Serial Line Internet Protocol places IP packets directly into the serial line. In order to control the line, escape sequences are placed between data (analogous to communication between a computer and a printer).
SLIP protocol is specified by the standard RFC 1055. SLIP is a very simple protocol, which is used to transfer packets of the network layer.
Figure 4.1: SLIP protocol frame
Each protocol frame begins and ends with a flag. In the case of SLIP protocol, the flag is known as END (C016). Most implementations of SLIP place an END flag at the beginning as well. If the byte C016 appears in the transferred data, it is substituted with a SLIP escape sequence couplet—DB16DC16 (not the ASCII Esc-sequence 1B16)—and if the byte DB16 appears it is substituted with the couplet DB16DD16.
SLIP protocol is very simple, but there are a few negative aspects to it as shown in the following bullet list:
- SLIP protocol does not ensure error detection during...