Peer-To-Peer File Sharing – allows users to download media files such as music, movies, and games using a P2P software client that searches for other connected computers. The “peers” are computer systems connected to each other through the Internet. Thus, the only requirements for a computer to join peer-to-peer networks are an Internet connection and P2P software. The first generation of P2P software is Napster, a central server-based model that was eventually shut down. The second generation of P2P software is Gnutella and Kazaa, which are user-based models. BitTorrent became the third generation of P2P networks. The difference between BitTorrent and previous generations is that it creates a new network for every set of files instead of trying to create one big network of files using SuperNodes, web caches or servers.
Source: Wikipedia
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