Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) 2026 – 400 Free Practice Questions to Pass the Exam

The transport layer protocol that matches HTTP traffic is TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) is designed for reliable communication and is dependent on the connection-oriented nature that TCP offers.

TCP ensures that all packets of data that make up an HTTP request or response are delivered reliably and in the correct order. This reliability is crucial for web browsing as it allows for the complete loading of web pages, where the integrity and sequence of the data are essential for proper display and functionality.

In contrast, UDP (User Datagram Protocol) is a connectionless protocol that does not guarantee delivery, order, or error-checking, making it unsuitable for HTTP traffic, which requires reliable communication. ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) is primarily used for network diagnostics (like ping operations) and is not suitable for application-layer traffic. FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is an application layer protocol used for transferring files, not for transporting HTTP traffic. Thus, TCP is the correct match for HTTP traffic due to its reliability and connection-oriented features.