I need some help with this. I'm trying to learn more about the code implementation of TCP(not so much socket programming).

So far the best book(or one of the best) I found is Richard Stevens - TCP/IP Illustrated Vol.2 The Implementation, ISBN 020163354X. Another good one seems to be Douglas Comer - Internetworking with TCP/IP Vol. II ISBN 0139738436.

I would love to use the Stevens book, but he is using the 4.4BSD-Lite source code. Comer is using his own XINU. I don't have any of those

I am aware that the principles described in those books apply to other OS's as well. The thing is that I would like to be able to follow the source code samples line by line on a real system. I don't know how I could do this on my Debian, given the fact that the books are written with other OS in mind.

What could I do ??? Should I install BSD Lite ? Even if I do it, I guess things have changed since the book came out in 1995. Should I install XINU and use Comer's book ?

Are there any books or material I could use on Linux ? I would appreciate any input on this. Thanks

The Stevens book(s) are pretty widely accepted as being the best or among the best Unix Network Programming books.

I'm not aware of any Linux specific Network Programming books with the same depth. You can easily dig around the net and find article and pages about Linux network programming, but none really approach the detail of something like the Stevens books.

Still, I believe that you will find that the concepts are VERY similar. If you can scrape together $50 you should be able to buy an old Pentium or Pentium II class machine and install one of the BSDs on it. That would give you the same basic code base. Might be cheaper than another book. On the other hand, the hard work of digging around the Linux code base to find the code that functions the same way would mean that you really understand it when you get done!

On the third hand I did notice that Amazon shows a book coming out in June called "The Definitive Guide to Network Programming" which MAY be similar.

Good Luck!

you can try the linux networking kernel for the kernel stuff for linux, though as don said, these are just articles...but they are containing flowcharts that show how a packet travels inside the kernel, also there is glen herrins " linux ip networking" that tells that tells you how the network stack implementation.
these are good, though not exhaustive,,,,perhaps you could use these to understand the code better and write a good book someday...

but that book due in june sounds really interesting...

but till that time ...a stevens and these articles should start you off in a good way...

stevens can be bought anyway...it is that good a book...
and you can relate to a lot of stuff he talks about in linux too...afte rall he is talking about tcp/ip


reading a lot of kernel code always comes in handy...