2.1 HDLC: High Level Data Link Control Layer 2 of the OSI model is the data link layer.

One of the most common layer 2 protocols is the HDLC protocol. The High Level Data Link Control (HDLC) protocol, an ISO data link layer protocol based on the IBM SDLC, is to ensure that data passed up to the next layer has been received exactly as transmitted (i.e error free, without loss and in the correct order). Another important function of HDLC is flow control, which ensures that data is transmitted only as fast as the receiver can receive it. There are two distinct HDLC implementations: HDLC NRM (also known as SDLC) and HDLC Link Access Procedure Balanced (LAPB), the later is a more popular implementation. HDLC uses zero insertion/deletion process (commonly known as bit stuffing) to ensure that the bit pattern of the delimiter flag does not occur in the fields between flags. The HDLC frame is synchronous and therefore relies on the physical layer to provide method of clocking and synchronizing the transmission and reception of frames. HDLC's frame structure:

The beginning and end of an HDLC frame are marked by flag characters - 01111110 binary. No flag character may appear in the intervening data. To enforce this requirement, the data may need to be modified (in a transparent manner). On bit-synchronous links, a binary 0 is inserted after every sequence of five 1s (bit stuffing). Thus, the longest sequence of 1s that may appear of the link is 0111110 - one less than the flag character. The receiver, upon seeing five 1s, examines the next bit. If 0, the bit is discarded and the frame continues. If 1, then this must be the flag sequence at the end of the frame.

2.2 The Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)

The Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) is a data link layer protocol which encapsulates other network layer protocols for transmission on synchronous and asynchronous communication lines. Definitions of "point-to-point" 1. A network configuration in which a connection is established between two, and only two points. The connection may include switching facilities. 2. A circuit connecting two points without the use of any intermediate terminal or computer. http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc768082.aspx

HDLC only works on synchronous serial links HDLC does not support authentication HDLC is the standard on cisco devices for the encapsulation type over serial links Cisco's implementation of HDLC adds a 2 byte Type field to the header HDLC does not support error detection? On the other hand PPP does work on both synchronous and asynchronous PPP allows for both PAP and CHAP authentication PPP does support error detection only at layer 2, error correction is done by a high level