4.1.2.1 Peer-to-Peer Networks
Two or more computers are connected via a network and can share resources (such as printers and files) without having a dedicated server. Every connected end device (known as a peer) can function as both a server and a client. The roles of client and server are set on a per request basis.
In this example, Peer1 has a printer attached to it directly by USB, and is setup to share the printer on the network so that Peer2 can print to it. The Peer2 is setup to share a drive or folder on the network. This allows Peer1 to access files on the shared folder, as well as save files to the shared folder. In addition to sharing files, a network such as this one would allow users to enable networked games, or share an Internet connection.
Peer-to-peer networks decentralize the resources on a network. Instead of locating data to be shared on dedicated servers, data can be located anywhere and on any connected device