P2P

P2P stands for Peer-to-Peer and it is a network that people, through their

computers and devices, can become a part of it. P2P initially was popular for its file-

sharing features during the days of Napster. The content was deemed an

infringement of copyright, but the technology and the concept was quite sound. It

just didn‘t go anywhere until the advent of cryptocurrencies.

There is no need to do any major programming as the app will usually do

everything that is necessary. You just have to load it up, install it, and the app will

open up a port – typically port 8332. From there, it connects to other nodes in the

network and communicates pre-determined information. It doesn‘t allow anything

in the rest of your computer to be seen or shared. The P2P format is just for a way

for individual computers to come together and become a network without any

centralized server. In the typical internet infrastructure, there is a client-server

relationship. All the data sits in the server, and the client engage the server and ask

for the information. The information is centralized and, if in the event of a hack, a DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack that disables the server, or even

physical acts of terrorism on the server farm, all will be lost. In the distributed

system, an attack cannot disable the entire system because each node is not

dependent on the other node. If one node goes down, there are still numerous nodes

left to fill the gap in any way. In the Bitcoin ecosystem, the nodes broadcast

information to each other. It is the way to spread information across the network. If

one node gets hacked or DDOS‘d, the other nodes can still provide reliable copies of

the information. The advantages of a P2P network versus a centralized server

architecture can be appreciated, especially in blockchains. When you add

blockchains to a P2P network, you get a system that is robust and impenetrable, yet