Two well-known protocol suites began working toward their standardization processes at about the same time. One was being developed under contracts to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). It eventually became TCP/IP, named for its core protocols: Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP).

Its cousin grew up under the watchful eyes of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Its name was more focused on its function: Open Systems Interconnection (OSI). OSI is composed of two parts. Part one, called the Basic Reference Model, is also known as the 7-layer model, or the OSI model. The other part is a set or suite of specific protocols for each layer.

Check out this white paper to learn more about these two network protocol models.