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TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol

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Peter R. Egli
Peter R. Egli

Overview of the TFTP protocol. TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) is, as its name implies, a very simple mechanism for transferring files between 2 hosts. TFTP is typically used for downloading software and configuration files to Internet and LAN appliances like routers, switches and gateways. Due to its simplicity, TFTP is often contained in bootloader programs that need to have a very small memory footprint in order to fit into EEPROM style chips. TFTP is not a reduced version or predecessor of FTP. TFTP and FTP do not have anything in common and serve different purposes. While FTP comes with some minimal access and session control and other features, TFTP is barely a file transport mechanism.

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© Peter R. Egli 2015 1/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Peter R. Egli INDIGOO.COM OVERVIEW OF TFTP, A VERY SIMPLE FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL FOR SIMPLE AND CONSTRAINED DEVICES TFTP TRIVIAL FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL
© Peter R. Egli 2015 2/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Contents 1. Why TFTP? 2. Comparison TFTP and FTP 3. The TFTP protocol 4. TFTP and FTP throughput comparison
© Peter R. Egli 2015 3/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 1. Why TFTP? In the old days, TFTP was typically used for downloading boot code to diskless workstations. TFTP was simple enough to fit into EEPROMs of diskless workstations (only a few KBytes of code). LAN TFTP Client (Diskless Workstation) TFTP Server with boot code Today, TFTP is most often used for downloading new code to Internet appliances (Internet Access Devices, routers, switches, VOIP gateways etc.).
© Peter R. Egli 2015 4/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 2. TFTP versus FTP FTP and TFTP both are protocols for transferring files between a client and a server. However, TFTP and FTP are 2 totally different protocols and do not have anything in common. Value FTP TFTP Authentication Authentication based on login with username and password. TFTP does not provide authentication (login). Connection FTP uses TCP (reliable transmission). Errors are handled by the underlying TCP layer. TFTP uses UDP and thus no connections. Errors in the transmission (lost packets, checksum errors) must be handled by the TFTP server. Protocol algorithm Transmission of data and control information is handled by the underlying TCP layer. TCP guarantees maximum throughput (flow control, congestion control) and error control. TFTP uses a simple lock-step protocol (each data packet needs to be acknowledged). Thus the throughput is limited. Footprint FTP is more complex than TFTP, thus requires a larger memory footprint. Often FTP is not suited for small device bootloaders which must fit into constrained EEPROM storage. TFTP is very simple. Because it uses the equally simple UDP transport protocol, TFTP clients or servers have a very small footprint and are thus suited for use in bootloaders. Control and data channel FTP separates user data and control information by using 2 separate TCP connections. TFTP uses only "1 channel", i.e. control packets (commands) flow in one direction while data packets carrying user data flow in the reverse direction over the same UDP sockets.
© Peter R. Egli 2015 5/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (1/5) The TFTP protocol (1/3): Request – response protocol: TFTP is a simple request / acknowledge protocol. The mode of operation is lock-step because each data packet needs to be acknowledged before the next data packet may be sent. This makes the implementation very simple (no flow control needed), but limits the throughput because each data packet requires 1 round-trip-time (RTT) for transmission. Acknowledge of data: TFTP only uses positive acknowledgements (correctly received packets are acknowledged with an ACK packet). When the sender does not receive an ACK packet in due time, it re-sends the last DATA packet. UDP Ports: The server "listens" on port 69 (TFTP default port), but switches to another port for all replies (DATA, ACK) in order to free the port 69 for other requests (server ‚spawns‘ a new UDP socket for handling the TFTP request).
© Peter R. Egli 2015 6/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com RRQ (Read Request) DATA block 1 (512 Bytes) ACK block 1 DATA block 2 (512 Bytes) ACK block 2 DATA block n (last) (0 - 511 Bytes) ACK block n 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (2/5) The TFTP protocol (2/3): TFTP read request (RRQ): TFTP client TFTP server The transfer is initiated by a read request packet (RRQ). The server responds with the first data block of 512 bytes. The client acknowledges the reception of the first data block. The transfer continues with the next data block which is acknowledged by the client. The last data packet contains 0 – 511 bytes. This signals the end of transfer to the client. If the entire data file to be transferred is dividable by 512, the last packet contains 0 data bytes (an empty packet). The transfer is completed by the last acknowledge.
© Peter R. Egli 2015 7/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com WRQ (Write Request) ACK block 0 DATA block 1 (512 Bytes) ACK block 1 DATA block n (last) (0 - 511 Bytes) ACK block 2 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (3/5) The TFTP protocol (2/3): TFTP write request (RRQ): The transfer is initiated by a write request packet (WRQ). To keep the scheme with acknowledging every packet as is the case in RRQ, the server acknowledges the "virtual" data block 0 which acknowledges the WRQ packet. The client sends the first data block of 512 bytes. The server acknowledges the first data block. The transfer is completed by the last acknowledge. DATA block 2 (512 Bytes) ACK block n The transfer continues with the next data block which is acknowledged by the server. Again, the last data packet contains 0 – 511 bytes signaling the end of the transfer to the client. TFTP client TFTP server
© Peter R. Egli 2015 8/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com RRQ (read) WRQ (write) DATA Data packet ACK packet ERROR packet 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (4/5) Packet layout: 2 bytes n bytes 1 byte mode 1 byte Opcode 1=RRQ, 2=WRQ Filename 0x00 “netascii” (=text), “octet” (=binary) 0x00 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 4=ACK Block number 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 5=ERROR Error number n bytes Error message 0x00 1 byte All data packets contain 512 bytes except the last one (0-511 bytes). 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 3=DATA Block number n bytes Data (0-512 bytes)
© Peter R. Egli 2015 9/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Wireshark trace of TFTP read request: C: 1 0.000000 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:69 TFTP Read Request, File: text.txt, Transfer type: netascii S: 2 0.001569 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44143 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 1 C: 3 0.002043 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 1 S: 4 0.002159 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44143 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 2 (last) C. 5 0.009594 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 2 Wireshark trace of TFTP write request: C: 1 0.000000 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:69 TFTP Write Request, File: text.txt, Transfer type: netascii S: 2 0.075201 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 0 C: 3 0.075949 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 1 S: 4 0.077696 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 1 C: 5 0.077937 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 2 (last) S: 6 0.084512 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 2 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (5/5) RRQ (Read Request) and WRQ (Write Request) traces: C: Packet sent by client S: Packet sent by server
© Peter R. Egli 2015 10/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Theoretical throughput example: Measured RTT = 0.282ms (with ping); Ws = 8192Bytes; assumptions: protocol processing does not consume time; TCP mechanisms (delayed ack etc.) do not increase RTT. TFTP: 512 Bytes in 0.282ms  1.8MBytes/s FTP: 8192 Bytes in 0.282ms  29MBytes/s FTP is roughly 16 times faster than TFTP. Measured throughput example: TFTP: 143872 Bytes in 0.8s  180KBytes/s FTP: 143872 Bytes in 0.11s  1.3MBytes/s FTP was roughly 7 times faster than TFTP. The effective transfer rate is much lower than the theoretical maximum due to processing delays on client and server (increased RTT) and less than ideal usage of protocols (TCP window size is not fully exploited). 4. TFTP and FTP throughput comparison Due to the different transmission algorithms, the maximum achievable throughput for TFTP and FTP is different: TFTP theoretical max. throughput = 512Bytes / RTT RTT = Round Trip Time FTP theoretical max. throughput = Ws / RTT Ws = Window size

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TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol

  • 1. © Peter R. Egli 2015 1/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Peter R. Egli INDIGOO.COM OVERVIEW OF TFTP, A VERY SIMPLE FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL FOR SIMPLE AND CONSTRAINED DEVICES TFTP TRIVIAL FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL
  • 2. © Peter R. Egli 2015 2/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Contents 1. Why TFTP? 2. Comparison TFTP and FTP 3. The TFTP protocol 4. TFTP and FTP throughput comparison
  • 3. © Peter R. Egli 2015 3/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 1. Why TFTP? In the old days, TFTP was typically used for downloading boot code to diskless workstations. TFTP was simple enough to fit into EEPROMs of diskless workstations (only a few KBytes of code). LAN TFTP Client (Diskless Workstation) TFTP Server with boot code Today, TFTP is most often used for downloading new code to Internet appliances (Internet Access Devices, routers, switches, VOIP gateways etc.).
  • 4. © Peter R. Egli 2015 4/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 2. TFTP versus FTP FTP and TFTP both are protocols for transferring files between a client and a server. However, TFTP and FTP are 2 totally different protocols and do not have anything in common. Value FTP TFTP Authentication Authentication based on login with username and password. TFTP does not provide authentication (login). Connection FTP uses TCP (reliable transmission). Errors are handled by the underlying TCP layer. TFTP uses UDP and thus no connections. Errors in the transmission (lost packets, checksum errors) must be handled by the TFTP server. Protocol algorithm Transmission of data and control information is handled by the underlying TCP layer. TCP guarantees maximum throughput (flow control, congestion control) and error control. TFTP uses a simple lock-step protocol (each data packet needs to be acknowledged). Thus the throughput is limited. Footprint FTP is more complex than TFTP, thus requires a larger memory footprint. Often FTP is not suited for small device bootloaders which must fit into constrained EEPROM storage. TFTP is very simple. Because it uses the equally simple UDP transport protocol, TFTP clients or servers have a very small footprint and are thus suited for use in bootloaders. Control and data channel FTP separates user data and control information by using 2 separate TCP connections. TFTP uses only "1 channel", i.e. control packets (commands) flow in one direction while data packets carrying user data flow in the reverse direction over the same UDP sockets.
  • 5. © Peter R. Egli 2015 5/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (1/5) The TFTP protocol (1/3): Request – response protocol: TFTP is a simple request / acknowledge protocol. The mode of operation is lock-step because each data packet needs to be acknowledged before the next data packet may be sent. This makes the implementation very simple (no flow control needed), but limits the throughput because each data packet requires 1 round-trip-time (RTT) for transmission. Acknowledge of data: TFTP only uses positive acknowledgements (correctly received packets are acknowledged with an ACK packet). When the sender does not receive an ACK packet in due time, it re-sends the last DATA packet. UDP Ports: The server "listens" on port 69 (TFTP default port), but switches to another port for all replies (DATA, ACK) in order to free the port 69 for other requests (server ‚spawns‘ a new UDP socket for handling the TFTP request).
  • 6. © Peter R. Egli 2015 6/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com RRQ (Read Request) DATA block 1 (512 Bytes) ACK block 1 DATA block 2 (512 Bytes) ACK block 2 DATA block n (last) (0 - 511 Bytes) ACK block n 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (2/5) The TFTP protocol (2/3): TFTP read request (RRQ): TFTP client TFTP server The transfer is initiated by a read request packet (RRQ). The server responds with the first data block of 512 bytes. The client acknowledges the reception of the first data block. The transfer continues with the next data block which is acknowledged by the client. The last data packet contains 0 – 511 bytes. This signals the end of transfer to the client. If the entire data file to be transferred is dividable by 512, the last packet contains 0 data bytes (an empty packet). The transfer is completed by the last acknowledge.
  • 7. © Peter R. Egli 2015 7/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com WRQ (Write Request) ACK block 0 DATA block 1 (512 Bytes) ACK block 1 DATA block n (last) (0 - 511 Bytes) ACK block 2 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (3/5) The TFTP protocol (2/3): TFTP write request (RRQ): The transfer is initiated by a write request packet (WRQ). To keep the scheme with acknowledging every packet as is the case in RRQ, the server acknowledges the "virtual" data block 0 which acknowledges the WRQ packet. The client sends the first data block of 512 bytes. The server acknowledges the first data block. The transfer is completed by the last acknowledge. DATA block 2 (512 Bytes) ACK block n The transfer continues with the next data block which is acknowledged by the server. Again, the last data packet contains 0 – 511 bytes signaling the end of the transfer to the client. TFTP client TFTP server
  • 8. © Peter R. Egli 2015 8/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com RRQ (read) WRQ (write) DATA Data packet ACK packet ERROR packet 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (4/5) Packet layout: 2 bytes n bytes 1 byte mode 1 byte Opcode 1=RRQ, 2=WRQ Filename 0x00 “netascii” (=text), “octet” (=binary) 0x00 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 4=ACK Block number 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 5=ERROR Error number n bytes Error message 0x00 1 byte All data packets contain 512 bytes except the last one (0-511 bytes). 2 bytes 2 bytes Opcode 3=DATA Block number n bytes Data (0-512 bytes)
  • 9. © Peter R. Egli 2015 9/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Wireshark trace of TFTP read request: C: 1 0.000000 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:69 TFTP Read Request, File: text.txt, Transfer type: netascii S: 2 0.001569 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44143 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 1 C: 3 0.002043 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 1 S: 4 0.002159 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44143 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 2 (last) C. 5 0.009594 193.5.54.112:44143 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 2 Wireshark trace of TFTP write request: C: 1 0.000000 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:69 TFTP Write Request, File: text.txt, Transfer type: netascii S: 2 0.075201 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 0 C: 3 0.075949 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 1 S: 4 0.077696 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 1 C: 5 0.077937 193.5.54.112:44547 -> 193.5.54.29:70 TFTP Data Packet, Block: 2 (last) S: 6 0.084512 193.5.54.29:70 -> 193.5.54.112:44547 TFTP Acknowledgement, Block: 2 3. TFTP Protocol RFC1350 (5/5) RRQ (Read Request) and WRQ (Write Request) traces: C: Packet sent by client S: Packet sent by server
  • 10. © Peter R. Egli 2015 10/10 Rev. 2.50 TFTP - Trivial File Transfer Protocol indigoo.com Theoretical throughput example: Measured RTT = 0.282ms (with ping); Ws = 8192Bytes; assumptions: protocol processing does not consume time; TCP mechanisms (delayed ack etc.) do not increase RTT. TFTP: 512 Bytes in 0.282ms  1.8MBytes/s FTP: 8192 Bytes in 0.282ms  29MBytes/s FTP is roughly 16 times faster than TFTP. Measured throughput example: TFTP: 143872 Bytes in 0.8s  180KBytes/s FTP: 143872 Bytes in 0.11s  1.3MBytes/s FTP was roughly 7 times faster than TFTP. The effective transfer rate is much lower than the theoretical maximum due to processing delays on client and server (increased RTT) and less than ideal usage of protocols (TCP window size is not fully exploited). 4. TFTP and FTP throughput comparison Due to the different transmission algorithms, the maximum achievable throughput for TFTP and FTP is different: TFTP theoretical max. throughput = 512Bytes / RTT RTT = Round Trip Time FTP theoretical max. throughput = Ws / RTT Ws = Window size