments sent sent, not- usable not

o A: TCP spec doesn’t say, - up ACKed yet ACKed but not usable
(“in- yet sent
to implementor flight”)
incoming segment to sender
source port # dest port #
sequence number
acknowledgement number
A rwnd
checksum urg pointer

Transport Layer 3-9

 TCP seq. numbers, ACKs
Host A Host B

User
types
‘C’ Seq=42, ACK=79, data = ‘C’
host ACKs
receipt of
‘C’, echoes
Seq=79, ACK=43, data = ‘C’ back ‘C’
host ACKs
receipt
of echoed
‘C’ Seq=43, ACK=80

simple telnet scenario

Transport Layer 3-10

 TCP round trip time, timeout
Q: how to set TCP Q: how to estimate RTT?
timeout value? • SampleRTT: measured
time from segment
❖ longer than RTT
▪ but RTT varies transmission until ACK
❖ too short: premature receipt
o ignore retransmissions
timeout, unnecessary
retransmissions • SampleRTT will vary,
❖ too long: slow want estimated RTT
reaction to segment “smoother”
loss o average several recent
measurements, not just current
SampleRTT

Transport Layer 3-11

 TCP round trip time, timeout
EstimatedRTT = (1- )*EstimatedRTT + *SampleRTT
❖ exponential weighted moving average
❖ influence of past sample decreases exponentially fast
❖ typical value:  = 0.125 RTT: gaia.cs.umass.edu to fantasia.eurecom.fr

350

RTT (milliseconds) RTT: gaia.cs.umass.edu to fantasia.eurecom.fr

300

250
RTT (milliseconds)

200

sampleRTT
150

EstimatedRTT

100
1 8 15 22 29 36 43 50 57 64 71 78 85 92 99 106
time (seconnds) 3-12
Transport Layer time (seconds)
SampleRTT Estimated RTT
 TCP round trip time, timeout
• timeout interval: EstimatedRTT plus “safety
margin”
o large variation in EstimatedRTT -> larger safety margin
• estimate SampleRTT deviation from EstimatedRTT:
DevRTT = (1-)*DevRTT +
*|SampleRTT-EstimatedRTT|
(typically,  = 0.25)

TimeoutInterval = EstimatedRTT + 4*DevRTT

estimated RTT “safety margin”

Transport Layer 3-13

 Chapter 3 outline
3.1 transport-layer services 3.5 connection-oriented
3.2 multiplexing and demultiplexing transport: TCP
▪ segment structure
3.3 connectionless transport: UDP ▪ reliable data transfer
3.4 principles of reliable data transfer ▪ flow control
▪ connection management

3.6 principles of congestion

control
3.7 TCP congestion control

Transport Layer 3-14

 TCP reliable data transfer
• TCP creates rdt service
on top of IP’s
unreliable service
o pipelined segments
o cumulative acks
o single retransmission timer

• retransmissions
triggered by:
o timeout events
o duplicate acks

Transport Layer 3-15

 TCP sender events:
data rcvd from app: timeout:
❖ create segment with ❖ retransmit segment
seq # that caused timeout
❖ seq # is byte-stream ❖ restart timer
number of first data ack rcvd:
byte in segment ❖ if ack acknowledges
❖ start timer if not previously unacked
already running segments
▪ think of timer as for oldest ▪ update what is known to be
unacked segment ACKed
▪ expiration interval: ▪ start timer if there are still
TimeOutInterval unacked segments

Transport Layer 3-16

 TCP: retransmission scenarios
Host A Host B Host A Host B

SendBase=92
Seq=92, 8 bytes of data Seq=92, 8 bytes of data

Seq=100, 20 bytes of data

timeout

timeout
ACK=100
X
ACK=100
ACK=120

Seq=92, 8 bytes of data Seq=92, 8

SendBase=100 bytes of data
SendBase=120
ACK=100
ACK=120

SendBase=120

lost ACK scenario premature timeout

Transport Layer 3-17
 TCP: retransmission scenarios
Host A Host B

Seq=92, 8 bytes of data

Seq=100, 20 bytes of data

timeout

ACK=100
X
ACK=120

Seq=120, 15 bytes of data

cumulative ACK
Transport Layer 3-18
 TCP fast retransmit
❖ time-out period often
relatively long: TCP fast retransmit
▪ long delay before resending if sender receives 3
lost packet
ACKs for same data
❖ detect lost segments
(“triple
(“triple duplicate
duplicate ACKs”),
ACKs”),
via duplicate ACKs.
▪ sender often sends many
resend unacked
segments back-to-back segment with smallest
▪ if segment is lost, there will
likely be many duplicate
seq #
ACKs. ▪ likely that unacked
segment lost, so don’t
wait for timeout

Transport Layer 3-19

 TCP fast retransmit
Host A Host B

Seq=92, 8 bytes of data

Seq=100, 20 bytes of data
X

ACK=100

timeout
ACK=100
ACK=100
ACK=100
Seq=100, 20 bytes of data

fast retransmit after sender

Transport Layer receipt of triple duplicate ACK 3-20
 Chapter 3 outline
3.1 transport-layer services 3.5 connection-oriented
3.2 multiplexing and demultiplexing transport: TCP
▪ segment structure
3.3 connectionless transport: UDP ▪ reliable data transfer
3.4 principles of reliable data transfer ▪ flow control
▪ connection management

3.6 principles of congestion

control
3.7 TCP congestion control

Transport Layer 3-21

 Thank you

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