Please Whitelist This Site?

I know everyone hates ads. But please understand that I am providing premium content for free that takes hundreds of hours of time to research and write. I don't want to go to a pay-only model like some sites, but when more and more people block ads, I end up working for free. And I have a family to support, just like you. :)

If you like The TCP/IP Guide, please consider the download version. It's priced very economically and you can read all of it in a convenient format without ads.

If you want to use this site for free, I'd be grateful if you could add the site to the whitelist for Adblock. To do so, just open the Adblock menu and select "Disable on tcpipguide.com". Or go to the Tools menu and select "Adblock Plus Preferences...". Then click "Add Filter..." at the bottom, and add this string: "@@||tcpipguide.com^$document". Then just click OK.

Thanks for your understanding!

Sincerely, Charles Kozierok
Author and Publisher, The TCP/IP Guide


NOTE: Using software to mass-download the site degrades the server and is prohibited.
If you want to read The TCP/IP Guide offline, please consider licensing it. Thank you.

The Book is Here... and Now On Sale!

Read offline with no ads or diagram watermarks!
The TCP/IP Guide

Custom Search







Table Of Contents  The TCP/IP Guide
 9  TCP/IP Application Layer Protocols, Services and Applications (OSI Layers 5, 6 and 7)
      9  TCP/IP Key Applications and Application Protocols
           9  TCP/IP File and Message Transfer Applications and Protocols (FTP, TFTP, Electronic Mail, USENET, HTTP/WWW, Gopher)

Previous Topic/Section
File and Message Transfer Overview and Application Categories
Previous Page
Pages in Current Topic/Section
1
Next Page
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Next Topic/Section

TCP/IP General File Transfer Protocols (FTP and TFTP)

As I mentioned in the preceding overview of file and message transfer protocols, they represent the most basic type of network communication: the simple movement of blocks of data. Of the many file and message transfer methods, the most fundamental application is what I call general file transfer. General file transfer protocols perform one main function: allowing files to be copied from one computer to another.

Since file transfer protocols move files from place to place without considering their contents much, they are relatively “unsophisticated” compared to certain message-processing applications. However, the idea of being able to move files around is so important that general file transfer protocols were one of the very first applications in internetworking. While many people now use electronic mail or Web browsers to perform the functions formerly performed exclusively using general file transfer, these older protocols are still very important and widely used, and important to understand.

In this section I take a look at the two TCP/IP general file transfer protocols. The first is called simply the File Transfer Protocol (FTP). The second is called the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP). Each is described in its own subsection.

The relationship between FTP and TFTP is similar to that of the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) at layer four. FTP is full-featured, session-oriented and somewhat complex. It is the more often-used of the two protocols, providing a full command interface and taking advantage of the reliability and stream transfer functions of TCP, over which it runs. TFTP, like the UDP it uses at the transport layer, is a “stripped down” version of FTP. It has far fewer commands and capabilities than FTP, but is ideal for cases where simplicity and small software program size is important, such as embedded software in devices.

Quick navigation to subsections and regular topics in this section



Previous Topic/Section
File and Message Transfer Overview and Application Categories
Previous Page
Pages in Current Topic/Section
1
Next Page
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Next Topic/Section

If you find The TCP/IP Guide useful, please consider making a small Paypal donation to help the site, using one of the buttons below. You can also donate a custom amount using the far right button (not less than $1 please, or PayPal gets most/all of your money!) In lieu of a larger donation, you may wish to consider purchasing a download license of The TCP/IP Guide. Thanks for your support!
Donate $2
Donate $5
Donate $10
Donate $20
Donate $30
Donate: $



Home - Table Of Contents - Contact Us

The TCP/IP Guide (http://www.TCPIPGuide.com)
Version 3.0 - Version Date: September 20, 2005

© Copyright 2001-2005 Charles M. Kozierok. All Rights Reserved.
Not responsible for any loss resulting from the use of this site.