OSI Model | 7 Layers Explained in

Computer Network
27 Mar 2025 | 8 min read

o OSI stands for Open System Interconnection is a reference

model that describes how information from
a software application in one computer moves through a
physical medium to the software application in another
computer.
o OSI consists of seven layers, and each layer performs a
particular network function.
o OSI model was developed by the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) in 1984, and it is now considered as an
architectural model for the inter-computer communications.
o OSI model divides the whole task into seven smaller and
manageable tasks. Each layer is assigned a particular task.
o Each layer is self-contained, so that task assigned to each layer
can be performed independently.

Characteristics of OSI Model:

o The OSI model is divided into two layers: upper layers and
lower layers.
o The upper layer of the OSI model mainly deals with the
application related issues, and they are implemented only in
the software. The application layer is closest to the end user.
Both the end user and the application layer interact with the
software applications. An upper layer refers to the layer just
above another layer.
o The lower layer of the OSI model deals with the data transport
issues. The data link layer and the physical layer are
implemented in hardware and software. The physical layer is
the lowest layer of the OSI model and is closest to the physical
medium. The physical layer is mainly responsible for placing
the information on the physical medium.
7 Layers of OSI Model
There are the seven OSI layers. Each layer has different functions. A list of
seven layers are given below:

1. Physical Layer
2. Data-Link Layer
3. Network Layer
4. Transport Layer
5. Session Layer
6. Presentation Layer
7. Application Layer

1) Physical layer
 o The main functionality of the physical layer is to transmit the
individual bits from one node to another node.
o It is the lowest layer of the OSI model.
o It establishes, maintains and deactivates the physical
connection.
o It specifies the mechanical, electrical and procedural network
interface specifications.

Functions of a Physical layer:

o Line Configuration: It defines the way how two or more

devices can be connected physically.
o Data Transmission: It defines the transmission mode whether it
is simplex, half-duplex or full-duplex mode between the two
devices on the network.
 o Topology: It defines the way how network devices are
arranged.
o Signals: It determines the type of the signal used for
transmitting the information.

2) Data-Link Layer

o This layer is responsible for the error-free transfer of data

frames.
o It defines the format of the data on the network.
o It provides a reliable and efficient communication between two
or more devices.
o It is mainly responsible for the unique identification of each
device that resides on a local network.
o It contains two sub-layers:
o Logical Link Control Layer
 o It is responsible for transferring the packets to the
Network layer of the receiver that is receiving.
o It identifies the address of the network layer
protocol from the header.
o It also provides flow control.
Media Access Control Layer
o A Media access control layer is a link between the
Logical Link Control layer and the network's physical
layer.
o It is used for transferring the packets over the
network.

Functions of the Data-link layer

o Framing: The data link layer translates the physical's raw bit
stream into packets known as Frames. The Data link layer adds
the header and trailer to the frame. The header which is added
to the frame contains the hardware destination and source
address.

o Physical Addressing: The Data link layer adds a header to

the frame that contains a destination address. The frame is
transmitted to the destination address mentioned in the
header.
o Flow Control: Flow control is the main functionality of the
Data-link layer. It is the technique through which the constant
data rate is maintained on both the sides so that no data get
corrupted. It ensures that the transmitting station such as a
server with higher processing speed does not exceed the
receiving station, with lower processing speed.
o Error Control: Error control is achieved by adding a calculated
value CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) that is placed to the
 Data link layer's trailer which is added to the message frame
before it is sent to the physical layer. If any error seems to
occurr, then the receiver sends the acknowledgment for the
retransmission of the corrupted frames.
o Access Control: When two or more devices are connected to
the same communication channel, then the data link layer
protocols are used to determine which device has control over
the link at a given time.

3) Network Layer

o It is a layer 3 that manages device addressing, tracks the

location of devices on the network.
o It determines the best path to move data from source to the
destination based on the network conditions, the priority of
service, and other factors.
o The Data link layer is responsible for routing and forwarding
the packets.
 o Routers are the layer 3 devices, they are specified in this layer
and used to provide the routing services within an
internetwork.
o The protocols used to route the network traffic are known as
Network layer protocols. Examples of protocols are IP and Ipv6.

Functions of Network Layer:

o Internetworking: An internetworking is the main

responsibility of the network layer. It provides a logical
connection between different devices.
o Addressing: A Network layer adds the source and destination
address to the header of the frame. Addressing is used to
identify the device on the internet.
o Routing: Routing is the major component of the network layer,
and it determines the best optimal path out of the multiple
paths from source to the destination.
o Packetizing: A Network Layer receives the packets from the
upper layer and converts them into packets. This process is
known as Packetizing. It is achieved by internet protocol (IP).

4) Transport Layer
 o The Transport layer is a Layer 4 ensures that messages are
transmitted in the order in which they are sent and there is no
duplication of data.
o The main responsibility of the transport layer is to transfer the
data completely.
o It receives the data from the upper layer and converts them
into smaller units known as segments.
o This layer can be termed as an end-to-end layer as it provides
a point-to-point connection between source and destination to
deliver the data reliably.
The two protocols used in this layer are:

o Transmission Control Protocol

o It is a standard protocol that allows the systems to
communicate over the internet.
o It establishes and maintains a connection between hosts.
o When data is sent over the TCP connection, then the TCP
protocol divides the data into smaller units known as
segments. Each segment travels over the internet using
multiple routes, and they arrive in different orders at the
 destination. The transmission control protocol reorders
the packets in the correct order at the receiving end.
o User Datagram Protocol
o User Datagram Protocol is a transport layer protocol.
o It is an unreliable transport protocol as in this case
receiver does not send any acknowledgment when the
packet is received, the sender does not wait for any
acknowledgment. Therefore, this makes a protocol
unreliable.

Functions of Transport Layer:

o Service-point addressing: Computers run several programs

simultaneously due to this reason, the transmission of data
from source to the destination not only from one computer to
another computer but also from one process to another
process. The transport layer adds the header that contains the
address known as a service-point address or port address. The
responsibility of the network layer is to transmit the data from
one computer to another computer and the responsibility of
the transport layer is to transmit the message to the correct
process.
o Segmentation and reassembly: When the transport layer
receives the message from the upper layer, it divides the
message into multiple segments, and each segment is
assigned with a sequence number that uniquely identifies each
segment. When the message has arrived at the destination,
then the transport layer reassembles the message based on
their sequence numbers.
o Connection control: Transport layer provides two services
Connection-oriented service and connectionless service. A
connectionless service treats each segment as an individual
packet, and they all travel in different routes to reach the
destination. A connection-oriented service makes a connection
with the transport layer at the destination machine before
delivering the packets. In connection-oriented service, all the
packets travel in the single route.
 o Flow control: The transport layer also responsible for flow
control but it is performed end-to-end rather than across a
single link.
o Error control: The transport layer is also responsible for Error
control. Error control is performed end-to-end rather than
across the single link. The sender transport layer ensures that
message reach at the destination without any error.

5) Session Layer

o It is a layer 3 in the OSI model.

o The Session layer is used to establish, maintain and
synchronizes the interaction between communicating devices.

Functions of Session layer:

o Dialog control: Session layer acts as a dialog controller that

creates a dialog between two processes or we can say that it
allows the communication between two processes which can
be either half-duplex or full-duplex.
 o Synchronization: Session layer adds some checkpoints when
transmitting the data in a sequence. If some error occurs in the
middle of the transmission of data, then the transmission will
take place again from the checkpoint. This process is known as
Synchronization and recovery.

6) Presentation Layer

o A Presentation layer is mainly concerned with the syntax and

semantics of the information exchanged between the two
systems.
o It acts as a data translator for a network.
o This layer is a part of the operating system that converts the
data from one presentation format to another format.
o The Presentation layer is also known as the syntax layer.

Functions of Presentation layer:

 o Translation: The processes in two systems exchange the
information in the form of character strings, numbers and so
on. Different computers use different encoding methods, the
presentation layer handles the interoperability between the
different encoding methods. It converts the data from sender-
dependent format into a common format and changes the
common format into receiver-dependent format at the
receiving end.
o Encryption: Encryption is needed to maintain privacy.
Encryption is a process of converting the sender-transmitted
information into another form and sends the resulting message
over the network.
o Compression: Data compression is a process of compressing
the data, i.e., it reduces the number of bits to be transmitted.
Data compression is very important in multimedia such as text,
audio, video.

7) Application Layer
 o An application layer serves as a window for users and
application processes to access network service.
o It handles issues such as network transparency, resource
allocation, etc.
o An application layer is not an application, but it performs the
application layer functions.
o This layer provides the network services to the end-users.

Functions of Application layer:

o File transfer, access, and management (FTAM): An

application layer allows a user to access the files in a remote
computer, to retrieve the files from a computer and to manage
the files in a remote computer.
o Mail services: An application layer provides the facility for
email forwarding and storage.
Directory services: An application provides the distributed
database sources and is used to provide that global
information about various objects. TCP/IP model
17 Mar 2025 | 6 min read

o The TCP/IP model was developed prior to the OSI model.

o The TCP/IP model is not exactly similar to the OSI model.
o The TCP/IP model consists of five layers: the application layer, transport layer,
network layer, data link layer and physical layer.
o The first four layers provide physical standards, network interface,
internetworking, and transport functions that correspond to the first four
layers of the OSI model and these four layers are represented in TCP/IP model
by a single layer called the application layer.
o TCP/IP is a hierarchical protocol made up of interactive modules, and each of
them provides specific functionality.
Here, hierarchical means that each upper-layer protocol is supported by two
or more lower-level protocols.

Functions of TCP/IP layers:

Network Access Layer

o A network layer is the lowest layer of the TCP/IP model.

o A network layer is the combination of the Physical layer and Data Link layer
defined in the OSI reference model.
o It defines how the data should be sent physically through the network.
o This layer is mainly responsible for the transmission of the data between two
devices on the same network.
o The functions carried out by this layer are encapsulating the IP datagram into
frames transmitted by the network and mapping of IP addresses into physical
addresses.
o The protocols used by this layer are ethernet, token ring, FDDI, X.25, frame
relay.
Internet Layer

o An internet layer is the second layer of the TCP/IP model.

o An internet layer is also known as the network layer.
o The main responsibility of the internet layer is to send the packets from any
network, and they arrive at the destination irrespective of the route they
take.

Following are the protocols used in this layer are:

IP Protocol: IP protocol is used in this layer, and it is the most significant
part of the entire TCP/IP suite.
Following are the responsibilities of this protocol:

o IP Addressing: This protocol implements logical host addresses known as IP

addresses. The IP addresses are used by the internet and higher layers to
identify the device and to provide internetwork routing.
o Host-to-host communication: It determines the path through which the
data is to be transmitted.
o Data Encapsulation and Formatting: An IP protocol accepts the data from
the transport layer protocol. An IP protocol ensures that the data is sent and
received securely, it encapsulates the data into message known as IP
datagram.
o Fragmentation and Reassembly: The limit imposed on the size of the IP
datagram by data link layer protocol is known as Maximum Transmission unit
(MTU). If the size of IP datagram is greater than the MTU unit, then the IP
protocol splits the datagram into smaller units so that they can travel over
the local network. Fragmentation can be done by the sender or intermediate
router. At the receiver side, all the fragments are reassembled to form an
original message.
o Routing: When IP datagram is sent over the same local network such as
LAN, MAN, WAN, it is known as direct delivery. When source and destination
are on the distant network, then the IP datagram is sent indirectly. This can
be accomplished by routing the IP datagram through various devices such as
routers.
ARP Protocol

o ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol.

o ARP is a network layer protocol which is used to find the physical address
from the IP address.
o The two terms are mainly associated with the ARP Protocol:
o ARP request: When a sender wants to know the physical address of
the device, it broadcasts the ARP request to the network.
o ARP reply: Every device attached to the network will accept the ARP
request and process the request, but only recipient recognize the IP
address and sends back its physical address in the form of ARP reply.
The recipient adds the physical address both to its cache memory and
to the datagram header
ICMP Protocol

o ICMP stands for Internet Control Message Protocol.

o It is a mechanism used by the hosts or routers to send notifications regarding
datagram problems back to the sender.
o A datagram travels from router-to-router until it reaches its destination. If a
router is unable to route the data because of some unusual conditions such
as disabled links, a device is on fire or network congestion, then the ICMP
protocol is used to inform the sender that the datagram is undeliverable.
o An ICMP protocol mainly uses two terms:
 o ICMP Test: ICMP Test is used to test whether the destination is
reachable or not.
o ICMP Reply: ICMP Reply is used to check whether the destination
device is responding or not.
o The core responsibility of the ICMP protocol is to report the problems, not
correct them. The responsibility of the correction lies with the sender.
o ICMP can send the messages only to the source, but not to the intermediate
routers because the IP datagram carries the addresses of the source and
destination but not of the router that it is passed to.

Transport Layer
The transport layer is responsible for the reliability, flow control, and
correction of data which is being sent over the network.

The two protocols used in the transport layer are User Datagram protocol
and Transmission control protocol.

o User Datagram Protocol (UDP)

o It provides connectionless service and end-to-end delivery of
transmission.
o It is an unreliable protocol as it discovers the errors but not specify the
error.
o User Datagram Protocol discovers the error, and ICMP protocol reports
the error to the sender that user datagram has been damaged.
o UDP consists of the following fields:
Source port address: The source port address is the address of the
application program that has created the message.
Destination port address: The destination port address is the
address of the application program that receives the message.
Total length: It defines the total number of bytes of the user
datagram in bytes.
Checksum: The checksum is a 16-bit field used in error detection.
o UDP does not specify which packet is lost. UDP contains only
checksum; it does not contain any ID of a data segment.
 o Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)
o It provides a full transport layer services to applications.
o It creates a virtual circuit between the sender and receiver, and it is
active for the duration of the transmission.
o TCP is a reliable protocol as it detects the error and retransmits the
damaged frames. Therefore, it ensures all the segments must be
received and acknowledged before the transmission is considered to
be completed and a virtual circuit is discarded.
o At the sending end, TCP divides the whole message into smaller units
known as segment, and each segment contains a sequence number
which is required for reordering the frames to form an original
message.
o At the receiving end, TCP collects all the segments and reorders them
based on sequence numbers.

Application Layer

o An application layer is the topmost layer in the TCP/IP model.

o It is responsible for handling high-level protocols, issues of representation.
o This layer allows the user to interact with the application.
o When one application layer protocol wants to communicate with another
application layer, it forwards its data to the transport layer.
o There is an ambiguity occurs in the application layer. Every application
cannot be placed inside the application layer except those who interact with
the communication system. For example: text editor cannot be considered in
application layer while web browser using HTTP protocol to interact with the
network where HTTP protocol is an application layer protocol.
Following are the main protocols used in the application layer:

o HTTP: HTTP stands for Hypertext transfer protocol. This protocol allows us to
access the data over the world wide web. It transfers the data in the form of
plain text, audio, video. It is known as a Hypertext transfer protocol as it has
the efficiency to use in a hypertext environment where there are rapid jumps
from one document to another.
o SNMP: SNMP stands for Simple Network Management Protocol. It is a
framework used for managing the devices on the internet by using the TCP/IP
protocol suite.
o SMTP: SMTP stands for Simple mail transfer protocol. The TCP/IP protocol
that supports the e-mail is known as a Simple mail transfer protocol. This
protocol is used to send the data to another e-mail address.
o DNS: DNS stands for Domain Name System. An IP address is used to identify
the connection of a host to the internet uniquely. But, people prefer to use
the names instead of addresses. Therefore, the system that maps the name
to the address is known as Domain Name System.
o TELNET: It is an abbreviation for Terminal Network. It establishes the
connection between the local computer and remote computer in such a way
that the local terminal appears to be a terminal at the remote system.
o FTP: FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. FTP is a standard internet protocol
used for transmitting the files from one computer to another computer.