Question

Difficulty: HardTCP vs UDP Comparison and Protocols

A network administrator is designing the transport transport layer profile for an enterprise network management system. The system requires a stateless transport mechanism for high-frequency, low-latency telemetry collection where occasional packet loss is tolerable, alongside a stateful transport mechanism for secure interactive router configuration sessions. Which two characteristics accurately describe the transport layer protocols selected for these respective roles? (Select two.)

  1. User Datagram Protocol (UDP) utilizes a fixed 8-byte header to minimize processing overhead for rapid telemetry collection.Answer
  2. Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) incorporates a dynamic window size field within its baseline 20-byte header to perform flow control during configuration sessions.Answer
  3. C
    User Datagram Protocol (UDP) relies on sequence numbers within its header to identify lost telemetry packets and trigger selective retransmissions.
  4. D
    Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) avoids connection setup latency by transmitting user payload data prior to completing session establishment.

Answer

UDP employs a streamlined 8-byte header to eliminate protocol overhead for real-time telemetry, while TCP utilizes a 20-byte baseline header with a dynamic Window Size field to manage flow control for interactive administrative sessions.
The selection of UDP for telemetry is supported by its minimal 8-byte fixed header length, which reduces processing and bandwidth overhead. The selection of TCP for interactive router management is supported by its standard 20-byte header containing the Window Size field, enabling dynamic sliding-window flow control to prevent receiver buffer exhaustion.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze transport protocol requirements for low-latency telemetry data.
UDP is chosen because it is connectionless and introduces minimal overhead.
The 8-byte UDP header contains only four fields, avoiding state maintenance and handshake delays.
2
Analyze transport protocol requirements for interactive administrative sessions.
TCP is chosen to guarantee reliable, ordered delivery and flow control.
The baseline 20-byte TCP header contains fields for sequencing, acknowledgments, and window size adjustment.
3
Evaluate the option choices against protocol header structures and operational behavior.
The statements describing the 8-byte UDP header and the TCP 20-byte header with window size flow control are accurate, whereas claims of UDP sequence tracking and handshake-free TCP data delivery are false.
UDP lacks sequence fields in its header, and TCP mandates session initialization via a three-way handshake prior to payload transfer.

Key Concept

TCP and UDP Header Structure and Operational Mechanics
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