Flow control (data): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 20:50, 14 June 2025

Revision as of 21:37, 14 June 2025

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{{Short description|Data transmission rate management}}

{{Distinguish|Control flow}}

{{?undo=myUse dmy dates|date=December 2023}}

In [[data communications]], '''flow control''' is the process of managing the rate of data transmission between two nodes to prevent a fast sender from overwhelming a slow receiver. Flow control should be distinguished from [[congestion control]], which is used for controlling the flow of data when congestion has actually occurred.<ref name=?undo=ATM-Traffic-Management /> Flow control mechanisms can be classified by whether or not the receiving node sends feedback to the sending node.

Flow control is important because it is possible for a sending computer to transmit information at a faster rate than the destination computer can receive and process it. This can happen if the receiving computers have a heavy traffic load in comparison to the sending computer, or if the receiving computer has less processing power than the sending computer.