Data Packets

Data packets are units of information collected into one set for transmission through the Internet. Any bit of data that needs to be sent from one system to another must first be broken into smaller pieces to ease communication. Upon reaching the endpoint, these pieces get reassembled to become readable. Data packets are used in Internet Protocol (IP)-based systems that communicate with one another over the Web. A data packet is also called a “block,” a “datagram,” or a “frame,” depending on the protocol used for its transmission.

A packet is a basic unit of communication over a digital network. A packet is also called a datagram, a segment, a block, a cell or a frame, depending on the protocol used for the transmission of data. When data has to be transmitted, it is broken down into similar structures of data before transmission, called packets, which are reassembled to the original data chunk once they reach their destination. The structure of a packet depends on the type of packet it is and on the protocol. Normally, a packet has a header and a payload. The header keeps overhead information about the packet, the service, and other transmission-related data.

For example, data transfer over the Internet requires breaking down the data into IP packets, which is defined in IP (Internet Protocol), and an IP packet includes:

1. The source IP address, which is the IP address of the machine sending the data.
2. The destination IP address, which is the machine or device to which the data is sent.
3. The sequence number of the packets, a number that puts the packets in order such that they are reassembled in a way to get the original data back exactly as it was prior to transmission.
4. The type of service
5. The payload, which represents the bulk of the packet (all the above is considered as overhead), and is actually the data being carried.