Internet Layer

The Internet layer lies immediately below the Transport layer and above the Network Access layer of the TCP/IP model. The operating protocol of this layer is Internet Protocol (IP). The Internet Protocol builds the foundation of the packet delivery system, which serves as the basis for the entire concept of TCP/IP networking. This protocol manages connections over networks when data packets are transferred from the source to the destination.

IP is a connectionless protocol, which means it does not provide features such as a source-to-destination control of communication flow. IP relies on other layers and their associated protocols to provide this feature. Even functions such as error detection and correction in data packets are executed by other layers. In this context, IP is sometimes thought to be an unreliable protocol, though this does not imply that IP is not to be relied upon to deliver data via a network. It means that IP itself does not execute error checking and correcting functions. All information that flows through the TCP/IP networks uses the Internet Protocol.