What is the universal datagram protocol (UDP)?
Channel: internet-class
Date: 2016-09-20

The transmission control protocol (TCP) creates reliable and fair connections between multiple computers on the internet. It is the most widely-used internet transport protocol—​at least for now. But there is another widely-deployed transport protocol called the universal datagram protocol, or UDP. Unlike TCP, UDP provides no reliability. And unlike TCP, UDP provides no flow control or fairness. It does preserve port numbers similar to TCP, although UDP does not establish a connection between multiple computers. While UDP may seem to jettison several useful features of TCP, the fact that it exists and many internet-connected computers support it is enabling important innovation at the transport layer.

Credits: Talking: Geoffrey Challen (Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, University at Buffalo). Producing: Greg Bunyea (Undergraduate, Computer Science and Engineering, University at Buffalo).

Part of the https://www.internet-class.org online internet course. A blue Systems Research Group (https://blue.cse.buffalo.edu) production.