Transmission Control Protocol

Okay kiddo, you know how sometimes you send a message to your friend but it doesn't get there? That's because sometimes the message gets lost on its way to your friend's device. Transmission Control Protocol, or TCP for short, helps make sure that the message gets to your friend's device by breaking it up into smaller pieces, sending them one by one, and making sure your friend's device gets them in the right order.

TCP also helps your device know if the message was received correctly. It asks your friend's device to send back a message saying they got it, and if they didn't, TCP will send the message again. TCP does all of this so fast that you don't even notice it happening when you send messages to your friends or do things on the internet!