The ATEasy Winsock interface allows for communication with servers and instruments over TCP/IP, using either TCP, for guaranteed delivery of packets, or UDP, for connectionless non-regulated delivery. This standard also provide a way to control and configure LXIinstruments.
Windows Sockets (Winsock) is an application programming interface (API) used to provide a transport interface that is not dependent on protocol. Winsock is an interface, not a protocol. As an interface, Winsock is able to use the communications capabilities of many underlying transport protocols. WinSocks can handle all types of socket connections in Windows.
The Winsock interface standard uses sockets to enable network applications access to data on a network. A socket is an object that represents an endpoint for communication between processes across a network. Sockets have a datagram or stream type and can be bound to a specific network address. Many sockets can use one physical connection simultaneously, even though a computing device can have only one physical connection to a network.
In the Winsock standard, a server socket and a client socket are used to set up communication between a client and server application. Once communication is established, client and server applications can exchange data.
For Winsock client and server applications to communicate with each other, both must:
Be of the same socket type.
Use byte stream sockets that use Transfer Control Protocol (TCP) or use unreliable datagram sockets that use User Datagram Protocol (UDP) network services.
TCP establishes a connection for data transmission and IP defines the method for sending data packets. UDP is a connectionless protocol. Unlike TCP operations, computers using UDP do not establish a connection.
The Winsock API facilitates your writing client or server applications because you do not need to understand the details of TCP or to call low-level Winsock APIs.
For additional information, see Using ATEasy Winsock Procedures.
In the International Organization for Standardization Open Systems Interconnection (ISO/OSI) model for network communications, Winsock operates at the session layer interface to the transport layer. Winsock is an interface between applications and the transport protocol and works as a conduit for data I/O.
Winsock simplifies application development in the upper ISO/OSI layers by handling the details of network data exchange at the lower layers. Winsock provides a programmable interface between the upper layers and the lower layers. Winsock applications reside in the upper, application, presentation, and session layers. Winsock application data is packaged and transmitted over a network by the lower, transport, network, data-link, and physical layers.
For example, TCP/IP is a lower layer protocol used by Winsock. TCP is part of the transport layer and IP is part of the network layer.
LAN eXtensions for Instrumentation (LXI) is a standard developed by the LXI Consortium (see https://lxistandard.org/), a consortium that maintains the LXI specification and promotes the LXI Standard. The LXI standard defines the communication protocols for instrumentation and data acquisition systems using Ethernet and TCP/IP or WinSock interface. ATEasy WinSock interface can be used to configure and control LXI instruments.