The Internet Protocol (IP) is the network layer communications protocol in the Internet protocol suite for relaying datagrams across network boundaries. Its routing function enables internetworking and essentially establishes the Internet. Historically, IP was the connectionless datagram service in the original Transmission Control Program, complemented by a connection-oriented service that became the basis for the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). The Internet protocol suite is therefore often referred to as TCP/IP.
A computer network is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network nodes. The computers use common communication protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. The connections between nodes are established using either physically wired, optical, or wireless radio-frequency that may be arranged in various network topologies. The best-known computer network is the Internet.