SCTP Programmer's Guide

• “SCTP Packet” (page 23)
• “Congestion Control in SCTP” (page 26)
SCTP in the IP Stack
Figure 1-1 illustrates a typical IP stack and denotes the layer in which SCTP is located.
Figure 1-1 The Internet Protocol Stack
An Internet protocol stack contains several layers and each layer provides a specific
functionality. Following are the layers in an IP stack and their functionalities:
• The physical layer defines the physical means of sending data over network devices.
• The data link layer transfers data between network entities, and detects and corrects
errors that can occur in the physical layer.
• The network layer routes data packets from the sender to the receiver in the
network. The most common network layer protocol is IP.
• The transport layer enables transfer of data between endpoints using the services
of the network layer. This layer has two primary protocols, the Transmission
20 Introduction