OSI PROTOCOL ARCHITECTURE
The Open System Interconnection (OSI) model includes a set of protocols that
attempt to define and
standardize the data communications process. The OSI protocols were defined by
the International
Standards Organization (ISO) which is a multinational body dedicated to
worldwide agreement on
international standards.
The OSI model is not a single definition of how data communications actually
takes place in the real
world. Numerous protocols may exist at each layer. The OSI model states how the
process should be
divided and what protocols should be used at each layer. If a network vendor
implements one of the
protocols at each layer, its network components should work with other vendors'
offerings:
