What Is A Protocol?

Date First Published: 9th March 2022

Topic: Computer Networking

Subtopic: Internet Protocols

Article Type: Computer Terms & Definitions

Difficulty Level: 4/10

Learn more about what a protocol is in this article.

A protocol is a set of rules that determine how electronic devices communicate with each other and transfer data. Similar to how a protocol means a system of rules and acceptable behaviours that organisations should follow in official situations in the everyday world, a protocol is a rule that defines how data is transferred between two different devices. Without protocols, devices would not know how to communicate with each other over the internet.

Protocols include the type of data that may be transferred, the commands used for sending and receiving data, and the method data transfers are performed. An example of the use of a protocol is a computer sending an email to another over the internet. The SMTP protocol (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) would be used for performing this task. Then, POP3 or IMAP would be used for downloading the email message.

How Do Protocols Transfer Data?

Protocols transfer data using data packets. Data packets have been broken down from messages into small segments of data. They also travel between source and destination from one router to another, which is known as packet switching. Both the TCP/IP protocol and the OSI model organises how data packets are sent over the network.

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