The network protocol controls the data and information exchange between the network devices by applying going back and retransmitting the data or acknowledgment in case the network faces a network interruption or signal loss from either the sender or receiver end. In this article on ‘Go-Back-N ARQ Protocol,’ we will look into the protocol and its importance to network security.
What Is Go-Back-N ARQ Protocol?
- This protocol is based on the method of using the Sliding Window Protocol as the basis of data exchange, where the ’N’ in the protocol represents the window size.
- The term ARQ represents the Automatic Repeat Request, which refers to sending multiple frames simultaneously from the sender to the receiver end.
After introducing the protocol, let’s move on to know some important features of the protocol.
Important Features of the Protocol
To better understand the Go-Back-N Arq protocol, let’s look into some of the points that affect the protocol in a network channel, which are:
- The frames shared in the protocol are sequenced for better efficiency, to avoid any retransmission of shared data, and differentiate between the frames.
- The protocol is designed to share multiple frames at a time, with the receiver end, before expecting any acknowledgment from it. This simultaneous exchange of data is termed protocol pipelining.
- If the acknowledgment is not shared to the sender side within a certain time frame, all the frames after the non-acknowledged frame are to be retransmitted to the receiver side.
Moving on, let’s look into the working of the Go-Back-N ARQ protocol.
Working on the Protocol
The working of the Go-Back-N ARQ protocol involves applying the sliding window method for the basis of sharing data, and the number of frames to be shared is decided by the window size.
Then using the main points we discussed and the mentioned features, let’s discuss the steps involved in the working of the protocol:
1. To begin with, the sender side will share the data frames simultaneously according to the window size assigned, over to the receiver side, and wait for the acknowledgment.
2. After the receiver side receives the frames, it will use the first frame and send the acknowledgment to the sender side.
3. After the sender receive’s the acknowledgment for the first frame, the sender will share the next frame with the receiver.
4. This exchange continues until, due to some external or internal interruption in the network, the acknowledgment is not received by the sender side.
5. Then, the sender side will go back to the unacknowledged frame and retransmit that frame, along with all the frames shared after that frame with the receiver. This represents the Go-Back-N ARQ protocol method.
Let’s move on to some advantages and disadvantages of applying the Go-Back-N ARQ protocol in the network.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Applying the Go-Back-N arq protocol has both advantages and disadvantages, some of which are:
Advantages
- Multiple frames can be simultaneous to the receiver side.
- Increase the efficiency of the data transfer and has more control over the flow of frames.
- Time delay is less for sharing data frames.
Disadvantages
- The storage of data frames at the receiver side.
- Retransmission of frames, when the acknowledgement is not received by the sender end.
With the end of this topic, we are completed with our article on ‘Go-Back-N ARQ Protocol.’
Conclusion
In this article on ‘Go-Back-N ARQ Protocol’, we learned about the importance of applying the network's data exchange protocol and its working procedure for further clarification of the protocol.
If you want to learn more about the topic and topics related to network protocols, you can refer to Simplilearn’s Advanced Executive Program In Cybersecurity course. After completing this thoroughly designed course, you’ll become familiar with the terms used in the network protocols and their working in a communication channel.
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