CODEWITHSUNDEEP
operating-systemtcp
richs
richs

Reputation: 4769

How does communication occur in java through TCP sockets on the same machine

I have two servers, written in Java, that communicate through sockets and TCP. The servers are both on the same Linux machine. If the servers were on different machines then data would have to go through network adapters and network cables, but since the servers are on the same machine how does the OS actually move data efficiently form one server to the other.

Upvotes: 0

Views: 344

Answers (2)

Nikita
Nikita

Reputation: 779

If two programs are using TCP/IP to communicate on the same machine, they are probably connected through the loopback interface

Upvotes: 0

Robert Tupelo-Schneck
Robert Tupelo-Schneck

Reputation: 10543

Generally, the messages will be sent over the loopback interface:

In TCP/IP a loopback device is a virtual network interface implemented in software only and not connected to any hardware, but which is fully integrated into the computer system's internal network infrastructure. Any traffic that a computer program sends to the loopback interface is immediately received on the same interface.

However, you can manage to configure your situation so that, for example, the server is referred to via an external IP address so that messages actually go out over the network before being routed back to the same machine.

Upvotes: 2

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