Protocol

From The IT Law Wiki

A protocol is a standard agreed upon by groups of users to insure interoperability on a network. It is a detailed process the sender and receiver agree upon for exchanging data.

The Internet largely uses formats built upon the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). Other protocols include the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) set.

The protocol of one system does not necessarily work with another system, and there is an effort to standardize or translate the various protocols so that computers can all talk easily with one another. To make this possible, some protocols may have to be abandoned, while others may be modified or translated when necessary.