A PEER-TO-PEER (P2P) network is one where each workstation has both server and client capabilities and users can initiate communication between any two (or more) computers. P2P is an alternative to the traditional client-server model of networking, and is especially handy for trading files across the internet. With the advent of file-exchange programs like Napster, peer-to-peer has also come to describe the exchange of files through a mediating server.

A P2P network can be an ad hoc connection—a couple of computers connected via a Universal Serial Bus to transfer files. A P2P network also can be a permanent infrastructure that links a half-dozen computers in a small office over copper wires. Or a P2P network can be a network on a much grander scale in which special protocols and applications set up direct relationships among users over the Internet.In a P2P environment, access rights are governed by setting sharing permissions on individual machines.