Online Computer Dictionary

1. The kind of communication found in a system using layered protocols. Each software or hardware component can be considered to communicate only with its peer in the same layer via the connection provided by the lower layers.

(1994-12-14) 2. A file sharing system like BitTorrent, Gnutella or Kazaa where computers that download data also serve that data to other downloaders. This increases the total bandwidth available in proportion to the number of users and so reduces download time. This contrasts with client-server where all clients download the data from a single server (or mirror), sharing its fixed bandwidth.