Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), which drives major internet operations like video streaming, file transfer, web browsing, and communications, accounts for a large percentage of fixed internet traffic and more mobile internet traffic. Surprisingly the TCP performance has not reached its full potential. TCP performance that is sub-optimal can have negative consequences for communications service providers who must make the best use of costly resources to combat operational inefficiencies and provide an exceptional experience to subscribers.
CSPs can solve this problem by using a TCP optimization strategy that can increase TCP performance. This could lead to increased quality, network efficiency, faster TCP transfer speeds, and lower retransmissions rates. TCP round-trip times will also be more consistent. How can you optimize TCP performance TCP optimization is the use of different techniques to regulate and monitor TCP connections.
There are many types of TCP optimization solutions, with the most popular being “one-box” or “two-box”. One-box TCP optimization solutions are deployed between two TCP endpoints. Their main purpose is to manage the communication between client and server. Two-box solutions are available at two endpoints. They are intended for situations where the service provider has complete control over both ends.
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Techniques to Increase TCP Performance
Decreasing time to reach available bandwidth
A TCP server is unaware of the properties of a network over which it is delivering content. TCP is therefore designed to analyze the network and determine the bandwidth available. The TCP SlowStart is the stage that gradually transmits more data until it reaches a point at which point it adjusts its behavior to conform to the network’s characteristics. The SlowStart phase begins with a congestion window of one, two, or ten segments.
The server keeps the congestion window, which determines how many segments are still outstanding at any one time. The congestion window’s value continues to double with each acknowledgment packet. The doubling process continues until a packet is lost is detected. TCP optimization reduces the time it takes to reach the available bandwidth. This is done by splitting latency between the subscriber network, and the Internet network. Then, TCP performance can be optimized on both ends.
Pre-acknowledging data
TCP acceleration solutions that pre-acknowledge data to clients in order to improve TCP performance. The server will see the ACKs faster, which will accelerate data transmission and speed up the SlowStart phase. TCP acceleration solutions employ other innovative techniques to speed up SlowStart and deliver better results.
By preserving available bandwidth
Maintaining service quality requires that bandwidth be maintained. TCP’s congestion control algorithms often interpret non-congestion events as congestion. This is why there can be a slowdown if the sender reduces its congestion window. These slowdowns can be caused by packet-reordering, pauses, or packet losses that aren’t caused by congestion. TCP optimization is a way to maintain transmission speeds. It ensures that the send rate does not decrease unnecessarily. The solution should also promote rapid recovery even if the server decreases it.
By adjusting to changes in available bandwidth
Changes in demands, aggregation layers, and shared resources can lead to changes in network capacity. Which allows for improvements in TCP performance. The server must take immediate action if bandwidth drops and make use of available bandwidth quickly if it rises. CSPs can achieve these results efficiently with a TCP optimization solution.
Manage packet loss in large networks
Modern networks are not plagued by congestion. Overcrowding is not the only reason for packet loss. Other factors that can cause packet loss include hardware problems, queue overflows, and damaged cables. TCP checksum errors may also be a factor.TCP optimization solutions can be very useful because the recovery process is slow. This solution will speed up recovery and reduce the time it takes to reach the available bandwidth.
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Resolving congestion in networks that are too large
Congestion occurs when the bandwidth into a resource exceeds the bandwidth out. The modern network is highly advanced and prevents packet loss. It has large queues that temporarily store excess data until it is transferred. Packets can be dropped if the buffers become full. Although queueing can reduce packet drops significantly, it also contributes to delayed delivery times as well as increased round-trip time. TCP acceleration can be used to prevent excessive queuing, packet drops, and other delays.
When choosing the right TCP optimization solution, a CSP must consider factors like solution scalability as well as an overall traffic optimization strategy. CSPs must be able to understand how TCP performance could be improved and how success can be measured.
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