True or false? Please explain your answers.
Host A is sending Host B a large file over a TCP connection. Assume Host B has no data to send Host A. Host B will not send acknowledgements to Host A because Host B cannot piggyback the acknowledgements on data.
Guide On Rating System
Vote
False. Host B can still send acknowledgements to Host A even if it does not have any data to send. TCP is a reliable protocol that ensures data delivery, and acknowledgements are an essential part of this process.
In TCP, acknowledgements are used to confirm successful receipt of data. Host B keeps track of the data it expects to receive from Host A and sends an acknowledgement (ACK) packet back to Host A whenever it receives a segment correctly. This allows Host A to know that the data has been successfully received and can proceed with sending the next segment.
The idea of piggybacking acknowledgements on data refers to the efficient utilization of network resources by combining data and acknowledgements within the same packet. When Host B has data to send, it can include the ACK in the data packet itself, reducing the number of packets being sent. However, if Host B does not have any data to send, it can still send separate ACK packets to Host A to acknowledge the reception of previous data segments.