What is peer2peer?

Answer 1

Peere2peer is where the files are stored on and served by personal computers of the users. Most people who engage in file sharing are also downloading files that other users share. Sometimes these two activities are linked together. P2P file sharing is distinct from file trading in that downloading files from a P2P network does not require uploading, although some networks either provide incentives for uploading such as credits or force the sharing of files being currently downloaded A peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network relies primarily on the computing power and bandwidth of the participants in the network rather than concentrating it in a relatively low number of servers. P2P networks are typically used for connecting nodes via largely ad hoc 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. A pure peer-to-peer 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 where the client and server programs are quite distinct, and the clients initiate the download/uploads and the servers react to and satisfy these requests

Answer 2

A peer-to-peer (abbreviated to P2P) computer network is one in which each computer in the network can act as a client or server for the other computers in the network, allowing shared access to various resources such as files, peripherals, and sensors without the need for a central server. P2P networks can be set up within the home, a business, or over the internet. Each network type requires all computers in the network to use the same or a compatible program to connect to each other and access files and other resources found on the other computer. P2P networks can be used for sharing content such as audio, video, data, or anything in digital format.

P2P is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads among peers. Peers are equally privileged participants in the application. Each computer in the network is referred to as a node. The owner of each computer on a P2P network would set aside a portion of its resources - such as processing power, disk storage, or network bandwidth - to be made directly available to other network participant, without the need for central coordination by servers or stable hosts.[1] With this model, peers are both suppliers and consumers of resources, in contrast to the traditional client-server model where only the server supply (send), and clients consume (receive). Emerging collaborative P2P systems are going beyond the era of peers doing similar things while sharing resources, and are looking for diverse peers that can bring in unique resources and capabilities to a virtual community thereby empowering it to engage in greater tasks beyond that can be accomplished by individual peers, yet are beneficial to all the peers..

The first P2P distributed system platform was Pipes Platform by PeerLogic.One of PeerLogic's first licensees was Texas Instruments in 1993. While P2P systems were used in many application domains, the first P2P killer application was the file sharing system Napster, originally released in 1999. The concept has inspired new structures and philosophies in many areas of human interaction. P2P networking is not restricted to technology; it also covers social processes with a P2P dynamic. In such context, social peer-to-peer processes are currently emerging throughout the society.