Internet packet

up:: The Internet MOC A packet is the basic unit of information transmitted over the internet. Sent data is chopped up into packets which are assembled at the receiver.

It has two parts:

1) Header

The header contains information to get the packet get to its destination, including length, source and a “checksum” value to detect if it has been damaged. This makes sure it arrives back at your computer, not your neighbours.

2) Actual data

A packet con contain up to 64 kilobytes of data, which is roughly 20 pages of plain text.

If internet routers experience congestion, it discards packets. The sending computer detects that packets haven’t been received and sends new packets.