The read() call reads data on a specified connected socket.

Stream sockets act like streams of information with no boundaries separating data. For example, if applications A and B are connected with a stream socket and application A sends 1000 bytes, each call to this function can return 1 byte, or 10 bytes, or the entire 1000 bytes. Therefore, applications using stream sockets should place this call in a loop, which should repeat until all data has been received.