File Transfer Protocol

File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol used to transfer files from one host to another host over a TCP-based network, such as the Internet. FTP is built on a client-server architecture and uses separate control and data connections between the client and the server. !" FTP users ma# authenticate themselves usin$ a clearte%t si$n-in protocol, normall# in the form of a username and password, but can connect anon#mousl# if the server is confi$ured to allow it. For secure transmission that hides (encr#pts) the username and password, and encr#pts the content, FTP is often secured with &&'(T'& ()FTP&)). &&* File Transfer Protocol ()&FTP)) is sometimes also used instead, but is technolo$icall# different. The first FTP client applications were command-line applications developed before operatin$ s#stems had $raphical user interfaces, and are still shipped with most +indows, ,ni%, and 'inu% operatin$ s#stems. -" ." /o0ens of FTP clients and automation utilities have since been developed for desktops, servers, mobile devices, and hardware, and FTP has been incorporated into hundreds of productivit# applications, such as +eb pa$e editors.

History
The ori$inal specification for the File Transfer Protocol was written b# 1bha# 2hushan and published as 3FC !!4 on !5 1pril !67!. ,ntil !689, FTP ran on :CP, the predecessor of TCP(IP. -" The protocol was later replaced b# a TCP(IP version, 3FC 75; (<une !689) and 3FC 6;6 (=ctober !68;), the current specification. &everal proposed standards amend 3FC 6;6, for e%ample 3FC ---8 (<une !667) proposes securit# e%tensions and 3FC -4-8 (&eptember !668) adds support for IPv5 and defines a new t#pe of passive mode. 4"
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Protocol overview
Communication and data transfer

Illustration of starting a passive connection using port 21

FTP ma# run in active or passive mode, which determines how the data connection is established. ;" In active mode, the client creates a TCP control connection. In situations where the client is behind a firewall and unable to accept incomin$ TCP connections, passive mode ma# be used. In this mode, the client uses the control connection to send a P1&> command to the server and then receives a server IP address and server port number from the server, ;" 5" which the client then uses to open a data connection from an arbitrar# client port to the server IP address and server port number received. 7" 2oth modes were updated in &eptember !668 to support IPv5. Further chan$es were introduced to the passive mode at that time, updatin$ it to extended passive mode. 8" The server responds over the control connection with three-di$it status codes in 1&CII with an optional te%t messa$e. For e%ample )-99) (or )-99 =?)) means that the last command was successful. The numbers represent the code for the response and the optional te%t represents a human-readable e%planation or re@uest (e.$. A:eed account for storin$ fileB). !" 1n on$oin$ transfer of file data over the data connection can be aborted usin$ an interrupt messa$e sent over the control connection. +hile transferrin$ data over the network, four data representations can be usedC -" ." 4"

ASCII mode: used for text. Data is converted, if needed, from the sending host's character representation to !"#it ASCII #efore transmission, and $again, if necessar%& to the receiving host's character representation. As a conse'uence, this mode is inappropriate for files that contain data other than plain text.

Image mode $commonl% called (inar% mode&: the sending machine sends each file #%te for #%te, and the recipient stores the #%testream as it receives it. $Image mode support has #een recommended for all implementations of )*+&.

,(CDIC mode: use for plain text #et-een hosts using the ,(CDIC character set. *his mode is other-ise li.e ASCII mode.

/ocal mode: Allo-s t-o computers -ith identical setups to send data in a proprietar% format -ithout the need to convert it to ASCII

For te%t files, different format control and record structure options are provided. These features were desi$ned to facilitate files containin$ Telnet or 1&1 /ata transfer can be done in an# of three modesC !" -"

Stream mode: Data is sent as a continuous stream, relieving )*+ from doing an% processing. 0ather, all processing is left up to *C+. 1o ,nd" of"file indicator is needed, unless the data is divided into records.

(loc. mode: )*+ #rea.s the data into several #loc.s $#loc. header, #%te count, and data field& and then passes it on to *C+.234

Compressed mode: Data is compressed using a single algorithm $usuall% run"length encoding&.

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) is an Internet standard for electronic mail (email) transmission across Internet Protocol (IP) networks. &DTP was first defined b# 3FC 8-! (!68-, eventuall# declared &T/ !9), !" and last updated b# 3FC ;.-! (-998) -"
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which includes the E%tended &DTP (E&DTP) additions, and is the protocol in widespread use toda#. It is an 1pplication 'a#er protocol in the =&I reference model. &DTP uses TCP port -;. The protocol for new submissions (D&1) is effectivel# the same as &DTP, but it uses port ;87 instead. &DTP connections secured b# &&' are known b# the shorthand &DTP& on TCP port 45;, thou$h &DTP& is not a protocol in its own ri$ht. +hile electronic mail servers and other mail transfer a$ents use &DTP to send and receive mail messa$es, user-level client mail applications t#picall# use &DTP onl# for sendin$ messa$es to a mail server for rela#in$. For receivin$ messa$es, client applications usuall# use either the Post =ffice Protocol (P=P) or the Internet Dessa$e 1ccess Protocol (ID1P) or a proprietar# s#stem (such as Dicrosoft E%chan$e or 'otus :otes(/omino) to access their mail bo% accounts on a mail server.

History
>arious forms of one-to-one electronic messa$in$ were used in the !659s. People communicated with one another usin$ s#stems developed for specific mainframe computers. 1s more computers were interconnected, especiall# in the ,& FovernmentGs 13P1:ET, standards were developed to allow users of different s#stems to e-mail one another. &DTP $rew out of these standards developed durin$ the !679s. &DTP can trace its roots to two implementations described in !67!C the Dail 2o% Protocol, whose implementation has been disputed, ." but is discussed in 3FC !65 and other 3FCs, and the &:/D&F pro$ram, which, accordin$ to 3FC --.;, 3a# Tomlinson of 22: invented for TE:EH computers to send mail messa$es across the 13P1:ET. 4"
;" 5"

Fewer than ;9 hosts were connected to the 13P1:ET at this time. 7"

Further implementations include FTP Dail 8" and Dail Protocol, both from !67.. 6" /evelopment work continued throu$hout the !679s, until the 13P1:ET converted into
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the modern Internet around !689. <on Postel then proposed a Dail Transfer Protocol in !689 that be$an to remove the mailGs reliance on FTP. !9" &DTP was published as 3FC 788 in :ovember !68!, also b# Postel.

Mail processing model

(lue arro-s can #e implemented using S6*+ variations.

Email is submitted b# a mail client (D,1, mail user a$ent) to a mail server (D&1, mail submission a$ent) usin$ &DTP on TCP port ;87. Dost mailbo% providers still allow submission on traditional port -;. From there, the D&1 delivers the mail to its mail transfer a$ent (DT1, mail transfer a$ent). =ften, these two a$ents are Iust different instances of the same software launched with different options on the same machine. 'ocal processin$ can be done either on a sin$le machine, or split amon$ various appliancesJ in the former case, involved processes can share filesJ in the latter case, &DTP is used to transfer the messa$e internall#, with each host confi$ured to use the ne%t appliance as a smart host. Each process is an DT1 in its own ri$htJ that is, an &DTP server. The boundar# DT1 has to locate the tar$et host. It uses the /omain name s#stem (/:&) to look up the mail e%chan$er record (DH record) for the recipientGs domain (the part of the email address on the ri$ht of @). The returned DH record contains the name of the tar$et host. The DT1 ne%t connects to the e%chan$e server as an &DTP client. (The
7

article on DH record discusses man# factors in determinin$ which server the sendin$ DT1 connects to.)

Protocol overview
&DTP is a connection-oriented, te%t-based protocol in which a mail sender communicates with a mail receiver b# issuin$ command strin$s and suppl#in$ necessar# data over a reliable ordered data stream channel, t#picall# a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) connection. 1n SMTP session consists of commands ori$inated b# an &DTP client (the initiatin$ a$ent, sender, or transmitter) and correspondin$ responses from the &DTP server (the listenin$ a$ent, or receiver) so that the session is opened, and session parameters are e%chan$ed. 1 session ma# include 0ero or more &DTP transactions. 1n SMTP transaction consists of three command(repl# se@uences (see e%ample below.) The# areC
1. MAIL command, to esta#lish the return address, a...a. 0eturn"+ath,
2citation needed4

, mfrom, or envelope sender. *his is the address for #ounce

messages. 2. RCPT command, to esta#lish a recipient of this message. *his command can #e issued multiple times, one for each recipient. *hese addresses are also part of the envelope. 5. DATA to send the message text. *his is the content of the message, as opposed to its envelope. It consists of a message header and a message body separated #% an empt% line. DA*A is actuall% a group of commands, and the server replies t-ice: once to the DATA command proper, to ac.no-ledge that it is read% to receive the text, and the second time after the end"of"data se'uence, to either accept or re8ect the entire message.

Telnet
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Telnet is a network protocol used on the Internet or local area networks to provide a bidirectional interactive te%t-oriented communication facilit# usin$ a virtual terminal connection. ,ser data is interspersed in-band with Telnet control information in an 8-bit b#te oriented data connection over the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). Telnet was developed in !656 be$innin$ with 3FC !;, e%tended in 3FC 8;4, and standardi0ed as Internet En$ineerin$ Task Force (IETF) Internet &tandard &T/ 8, one of the first Internet standards. *istoricall#, Telnet provided access to a command-line interface (usuall#, of an operatin$ s#stem) on a remote host. Dost network e@uipment and operatin$ s#stems with a TCP(IP stack support a Telnet service for remote confi$uration (includin$ s#stems based on +indows :T). *owever, because of serious securit# issues when usin$ Telnet over an open network such as the Internet, its use for this purpose has waned si$nificantl# citation
needed"

in favor of &&*.

The term telnet ma# also refer to the software that implements the client part of the protocol. Telnet client applications are available for virtuall# all computer platforms. Telnet is also used as a verb. To telnet means to establish a connection with the Telnet protocol, either with command line client or with a pro$rammatic interface. For e%ample, a common directive mi$ht beC )To change your password, telnet to the server, log in and run the passwd command.) Dost often, a user will be telnetting to a ,ni%-like server s#stem or a network device (such as a router) and obtainin$ a lo$in prompt to a command line te%t interface or a character-based full-screen mana$er.

History and standards

Telnet is a client-server protocol, based on a reliable connection-oriented transport. T#picall#, this protocol is used to establish a connection to Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) port number -., where a Telnet server application (telnetd) is listenin$.
:

Telnet, however, predates TCP(IP and was ori$inall# run over :etwork Control Pro$ram (:CP) protocols. 2efore Darch ;, !67., Telnet was an ad hoc protocol with no official definition. !" Essentiall#, it used an 8-bit channel to e%chan$e 7-bit 1&CII data. 1n# b#te with the hi$h bit set was a special Telnet character. =n Darch ;, !67., a Telnet protocol standard was defined at ,C'1 -" with the publication of two :IC documentsC Telnet Protocol &pecification, :IC K!;.7-, and Telnet =ption &pecifications, :IC K!;.7.. 2ecause of ne$otiable options protocol architecture, man# e%tensions were made for it, some of which have been adopted as Internet standards, IETF documents &T/ -7 throu$h &T/ .-. &ome e%tensions have been widel# implemented and others are proposed standards on the IETF standards track (see below)

Security
+hen Telnet was initiall# developed in !656, most users of networked computers were in the computer departments of academic institutions, or at lar$e private and $overnment research facilities. In this environment, securit# was not nearl# as much a concern as it became after the bandwidth e%plosion of the !669s. The rise in the number of people with access to the Internet, and b# e%tension the number of people attemptin$ to hack other peopleGs servers, made encr#pted alternatives necessar#. E%perts in computer securit#, such as &1:& Institute, recommend that the use of Telnet for remote lo$ins should be discontinued under all normal circumstances, for the followin$ reasonsC

Telnet, b# default, does not encr#pt an# data sent over the connection (includin$ passwords), and so it is often practical to eavesdrop on the communications and use the password later for malicious purposesJ an#bod# who has access to a router, switch, hub or $atewa# located on the network between the two hosts where
!

Telnet is bein$ used can intercept the packets passin$ b# and obtain lo$in, password and whatever else is t#ped with a packet anal#0er.

Dost implementations of Telnet have no authentication that would ensure communication is carried out between the two desired hosts and not intercepted in the middle.

&everal vulnerabilities have been discovered over the #ears in commonl# used Telnet daemons.

Telnet

! "

I2D ;-;9 or .-79 workstation emulation is supported via custom telnet clients, T:;-;9(T:.-79, and I2D servers. Clients and servers desi$ned to pass I2D ;-;9 data streams over Telnet $enerall# do support &&' encr#ption, as &&* does not include ;-;9 emulation. ,nder =&(499, port 66- is the default port for secured telnet. citation needed"

Telnet data
1ll data octets e%cept 9.77 are transmitted over the TCP transport as is. Therefore, a Telnet client application ma# also be used to establish an interactive raw TCP session, and it is commonl# believed that such session which does not use the I1C (9.77 character, or -;; in decimal) is functionall# identical. citation needed" This is not the case, however, because there are other network virtual terminal (:>T) rules, such as the re@uirement for a bare carria$e return character (C3, 1&CII !.) to be followed b# a :,'' (1&CII 9) character, that distin$uish the telnet protocol from raw TCP sessions.
clarification needed"

=n the other hand, man# s#stems now possess true raw TCP clients, such as

netcat or socat on ,:IH and PuTTL on +indows, which also can be used to manuall# )talk) to other services without speciali0ed client software. :evertheless, Telnet is still sometimes used in debu$$in$ network services such as &DTP, I3C, *TTP, FTP or P=P. servers, to issue commands to a server and e%amine the responses, but of all these protocols onl# FTP reall# uses Telnet data format.
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Post Office Protocol

In computing# t$e +ost <ffice +rotocol %+<+& is an application'layer Internet standard protocol used (y local e'mail clients to retrieve e'mail from a remote server over a TCP)IP connection*+,- P.P and IMAP %Internet Message Access Protocol& are t$e two most prevalent Internet standard protocols for e'mail retrieval*+!- /irtually all modern e'mail clients and servers support (ot$* P.P $as (een developed t$roug$ several versions# wit$ version 0 %P.P0& (eing t$e current standard* Most we(mail service providers suc$ as 1oogle Mail# Microsoft Mail and 2a$oo3 Mail provide (ot$ an IMAP and P.P0 service* .verview
P=P supports simple download-and-delete re@uirements for access to remote mailbo%es (termed maildrop in the P=P 3FCGs). ." 1lthou$h most P=P clients have an option to leave mail on server after download, e-mail clients usin$ P=P $enerall# connect, retrieve all messa$es, store them on the userGs PC as new messa$es, delete them from the server, and then disconnect. =ther protocols, notabl# ID1P, (Internet Dessa$e 1ccess Protocol) provide more complete and comple% remote access to t#pical mailbo% operations. Dan# e-mail clients support P=P as well as ID1P to retrieve messa$esJ however, fewer Internet &ervice Providers (I&Ps) support ID1P. dubious discuss" 1 P=P. server listens on well-known port !!9. Encr#pted communication for P=P. is either re@uested after protocol initiation, usin$ the &T'& command, if supported, or b# P=P.&, which connects to the server usin$ Transport 'a#er &ecurit# (T'&) or &ecure &ockets 'a#er (&&') on well-known TCP port 66;.
1=

History
P=P (P=P!) is specified in 3FC 6!8 (!684), P=P- b# 3FC 6.7 (!68;). The ori$inal specification of P=P. is 3FC !98! (!688). Its current specification is 3FC !6.6, updated with an e%tension mechanism, 3FC -446 and an authentication mechanism in 3FC !7.4. P=P- has been assi$ned well-known port !96. The ori$inal P=P. specification supported onl# an unencr#pted ,&E3(P1&& lo$in mechanism or 2erkele# .rhosts access control. P=P. currentl# supports several authentication methods to provide var#in$ levels of protection a$ainst ille$itimate access to a userGs e-mail. Dost are provided b# the P=P. e%tension mechanisms. P=P. clients support &1&' authentication methods via the 1,T* e%tension. DIT ProIect 1thena also produced a ?erberi0ed version.

Communications protocol
+ithin computer science, a communications protocol is a s#stem of di$ital rules for messa$e e%chan$e within or between computers. +hen messa$es are e%chan$ed throu$h a computer network, the rules s#stem is called a network protocol. Communicatin$ s#stems use well-defined formats for e%chan$in$ messa$es. Each messa$e has an e%act meanin$ intended to provoke a particular response of the receiver. Thus, a protocol must define the s#nta%, semantics, and s#nchroni0ation of communicationJ the specified behavior is t#picall# independent of how it is to be implemented. 1 protocol can therefore be implemented as hardware, software, or both. Communications protocols have to be a$reed upon b# the parties involved. !" To reach a$reement a protocol ma# be developed into a technical standard. 1 programming language describes the same for computations, so there is a close analo$# between
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protocols and pro$rammin$ lan$ua$esC protocols are to communications as programming languages are to computations. -"

Communicating systems
The information e%chan$ed between devicesMthrou$h a network, or other mediaMis $overned b# rules and conventions that can be set out in technical specifications called communication protocol standards. The nature of a communication, the actual data e%chan$ed and an# state-dependent behaviors, is defined b# its specification. In di$ital computin$ s#stems, the rules can be e%pressed b# al$orithms and data structures. E%pressin$ the al$orithms in a portable pro$rammin$ lan$ua$e makes the protocol software operatin$ s#stem independent. =peratin$ s#stems usuall# consist of a set of cooperatin$ processes that manipulate a shared data to communicate with each other. This communication is $overned b# wellunderstood protocols, which can be embedded in the process code itself. ." 4" In contrast, because there is no common memor#, communicatin$ s#stems have to communicate with each other usin$ a shared transmission medium. Transmission is not necessaril# reliable, and individual s#stems ma# use different hardware and(or operatin$ s#stems. To implement a networkin$ protocol, the protocol software modules are interfaced with a framework implemented on the machineGs operatin$ s#stem. This framework implements the networkin$ functionalit# of the operatin$ s#stem. ;" The best known frameworks are the TCP(IP model and the =&I model. 1t the time the Internet was developed, la#erin$ had proven to be a successful desi$n approach for both compiler and operatin$ s#stem desi$n and, $iven the similarities between pro$rammin$ lan$ua$es and communication protocols, la#erin$ was applied to
12

the protocols as well. 5" This $ave rise to the concept of la#ered protocols which nowada#s forms the basis of protocol desi$n. 7" &#stems t#picall# do not use a sin$le protocol to handle a transmission. Instead the# use a set of cooperatin$ protocols, sometimes called a protocol famil# or protocol suite. 8" &ome of the best known protocol suites includeC IPH(&PH, H.-;, 1H.-;, 1ppleTalk and TCP(IP. The protocols can be arran$ed based on functionalit# in $roups, for instance there is a $roup of transport protocols. The functionalities are mapped onto the la#ers, each la#er solvin$ a distinct class of problems relatin$ to, for instanceC application-, transport-, internet- and network interface-functions. 6" To transmit a messa$e, a protocol has to be selected from each la#er, so some sort of multiple%in$(demultiple%in$ takes place. The selection of the ne%t protocol is accomplished b# e%tendin$ the messa$e with a protocol selector for each la#er. !9"

4asic re5uirements of protocols

Dessa$es are sent and received on communicatin$ s#stems to establish communications. Protocols should therefore specif# rules $overnin$ the transmission. In $eneral, much of the followin$ should be addressedC !!"

Data formats for data exchange. Digital message #itstrings are exchanged. *he #itstrings are divided in fields and each field carries information relevant to the protocol. Conceptuall% the #itstring is divided into t-o parts called the header area and the data area. *he actual message is stored in the data area, so the header area contains the fields -ith more relevance to the protocol. (itstrings longer than the maximum transmission unit $6*>& are divided in pieces of appropriate si?e.2124

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Address formats for data exchange. Addresses are used to identif% #oth the sender and the intended receiver$s&. *he addresses are stored in the header area of the #itstrings, allo-ing the receivers to determine -hether the #itstrings are intended for themselves and should #e processed or should #e ignored. A connection #et-een a sender and a receiver can #e identified using an address pair (sender address, receiver address). >suall% some address values have special meanings. An all"1s address could #e ta.en to mean an addressing of all stations on the net-or., so sending to this address -ould result in a #roadcast on the local net-or.. *he rules descri#ing the meanings of the address value are collectivel% called an addressing scheme.2154

Address mapping. Sometimes protocols need to map addresses of one scheme on addresses of another scheme. )or instance to translate a logical I+ address specified #% the application to an ,thernet hard-are address. *his is referred to as address mapping.2134

Routing. @hen s%stems are not directl% connected, intermediar% s%stems along the route to the intended receiver$s& need to for-ard messages on #ehalf of the sender. <n the Internet, the net-or.s are connected using routers. *his -a% of connecting net-or.s is called internetworking.

Detection of transmission errors is necessar% on net-or.s -hich cannot guarantee error"free operation. In a common approach, C0Cs of the data area are added to the end of pac.ets, ma.ing it possi#le for the receiver to detect differences caused #% errors. *he receiver re8ects the pac.ets on C0C differences and arranges someho- for retransmission.2174

Acknow edgements of correct reception of pac.ets is re'uired for connection"oriented communication. Ac.no-ledgements are sent from receivers #ac. to their respective senders.2194
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!oss of information " timeouts and retries. +ac.ets ma% #e lost on the net-or. or suffer from long dela%s. *o cope -ith this, under some protocols, a sender ma% expect an ac.no-ledgement of correct reception from the receiver -ithin a certain amount of time. <n timeouts, the sender must assume the pac.et -as not received and retransmit it. In case of a permanentl% #ro.en lin., the retransmission has no effect so the num#er of retransmissions is limited. ,xceeding the retr% limit is considered an error.21:4

Direction of information f ow needs to #e addressed if transmissions can onl% occur in one direction at a time as on half"duplex lin.s. *his is .no-n as 6edia Access Control. Arrangements have to #e made to accommodate the case -hen t-o parties -ant to gain control at the same time.21!4

#e$uence contro . @e have seen that long #itstrings are divided in pieces, and then sent on the net-or. individuall%. *he pieces ma% get lost or dela%ed or ta.e different routes to their destination on some t%pes of net-or.s. As a result pieces ma% arrive out of se'uence. 0etransmissions can result duplicate pieces. (% mar.ing the pieces -ith se'uence information at the sender, the receiver can determine -hat -as lost or duplicated, as. for necessar% retransmissions and reassem#le the original message.21;4

% ow contro is needed -hen the sender transmits faster than the receiver or intermediate net-or. e'uipment can process the transmissions. )lo- control can #e implemented #% messaging from receiver to sender.22=4

Fettin$ the data across a network is onl# part of the problem for a protocol. The data received has to be evaluated in the conte%t of the pro$ress of the conversation, so a protocol has to specif# rules describin$ the conte%t. These kind of rules are said to
17

e%press the syntax of the communications. =ther rules determine whether the data is meanin$ful for the conte%t in which the e%chan$e takes place. These kind of rules are said to e%press the semantics of the communications.

Point-to-point protocol
In networkin$, the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) is a data link protocol commonl# used in establishin$ a direct connection between two networkin$ nodes. It can provide connection authentication, transmission encr#ption (usin$ ECP, 3FC !658), and compression. PPP is used over man# t#pes of ph#sical networks includin$ serial cable, phone line, trunk line, cellular telephone, speciali0ed radio links, and fiber optic links such as &=:ET. PPP is also used over Internet access connections (now marketed as )broadband)). Internet service providers (I&Ps) have used PPP for customer dial-up access to the Internet, since IP packets cannot be transmitted over a modem line on their own, without some data link protocol. Two derivatives of PPP, Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) and Point-to-Point Protocol over 1TD (PPPo1), are used most commonl# b# Internet &ervice Providers (I&Ps) to establish a /i$ital &ubscriber 'ine (/&') Internet service connection with customers. PPP is commonl# used as a data link la#er protocol for connection over s#nchronous and as#nchronous circuits, where it has lar$el# superseded the older &erial 'ine Internet Protocol (&'IP) and telephone compan# mandated standards (such as 'ink 1ccess Protocol, 2alanced ('1P2) in the H.-; protocol suite). The onl# re@uirement for PPP is that the circuit provided be full duple%. PPP was desi$ned to work with numerous network la#er protocols, includin$ Internet Protocol (IP), T3I'', :ovellGs Internetwork Packet E%chan$e (IPH), :2F, /ECnet and 1ppleTalk.

Description
PPP was desi$ned somewhat after the ori$inal */'C specifications. The desi$ners of PPP included man# additional features that had been seen onl# in proprietar# data-link protocols up to that time.
19

3FC -;!5 describes Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) as a method for transmittin$ PPP over Ethernet that is sometimes used with /&'. 3FC -.54 describes Point-to-Point Protocol over 1TD (PPPo1) as a method for transmittin$ PPP over 1TD 1daptation 'a#er ; (11';), which is also a common alternative to PPPoE used with /&'. PPP is a la#ered protocol that has three componentsC

Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion s#stem. It was developed from the $eneral purpose ,,CP dial-up network architecture. /uke ,niversit# $raduate students Tom Truscott and <im Ellis conceived the idea in !676 and it was established in !689. !" ,sers read and post messa$es (called articles or posts, and collectivel# termed news) to one or more cate$ories, known as news$roups. ,senet resembles a bulletin board s#stem (22&) in man# respects, and is the precursor to Internet forums that are widel# used toda#. ,senet can be superficiall# re$arded as a h#brid between email and web forums. /iscussions are threaded, as with web forums and 22&es, thou$h posts are stored on the server se@uentiall#. =ne notable difference between a 22& or web forum and ,senet is the absence of a central server and dedicated administrator. ,senet is distributed amon$ a lar$e, constantl# chan$in$ con$lomeration of servers that store and forward messa$es to one another in so-called news feeds. Individual users ma# read messa$es from and post messa$es to a local server operated b# a commercial usenet provider, their Internet service provider, universit#, emplo#er, or their own server.

Introduction

+hen a user posts an article, it is initiall# onl# available on that userGs news server. Each news server talks to one or more other servers (its )newsfeeds)) and e%chan$es articles with them. In this fashion, the article is copied from server to server and should eventuall# reach ever# server in the network. The later peer-to-peer networks operate on a similar principleJ but for ,senet it is
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normall# the sender, rather than the receiver, who initiates transfers. &ome have noted that this seems an inefficient protocol in the era of abundant hi$h-speed network access. ,senet was desi$ned under conditions when networks were much slower, and not alwa#s available. Dan# sites on the ori$inal ,senet network would connect onl# once or twice a da# to batch-transfer messa$es in and out. 4" This is lar$el# because the P=T& (telephone) network was t#picall# used for transfers, and phone char$es were lower at ni$ht. ,senet has si$nificant cultural importance in the networked world, havin$ $iven rise to, or populari0ed, man# widel# reco$ni0ed concepts and terms such as )F1N) and )spam). ;" The format and transmission of ,senet articles is similar to that of Internet e-mail messa$es. The difference between the two is that ,senet articles can be read b# an# user whose news server carries the $roup to which the messa$e was posted, as opposed to email messa$es which have one or more specific recipients. 5" Toda#, ,senet has diminished in importance with respect to Internet forums, blo$s and mailin$ lists. ,senet differs from such media in several wa#sC ,senet re@uires no personal re$istration with the $roup concernedJ information need not be stored on a remote serverJ archives are alwa#s availableJ and readin$ the messa$es re@uires not a mail or web client, but a news client. The $roups in alt.binaries are still widel# used for data transfer.

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