TCP/IP Support in Windows Mobile
A version of this page is also available for
4/8/2010
The TCP/IP suite for Windows Mobile was designed to ease integration of Microsoft systems into the embedded market, telecommunications, the enterprise, the consumer market, government, and public networks. It also provides the ability to operate over those networks in a secure manner. Windows Mobile is an Internet-ready operating system.
Windows Mobile supports the following standard characteristics:
- The ability to bind to multiple network adapters with different media types, for example, 802.3 and 802.5.
- Logical and physical multihoming capabilities.
- Internal IP routing capability.
- Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) (IP Multicasting).
- Duplicate IP address detection.
- Multiple default gateways.
- Dead gateway detection.
- Automatic Path Maximum Transmission Unit (PMTU) discovery.
- Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).
Windows Mobile also has the following performance improvements:
- Protocol stack tuning, including increased default window sizes.
- TCP Scalable Window sizes (RFC 1323 support).
- Selective Acknowledgments (SACK).
- TCP Fast Retransmit.
Windows Mobile supports both Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) and version 6 (IPv6).
The following table shows services that Windows Mobile provides.
| Service | Description |
|---|---|
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) client |
DHCP clients are dynamically assigned with various configuration parameters, such as an IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, and other critical network configuration information. For more information, see TCP/IP and the DHCP Client. |
Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) |
WINS is a NetBIOS name client that manages the name resolution process by maintaining an up-to-date list of NetBIOS computer names and their respective IP addresses. For more information, see TCP/IP and WINS. |
Domain Name System (DNS) client |
Windows Mobile does not support hosting a DNS server. However, Windows Mobile queries a DNS server for name resolution if such a server exists on the network. For more information, see TCP/IP and the DNS Client. |
Dial-up (PPP/SLIP) support. |
Windows Mobile implements dial-up networking with Remote Access Service (RAS) and Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP). For more information, see TCP/IP and Dial-up Support. |
TCP/IP network printing |
In Windows Mobile, TCP/IP supports network printing through the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol. It does not provide the Windows Line Printer Remote (LPR) Spooler. However, independent software vendors (ISVs) and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can add this support. |
Wide area network (WAN) support |
This service provides users with access to the Internet. |
Internet Protocol Helper (IP Helper) |
IP Helper provides application programming interfaces (APIs) that assist in the network administration of the local computer. For more information, see TCP/IP and IP Helper. |
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) |
Microsoft® Remote Procedure Call (RPC) is used to creating distributed client/server programs. The RPC run-time stubs and libraries manage most of the processes relating to network protocols and communication. This enables you to focus on the details of an application rather than the details of the network. For more information, see this Microsoft Web site, and then search for Remote Procedure Call (RPC). > [!NOTE] > The RPC functionality in Windows Mobile is used only by DCOM. It is not supported in other deployment scenarios. |
Windows Internet (WinInet) |
WinInet handles all communication between an application and Winsock. For more information, see TCP/IP and WinInet. |
Windows Sockets (Winsock) |
Applications access the TCP/IP stack through the Winsock interface. For more information, see TCP/IP and Windows Sockets. |
See Also
Tasks
Concepts
Core Protocols of IPv6
IP Multicasting for IPv4
IP Multicasting for IPv6
Duplicate IP Address Detection for IPv4
Duplicate IP Address Detection for IPv6
Path Maximum Transmission Unit (PMTU) Discovery
Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)