UDPs

UDPs most commonly refer to the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), a core transport layer protocol in the Internet protocol suite. It provides a connectionless, best-effort service for delivering datagrams. UDP has a minimal header with four fields: source port, destination port, length, and checksum. It does not establish connections, does not guarantee delivery or order, and offers no built-in congestion control or flow control. The UDP checksum covers the header and payload and a pseudo-header derived from IP addresses; in IPv4 the checksum is optional, while in IPv6 it is required.

Because of its simplicity and low overhead, UDP is widely used for time-sensitive or loss-tolerant applications such as DNS queries, streaming audio and video, VoIP, and online games. Its stateless nature simplifies multi-server load balancing, and many applications implement their own reliability mechanisms if needed.

UDPs also refer to uridine diphosphate in biochemistry, a nucleotide composed of uracil attached to ribose and two phosphate groups. UDP functions primarily as a high-energy intermediate and as a sugar donor (UDP-sugars) in glycosylation processes. Common examples include UDP-glucose, UDP-galactose, UDP-glucuronic acid, and UDP-N-acetylglucosamine, which are used by glycosyltransferases to synthesize glycoproteins, glycolipids, and polysaccharides.

In summary, UDPs can denote a fundamental network transport protocol or nucleotide substrates in metabolism; the intended meaning is determined by context.