Protokol adalah aturan, yg dalam hal ini bisa dianalogikan sebagai bahasa, dimana setiap hardware memiliki bahasa-nya masing2 sehingga diperlukan suatu aturan standarisasi agar terdapat suatu bahasa yg sama (unified language) yg bisa dimengerti oleh semua hardware.

Sejauh ini terdapat 3 protokol jaringan yg paling umum dipakai :

1. NetBIOS and NetBEUI
   16 characters naming (15 user’s last name + 1 object type), small LAN (<200 objects), no routing, fewer network utility, simple to install, high compatibility, unlimited session, low memory requirement, solid error detection and recovery
2. IPX/SPX
   Addition to NETBIOS : routing capability, greater reliability, remote console
3. TCP/IP
   two sets of protocols: TCP for transmission manager and IP for addressing, highest reliability with error detection and recovery