Peer-to-peer

P2P redirects here. For the telecommunications term PTP, see Point-to-Point.P2P can also stand for Pay-to-play in gaming.

Related Topics:
Point-to-Point - Pay-to-play

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A peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network is a network that relies on the computing power and bandwidth of the participants in the network rather than concentrating it in a relatively few servers. P2P networks are typically used for connecting nodes via largely ' connections. Such networks are useful for many purposes. Sharing content files (see file sharing) containing audio, video, data or anything in digital format is very common, and realtime data, such as telephony traffic, is also passed using P2P technology.

Related Topics:
Network - Bandwidth - File sharing - Telephony

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The term "P2P network" can also mean grid computing.

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A pure peer-to-peer file transfer network does not have the notion of clients or servers, but only equal peer nodes that simultaneously function as both "clients" and "servers" to the other nodes on the network. This model of network arrangement differs from the client-server model where communication is usually to and from a central server. A typical example for a non peer-to-peer file transfer is an FTP server. One user uploads a file to the FTP server, then many others download it, with no need for the uploader and downloader to be connected at the same time.

Related Topics:
Node - Client-server - FTP

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Some networks and channels, such as Napster, OpenNAP, or IRC @find, use a client-server structure for some tasks (e.g., searching) and a peer-to-peer structure for others. Networks such as Gnutella or Freenet use a peer-to-peer structure for all purposes, and are sometimes referred to as true peer-to-peer networks, although Gnutella is greatly facilitated by directory servers that inform peers of the network addresses of other peers.

Related Topics:
Napster - OpenNAP - IRC - @find - Gnutella - Freenet

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Peer-to-peer architecture embodies one of the key technical concepts of the internet, described in the first internet Request for Comments, "RFC 1, Host Software" http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1.txt dated 7 April 1969. More recently, the concept has achieved wide prominence among the general public in the context of the absence of central indexing servers in architectures used for exchanging multimedia files.

Related Topics:
Request for Comments - RFC 1 - 7 April - 1969 - Server

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