Which set of rules governs how devices communicate and connect on a network?

The correct answer is TCP/IP because it serves as the foundational protocol suite for Internet communication. TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and IP (Internet Protocol) work together to ensure that data can be transmitted between devices over a network. TCP is responsible for establishing connections and ensuring reliable data transfer, while IP deals with addressing and routing the data packets to their destination.

In the context of network communication, TCP/IP defines how devices should connect, communicate, and interpret the data being exchanged. This protocol suite is essential for enabling diverse devices and systems to understand one another across different networks, thus facilitating interoperability in the global internet infrastructure.

The other options represent specific protocols that serve different functions: UDP (User Datagram Protocol) is a connectionless protocol used for faster data transmission without error checking, HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is primarily used for transmitting web pages, and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is dedicated to transferring files between systems. While all these protocols operate on top of TCP/IP, they do not govern the overall communication and connection rules for devices on a network in the same way that TCP/IP does.