I know the following is talking about Windows, however, I can see us technical persons dealing with the following. PEER-TO-PEER NETWORKING WITH WINDOWS XP "As with most things in life, as time rolls on, old computer definitions take on new meanings. It used to be that a PTP (peer-to-peer) network descried a collection of desktop computers that simply shared resources with each other, such as printers and hard drives. Back then, there wasn't a centralized, dedicated server. Each peer was at once server and workstation, connected in a loose-knit fashion. The inclusion of native peer networking in Windows95 was one of the reasons networking in general became so popular." MORE THAN SHARING MUSIC "Microsoft's new incarnation of P2P networking expands the day-to-day role of shared printers and hard drives to also include a client's CPU, RAM, local system resources. The new platform is only available with Windows XP, but it provides you with the tools necessary to develop next-generation peer applications. Instead of client PC's simply simply processing their own data set, next-generation P2P networks share the processing power among peer members and take advantage of the massive underutilization of hard disks, RAM, and idle clock cycles on their client PC's.. P2P networking makes use of this idle hardware by breaking an application or data into chunks and distributing it among these peer computers. In sharing the workload, it makes the network client PC's act as a massive parallel computer, allowing large amounts of data or processing time to take place without a sever hardware upgrade. Although not a Microsoft-coded application, an example of a P2P application is the SETI@home project (setiathome.ssl.Berkeley.edu). SETI@home distributes radio telescope data to end users where it is analyzed and transmitted back to the host. Like a traditional peer network, a P2P network differs from a client-server network because there is no centralized server. An example of a common client-server network is the Internet. When you surf the Internet, your PC's browser (client) requests data (the Web page) from a server. The data is then returned, processed, and displayed on your PC. Think of it as a "many-to-one" relationship. Many clients to one server. In a P2P network each computer in the peer group is connected to at least two other PC's in the group. And because each PC also acts as a server, you break away from the client-server method. This creates a "many-to-many" relationship, which is the heart of a P2P network." WHY P2P? "There are a number of reasons why the P2P networking concept is taking off. One is you already have an investment in hardware (your desktop computer), and you can maximize their return on investment by keeping their CPUs busy all of the time. Another reason is you can scale a network of peer computers easily with additional hardware. If your P2P application needs additional processing power, simply add another desktop (or 100) to the peer group. Also a group of peers is inherently more reliable than a single server. If a PC in the peer group fails, other PC's can still share data because of how interconnected A P2P network is. On the other hand, a single PC, such as a file or Web server, is a single point of failure than can bring the entire group down." WHAT THEY CAN AND CAN'T DO "Before you rush out and start setting up your own P2P network, you should understand what it is intended for and what it requires. You cannot take any old application and make it run in a P2P scenario. In order to take advantage of this new technology, applications will need to be written for it, which specifically use the Microsoft Windows XP Peer-to-Peer Software Development Kit (free: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/ptp REAL TIME COMMUNICATION "Not only can P2P network open up new computing possibilities, but it can also make existing applications better. For example, IM (instant messaging) is one of the most widely used Internet applications. No matter who is providing the service, it requires a centralized server to bring it all together. If IM was written using P2P networking, you would communicate directly with your chat partner and not rely on some other server to provide the connection. Online gaming is another application that can get a usability and performance upgrade and performance upgrade via P2P. Similar to IM, you can link up with other gamers directly, cutting out the middleman (server)." TWO HEADS (OR FIFTY) ARE BETTER THAN ONE "Online collaboration is another example of how P2P networks can make an existing technology even better. Using P2P software, you can share project workspaces and share files directly with other team members, bypassing the need for a special collaboration server. For example, Corel's Grafigo2 is a commercially available, pen-based business application written for Microsoft Windows XP Table PC Edition, which utilizes P2P collaboration. With Grafigo, you can create, annotate and work together across your P2P network, which ostensibly enhances productivity and user experience." EFFICIENT DISTRIBUTION "P2P networks are an efficient way to distribute many different types of content to group members. The content can be exciting multi-media, such as a live streaming concert event, or something as mundane as a software update. Because the application running on each group member PC has intelligence built-in (and it knows who its local peers are), it can help distribute the load and reduce the need for stacked-and-packed centralized servers. In an audio broadcast, for example, each peer member can share a little portion of the file with other members, thereby greatly decreasing the overall amount of network bandwidth needed from the source." REQUIREMENTS FOR A P2P NETWORK "A base requirement for P2P networking is the installation and use of an updated version of IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) Available from Microsoft Advanced Networking Pack for Windows XP: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/p2p IPv6 has significant technical advantages over IPv4 (the most widely used version of TCP/IP (transmission control protocol/Internet protocol), including a larger IP address space. IPv4 has a 32-bit address space where IPv6 has a 128-bit address space. (This works out to roughly a theoretical maximum number of IPv6 addresses of 340 trillion, trillion, trillion hosts). IPv6 also has the advantage of a much better QOS (quality of service), which is the ability to make sure network traffic gets a specific amount of bandwidth. To ease this expected migration to IPv6, Microsoft is providing Teredo, and IPv6 transition technology. Teredo allows Ipvy traffic to work across a router or firewall that uses NAT (network address translation). In a nutshell, Tgeredo encapsulates IPv6 packets inside a UDP (user datagram protocol) IPv4 packet and tunnels it between sites. When the packet makes it to the other side, the iPv6 packets are recovered and continue on their way. Microsoft sees Teredo as a short-term technology and expects it to be used less as a more native IPv6 network equipment makes it into the marketplace." P2P networking uses a new kind of host name lookup process called PNRP (peer name resolution protocol). Because it is based on IPv6, a normal IPv4 DNS (domain name system) does not work. PNRP does not need a central, root name server; Each client in the group has a partial list of other group members in its PNRP cache. If a member PC needs to locate another member, and it does not already have the address, it makes an inquiry to the group member closest to the desired member's address. That PC then either provides the correct address or checks with one of its neighbors. It continues the process until the member is located. All member addresses are numerical to eliminate any language or alphabet issues and to prevent domain "squatting." SETTING UP A P2P NETWORK "Putting together a P2P network is a bit like living in the Old West. It's a new frontier, and there are not a lot of tools to help you out. Before you can even begin to distribute your P2P application, you have to get IPv6 installed and working. First, you must configure normal IPv4 on your system and then install the Advanced Network pack for Windows XP. For the most part IVv6 does not need any real configuration. (As of this writing, there is no graphical interface to allow you to make changes or view information about your IPv6 network.) One hardware configuration you must attend to is your firewall. In order for your P2P application to leave the confines of your Network, you must open up UDP port 3544 on your firewall. (Check your firewall's service settings for directions on how to Open this port.) This open port lets Teredo communicate Through the firewall and pass through the NAT. At this point, you Can begin connecting to shared resources across your network Using either Windows Explorer or Net Use commands. For the most Part, you will not see anything different from a network standpoint. If you want to dig in and check out specific IPv6 information, use The Netsh.exe tool. (For more information about using the Netsh Command prompt, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 242468.) Deploying your P2P application depends on how the program was Written. If the application requires any special authorization or ports, You need to make the appropriate settings and changes. With the New P2P SDK (software developers kit), you are free to invent and Enhance applications to meet your needs." P2P NETWORK SECURITY "Because a P2P network does not have a centralized server, there Is no single point for handling user authentication and authorization. For example, in a Windows2000 Server/Server2003 network scenario, Active directory provides the authentication services for the entire Domain. In a P2P network, however, each peer must provide its own Authentication. To handle security between modes, each member Creates self-signed digital certificates, some of which are formatted As X509 certificates. P2P networks let any peer act as a certificate Authority, allowing it to create and accept digital certificates. A peer Client creates the public and or private key pair and uses the private Key to sign the digital certificate. When a peer node receives the self- Signed certificate and the key pairs, it verifies the certificate's auth- enticity using its private and public keys, and, based on the key's Validity, creates a connection. It would seem like this use of self- Signed certificates is kind of like letting the Inmates run the asylum. Not true. P2P networking relies on an established chain of certificates Leading back to a public key that is known and trusted. By creating A chain back to a known, trusted source, it validates all other Certificates on down the line." FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS "Don't expect to see a rash of new P2P network-enabled applications On the shelves of your local computer store anytime soon. The Concept is not new, but he implementation is, and as of now Microsoft Is blazing a trail on it's own. There will be some good head-to-head Competition among Microsoft and the other companies working on P2P improvements, but if history is any guide Microsoft will play by Its own rules and try to convince (or force) everyone to do it its way. The stumbling blocks to this are the need for IPv6 and its current Limited availability to Windows XP based desktops. You can expect to See this situation change in the coming months as more and more Developers show an interest. With the added attention, Microsoft Should start releasing updated Ipv6 protocol stacks for other versions Of Windows. Unless Microsoft can get someone to port its IPv6 stack To another operating system, like Linux, Web application developers May be slow to get onboard." (end extract.) Source--PC Today Magazine, Volume 2, Issue 2, February, 2004. 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